Program Evaluation
The Diana R. Garland School of Social Work (GSSW) teaches our students to assess their own work and the programs they lead in order to be in a constant state of self-improvement--and we turn that valuing of assessment on ourselves. Each year we conduct a thorough assessment of our programs, initiatives, and the various activities of the Garland School.
We assess the Baccalaureate Social Work (BSW) and Master of Social Work (MSW) degree programs by carefully evaluating how successful we have been in developing the competency of our students, using those competencies stated by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) and as well as an additional competency in the ethical integration of faith with professional practice. We use these assessment results to continuously refine classroom and internship experiences so that our graduates are ready to provide competent service and visionary leadership wherever they go in established or cutting-edge fields of social work practice.
The Assessment of Learning Outcome reports (with average scores for each Competency) present mean scores of the competencies. For the BSW program the mean is calculated by using the SWEAP Foundation Curriculum Assessment Instrument (FCAI) and final field evaluations. For the generalist year of the MSW program the mean is also calculated by using the SWEAP FCAI and final field evaluations. Our tenth competency is measured through an integrative assignment that takes place at the end of the generalist practice curriculum. Internally, we also use The Religious/Spiritually-Integrated Practice Assessment Scale (RSIPAS) for additional data on how our students integrate faith and social work practice. The competencies for our clinical specialization are measured by a comprehensive final exam and the final field evaluations. The competencies for our community specialization are measured by a comprehensive assessment of a yearlong community project and scored on a rubric and the final field evaluations.
In addition, we set a measurement benchmark for each competency. An assessment score at or above that benchmark is considered by the program to represent mastery of that particular competency. Our benchmark is that we expect 80% of our students to demonstrate competency for each measure. Our most recent competency reports for our MSW students are available here. Our most recent BSW competency reports are available here. Also, our BSW SACS report is available here and our MSW SACS report is available here.
We hope you will find this confirms that this school takes the responsibility of preparing social workers for service and leadership around the world very seriously and works diligently to provide the most challenging and effective educational experiences possible.
Dr. Luci Ramos Hoppe
Interim Dean