Introduction
In Slovakia and abroad, St. Elizabeth University of Health and Social Sciences (hereinafter VŠZaSP), as a non-profit organization, has been present for 10 years. The founder of the school is Prof. MUDr. Vladimír Krčméry, DrSc., multi. Drhc. The goal and the very idea of the school from the beginning has been to provide university education in professions that are necessarily related to activities aimed at helping people with health problems and in adverse life situations. A unique specificity of the school is the implementation of projects in developing countries around the world; currently the school implements 53 projects focused on helping the poorest, those in danger of life and livelihood. The education of social workers naturally fits into this framework of the mission itself; its justification is supported by the increase in economic problems, family crises, the provision of social services for various client groups, the rise of socio-pathological phenomena, and problems related to the area of social and legal protection of children, youth, and adults. At this stage of the dynamic development of the study field, St. Elizabeth University of Health and Social Sciences in Bratislava was established. The first graduates of the bachelor's study completed the academic year 2005/2006, totaling 340 graduates.
VŠZaSP obtained accreditation for education in the field of social work at all levels of university study and the rights to award the scientific-pedagogical titles of associate professor and professor in the field of social work.
The fact is that the school has gone through many difficulties; it is often the target of criticism for the high number of students and the implementation of education in various regions of Slovakia. On the other hand, however, according to the ARRA1 evaluation, the university ranks in a prominent position even compared to other public universities. Moreover, the school, as the only one, can present itself within its fields with international accreditation in social work, nursing, and public health.
Social Work in the Process of Theory and Practice
The justification of the study field of social work is indisputable, even though discussions have been ongoing for several years, especially in the academic environment, about whether it is a science, a practical activity, or an application of methods of various social sciences through social work into practice.
It is necessary to realize that the justification of social work has long been influenced by the fact that social policy presents a new direction and the distribution of responsibility between the state and the citizen is significantly changing: emphasis is placed on strengthening the citizen's responsibility not only for the quality of his or her own life but also for his or her family. The selection of appropriate applied methods of social work is important, which should prevent the personal and social disintegration of the citizen and counteract their long-term persistence in a situation of dependence on the help of others, so that the considerably limited usable resources of the state are not ineffectively devalued.
Already with the adoption of the Social Assistance Act in 1998, a change in the position, orientation, and tasks of social work was anticipated, from the level of a powerless administrator to the level of the main instrument through which the reform goals of social protection of citizens are implemented. The fact is that this assumption opened space for the development and further growth of social work as a significant social profession, especially in the areas of social services, social prevention, social and legal protection, as well as compensation for the consequences of severe disability. At that time, the question was often asked how, and whether at all, the current practice of performing social work and the preparation of social worker education were ready to respond adequately to the demand for change, so that it could truly become an effective and real tool for implementing the new social policy. The answer is clear: the academic community responded very promptly to the demands of practice and the need to ensure often specific professional activities in social practice. New study programs were developed, new study subjects were created, topics such as social counseling, supervision, social prevention, crisis intervention, and others were theoretically elaborated. New monographic works were published for this period. The personality who significantly contributed to the creation of the study field during that period was Assoc. Prof. Štefan Strieženec2.
Essentially, since the beginnings of the creation of the study field of social work, a discussion has been ongoing about the anchoring of the profession in the practical environment of performing social work and about the acceptance of social work as a socio-scientific field. We therefore take the liberty at this point to draw attention to the following areas of problems:
- a long-running but insufficiently structured, often particularistic and utilitarian discussion about who is and who is not a social worker, who can perform this profession, what education and qualifications are necessary for its performance, whether social work is an independent scientific discipline and profession or merely an umbrella term for a certain set of activities and knowledge from other scientific disciplines, i.e., a discussion about the very essence, definition, character, and boundaries of social work3,
- the dynamic increase in the number of schools and educational institutions in the previous decade declaring education in social work, accompanied by fragmentation of the content of educational programs, the performance and quality of compulsory student practice, as well as the absence of a comprehensive, institutionally secured system of further education for social workers4,
- current practice in filling social worker positions in public administration and social service facilities uses too broad a definition of qualification prerequisites for education without a standard definition of qualification requirements regarding the focus or field of education of employees in the social sphere, which has resulted in insufficient qualification of employees, negatively affecting the overall perception of social work as a profession and does not lead to the creation of necessary standardized conditions for its professional performance.
