Implications for social work teaching and learning in Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, due to the COVID-19 pandemic: A reflection

Azlinda Azman; Paramjit Singh Jamir Singh; Ali Isahaque

doi:10.1177/1473325020973308

Implications for social work teaching and learning in Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, due to the COVID-19 pandemic: A reflection

Qual Soc Work. 2021 Mar;20(1-2):553-560. doi: 10.1177/1473325020973308.

Authors

Azlinda Azman¹, Paramjit Singh Jamir Singh¹, Ali Isahaque¹

Affiliation

¹ Social Work Programme, School of Social Sciences, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang, Malaysia.

Abstract

The global lockdown due to COVID-19 is a major concern as all higher educational institutions face disruption in teaching, learning and assessment. Social work educators in Malaysia's higher educational institutions are not spared of this disruption. Conventional teaching methods are now being replaced by non-conventional modes of teaching, which include online teaching and assessment using various platforms such as Zoom, WebEx and others. In embarking on online methods of teaching, social work educators will have to undergo many changes. It is particularly so as social work has a practice component that involves field training, which will be a different challenge to educators and students in this new and unexpected environment. This paper aims to discuss the implications of COVID-19 on the changes that have taken place in social work teaching and learning in Malaysia and potential responses.

Keywords: COVID-19; Malaysia; social work; social work learning; social work teaching.