Pre-Symposium Institutes

Register for institutes in the symposium registration portal. Now open!

More than Ice Breakers: How to Use Activity in Group Work to Enhance Mutual Aid (LIVE ONLY)

Monday, June 7, 2021 (9:30am - 12:30pm ET) | Half-day Institute
Presenter: Jennifer Clements

Join in this interactive and fun session and fill your facilitation toolbox with group-oriented, experiential techniques to inspire and motivate participants, create a supportive and positive learning environment and facilitate meaningful reflection and group dialogue. Be ready to build on group work theory to better identify key components to improve group functioning that will break down perceived barriers and unconscious bias. Learn strategies to provide high-quality experiential education for diverse virtual and in-person groups, help learners make connections between their educational experiences and real life situations to take responsibility for their learning and development and strengthen skills that will enhance group functioning, maximize outcomes and reduce barriers. The Institute offers 3 hours of continuing education contact hours (3 CE Contact Hours), and has a $50 registration fee ($20 for students).


 

Building Mutual Aid in Groups with Vulnerable and Resilient Populations (LIVE ONLY) 

Monday, June 7, 2021 (1:30pm - 4:30pm ET) | Half-day Institute
Presenter: Alex Gitterman

Mutual aid is the primary rationale for the development of group services. By their very nature, group mutual aid systems universalize individual issues, reduce isolation, and mitigate stigma through their powerful yet subtle interpersonal processes. Through presentation, discussion, and role-plays, attendees will connect knowledge, methods, and skills of group development to assist groups in building mutual support and dealing with dysfunctional interpersonal processes such as withdrawing, testing, scapegoating, and monopolizing. Using the backdrop of time (preliminary, beginning, middle and termination phases), the social worker’s skills in helping group members to help each other will be emphasized. These concepts will be applied to various types of groups (curriculum, task, social, problem-solving, etc.). The Institute offers 3 hours of continuing education contact hours (3 CE Contact Hours), and has a $50 registration fee ($20 for students). Note: This session will not be recorded.


 

Field Instruction Workshop (LIVE ONLY)

Tuesday, June 8, 2021 (9:30am - 12:30pm ET) | Half-day Institute
Presenter: Urania Glassman

The interaction between supervisor and supervisee can generate challenges. Good communication and relational processes are vital for a successful supervisory relationship; when they are ignored, or not addressed skillfully, the learning process can go astray. The facilitator of this session will focus on the opportunities and challenges that arise during the supervisory process, including the supervision of group work. The methods and skills required to achieve effective supervision will be addressed. The seminar format will include presentation, discussion, and role-play. Practice examples will be drawn from the participants' supervisory practice. The Institute offers 3 hours of continuing education (3 CE Contact Hours), and has no registration fee for social work field instructors who supervise students.  


 

Leading Mutual Aid Support Groups: The Science and Art of Group Work Practice (LIVE ONLY)

Tuesday, June 8, 2021 (9:30am - 12:30pm & 1:30pm - 4:30pm ET) | Full-day Institute
Presenter: Lawrence Shulman

The focus of this workshop will be on understanding the core dynamics and skills required to lead mutual aid support groups. Examples presented by the instructor and those shared by participants will be used to illustrate how to apply this understanding to a range of settings (e.g., hospitals, drug treatment agencies, schools, residential settings welfare) and with a range of populations and problems. Discussion will include how to integrate elements from Evidenced-Based Practice (e.g., Motivational Interviewing, Solution Focused Practice, and Cognitive Behavioral) in a non-prescriptive manner so that the personal artistry of the group leader is enhanced and not restricted by the science. Discussion will also include the way in which group members' ambivalence can lead to the “illusion of work” (e.g., passive resistance, intellectualizing, and avoidance) and how the group leader can confront this process in a supportive manner. The Institute offers 6 hours of continuing education contact hours (6 CE Contact Hours), and has a $90 registration fee ($40 for students).

 


Pre-Symposium Institute Registration Rates by Zone

The International Association for Social Work with Groups (IASWG) stands for diversity, equity, inclusion, and social justice. Our symposium participation is truly international with presenters and attendees from all around the world. We make efforts to be inclusive through a diversified membership and symposium registration fee structures that reflects the financial realities in the world. For that reason, a model was developed, using the classification system based on the world bank data and EU classifications, according to the 2019 Gross Domestic Product (GDP, US$ in Trillions) per capita and divided into five zones.

There is an additional fee to attend Pre-Symposium Institutes held on Monday, June 7th and Tuesday, June 8th.

Pre-Symposium Institute Rates Zone 5 Zone 4 Zone 3 Zone 2 Zone 1
Full-day Institute  $90 $85 $45 $27 $10
Half-day Institute  $50 $48 $25 $20 $6
Student Full-day Institute  $40 $35 $20 $12 $4
Student Half-day Institute  $20 $18 $10 $6 $2
The Field Instructor's Workshop is only available to social work field instructors who supervise students.