Social work is a profession and practitioners must obtain professional qualifications as a requirement for their specialization and professionalization. Vocational qualification is the basic requirement for practitioners to engage in the knowledge and skills of an occupation, and I have no problem with the idea that social workers should have their vocational qualification. It is only the current examination questions, said out to let lay people underestimate social workers, in fact, more unfavorable to cultivate the ability of social workers to think independently.
The content of the Assistant Social Worker exam includes Comprehensive Social Work Competence and Social Work Practice, and the Intermediate Worker adds Social Work Laws and Policies on top of it. The primary question type is single choice and multiple choice; intermediate question type, practice is all open case subtype. The general competence examines the ethical values of social work, direct and indirect methods of work. Among the multiple-choice questions, most of the questions describe a direct and specific case, or a social worker's handling skill practice, or a certain theoretical point of view, and allow the respondent to choose the skill, or handling method, or theoretical concept corresponding to it. Moreover, it must be said that basically, the test is mainly memorization, the options have been with a very strong hints, and even some of the questions in the option to ask "the right way to do it", "the wrong way to do it?". The options in some questions even ask "What is the right thing to do? This type of certain questions, basically look at the options can be done right.
The biggest drawback of this approach is that it allows people to memorize more than to think and understand, and even to some extent, kills the ability of social workers to think independently. First of all, the questions list specific practices and ask students to choose the corresponding concepts. To make a correct choice, of course, candidates need to know and differentiate each concept in the options. However, the candidates are studying for the requirements of the examination and the type of questions, which students are naturally inclined to memorize and recite without having to think and express their own understanding. Secondly, many of the examples listed in the question could be handled in more than one way, and different modes of doing so. But the option to select the most correct answer, must be social workers to distinguish between absolute right or wrong, how much is the candidate's own understanding and thinking. Furthermore, most of the questions are biased towards more generalized general criteria, or follow-up strategies, the lack of specific how to do the examination, relatively more general. Can be said to be a simple conceptual understanding and memorization of the basic process can be, less practical and specific application, while some of the examination of the specific operation of the topic, but not quite in line with the reality. Choice questions are extremely suggestive, although the options also have the ability to let the candidates tangled situation, but the actual practical work is not a choice of questions.
Even the open-ended questions of social work practice intermediate, but only the last question program design questions relatively reflect openness. However, there are still similar to the "nomenclature" of the topic, the same is not combined with the theoretical perspective of the analysis, mostly generalized. In some of the multiple choice questions, there was only one answer to the question of what kind of service model should be used by social workers! The answers to some of the questions even made me feel that they were like the answers to the ideology and politics class in secondary school! I was really worried that I didn't get any marks for my answers in the exam, because according to my own thinking habits from work, I simply couldn't write such answers. Solving a case is not something that can be written in 300 or 500 words. Besides, the case is dead, real cases have dynamics. Often, changes in the caseworker may not necessarily not follow the program changes in our model, our actual work process, the work of the plan need to be amended according to the actual situation. For many co-workers, it is not that they do not understand the theory and the operation process, but that they do not know how to do it, i.e., the specific operation methods and the so-called micro-skills that go with the theory. Therefore, when supervisors teach their co-workers, they will always give specific instructions and demonstrations, simulate scenarios, and so on. Simply talking about theories and models cannot be regarded as a complete and proper supervisory process. Although there are processes and models in social work practice, and there are rules to follow, it is by no means like the natural sciences, where substituting the values of variables into formulas will surely lead to the corresponding results. Each of the social worker's practice process needs to be analyzed specifically, the dynamics of the practice process is ever-changing, the same follow-up techniques, the changes and reactions of the case are not necessarily the same.
Therefore, from the point of view of the difference between the examination questions and the actual practice situation, the current examination questions are relatively detached from the actual situation. At present, the social work thinking of many social workers is also weak, not accustomed to a more systematic social work theory to think and analyze the problems in the practice, the examination of multiple-choice questions obviously does not help the development of social work thinking of social workers. Social workers have to rely on their own thinking and understanding to help people or provide services, and there are no multiple choice questions to do. Some so-called authoritative prediction questions have replaced the question of finding a job with finding an object, but the response method is the same. I am afraid that if any social worker reads these two examples and goes for practical operation, it is not ideal. However, it is also very fortunate that we have a variety of methods and strategies, so there is no absolute right and wrong, even if the micro-skills are the same.
For multiple-choice question types, even social workers may get used to becoming afraid to think and express their views. The year before last, when the Hong Kong supervisor was supervising a case, he simply asked his colleagues how they felt about the case and what they thought about it. This was an extremely open question, but the co-workers looked at each other blankly and the whole conference room was silent. Although the supervisor emphasized that everyone could speak freely and that there was no right or wrong, the co-workers were still at loggerheads. I was laughing in my heart: Girl, you'd better give some options for everyone to choose. During last year's training, a co-worker told me that the training instructor had expressed strong dissatisfaction because none of the co-workers had answered his question about what the basic patterns of group work were. None of the co-workers answered. The instructor asked co-workers who had passed the Intermediate Social Worker Examination and graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Social Work to raise their hands, but no one dared to do so. When I heard this, I found it hard to believe. Among the co-workers, there were many local junior supervisors who had grown up from front-line social workers. I think there should be some co-workers who could answer at least one question. The fact that all of them "kept their hands to themselves" at that time also showed that they were not confident in their answers. No wonder the mentor was dissatisfied. When I heard this incident, I had the same reaction in my heart: if Sir had given us a choice of several answers, the co-workers would definitely have been able to answer them. One is an open-ended question, and the other has a more standardized answer, so why are the workers silent?
