Moving Social Work Education Forward Through the Application of Neuroscientifically Informed Teaching Practice: A Case Study in Student Engagement Through Art and Multimodal Processing

Abstract

Modern advances in neuroscience suggest learning occurs through three basic cognition patterns. Higher-level multimodal learning occurs when learning activities contain multiple cognition patterns. This case study details an application of these concepts where fine art, journaling, practicum experiences, and in-class processing were fused to create an active and participatory method of engaging social work students in critical thinking as related to differential impacts of clinical decision-making. The learning activities are described and multimodal learning is explained, along with the findings of a focus group used to assess student feedback. Student experiences and the potential adaptations of this approach are also addressed. The tentative findings of this case study indicate positive learning experiences and suggest a need for further research to explore the opportunities associated with the use of multimodal and art-infused learning techniques in social work courses.