How did COVID-19 reshape social work students’ learning?
COVID-19 reshaped social work learning through disrupted placements, a rapid digital pivot and greater reliance on predictable communication and assessment clarity. Across NSS (National Student Survey) open-text comments tagged to the COVID-19 topic, 68.6% of comments are negative (sentiment index −24.0), with younger students more negative than mature (−27.3 vs −16.8). In social work, placements and fieldwork account for 11.9% of all student comments, underlining how practice learning frames this story. These sector patterns explain the experiences below and point to practical changes in delivery that programmes now embed.
How did COVID-19 change academic and field education?
Field placements, a cornerstone of social work training, stalled or shifted online almost overnight. Providers paused, redesigned or re-scoped placements to fit a digital-first environment, raising questions about the adequacy of mediated encounters for developing professional judgement. Theoretical modules moved online and staff and students adapted quickly to new platforms. This tested curriculum flexibility and required educators to deliver social justice, empathy and care in ways that sustained learning without the immediate cues of a seminar room.
How did online learning shape practice and virtual engagements?
The move online demanded re-engineered pedagogy, not just a transfer of slides to a VLE. Students relied on tools such as Zoom for lectures, simulations and supervision, while learning to sustain rapport and professional boundaries through a screen. In a relational discipline, that felt different. Programmes that set expectations for materials, interaction and turnaround times, and that offered short, regular micro-briefings, saw better engagement. Staff provided consistent resources and forums for peer support to reduce isolation and maintain momentum.
How did the university experience change during the pandemic?
The campus experience narrowed. Group work, community-building and informal peer learning shifted to virtual spaces. Students valued attempts to maintain a sense of cohort through online meet-ups, mental health check-ins and study groups. Many found new ways to engage local communities online, suggesting technology-enhanced outreach remains part of practice learning even as on-site activity resumes.
Which support systems actually helped?
Students consistently reported that people-centred support made the difference: visible teaching staff, accessible Personal Tutors and responsive student services. Universities expanded digital libraries, e-learning tools and virtual counselling, and strengthened technical support. These steps helped students manage workload fluctuations and placement uncertainty, while keeping academic and wellbeing advice available when it mattered.
How did communication land with students?
Students needed timely, unambiguous updates as guidance and placement arrangements changed. Providers that maintained a single, up-to-date source of truth and summarised what changed and why reduced unnecessary friction. Multi-channel updates worked best when paired with practical access support for students with limited connectivity, and when disability-related adjustments were explicit. Staff development focused on being reliable sources of information as well as educators.
What new norms endure in social work education?
Hybrid delivery and flexible assessment are now part of the toolkit. Blending on-campus activity with online seminars and supervision enables continuity when circumstances shift, and mirrors contemporary practice settings. Assessment clarity matters most: plain-language criteria, exemplars and predictable feedback turnaround reduce anxiety and align expectations, especially when modes of delivery vary during a module.
What next for resilience and prospects?
Programmes retain disruption-ready playbooks, prioritise early confirmation of placements and publish clear schedules. Many now analyse text-based case materials within modules to build confidence handling complex records and multi-agency information. The direction of travel centres on reliability in delivery alongside the human qualities the profession prizes.
How Student Voice Analytics helps you
- Track topic volume and sentiment over time for COVID-19 and social work, then drill from institution to school, programme and cohort to see where delivery frictions persist.
- Compare like-for-like across demographics and sites, and spotlight priorities such as placements, remote delivery, organisation/management and assessment clarity.
- Generate concise briefings for programme and quality teams, with export-ready summaries that help you agree fixes, evidence progress and share what works.
Book a Student Voice Analytics demo
See all-comment coverage, sector benchmarks, and governance packs designed for OfS quality and standards and NSS requirements.
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