Educational Supervision in Social Work

A Task-Centered Model for Field Instruction and Staff Development

Jonathan Caspi, William J. Reid

• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Year: 2002
• eBook ISBN: 9780231528436
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Social Science Research & Methodology
• Index: Social Sciences

This book provides a comprehensive examination of instructional supervision and introduces the Task-Centered Model for Educational Supervision (TCS). It begins by reviewing the history of educational supervision in social work and principles of effective teaching practices in the field. While theories about the principles and purposes of educational supervision abound, it has proven difficult to translate these ideas into a coherent model of supervisory practice. Educational Supervision in Social Work answers that need, presenting in detail TCS, an ordered series of discrete activities that supervisors and supervisees follow during and between supervision meetings. Designed to promote the continuous attainment of learning and practice objectives, TCS accommodates new models of field instruction, addresses common accountability concerns in social work supervision, and teaches practitioners how to be self-initiating and evaluative. Focusing on the practical implementation of TCS, Caspi and Reed have included detailed case vignettes throughout the book that provide concrete examples of putting theory into practice. Both supervisors of interns and staff as well as supervisees will find TCS a helpful tool in the supervisory process.

1	A New Model of Educational Supervision

You picked up this book because you have an interest in educational supervision—teaching interns in field practica, training staff, or assisting the ongoing professional development of social work clinicians. If you are like many staff supervisors, field instructors, and clinical consultants, you are looking for a book that helps you do supervision. Much literature on this subject provides helpful theoretical principles of effective supervision but gives little direction about how to apply them in practice. Additionally, because these principles often address different aspects of the encounter, it can be challenging to work them into a coherent model of supervisory practice. The lack of comprehensive educational supervision models further complicates this endeavor.

This lack provides the central rationale for this book, which presents the Task-Centered Model for Educational Supervision (TCS). As you will see, TCS offers strategies and steps for “how to do” educational supervision. It systematically puts principles of effective supervision into practice. In particular, TCS outlines an ordered series of discrete activities that occur within and between supervision meetings, for the continuous attainment of learning and practice objectives.

The first section of the book, chapters 2 through 6, presents an overview of the nature, history, and principles of educational supervision. These chapters provide the context and foundation for understanding and implementing the model. At the center of the supervisory process is the relationship between the supervisor and the supervisee. Strategies for building and maintaining productive and open relationships are reviewed. The supervisor must take the lead in developing the relationship and has a great impact on the success of the encounter. However, the person of the supervisor has received little attention, so it is considered in some depth.

TCS is presented in chapters 7 to 11. Illustrative vignettes show how the model looks in action. The book concludes with discussion of the various applications and uses of the model and a chapter on the application of the model in various educational and practice environments.

A Note About the Development of TCS

TCS was originally developed for educating social work students during their practicum experiences (Caspi and Reid 1998). Therefore, both the model and this book primarily focus and draw upon social work field instruction practices, concepts, and literature. Because its central function is supervisee learning, field instruction knowledge provides a solid foundation for educational supervision practice. Though it was developed as a field instruction model, TCS procedures and principles have clear applications for educational supervision with staff, with peers, and in consultation arrangements. Thus, we offer this book for those engaged in educational supervision of any type. If you would like to get an overview of TCS at this time, refer to the appendix, which provides the model’s guidelines.

The objective of this chapter is to briefly introduce you to educational supervision and TCS. It begins by discussing the nature of educational supervision and clarifying terms used in this book. Then it provides a summary of TCS and a vignette of a typical TCS supervision meeting—a look at the model in action. This chapter concludes with an overview of the remainder of the book.

What Is Educational Supervision?

Supervision can be defined as the overseeing of another’s work with sanctioned authority to monitor and direct performance, to ensure satisfactory performance (which includes client safety). How this is accomplished and what this entails widely differ among supervision arrangements. Processes vary according to whether or not supervisees are staff, student interns, peers, or people who have contracted for clinical consultation.

Supervision has been conceptualized to consist of three primary functions: educational, administrative, and supportive (Kadushin 1992). Although quality supervision is considered to involve active implementation of all three functions, one is often given greater emphasis over the others. Which function takes priority often fluctuates during work with an individual supervisee, even within individual supervision conferences. However, the nature of the encounter is defined by which function is consistantly emphasized throughout, reflecting its overarching objective.

