A Simple but Powerful Way to Enhance Critical Thinking Skills among Undergraduate Social Work Students in Online Class

Strength-based Feedback.

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.61468/jofdl.v28i1.625

Keywords:

Critical thinking, strength-based approach, online education, social-work education, feedback

Abstract

As online education grows rapidly in social work, there are growing concerns about teaching critical-thinking skills in online environments. This retrospective case study shares experience of an online course that employed a strength-based instructional method to enhance critical-thinking skills among undergraduate social-work students. Twenty-two student assignments were reviewed from an online Human Behaviour and Social Environment course offered to undergraduate social-work students. Three approaches were adopted to learn the impact of instructional practices on critical-thinking skills: 1) students’ course evaluations; 2) the number of words written in students’ responses to written assignments; 3) the quality of students’ prompts. The study found that using a strength-based approach and providing individualised feedback were effective in enhancing critical-thinking skills in online courses. Limitations and suggestions for future research were discussed.

Author Biographies

Tae Kyung Park, University of Colorado Colorado Springs

Tae Kyung Park is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Social Work at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. She completed her Master of Social Welfare at the University of Seoul in 2010 (with an MSW Equivalency Certificate Obtained from CSWE in 2018) and then worked at several non- governmental organisations as a director of humanitarian aid programmes overseas and as a programme evaluator in child welfare before completing her Ph.D. in Social Work at Indiana University in 2018. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from the University of Seoul. Her research interests are in expanding access to higher education through online education, environmental justice in social work, and transformational leadership style in child welfare.

Nadine Stuehm, University of Nebraska Kearney

Nadine Stuehm came to the University of Nebraska Kearney (UNK) in 1996 with a Master in Social Work from the University of Nebraska-Omaha and a Bachelor of Social Work from Kearney State College. Prior to her employment at UNK, she served as a medical social worker at Good Samaritan Hospital (1985–1996), Social Service Director at Mother Hull Nursing Home (1982–1986), and social work consultant for Valley County Hospital in Ord, Nebraska. Ms. Stuehm’s primary position is Field Placement Coordinator. She works closely with community and state agencies to ensure the best field placement experience for graduating students. She has also worked as an intake coordinator at Richard Young Hospital and currently provides individual drug and alcohol counselling at Wholeness Healing Center.

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Published

2024-10-01

How to Cite

Park, T. K., & Stuehm, N. (2024). A Simple but Powerful Way to Enhance Critical Thinking Skills among Undergraduate Social Work Students in Online Class: Strength-based Feedback. Journal of Open, Flexible and Distance Learning, 28(1), 41–58. https://doi.org/10.61468/jofdl.v28i1.625

Issue

Vol. 28 No. 1 (2024): Journal of Open, Flexible and Distance Learning

Section

Articles - Primary studies

License

Copyright (c) 2024 Tae Kyung Park, Nadine Stuehm

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