I would say I was a solid B, if such grades existed in the field. I believe that I brought a lot of knowledge from my coursework, and throughout the course of the internship I was engaged in the process of learning how to apply that knowledge to fieldwork. I saw a lot of positive results, but there were also clients with whom I feel I could have made more of a difference. The point of internship is to learn about one's strengths and weaknesses, and I feel I learned that my greatest strength is in my book knowledge. I still need to work on applying that knowledge to real people and their complex situations, but I also have come to understand that comes with experience. Even some of my most experienced colleagues at Gateway admitted that they feel they still make mistakes, so I can take heart that we all have room for improvement.
What I intend to change is that in the classroom I think I will apply...
This will allow for a two-way flow of knowledge, in contrast to the one-way flow I had before, where I was simply applying book knowledge to the field. Having my learning go the other way is something that will improve my performance both in the class and when I get back out into the field. I also want to focus on empathizing with clients while not becoming emotionally involved in their situations. There is a tendency to be either too clinical or too emotional and I want to work on striking that perfect balance, because most clients that I saw needed a little bit of each when they came to us. I plan to address these changes by thinking about them more actively, and applying the knowledge I gained on the internship to my classroom learning. I see this as a critical part of the education process, and one of the biggest benefits of doing an internship.
