Distance Education in Social Work: An Evaluation of an Undergraduate Course on Family Violence

Abstract

Social work is a discipline that emphasizes personal contact and has traditionally been taught face-to-face. This paper examines whether online learning is appropriate for educating social workers about family violence. It describes a newly-developed online course in family violence and evaluates its effectiveness. Two surveys of the class and an analysis of discussion boards provided quantitative and qualitative data. Results suggest that online teaching was effective in meeting course objectives and learner needs. The course did provide knowledge in the area of family violence that students then applied to their practices. The online learning environment proved to be safe, inclusive, acceptable and accessible to learners.