Using Artificial Intelligence in Social Work Field Education
Editor’s Note: Jacqueline Jones is the MSW Field Coordinator at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and one of my colleagues in the UAB Department of Social Work. She has over six years of experience supervising students during field placements and eight years of social work practice experience. In this blog post, she shares how she uses artificial intelligence tools to improve her teaching and save time.
I think, in many ways, social workers shy away from technology and, seemingly, advanced computer systems. In an ever-evolving world where social media, email, and searching the World Wide Web are literally at our fingertips, I believe social workers should embrace the use of technology in their practice and what it is capable of doing to help not only us but our clients, too.
I will expand on using one specific realm of technology in social work education: artificial intelligence or AI. Currently, I serve as the Masters of Social Work (MSW) Field Coordinator at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, which means teaching seminar courses for field education. This semester, I decided to use AI to assist me in developing in-class activities for my MSW students.
What is AI? Here is the answer that ChatGPT gave me in a matter of seconds to give you a glimpse of what AI can do.
“AI, or Artificial Intelligence, refers to the simulation of human intelligence processes by machines, particularly computer systems. It involves the development of algorithms and software that enable computers to perform tasks that typically require human intelligence.”
My very first use of AI in my teaching came when I needed an alternative assignment for a student unable to participate in a required in-person simulation activity. I wanted to be inclusive and provide an alternative opportunity for this student that would provide similar learning outcomes to that of a student who did participate in the simulation. I was struggling with developing an alternate assignment that would provide the same knowledge to the student. I received an email that morning about exploring a specific AI platform, ChatGPT, for teaching social work courses. So, here is a screenshot of the prompt that I used:
I’d like to note here that I did tell AI what type of simulation it was, as the more specific you are with your prompts (i.e., the requests you type into the AI program), the better your results. AI then generated an alternate assignment, linked here. The assignment included the use of a case scenario but didn’t provide the actual scenario, so I continued in the same chat thread a request for a case scenario for the alternate assignment. It then generated a case scenario for the assignment. Now, I did review the assignment and correct a few things, but overall, it was a pretty seamless process from start to finish. The thing about using AI is that, with the right prompts and edits, I was able to accomplish my task in less time, and I could not have done it without my social work knowledge and skills.
I have used AI in other ways for my seminar courses this semester. Here are some examples:
- Developing in-class activities related to the different topics being covered in class to help connect the concepts to real world examples.
- Expand on the process I use to have students share their experiences in their field placement by having a standardized, written description of the “Rose, Bud, Thorn” activity. AI generated a written process, and a way for me to be more formalized in my process of doing the activity with my class.
- Generate Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) practice exam questions for my class to do as a group. AI also provided the answers to the practice questions and the rationale for the answers it provided.
- Rewording of an assignment that a student was struggling to interpret. See the screenshot below of my prompt.
- I have even used a different AI platform, Tome, to develop a presentation for me, just to see what it could do. I was impressed.
- Assisting with the development objectives for a presentation.
All of this is to say that AI can be used as a teaching tool for social work educators. Here are some tips to consider when you start using AI to improve your teaching:
- It is not capable of human emotion. A large part of social work involves being able to take human emotion into account. So, in an area where students need to focus on human emotion, AI may not be the best place to get information or activities. AI is constantly learning, so what it knows today will be different from what it knows tomorrow. But, if you continuously use a certain AI platform, it will learn from you.
- Another thing to consider, there are so many different AI platforms out there. If you are looking for something specific, like help developing a presentation, scheduling, citing sources, the options could be limitless, do an online search to see if there is AI technology that already exists that could help you. Here is an AI tool directory to help get you started.
- And one last consideration to leave you with, be sure that you are taking into account the ethical considerations when using AI. It is not human. It is a tool that can be very helpful, but it is not the end all, be all. It is not to replace the human mind.
AI is not going away, and I think part of moving forward with the times includes learning to use AI and teaching our students to use it as a tool. I have always thought there was an intersection between technology and social work. I’ve spent many of my professional years figuring out where that intersection was. And I think I have found it. I’d love for other social workers and social work educators to meet me there and expand on what AI can do for the social work field.
How are you using AI to support your teaching? Please leave me a comment.
How to cite:
Jones, J. (2023, December 8). Using AI in Social Work Field Education. Teaching and Learning in Social Work. https://laureliversonhitchcock.org/2023/12/08/using-artificial-intelligence-in-social-work-field-education.
