This module provides learning opportunities for students to develop their professional and interpersonal communication skills in order to assess their suitability to progress to Level 2 of the degree. Students will be expected to achieve a sound knowledge of this area of work with an ability to communicate appropriately and a capacity to exercise some personal responsibility for their present and future professional learning and development

Service users will be involved in the skills lab programme.

Specific Topics to be addressed on the module include:

Active listening, interviewing and communication skills
Skills to recognise and celebrate diversity
Court room skills
Developing reflective practitioner skills
Strategies for coping with stress and handling violence and aggression
Simulated practice skills
Inter-professional skills
Recording skills
Introduction to group work skills
Understanding social work / social care organisations, their roles and objectives.
The importance of supervision.

WHICH WILL BE ASSESSED BY

A) Assignment
i) A written analysis of the students skills used in a `live' interview in a simulated interview setting - 500 words
ii) A written initial assessment and intervention strategy based on a `live' interview in a simulated interview setting, using standardised documentation - 500 words maximum
iii) A report based on the Shadowing Experience, describing the role of the social worker in that agency. - 500 words

Total Word Length 1500, 70% of final mark to assess Learning Outcomes 1, 2 & 4

B) Group presentation based upon a multidisciplinary problem based learning project, 30% of final mark to assess Learning Outcome 3

All elements must be passed in order to achieve an overall pass for this module.

Formative Assessment

Audio-taped interview and a `dry run' live interview. Ongoing feedback in IT workshops. Skills lab experience

Access to a mock court room (for courtroom skills workshop)
Access to simulated learning and community-based agency settings
Computing facilities will be needed to access materials on the web and specialist online databases.
Access to appropriate texts and journals

This module is open only to students enrolled on the BA (Hons) Social Work.

Koprowska, J (2005) Communication and Interpersonal Skills in Social Work, Exeter, Learning Matters
Moss, B (2008) Communication Skills for Health and Social Care, London, Sage
Thompson, N (2002) People Skills 2nd Ed Basingstoke, Palgrave Macmillan
Trevithick, P (2000) Social Work Skills, Buckingham, Open University Press

TOTAL LEARNING HOURS 300

1. Whole Group Sessions in TB1 (22 x 2hrs = 44 hrs) based on an experiential learning strategy where students will be expected actively to participate in a range of learning opportunities to develop their active listening and interviewing skills.

2. Skills Laboratory Session in TB2 (1 hr) students will receive individual tuition, feedback and assessment in their active listening and interviewing skills. Service Users and Carers will be involved in delivering this element.

3. Workshops in TB2 (5 x 2 hrs = 10 hrs) to introduce students to key themes of court room skills; dealing with stress and health and safety in the workplace.

4. Shadowing experience (2 days = 14 hrs) students will spend 2 days in a social work agency to shadow an experienced social worker to gain an insight into social work practice and the role and objectives of a social work agency.

5. Problem Based Learning TB2 (5 x 2 hrs = 10 hrs) students will spend 10 hours in a small PBL group exploring an issue in multidisciplinary working.

6. Independent Study (221 hours) students are expected to undertake background reading, exercises and preparation work (PBL) as well as completing Practice Learning documentation.

Some materials will be accessed through Blackboard / VLE.