Research Results of Graduates of St. Elizabeth University of Health and Social Sciences in the Field of Social Work
In accordance with the instructions of the Ministry of Education, Science, Research and Sport of the Slovak Republic, the university regularly organizes evaluation of the pedagogical process by students; the results are relatively favorable, they are statistically evaluated, and they create a prerequisite for continuous improvement of education in individual fields of study.
According to our findings, evaluation of education in its various contexts by university graduates is relatively rare. In our survey, we did not record any relevant outputs of conducted research by public or private universities that would at least partially reflect the opinions of graduates in the field of social work. Interesting for the environment of individual universities are conducted research projects that monitor the employment of graduates and their satisfaction with the completed study program5.
In the academic year 2010/2011, we conducted research through electronically distributed questionnaires to a total of 1,837 respondents. We oriented the research toward the following basic areas:
- motivation for studying in the field of social work
- use of knowledge and skills in professional practice,
- reflection on the content of the study program in the field of social work and the quality of educators,
- interest in further education and professional graduation in the field of social work.
The research involved graduates of the first and second levels of university study in the field of social work. We assumed that the majority of respondents would be women, which is also confirmed by the following graph 1.
A similar composition of students is also found at other public universities; the fact is that statistics for distinguishing the gender of students in the field of social work are recorded; however, it is natural that for various reasons, which we do not consider necessary to discuss here, it is mainly women who show interest in working in the social sphere.
When we examined the interest – motivation of graduates for studying in the field of social work, the results surprised us with their spectrum of answers and also the relatively high percentage oriented toward acquiring knowledge, interest in working with people, interest in a new study field, and the like. Respondents could also indicate multiple answer options; we present the results in percentages in graph 2.
The situation compared to previous years has changed mainly in motivation conditioned by maintaining a job (13.6% of answers) or 2.1% in connection with a condition from the employer, where the employee has a condition to start studying. We can consider as a favorable result the relatively low percentage oriented toward the effort to gain social prestige through a university degree (7.9%); we could say that such a tendency is not so strongly preferred, despite being often discussed in society and among the public.
Evaluating the quality of provided education is relatively complex; during their studies, students have the opportunity to express their views on the provided quality of education, and these results are evaluated each year. In general, we could state the satisfaction of study graduates with the provided education (this satisfaction expresses the organization of the study itself, the quality of educators in the educational process, as well as the level of acquired knowledge and skills for further practical application). For this finding, the question was formulated: "Express your satisfaction with the completed study in the field of social work." The results are presented in the following graph 3.
We were also interested in the respondents' answers regarding the use of their knowledge in professional practice. We consider favorable for the field of social work and the study program designed at St. Elizabeth University of Health and Social Sciences the high percentage of answers in relation to the use of acquired knowledge to a large extent (23.3%) and the answers "I partially use" (58.2%). Partial use may also be related to the fact that social work is studied in distance form also by applicants from, for example, the interior ministry, healthcare, or other public administration entities, who may not be in contact with a client having social problems. The results are presented in the following graph 4.
In connection with the reflection on the content of the study program in the field of social work, we asked respondents a question related to preferring one of the modules (set of study subjects). The question was: "Which of the following modules do you consider most important for education in social work?" Respondents rated their preference on a scale from 1 to 5.
Based on the obtained results, we state that graduates consider it important to acquire knowledge primarily in the areas of social work methods, social skills training, social policy, and applied disciplines of social work. The area of social work theory is less preferred, which may also be related to the difficulty of transferring theoretical concepts of social work into application practice using adequate methods of social work. Subjects of related social science disciplines were also less frequent in the answers. This fact, on the other hand, points to the necessity of orienting educators toward finding ways to bring closer the significance of individual disciplines for social work and the possibilities of mutual enrichment of these disciplines.
In contact with social practice, as well as in communication with social work students, we are often reminded of the necessity of further education for graduates in the field of social work. At this point, it must be stated that the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family has not yet created a system of further education for social workers; this need is not anchored in any legal regulation, decree, or concept. Educational activities occur rather spontaneously under the auspices of the Central Office of Labour, Social Affairs and Family, or activities supported by financial resources from the European Social Fund and some non-profit organizations. The problem is that increasing expertise for performing activities in the field of social work does not create a prerequisite for increasing salary evaluation or career advancement. Nevertheless, the interest of respondents in education is evident. Respondents could indicate multiple answers (graph 6).
