Students are the future of our world and economies. The way that students interact with and engage with the ideas and organizations that make up the economy or political structures will shape the ways in which the next generation will decide to lead, what missions to involve themselves in, and what their values will be.
So much of the way that students are introduced to valuable, morally and economically stabilizing ideas comes down to education, influence, and various social spheres. If students are getting a narrow set of perspectives about a topic, then they may lean into ideas that are unbalanced and unfair. In order to support the equal, intelligent, morally and ethically balanced perspectives in education, encouraging students to make a point of interacting with social movements is a great way to foster effective learning and leadership.
When trying to appropriately mold the next generation, encouraging engagement with such an organization will have an immeasurably positive effect on the future. As such, here are some great ways to foster student appreciation for empowered local social workers and healthcare providers.
Guest Speakers
One effective way to cultivate student appreciation of local social workers and healthcare providers is by bringing and hosting guest speakers. Whether it is a single session or a whole series, providing face time with working professionals, their ideas, and their energy can inspire new ways of thinking. By inviting these professionals to share their experiences, insights, and challenges with students, the divide between classroom lessons — which are typically solely ethereal, intellectual— rather than the wealth of knowledge and insight which comes from experiential learning methods.
Guest speaker sessions can provide students with firsthand glimpses into the daily realities of social work and healthcare, clarifying and elaborating on issues and ideas that have been purely conceptual up to that point. Additionally, in hearing directly from professionals in the field students can gain a deeper understanding of the issues they face and the impact of their work which serves to clarify whether the type of work is something that a student may be interested in exploring further.
Through stories, students are given a rare break from their daily routines to consider in real time a possibly previously unknown industry or career path. Just like any good performance, being able to witness the passion and dedication that colors a professional’s language and demeanor might just be the thing to deeply motivate students to pursue similar paths and make a difference in their communities.
Guest speaker sessions also offer students the chance to connect with professionals in the field. Building these relationships can open doors for internships, job opportunities, and mentorship, providing valuable support as students embark on their own careers.
Field Trips
Field trips offer students a unique opportunity to step outside the classroom and into the real world, where they can witness the impact of jobs like mental health care social workers and healthcare providers in action. By immersing students in these environments, they can gain a deeper understanding of the challenges these professionals face and the valuable services they provide to those in need.
Field trips are a wonderful way to break up the monotony of book and classroom study by humanizing and making tangible the concepts that students are trying to engage with. In allowing students to directly interact with the concepts, missions, and faces behind a mission they can come to develop a sense of empathy and respect for the individuals behind the work.
On top of all that, experiential learning has been proven to have a profound impact on students’ attitudes and perceptions— not only of learning as a whole, but of other people and cultures. Perhaps most important of all is that by giving the space and time for students to observe or shadow social workers during home visits or participating in a healthcare simulation, they can gain a firsthand glimpse into the daily challenges and rewards of these professions.
Classroom Projects
Learning should be fun! One of the best ways to keep students engaged in a course is by coming up with innovative and stimulating ideas to interact with concepts. Social work and healthcare services have a huge spectrum of topics from which to build a lesson plan or classroom project.
When paired with or doing in response to a speaker or field trip, because projects typically span much longer and involve many more senses or ways of thinking, the conceptualization and assimilation of information is much higher.
