Book groups in social work education: a method for modelling groupwork practice

The use of book groups as a learning medium in social work education has evolved rapidly over the last few years, with universities and practice settings across the UK and beyond adopting the approach to supplement traditional teaching methods (Taylor, 2014). Where employed, student social workers and practitioners have found book groups to be effective for consolidating understandings that support professional development. Thus far, however their use within modules of learning as a means to demonstrating groupwork practice has not been fully realised. The following account proposes a teaching approach which is twofold in nature. On the one hand it engages students, within their initial social work training, in a group experience and on the other, through the group, makes explicit the knowledge and skills essential to effective groupwork for practice. This paper offers book groups as medium through which students can develop groupwork knowledge and skills; and makes the point that groupwork remains a viable method of intervention in social work practice.