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Citation |
Rafter J, Sangha J, Mano I. Br. J. Soc. Work 2024; bcae103. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 2024, Oxford University Press) |
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DOI |
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PMID |
unavailable |
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Abstract |
In 2020, the social work in schools (SWIS) project was implemented with an initial cohort of fifty-four social work students from an Eastern English university. With the aim of exploring the student experience, we undertook an initial focus group. One unanticipated aspect of these discussions was how black students reflected on their experience of being placed in predominantly white schools, which merited a follow-up focus group to explore this in more depth. Intersectionality underpinned this study as it offered an analytical approach to understand the interconnected identities of black students within the context of schools. Constructivist grounded theory was used to analyse the data, and three categories were identified in understanding experiences of participants: Race and Experiences of Being Placed in Schools; Intersections of Race, Racism, and Acceptance; and Experiences of Learning in Schools. Concepts of belonging, acceptance and racial identity underpin these categories and help us understand black students' experiences of undertaking SWIS placements. Black students developed their skills, knowledge, self-concept and confidence in schools. |