Protecting Children

Abstract

Mai Le, a young Vietnamese social worker, had recently transitioned from the role of student to field instructor. As a student, she had grappled with conflicts between her academic learning, personal beliefs, and field experience at an orphanage where the house supervisors, called “Mothers,” sometimes used corporal punishment to maintain control of the children. In her new role, she had the additional burden of helping her students reconcile professional ethics, indigenous cultural values, agency policy, and personal values. This case was written for the orientation and training of social work field instructors and field liaisons. It may also be useful for graduate level social work field seminars, courses on social work field supervision or administration, child welfare, international business and management, or anyone experiencing tension between personal and professional values.