Dr Kathomi Gatwiri

Recent research mapping trends and the contributions of members of the African Diaspora in Australia has emphasised the ‘need to establish a new discourse for Africans in Australia which transcends the dominant refugee narrative ’ (Hiruy and Hutton). The increasing size and diversity of African communities in Australia has been met with high levels of public and media scrutiny as debates about immigration in Australia become complicated by the rising influence of nationalist discourses. Through mediatised moral panics that locate ‘African blackness’ as dangerous and unassimilable, resulting mainstream attitudes towards Black African migrants enforce their experiences of ‘conditional belonging and perpetual strangerhood ’ in Australia. Critical perspectives assist in effectively documenting, theorising and sharing the stories and experiences of Africans in Australia with a dignified sociological nuance.

The Australian Association of Social Work (AASW) accreditation standards require Master of Social Work(Q) students to attend 20 days of face-to-face delivery as part of their two-year degree (AASW, 2020). With the increasing global trend toward the online delivery of education, these standards reinforce the AASW's belief that online delivery alone cannot meet the learning needs of social work students (Goldingay & Land, 2014). In Session 1 2020, 150 students in their first and second year of study were to join staff on the Gold Coast campus for 2 × 7-day compulsory residentials, spread across four units. First-year units facilitate learning around foundational theory, knowledge and practice, with second-year units focused on advancing practice skills, group work, and community development. The rapid onset of Coronavirus and the resulting restrictions, meant in just four weeks, we were tasked with converting these residentials from face-to-face to online delivery. Faced with the enormity of this task, we collaborated as a team, to plan, develop, implement, and reflect on our experience, rather than battle in isolation. In this presentation, we highlight the key features of our delivery (including establishing student connections, setting expectations, and acknowledging moments of gratitude) and reflect on what we have learnt and how this will inform our pedagogy into the future.