In educational supervision the focus of the encounter is supervisee learning. Knowledge and skill development take priority over administrative and supportive tasks. This is in contrast to administrative supervision, which is concerned with management of supervisee work, with a primary focus on meeting agency requirements (e.g., number in caseload, rate of intakes or discharges, meeting client goals). The learning needs of the supervisee are considered to be less important than the functional needs of the agency. Moreover, administrative supervision of staff may not include any educational activities. Planned learning in such arrangements is by choice, not a requirement. In order to engage in educational supervision with staff, the supervisee must first discuss it openly to clarify the primary purpose of the encounter.

Quality supervision includes support for supervisees, who commonly experience strong affective reactions to their work. Supervisors are responsible for helping with supervisee frustrations, attending to concerns, “sustaining worker morale … and giving supervisees a sense of worth as professionals” (Kadushin 1992:19). Support is necessary when a supervisee’s affective responses are at the fore, particularly when they impede the ability to engage in administrative or educational activities. Attention to the emotional aspects of the supervisee’s experience can be critical in ensuring productive job performance and preventing burnout.

This book is about educational supervision. While much consideration is given to the supportive function and some to administrative responsibilities (e.g., evaluation), principles and methods for attaiment of learning objectives are paid the greatest attention. Indeed, TCS was designed as a model for addressing the educational function of supervision of interns and staff.

Clarification of Terms

In the human services, various terminology is used to describe different aspects of the supervisory encounter. For purposes of clarification, the most commonly used terms in the book are discussed here.

Intern

The term “intern” is used in this book primarily to refer to students completing agency-based experiential educational requirements in human service programs. Interns usually provide direct service under the supervision of an agency employee (or, less commonly, a school faculty member). In addition to “supervisor,” these employees are referred to by a variety of terms when in their supervisory role, including “field instructor,” “practicum instructor,” “field teacher,” “site supervisor,” “mentor,” “preceptor,” and “cooperating teacher.” Note how most of these emphasize the educational function of the encounter.

Staff

The term “staff” refers to workers, paid or volunteer, who are not at the agency because of school or program requirements. These include workers with and without professional degrees. While those with degrees usually have more training than nondegree staff, both engage in similar educational supervision processes, although they teach skills at different levels.

Consultation

Supervision arrangements that are privately contracted for (i.e., outside the agency domain) are referred to here as “consultation.” Consultation is distinguished from supervision by the fact that consultants do not usually have sanctioned authority over the supervisee. Instead, the worker or intern hires the consultant, often without the knowledge of the agency. In references to consultation arrangements, the supervisory pair consists of the “consultant” (the one providing the supervision) and the “consultee” (the one receiving supervision). For a more in-depth discussion of consultation, see chapter 11.

TCS

Although TCS is described in great depth in the latter half of this book, we introduce the model at the start with a brief overview. This is followed by a “case” presentation of a supervision meeting, which is intended to bring the model to life and illustrate how its procedures look in practice.

Overview of TCS

TCS offers a set of steps for the supervisor and supervisee to follow during and between supervision meetings. These steps were designed to assist the supervisory pair in systematically articulating and attaining learning and practice objectives, and putting into practice the features commonly associated with effective educational supervision (these features are discussed in depth in chapter 3). TCS provides a road map for conducting the educational supervision meeting. These steps are offered as guidelines to be used flexibly, not as a rigidly prescribed series of activities.

Outline of the TCS Sequence

Beginning phase (from initial meeting until completion of first contract)

Social stage

Explaining supervision and TCS

Educational stage

Target goals stage

Identifying, prioritizing, and selecting tasks

Anticipating and negotiating potential obstacles

Contracting

Middle and ending phases (from completion of first contract through final encounter)

Social stage

Task review

Educational stage

Target goals stage

Identifying, prioritizing, and selecting tasks

Anticipating and negotiating potential obstacles

Contracting

The Three TCS Phases

As you can see, the model is organized into three overarching phases: beginning, middle, and ending. The beginning phase is brief and concludes at the completion of the first contract. It contains a step specifically to inform supervisees about the social work supervision process and TCS procedures (which includes supervisors copying the guidelines included in the appendix and sharing them with supervisees). The sequence of steps carried out during the middle phase is used the most, since that phase run...

Table of contents

• Cover 
• Half title
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents 
• Preface
• 1. A New Model of Educational Supervision
• 2. A History of Educational Supervision in Social Work
• 3. Principles of Effective Instruction
• 4. The Supervisory Relationship
• 5. The Person of the Supervisor
• 6. Preparing for Supervision Beginnings and Endings
• 7. The Development and Basic Principles of TCS
• 8. The Social and Direct Teaching Functions of TCS
• 9. Target Goals
• 10. Tasks, Obstacles, and Contracting
• 11. Task Review
• 12. Applications of TCS
• Appendix: TCS Guidelines
• References
• Name Index
• Subject Index