ERIC Number: EJ1250043
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2020
Pages: 14
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1043-7797
EISSN: N/A
Reflections on Importing Critical Race Theory into Social Work: The State of Social Work Literature and Students' Voices
Journal of Social Work Education, v56 n2 p327-340 2020
Critical race theory (CRT) has recently been imported into social work knowledge and included in the title or search term of 20 published social work studies, but little is known about how it is impacting social work practices. This study describes the experiences and perceptions of 21 diverse graduate students in a public, urban university with a nationally accredited MSW program using CRT as its theoretical foundation. Students unanimously embraced CRT as a theory for their careers, but found it confusing and extremely challenging to learn, resulting in contentious and unresolved questions about its applications in social work practices. Despite its resonance in their personal lives as well as those of their clients, these students could not describe how their CRT-infused MSW education would help them reduce racism, marginalization, and oppression or increase social, economic, and environmental justice, and many were frustrated by this gap. Recommendations to clarify, refine, and expand CRT imported in social work practices are offered to enhance its usefulness in accomplishing goals of increasing social justice for social work client populations.
Descriptors: Critical Theory, Race, Social Work, Student Attitudes, Graduate Students, Social Justice, Racial Bias, Minority Group Students, Power Structure
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: California
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A