Supervision

One of the major benefits of the practicum is access to direct supervision. The relationship between the student and the supervisor is of key importance and there are responsibilities associated with each of the roles. Direct supervision is a requirement of the social work practicum and is a reciprocal process wherein learning occurs between the Field Instructor and the student. The Social Work program recommends a minimum of one hour of formal supervision for each week the diploma student is in the practicum agency.

Your role: You are expected to include learning objectives related to supervision in the learning contract. By including the potential for learning that can be achieved through supervision, you ensure that the expectation is clearly set for the practicum. Engaging in a conversation at the beginning of practicum will help set the standard for supervision throughout the term.

Recognizing that the pace of work in many of our agencies is high, you must play an active role in the supervisory relationship by:

• Attending all scheduled supervision meetings
• Arriving on time for meetings
• Remaining flexible to the needs of the supervisor and the agency if a supervision time needs to be re-arranged
• Being prepared for supervision with questions to discuss
• Having information available for the supervisor related to the work completed in the agency
• Bringing in case studies for discussion and learning

The role of the Field Instructor/Agency Supervisor:

• Supervision is a part of the agreement to host a social work student (you) at the agency. The Field Instructor is responsible for providing the time and space for the supervision to occur at least once per week.
• Recognizing the nature of the work in various social service agencies we are aware that supervision regularly occurs in less than formal settings (i.e., while driving to see clients) and we understand that this is necessary in order to manage the workload. If this is the practice at the agency it is important to come up with a strategy to signal to you that the conversation is about supervision so that you can understand the varied forms of supervision that occur in the field.

The role of the supervisor in the practicum agency is:

• Attending all scheduled supervision meetings
• Providing a space for the meeting to occur
• Being open to answering a range of questions directed by you
• Having information to share with you to enhance learning