The practicum is regarded by many as the most important part of social work students’ program experience. The literature pertaining to Indigenous social work student experiences in field placements is minimal, as is the literature relating to the health and wellness of Indigenous students engaged in social work field education. This thesis is designed to begin to address the gap in the literature. Child protection services have been a destructive force in Indigenous communities in BC. Some research shows that frontline child protection workers suffer negative health consequences due to the stress of the work (Gold, 1998; Reid, 2006). The research questions that directed this study are as follows: How is the holistic health and wellness of Indigenous female students impacted during, and directly following, a government child protection practicum? What factors contribute to an Indigenous student’s resiliency in a Child Welfare Specialization field placement? What coping strategies do Indigenous students employ to stay healthy and balanced during the practicum? The ultimate goal of this thesis research is to create a space for the knowledge and voices of Indigenous women in social work, and to create knowledge that will be used to support future Indigenous practicum students.
This research is a qualitative study. Five Indigenous women courageously shared their fourth year child protection social work practicum experiences in respective two hour interviews. All the participants were recent graduates of an undergraduate social work program in British Columbia. All of the study participants were enrolled in a Child Welfare Specializations program. The Indigenous women’s stories were documented using a blend of Indigenous and narrative qualitative methodological approaches. The findings of this thesis reveal that Indigenous student holistic health is significantly impacted during child protection practicum placements. All of the Indigenous women who participated in this thesis experienced stress at different points of the practicum, which had an impact on their mental, emotional, physical and spiritual health.
A significant theme that emerged in the women’s stories was the importance that the supervisor plays in the child protection practicum. The findings of this study suggest that Indigenous students are more vulnerable to stress and ill health in government placements. Therefore particular care needs to be taken to ensure that Indigenous students are placed with supervisors who are sensitive to their needs. Students employ a number of strategies to rebalance their holistic health. Good attention to self-care, engaging in cultural practices and development of support networks are themes that emerged as strategies for coping with the stress of the practicum. This study concludes with recommendations to educators, MCFD policy makers and others who work with Indigenous students.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uvic.ca/oai:dspace.library.uvic.ca:1828/2018 |
| Date | 22 December 2009 |
| Creators | Aro, Cheryl Lavern |
| Contributors | Carriere, Jeannine |
| Source Sets | University of Victoria |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | Available to the World Wide Web |
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