Social work is committed to promoting social justice, inclusion and the empowerment of people. Qualitative research methods offer exciting possibilities for operationalizing this commitment. Drawing predominantly on constructivist and/or critical paradigms for understanding, qualitative research fosters a rebalancing of power within the researcher/researchee relationship and encourages a focus on marginalized understandings and experiences. More than this, it lends itself to an analysis of power. To realize the potential of qualitative research, however, requires more than just developing a knowledge base; it also requires integrating a different way of "being" as a researcher and social worker. Facilitating this learning process with social work students raises interesting challenges and opportunities. The purpose of this paper is to open for discussion ways for teaching qualitative research that allow the iterative, creative, and reflective practices required for effective qualitative research to develop. Drawing on our experiences teaching qualitative research and student feedback accumulated over the past five years, we discuss aspects of the course that have seemingly "worked" and others that have been less effective. The intent is to initiate a discussion around the ethics and pragmatics of teaching qualitative research. (Contains 1 note.)