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This descriptive article reports immediate responses to COVID-19 by social work field education faculty in four universities in Australia, New Zealand and the United States. Moving swiftly to online innovations, tele-supervision, teaching remote practice methods, and establishing alternative placements allowed students to meet required competencies while supporting students during the immediate crisis. Collaboration between field education faculty teams, professional bodies and agencies and clear communication with students and supervisors enabled all stakeholders to be open to flexible placement options. To conclude, COVID-19 brought opportunities to reflect on responses and explore new possibilities for field education in a post-COVID-19 world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to understand the extent, range and nature of social work research activity after natural disasters and to identify the implications for future research and practice. A Scoping review methodology framework was used search of three databases: Web of Science, ProQuest and Informit was conducted to identify relevant studies between 2000 and 2018. Selection of studies was based on empirical research about social work and natural disasters and/or authored by social workers. Study selection found a total of 38 relevant articles. Charting the data was conducted and the following areas of focus were summarised: (1) interventions relating to psychosocial care, aid work and community work; (2) the effects of disasters on people and mediators of these effects; (3) social work education and challenges in disaster relief; and (4) measuring mental health outcomes of people who have experienced a disaster event. This scoping review has established that there is a range of social work literature focused on natural disasters that primarily examines social work interventions, the effects of disasters and social work education. Future social work research and practice needs to focus on the types and timing of interventions that promote positive recovery following natural disasters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International placements are uncommon for Aotearoa New Zealand social work students compared with many other countries. In 2015 five students undertook a 10-week placement in Cambodia. This article explores the students’ perspectives on the skills, knowledge and capabilities required for international placements. The findings from this study indicate that questions remain as to whether the associated challenges outweigh the advantages of international placement experiences. We recommend that working with tertiary institutions from countries with more established international placement programmes may be one way of addressing some of the challenges and advancing international placements for Aotearoa New Zealand students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]