Reconceptualizing Policy Class as a Practice Class: Increasing the Political Efficacy of Millennial Students

Abstract

Most policy instructors know too well the challenge of teaching social welfare policy to social work students who do not list policy among their favorite courses. Social work programs have historically taught social policy courses using a theoretical or didactic approach, and as a result, students are inadequately prepared for doing work in the legislative and political arena. One recent study of 396 randomly selected licensed social workers from across the United States found that almost half did not feel adequately prepared to engage with the political system. Recent research supports the idea of teaching policy using an experiential approach and providing students with opportunities for real-life application. Social work programs should strongly consider reconceptualizing their policy courses as a practice course. This article describes one approach that can be used to provide millennial students with a rich and rewarding experience in their required policy courses.