The world of social work education lost an icon this fall when Marion Bogo died on September 28, 2021. For Field Educator, the loss is deeply felt. In the early days of the journal, Marion helped to guide discussions about how best to position the journal to have the greatest impact on field education. She was superbly strategic in her thinking, and, as was characteristic for Marion, she shared her insights generously, and was always warm and enthusiastic with her encouragement.
In the broader community of social work educators, Marion played a leadership role, nationally and internationally, in challenging us to investigate our assumptions about learning and the assessment of learning. Questions she kept on the front burner included:
- Why isn’t there more direct observation of students?
- Why do we rely on process recordings and student self-reporting to inform field instruction?
- How do we account for field instructor bias in the assessment of student learning?
- What is the evidence that the current model for student attainment of competency is the most effective?
- How do we create authentic and substantive learning and assessment structures?
Marion was dedicated to a new way of delivering social work education, grounded in a moral imperative to use the most effective means possible to educate the next generation. We will remember Marion not only for her extensive and groundbreaking scholarship on simulation-based teaching and learning, the use of OSCES, and the concept of a holistic approach to assessment, but also for her warmth, sagacity, and unwavering commitment to improving social work education. No matter her fame and acclaim, Marion was accessible, welcoming, humble, engaged, and full of spirit, and she valued the opinions of others—always listening so intently to ideas. Field education has lost its rudder, and we, her admiring colleagues, have indeed lost a friend.