Using geographic interviews to conduct community assessments—insights for MSW pedagogy

Social work is predicated as a person-in-environment profession, but few tools presently exist for students to operationalize person-in-environment through assessment and systematic understanding. Geographic interviews, which combine spatial mapping and qualitative go-along interviews, are one possible tool with promise for application in the social work classroom. This teaching note describes the process of integrating geographic interviews as one data collection method MSW students could utilize in a community assessment assignment. We share learnings from student assignments (N = 8) and instructor focus groups (N = 4). We found that while there was a high level of student and instructor interest, the unfamiliarity of the tool and perceived time required meant that some students did not choose to use the tool. When they did use the tool, they found it valuable for their learning; however, many students did not use the tool to expected fidelity. We suggest the need for more substantial training of students and instructors when using this valuable tool, including examples, practice assignments, and suggestions for intentional adaptation.