Training of child welfare social workers: American, British, and Ukrainian approaches

Abstract

The article considers the training of child social workers in the UK, the USA, and Ukraine. The study aim relates the structure, content, and forms of training. Theoretical, and comparative methods allowed to generalize the available data on the issue current state of professional training of social workers. The results of the study allow concluding that the common features of American, British, and Ukrainian system of social workers training for the work with children are: (i) the use of a variety of teaching forms, methods, and technologies; (ii) the curriculum orientation on the unity of theoretical and practical components; courses addressing direct work with children and families, social policy, social services for children and families with much attention to the aspects of adoption, foster care, juvenile justice, child abuse, child neglect, etc. The research outcomes testify that the principal difference between models of social workers training is the accent of curriculum in the UK and the USA on the issues of preventive care, social and legal protection of children, and in Ukraine − on the deviations correction, on the therapeutic assistance.