Abstract: Submission #80

Abstract This project is part of a larger NRF project titled Social Work education Post COVID-19- Course Redesign/rediscovering new ways of learning and teaching in South Africa. Student evaluation of a redesigned course in fieldwork practice education using Authentic eLearning is complex and nuanced. Using real-world activities supports student identity and preparedness for the real world of work, requiring students to adopt a position about their professional identity. Social work requires praxis, which is achieved through fieldwork practice education, which is part of the BSW degree. Using a qualitative research approach through a questionnaire, the researcher explored how 52 final-year student social workers shared their experiences regarding fieldwork practice. The final year student social workers used student evaluations and experiences at a historically disadvantaged higher education institution to develop their identity. The use of the 10 elements of the Authentic eLearning framework offered a strong pedagogical framework to foreground work in this project. This research methodology used an educational research design to obtain the collective views and experiences of final-year student social workers from the University of the Western Cape. Students used the questionnaire to give an account of their experiences of being and becoming social workers and to reflect on their fieldwork practice journey. Ten themes emerged from the data and were grouped according to the elements of Authentic eLearning as the main themes of discussion. The findings of this research revealed the value of students' views and experiences, and they envisioned themselves as professionals. This research study also supports other educators in the redesign of a fieldwork practice course in a pedagogically sound manner. Ethics approval has been obtained from the University of the Western Cape (H23/05/27).