Chapter 2

Educating for Social Work

Julia M. Watkins and Jessica Holmes

More than a century has passed since social work first emerged as both a profession and a discipline. What began as an unorganized and undefined community developed into a distinct field with its own philosophy, knowledge base, and competencies. This remarkable development was accomplished largely through early recognition that education can serve to define, validate, and advance social work as a discipline.

Social work education has grown considerably since its beginnings. There are currently three levels of education in social work: baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral. The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), the sole accrediting body for baccalaureate and master's programs in social work, now accredits the 682 social work programs that graduated more than 33,000 social work students in 2010 (see Figure 2.1). In that same year, 70 doctoral social work programs in the United States graduated 308 students (CSWE, 2011a; Group for the Advancement of Doctoral Education [GADE], n.d.). More than 7,000 faculty members are social work educators, including approximately 68.6% of full-time female faculty and 27.5% of full-time faculty from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups (from category “Total Minorities,” not including categories “Multiple Race/Ethnicity” or “Foreign”; CSWE, 2011a). The social work field has grown, not just in the number of programs, faculty, and students, but also in the quality of training and qualifications of faculty as well as the breadth and depth of curriculum.

Figure 2.1 Number of baccalaureate and graduate social work programs by year 1980 to 2011.

Data from Statistics on Social Work Education in the United States: 2007–2010, by the Council on Social Work Education, 2008–2011. 2006 Annual Survey of Social Work Programs: Research Brief, by the Council on Social Work Education, 2007, Alexandria, VA: Author; Statistics on Social Work Education in the United States: 1986–1987, by J. Hidalgo and E. C. Spaulding, 1988, Washington, DC: Council on Social Work Education; Statistics on Social Work Education in the United States: 1991–2002, by T. Lennon, 1992. Alexandria, VA: Council on Social Work Education; Statistics on Social Work Education in the United States: 1980–1985, by A. Rubin, 1981, New York, NY: Council on Social Work Education; Statistics on Social Work Education in the United States: 1988–1990, by E. C. Spaulding, 1991, Alexandria, VA: Council on Social Work Education.

In preparing for the next era of social work, it is important to recall both the issues and successes of the past in social work education. Some of the future challenges for social work education are similar to those faced by the early social work educators: the need to recruit qualified students and faculty and the need to promote understanding among social work programs, levels, and membership organizations. Other challenges are unique to this particular time: sustainability, accountability, and relevancy.

Meeting these challenges requires recognition of the past, as well as collaboration and cooperation among all stakeholders in social work, so that continued growth and attention to quality may be ensured.

Need for Trained Social Workers

Although forms of social work were practiced for some time in the 1800s, social work in the late 19th century had moved beyond simple apprenticeship—formal education and training in social work became crucial (Leighninger, 2000; McCrea, 1911). In the United States, the demand for education first came from practitioners, the community, and the philanthropic agencies that employed social workers, followed by the federal government. Employers in the public and private sectors felt that their needs for training were disparate; these unreconciled differences resulted in the formation of two types of schools of social work (Kendall, 2002).

In the private sector, caseworkers and directors of social service organizations sought advanced training for practice that applied to their work, including charity, social theory, and social service practice methods (Austin, 1997; Kendall, 2002; McCrea, 1911). In the late 1800s and early 1900s, philanthropic organizations began forming professional social work schools, later graduate schools of social work that would meet the training needs of those workers (Kendall, 2002; Leighninger, 2000). These same graduate schools formed an accrediting organization, the American Association of Schools of Social Work (AASSW) that, in 1919, had 17 members (Kendall, 2002).

In the public sector, trained social workers were needed for the growing number of public jobs in social service through agencies such as the Social Security Administration and the Children's Bureau. The federal government determined that the schools of social work forged by the philanthropic organizations were not meeting their needs and pressured public universities to establish social work programs that would focus on the public sector. Public universities thus created undergraduate programs in social work or social welfare (Kendall, 2002) that were mostly based in rural areas (Stamm, 1972). These schools were organized under the National Association of Schools of Social Administration (NASSA), which also briefly served as an accrediting organization for programs in social work (Kendall, 2002).

The difference between the two types of schools—their definitions of practice, training, and curriculum for social work—caused increasing divisions in the field and continuous problems for social work students. The need to combine the two educational types into a single discipline for a comprehensive and cohesive education was necessary for the survival of social work (Kendall, 2002). Social work education took nearly 50 years to consolidate, and reconciling the transition from baccalaureate to master's education in social work required an even longer period of time (Bernard, 1977). The merger of the two accrediting organizations and their programs was a slow process, because both were concerned that the interests of their schools, students, and educational purposes would not be best represented in a combined organization. The establishment of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) as the sole accrediting body for baccalaureate and master's social work programs helped solidify the unification (Austin, 1997; Kendall, 2002).

Accreditation

CSWE was established in 1952, formed from AASSW—the accrediting organization of the graduate social work schools—and NASSA—the organization representing baccalaureate social work schools (Austin, 1997; Kendall, 2002). At CSWE's inception, there were 59 graduate schools of social work and 19 undergraduate departments of social work (Kendall, 2002). CSWE was created to bring continuity to social work education as well as to ensure quality in schools of social work. CSWE accomplishes this mission “by setting and maintaining national accreditation standards for baccalaureate and master's degree programs in social work, by promoting faculty development, and by advocating for social work education and research” (CSWE, 2006, p. 1). Priorities for CSWE in its early years included expanding graduate social work education, improving curriculum at all levels, attracting academically well-prepared and committed students, recruiting teachers, and determining appropriate practice for different educational levels (Kendall, 1966).

The CSWE Commission on Accreditation (COA) is a semi-autonomous group that has the authority to make accreditation decisions based on a review of a program under the CSWE Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards. The COA is composed of social work faculty, deans, directors, and practitioners, as well as individuals from outside the social work community. COA members are nominated and appointed for 3-year terms by the chair of the board of CSWE (CSWE, 2010). The CSWE Office of Social Work Accreditation (OSWA) provides administrative support to the COA and the social work programs throughout the accreditation process, including arranging site visits to the programs, maintaining the accreditation database and website, providing technical assistance to programs, reviewing program “self-studies,” and arranging meetings. The Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) recognizes CSWE as the sole accrediting body for social work education in the United States.

As of the June 2011 COA meeting, CSWE accredited 682 social work programs, including 209 graduate and 473 undergraduate programs—more than eight times the number of programs accredited in 1952. Figure 2.1 illustrates the continued trend of growth in social work baccalaureate and master's programs since 1980. The need for trained social workers has driven this growth in programs, and the need for continued training has remained strong. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor cited social work as a field expected to “grow faster than average” (U.S. Department of Labor, 2009).

Social work education represents more than 7,000 faculty members; of these, more than 68% are female (CSWE, 2011a). As indicated by Figure 2.2, female predominance in social work faculty is a relatively new development, despite the longtime predominance of women...