Navigating placement

Having conversations that assist the student to navigate the agency starts at the pre-placement interview and continues at different times through the placement.

  • The pre-placement interview is a great time to start to get to know your student and them you.
  • A clear pre-placement conversation should provide the student with a base knowledge of the agency, placement expectations, and flag anything that is non-negotiable. It’s a conversation that can prepare and excite them enough to walk through that door on day 1 of their placement and for you to genuinely welcome them.

But the student isn’t the only one who is starting placement.  You are starting a new placement journey too and so are your colleagues and clients. So what are the conversations you need to have with your student to help them navigate through placement?

Some things to consider before the placement commences

  • Have you had a conversation with you line manager about how the extra workload associated with supervising a student will be managed?  Can some tasks be reassigned?
  • Have you spoken to the University and to your manager about any limitations or concerns that might impact on placement? Work with them to work out a support strategy to help you meet your supervision requirements.
  • Have you spoken to the other team members about the possible impacts and expectations having a student will have on them e.g. who is available to talk with students about what they do and maybe opportunities to shadow workers? Are people available for a welcome morning tea?
  • Have you had a conversation with the Admin Manager about the practical things that need to be done – is there a desk for the student, a phone?  Is it possible for them to organise a security card, teach the student how to log on and navigate the IT system?
  • Have you spoken to the WH&S officer about the best way to ensure the student is WH&S compliant?
  • Have you received the paper work from the Uni?  Who do you need to talk to about that?
  • Have your attended the University Field Education workshop to help you plan and prepare for when the student arrives?
  • What do you need to give the student in terms of your focus and time in those first critical days and weeks? Can you block out time in your diary as ‘student conversation time’?

Orientating the student to their environment

From the time they walk through the door your student will be scanning the environment and trying to make sense of what is what and who is who.  They are keen to present themselves in the best light, but at the same time, will be experiencing the swirl of emotions and information flooding through their veins.   It is in this heightened state that you, the supervisor, can start to frame the conversations that will foster a positive and constructive relationship and reinforce a reflective learning culture. It is important to think through what information, guidance and connection does the student need to have if they are to make sense of their new context and position? And how will this change over the course of placement?

Facilitate the student's navigation of the placement map:

One supervisor described the process as handing the student a placement map and helping them navigate.

The map is a guide and the conversations are how we make sense of the symbols and share the scenery.   One part of the map is practical instruction – what is done, who does what and where. Another part of the map is the warning signs that point out what they need to be aware of in placement; opportunities, barriers, dangers, what is negotiable and what isn’t negotiable.  There are houses full of policy and procedure and a first aid station when things go wrong.  On the map the student will see who else is on the road; the key relationships they will need to be aware of and link to placement.   The map also points out the opportunity for rest stops and reflection point like supervision. Every journey will be different because although the map sets out the parameters it is up to the student and the supervisor to explore and experience their own journey.

Here are a few conversations that can help a student better navigate their way around the agency and placement experience:

  • Welcome.  In a new environment the first things we need to know to feel safe enough to stay is  "Am I welcome here?"  So it is important to have the conversation with your team about how you are going to welcome this student into your work place. You might enquire of the student in the pre placement interview what makes her feel safe and welcome in a new environment.  Every team, family community, society have welcome rituals what are yours?
  • Get to know each other. Find opportunities, formal and informal to have conversations with your student that will help you find out each other’s story?   The informal catch up over lunch or a coffee provides the opportunity to ask some questions about why they chose social work and this in turn is a step toward forming a trusting connection that will underpin your supervisory relationship.  It will also give you some insight into how the placement may need to be structured and supported to facilitate learning.
  • Orientate your student to their immediate surrounds and relationships - where is the photocopier, desk, tea room etc.  But they also need to be introduced gradually to the program logic and history of the organisation so they can appreciate that the work is grounded in a reality and is purposeful. Give the student access to policy and procedures, past reports, anything that will ground their understanding and appreciation and then use supervision to unpack and explore.

We take each student on a tour of our area /our "patch".  We point out all the key landmarks, the community hot spots, clients they might meet during placement, best place to get coffee, sandwiches, curry.  We stop at our partner organisations for a quick intro and tour – then we ask the students to recontact those agencies and make another time to visit or observe their work. Along the way we talk and fill them in on the reality and history of the work (the funny stories, how things came about, the pressures and opportunities). We finish with a welcome lunch.

Navigating work place culture:

Remember the student is new and impressionable.  You are acting as their interpreter to this strange new world.  So it’s not surprising that the student in the first instance may hang close to you as they look for guidance and reinforcement that they are acting within the acceptable norms and culture of this new environment. At this stage of dependency, consistency of verbal and non-verbal communication is important and regularity of supervision is needed to check understanding.  This can avoid mixed messages and also, the students taking on habits that are not necessarily the most constructive.  For example, if in your orientation you tell the student it is important to take a lunch break, what happens when the student sees everyone eating at his or her desk? The student is likely to think that eating at their desk is the norm.  Be clear about permissions and modelling, because unless challenged, things can become habit.

Dust off, update or create an Orientation Manual:

It can be a simple way of reinforcing and reminding a student (and new staff) of basic but important information throughout their placement.  Each agency should have a tailor made manual that contains the key organisational instructional documents that workers need to be familiar with so that the organisation is safe and compliant both legally and professionally.  No matter how "dry" these may be to read and discuss, it is important that you have opportunity to discuss and unpack the relevance of the documents with your student and link this to the work being undertaken.

How does the student best learn:

You should also take this time to find out how the student learns best.  Have a conversation about what works best for them, watching, doing,  reflecting? The work of Kolb on how we learn is a useful tool to help you and your student work out their preferred learning styles.

Throughout this process, one of the things you should also be doing is finding out where your student  in terms of their confidence as an emerging social work practitioner.  Work towards building that confidence.

Developmental model of supervision:

Margaret Morrell (2000, building on the work of Hawkins & Shohet 2000 & Brown & Bourne 1996) refers to a developmental model of supervision, where students can be described as follows:

  • Apprentice – characterised by dependence, where students/practitioners may be anxious, motivated, and imitative, wanting guidance.
  • Journeyman – characterised by a mix of dependency/autonomy, and can be described as ‘turbulent’. For example the student may oscillate from being overwhelmed to being over confident, and this is a time of increasing self-awareness.
  • Craftsman – described as involving conditional dependence as the student/practitioner gains more insight and confidence, where the student is more grounded and able to see the big picture and secure in their own professional identity.
  • Master Craftsman – this is where the student/practitioner can be described as having an integrated and deep knowledge base, where they know their own strengths and weaknesses. However it is unlikely that a student will reach this level during placement (Morrell, 2000, p15).

Build ethics into your daily practice right from the start:

Right at the beginning of placement and at new learning points during their placement, encourage the student to consider the potential ethical grey areas that can emerge and impact on their practice. There are a million potential grey spots here a just a few:

  • Confidentiality – when should I tell someone?
  • Boundaries – friend or client, friend or supervisor?
  • Office politics – should I get involved?
  • Gossip in the tea room- should I get involved?
  • Placement/life balance?

Exploring the potential grey areas before they become problems is a way of building the notion of ethical practice into the student placement experience and their emerging identity.  Take the time to clarify and unpack why these are important to consider. Help the student work out a way to constantly consider ethical dimensions of their practice.

Orientate to the bigger picture of practice:

Agencies and practitioners rarely work in isolation so it is important that your have the conversations that students need to understand to asist them to connect and navigate the macro dimensions of practice.  This will help them get a sense of what the bigger issues and relationships are that affect social work and human services work.