Beginning at the Beginning

Recognizing the complexities of critical social work the authors use a metaphor of a traffic circle to survey the fundamental values, assumptions, theories, concepts, principles, and practices of critical social work.  They then consider the relationship among ‘mainstream’, critical, and other marginalized social work perspectives. A subsequent exploration of the challenges and possibilities of critical practice is followed by a reflection on the processes of teaching and learning critical social work. The article does not presume a level of pre-existing social work knowledge or experience on the part of the reader and is therefore accessible and useful for scholars, teachers, students, and practitioners who are new to critical social work. KEYWORDS: Critical social work; social work education; practice fundamentals