Browsing by Author "Lorenzetti, Diane"
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Item Community based mentors and journey guides: a transformative learning approach to social work education(2019) Lorenzetti, Liza; Halvorsen, Jeffery; Dhungel, Rita; Lorenzetti, Diane; Oshchepkova, Tatiana; Haile, Lemlem; Biscette, KrishmaCritical pedagogy is congruent with the social work discipline, which is engaged, people-focused, and centers on social justice, liberation and human rights. While there is growing recognition of the importance of better preparing social work students to engage in critical, anti-oppressive practice, students have limited opportunities for transformative learning experiences within community settings, outside of official practicums. Masters of Social Work students pursuing a specialization in international and community development (ICD) at a Canadian university were matched with community Journey Guides who provided mentorship and opportunities for students to become involved in community-based social justice initiatives. This article presents the eight-step experiential framework that was used as a pedagogical tool to support student learning, and the results from the program’s evaluation with the first student cohort. Using surveys and focus groups, the study found the guiding relationship was characterized by acceptance, friendliness, encouragement, and motivation. Students engaged in critical dialogues with Guides, gained community development experience and skills and enhanced their social justice knowledge.Item A transformative approach to social work education(2017) Dhungel, Rita; Lorenzetti, Liza; Lorenzetti, Diane; Oshchepkova, Tatiana; Haile, LemlemThe paper presents an overview of “The Journey Guides Program” - a mentorship and experiential learning framework developed by the Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary in Canada. This program was implemented in an Advanced Graduate Seminar, a preparatory course for graduate Social Work students prior to entering their field placements. The purpose of this program is to advance practice-based knowledge in transformative learning. This article begins by discussing critical pedagogy, the theoretical framework that underpinned “The Journey Guides Program”, followed by a description of the eight-step process the authors adopted to implement this program. This paper concludes by presenting our evaluation plan and subsequent steps.