Making AI Use Visible: Why I Ask Students to Document Their Process

Posted By Laurel Hitchcock on Feb 2, 2026

I use Generative AI tools, and started using them when they were first released. You can see how I started using AI to help with my work in this article that I published with colleagues in 2024 in the Journal of Social Work Education:

Báez, J. C., Bjugstad, A., Park, T. K., Jones, J. L., Bidwell, L. N., Sage, M., & Hitchcock, L. I. (2025). Social Work Educators Innovating With Generative AI: An Exploratory Study. Journal of Social Work Education, 61(1), 14–29. https://doi.org/10.1080/10437797.2024.2411170

As I reflect on this article now, I still see the role of AI tools in my work life as one of augmentation or support. The tools help me organize my thinking, draft an outline or get unstuck when I have a writing block. My confidence in using AI tools responsibly is rooted in professional identity, judgment, and ethical accountability. Students, by contrast, are encountering these tools at the same time they are learning what it means to think, write, and reason as social workers. Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT, Grammarly, Copilot, and others are now embedded in students’ daily writing environments. Some students are using these tools deliberately; others may not fully realize when browser extensions or autocomplete features involve AI. Meanwhile, our assignments in social work education are often writing-focused, inviting reflection, analysis, integration of theory and experience, and the development of critical thinking that grounds ethical practice.

Introducing My Substack: Writing Alongside Teaching and Learning in Social Work

Posted By Laurel Hitchcock on Jan 7, 2026

For many years, Teaching and Learning in Social Work has been a central space for my writing about pedagogy, curriculum, and the practice of social work education. It has allowed me to think publicly about teaching, supervision, and professional learning, and to stay grounded in the values that shape my work.

I am excited to share that I am launching a Substack as a complementary space for my writing—one that will work alongside, rather than replace, this blog. You can find the Substack here: https://laureliversonhitchcock.substack.com/

Why Add a Substack?

Writing has always been how I make sense of my work and how I stay accountable to it. As a social work educator, clinical social worker, coach, and consultant, I spend much of my professional life thinking with others about learning, practice, supervision, ethics, identity, and change. Substack offers a different kind of writing environment: slower, more reflective, and more conversational.

This new space allows me to write in ways that do not always fit neatly into traditional blog posts or academic outlets, while still remaining grounded in scholarship, practice wisdom, and values-informed reflection.

How the Two Spaces Will Work Together

The Social Work Dimensions of Diversity Library Guide

Posted By Laurel Hitchcock on Nov 3, 2025

One of my favorite parts of teaching social work is watching students discover the connections between theory and practice, especially those moments when social justice moves from abstract ideas to meaningful frameworks for understanding the world. Finding the right learning resources, such as a book, movie or podcast, to facilitate those discoveries hasn’t always been easy.

Like many of you, I’ve spent countless hours searching for materials that do more than just acknowledge diversity. I wanted resources that helped students understand how systems of power and privilege actually shape people’s lives, materials that centered the voices of those most affected by oppression. I also realized that if I, as a full-time educator, was spending a lot of time finding these resources, our adjunct faculty might be struggling too. Given that the Council on Social Work Education’s 2022 Educational Policies and Accreditation Standards (CSWE, 2022) now embeds requirements for diversity and equity content throughout social work curricula, I wanted to find a way to curate and share resources.

This idea led to an exciting collaboration with Dana Hettich, a reference librarian at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Libraries. Together with help from Lana Turner, MSW Student and soon-to-be UAB alumnus, we developed the Social Work Dimensions of Diversity Library Guide, a project that has become more than just a teaching resource. It’s evolved into a living, collaborative space where students, faculty, and librarians work together to build something meaningful.

Call for Contributions: Help Us Expand the Community-Engaged Learning Toolkit

Posted By Laurel Hitchcock on May 1, 2025

My colleagues, Drs. Nathalie Jones, Melanie Sage, and I are excited to invite submissions for an expanded edition of the Professionalism for Community-Engaged Learning Student Workbook and a new Educator’s Guide. This expanded resource will enhance teaching and learning by offering structured assignments, reflective activities, and instructional strategies that prepare students for professionalism in community-based learning.

About the Project

The Professionalism for Community-Engaged Learning Student Workbook is part of the Professionalism for Community-Engaged Learning Toolkit. This Toolkit provides resources and learning activities emphasizing the practical skills and knowledge necessary for novice student learners to thrive in community-engaged learning projects (such as volunteering and service learning) in higher education. 

Drawing from Social Work Education and applicable to other fields, this workbook is designed to assist student learners in developing the knowledge and skills essential for a professional demeanor during community-engaged learning projects, concentrating on behavior, appearance, and communication in oral, written, and electronic formats. The workbook includes three sections: