The Group as a Psycho-Educational Medium for the Teaching of Anti-Racist Practice on Social Work Trainings

This article discusses the anxieties that lead to resistance to anti-racist and culturally
sensitive reflection and engagement on social work trainings. It briefly discusses a
culturally diverse social work training and the anxieties described by the students that
hindered the integration of the teaching of race and culture during the training. The
article then contrasts this with another more successful training experience on
another social work course at a different university with a similar level of cultural
diversity by the use of the group as a psycho-educational method to manage the
student’s defences and avoidance of the difficult and painful knowledge required to
enhance reflexivity when it comes to issues of race. It discusses how the role and
skills of the seminar leader can manage the student’s defences through the use of
group dynamic processes and concepts as psycho-educational tools; thereby
deepening the observational and reflective skills of the social work students during
their training in preparation for their future work within diverse settings and in line with
the social work competencies and regulation requirements.