This book will help students develop their understanding of how the internet is impacting on social work education and practice in 21st century. Essential reading for students interested in the influence of digital technology and social media, including the impact of digital divides, this book looks at how the value-base of social work can have a positive effect on service users and carers who engage with digital services.

This book will help students develop their understanding of how the internet is impacting on social work education and practice in 21st century. Essential reading for students interested in the influence of digital technology and social media, including the impact of digital divides, this book looks at how the value-base of social work can have a positive effect on service users and carers who engage with digital services.

In a rapidly advancing technological culture, social work practitioners are frequently challenged to invent new strategies to meet client needs and foster social change. Despite the Council on Social Work Education's new standards for technology in social work practice, few schools of social work teach the use of technology for practice, and many instructors struggle with the integration of this increasingly necessary dimension into education. Digital Social Work is designed to offer engaging, meaningful, and easy-to-use technology content that can be incorporated into generalist and advanced social work practice courses. The chapters in this volume offer instructors and students insight into the knowledge, skills, and values required of those who practice social work 2.0; by providing concrete examples of technology tools, they complement traditional social work curricula dealing with micro, mezzo, and macro systems. Chapters can be used singly--to augment Practice, Research, or Policy courses--or can provide a format to discuss technology in courses addressing practice with individuals, youth, and families. Virtual worlds, social media, GIS, blogs, and many other technology tools are represented in this collection.

The integration of digital technologies into practice presents opportunities and challenges for the field of youth work. Digitalization procedures transform interactions with users, in addition to their needs. These also transform the organizations where youth workers are involved in professional practice. Adapting digital technological tools is a crucial challenge for the youth work profession. Youth Work in a Digital Society is an essential scholarly publication that explores how to overcome any challenges and issues facing youth development work in the digital age and to what extent modern digital technologies can contribute to empowering youth work practice. Featuring a wide range of topics such as digital inclusion, mobile technologies, and social media, this book is ideal for executives, managers, researchers, professionals, academicians, policymakers, practitioners, and students.

"How to rethink social theory in our digital times"--

"In a digitally powered society, social workers, are challenged to embrace new interventions and enhance existing strategies in order to effectively promote social justice. The cases in this volume present engaging examples of technology tools in use across micro, mezzo and macro practice, illuminating the knowledge, skills, and values required of those who practice social work 2.0"--Provided by publisher.

′This engaging and stimulating book is well placed to become a key text in many student social workers′ redaing lists′ - Journal of Interprofessional Care `[An] excellent book, abounding with conceptual insights, bursting with research and evidence-based reasoning, and pretty comprehensive in the spread of topics. [It] contains plenty of though-provoking material in nice sized chunks that challenged me to think about my practice in different ways and also made me want to find out more. The range of contributors is impressive and students could do a lot worse than digest and reference their work in assignments′ - Professional Social Work `a comprehensive account of the issues related to social workers′ personal development and latest developments in social work practice. I have no doubt that this book will provide an invaluable reference guide for social workers who are interested in the development of the profession′ - Social Policy and Social Work (SWAP) `[This] book is put together in an accessible and engaging way, which serves to stimulate the reader by posing questions, and creating opportunities for reflecting on the key learning points of each chapter. [It] should be an essential reading item on the book list of every social work student and act as a training resource to those training future social workers, and those already established within the profession′ - Health & Social Care in the Community `In recent years, social work has been devalued by politicians and the media. However it requires practitioners equipped with key skills to empower individuals and communities and rooted in values which stimulate them to promote social justice. It is heartening that social work educators are at the forefront of equipping social workers with the skills and values to promote a better society. This book will open hearts and minds to achieve these ends′ - Bob Holman, former Community Worker and Professor of Social Policy Social Work: A Companion to Learning is an exciting and definitive new book that will equip readers with the core knowledge and skills they need to successfully complete their social work training, and go on to be an effective practitioner. The text takes a holistic and critical approach, not only enabling students and practitioners to understand how to practise social work effectively, but also how to locate this practice within its societal context. Written and edited by leading experts in the field, each chapter skilfully explores key themes, issues, and concepts underpinning social work theory and practice in an engaging, authoritative and accessible way. The selection of topics serves to establish: - the contexts through which social work education can best be understood - the core requirements and processes that characterise social work courses - the issues involved in continuing professional development. The chapters comprise a wide range of key issues, such as communication skills, partnership working, the values of social work, supervision, management, law, and research mindedness, as well as two unique chapters written exclusively from service users′ perspectives. Case studies, interactive questions, key points and further reading sections are used throughout the book to bring the material to life and aid readers′ understanding. Social Work: A Companion to Learning will be a core text for students and practitioners at all levels, providing the most up-to-date and comprehensive companion they will need to help them progress in their careers. Mark Lymbery has taught social work at the University of Nottingham since 1995. He is the author of Social Work with Older People (2005), also published by SAGE. Karen Postle is a lecturer in social work at the University of East Anglia. Both authors have a background as social work practitioners.