Respondents would most prefer accredited educational programs in further education; stimulating for the purpose of securing an Alumni program6 for graduates is also their interest in conferences and professional seminars. Despite the fact that certified education of social workers has no support in any legal norm or regulation, graduates apparently see in this type of further education a confirmation of professional competence with greater weight than completing some of the educational programs. The concept of certified education has already been developed by St. Elizabeth University of Health and Social Sciences7. A relatively equal percentage of answers was found in interest in doctoral studies and rigorous proceedings; approximately one third of graduates are considering further study, which can be considered consistent with the overall trend of making doctoral studies accessible to a wider group of interested parties in the third level of university study.
Conclusion
In our paper, we presented research that pointed out some facts that had not previously been the subject of investigation. We found that the majority of graduates are satisfied with education at St. Elizabeth University of Health and Social Sciences in Bratislava; graduates point out the importance of some study subjects and, encouragingly, have an interest in further professional growth.
We also take the liberty to point out that social work has been established in Slovakia for two decades; it would be good to realize that its development is not only a purely academic question, often questioning the level and quality of practical application of knowledge and skills of graduates in social practice. We must realize that it is also a question of the existential direction and practical provision of this profession in contemporary Slovak society.
The prospect of positive change in strengthening the position of social workers and the profession itself is the professionalization of social work in the sense of fulfilling the declared interest of the Government of the Slovak Republic itself in its Policy Statement: "Create conditions for ensuring the professionalization of social work." The Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family of the Slovak Republic, with the support of the Association of Educators in Social Work, is preparing a legislative norm that should fulfill the expectations of social workers in terms of their professional and status position.
Author: Prof. PaedDr. Milan Schavel, PhD.
1ARRA is an independent evaluation agency for universities. The first evaluation (ranking) of Slovak universities and their faculties was published by ARRA in 2005. Until then, no state or non-state institution had dealt with the systematic evaluation of scientific and pedagogical performance of universities in Slovakia. The goal of the ARRA ranking is to provide the general public and especially applicants for university study with an overview compiled on the basis of clear and generally understandable criteria. The ambition of our ranking, as is customary with foreign rankings, is also to initiate competition among institutions providing university education and thus positive changes in Slovak higher education. The evaluation is based on publicly available and verifiable data, which is divided into two basic groups - education (numbers of students, educators, interest in study) and research (numbers of publications and citations, grants, and doctoral study). 2Štefan Strieženec, associate professor in the field of social work, first chairman of the Association of Educators in Social Work, author of monographs in the field of social work: Dictionary of the Social Worker (1996), Introduction to the Study of Social Work (1999), Theory and Methodology of Social Work (2006). He contributed to the autonomy of the study field of social work as a university study field. He died in 2006. 3The definition of social work as a practical activity is partially defined in Act No. 448/2008 Coll. on Social Services and in Act No. 305/2005 Coll. on Social and Legal Protection of Children and Social Curatorship. 4The characteristics of the study field of social work are published on the website of the Accreditation Commission for assessing the ability to provide university education in study fields at specified levels of university study. The characteristics of the study field need to be innovated; the initiative is being developed mainly by the Association of Educators in Social Work. In the area of further education, the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family has not yet developed a comprehensive system – a concept of further education for employees in the social sphere. 5Nationwide surveys are conducted only rarely, e.g.: ARRA: Student Satisfaction at Universities (2006), Kočan – Považan: Evaluation of the Quality of Universities by Educators and Graduates (2009). 6The concept of an Alumni club in Slovakia is mostly associated with schools in the United States. The essence of relationships with graduates is still less known. This activity is not one-sided but benefits both parties involved: graduates and educators. It seems as if this idea has nothing in common with the reality of Slovak graduates. Some representatives of Slovak universities have realized the need to maintain contact with their own graduates; several such initiatives have emerged, but with lesser success. Inspiration for Slovak universities need not come only from Alumni clubs at American universities, which have the longest tradition and the most developed system of cooperation with their graduates. In Central Europe, there are several good examples in Germany, Austria, and Hungary. 7Attestation is a verification of acquired competencies defined by the professional standard for the relevant category of professional employee in the field of social work, which they have obtained through continuous education, self-education, or performance of professional activities. Attestation may only be performed by a professional employee in the field of social work who has obtained the required university education of at least the second level and has at least one year of practice.