Social work is the need to be well versed in a variety of theories, familiar with the operation of the work methods and processes, which is beyond doubt. More importantly, social workers must have a strong ability to analyze and think about problems, which is no different from higher education that focuses on cultivating people's ability to think independently. Social workers must have their own thinking, understanding, reflection and even questioning of the theories and practices they have learned. Why are these types of test questions designed? In fact, it is not difficult to guess that, from the present point of view of the Government's indicators for the training of social workers, the reason for selecting "professionals" with the type of test questions that are easier to pass is perhaps because the Government wishes to create a group of social workers who will take the Assistant Social Worker Examination first, and the so-called "Big Data Tells You", saying how many, how many social workers have already passed the examination, is that the Government has not been able to find out how many social workers have already passed the examination. The so-called "big data tell you", saying that how many people have passed the examination, is one step closer to the goal of building up a large pool of social work talents. Just by the number of college graduates, is far from enough to meet the standard, so many civil affairs units and community committees also have the corresponding "examination indicators", and most of them have not studied social work, so the difficulty is low to help pass the rate, even for social work students is equally favorable.
For the neighborhood committee staff, there is no social work professional qualification, it will not affect their work at all, but just failed to more 200 yuan a month certificate reward. And for the full-time social workers in social work organizations, obtaining a vocational qualification is not enough to represent a more proficient service delivery. In particular, the teaching of social work practice in universities is not yet mature and is still at the stage of exploration and establishment, and the practical ability of social work graduates still needs to be studied again after leaving school. In reality, even if the social worker is familiar with the policy and regulations, involving the policy content of the service, in fact, the street civil affairs system and neighborhood committees have long been done.
Of course, this kind of examination method is not one hundred percent. After all, go to the book review, you can have an understanding of the relevant knowledge, better than no good. Intermediate "social work practice" has been open subjective questions, especially the last question of program design, always good. Moreover, the social worker's independent thinking and analytical ability is not strong, and not only due to the form of the vocational examination. At the same time, as social workers, it is good for service delivery and dealing with residents if they are well versed in policies and regulations. However, if we return to the issue of social workers to think independently, in addition to changing the form of professional qualification exams, social work teaching in colleges and universities should also be adjusted.
China's university teaching makes students too comfortable, too comfortable. Although not every social work student will be engaged in social work at this stage, but back to cultivate the ability to think independently and the various issues, which no matter which profession need to be cultivated, and, social work education also has its principles and requirements. However, if we go further, I am afraid that we will have to go back to the topic of "QIAN Xuesen's question", and we have to discuss how to reform the education system of colleges and universities. In any case, social work is a profession that combines theory with practice and unifies knowledge and action. In the theoretical learning, college teaching in the arrangement of ordinary homework, need to arrange more students to read books and write articles, give students the appropriate reading guidelines, require students to share the results of learning. At the same time, equipped with practical courses is also essential. At that time, when I was doing my internship in university, I often thought about what I could do to look "professional", but in retrospect, it was actually unnecessary. At that time, the first thing I did was to get in touch with some disadvantaged groups and think about the values and concepts of social work. It can be said that the internship was just a way to feel what it is like to be a social worker, and the contact with the service users for a few times gave me a deep impression. The so-called professional ability to improve, did not feel too much gain. However, this is the most important, thinking about its philosophy and value, is the first step of social work, this is the examination can not be examined, that blame the supervisor said at the time did not know that the original mainland is to do multiple choice questions can be a social worker. Although there are deficiencies in the current social work education in colleges and universities, it is not a complete failure. There are deficiencies in is China's teaching system, thankfully, there are always many teachers who focus on developing students' independent thinking and practical skills, and through teaching and practicing with students, it is really valuable and honorable.
From the point of view of the developmental requirements of social work, the examination questions need to be changed, and in the future, there will be social workers engaged in front-line practice among the teachers in colleges and universities who will enter the classroom to teach the students' courses after further study. Evaluation experts often point out that the growth of frontline social workers is too slow. Has it ever occurred to you that our professional level examination itself is also to blame? A lot of theories, modes of practice and interviewing skills are just covered in about two pages. What about a considerable number of non-scientific social workers? Although the Ministry of Civil Affairs has responded that the gold content and certificate validity of the Social Workers' Professional Level Examination will remain unchanged, I also studied social work in university and practiced social work after graduation, and I can feel what the drawbacks of the current examination questions are. The examination question question type and the way remains unchanged, year after year to adjust the examination syllabus, in fact, is the year 30 late thanks to the stove - good to do not do.
I am not denying the importance of memorization, nor am I disrespecting the question writers and assessment experts. However, a few years have passed, the development of the practice situation varies from place to place, and there is corresponding practical experience, this examination method really needs to be adjusted in order to adapt to the needs of the practice development.
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