Theory for Community Practice in Social Work:

The effort is made to revitalize the search for practice theory which will inform and guide the community practitioner. Ecological theory is used to identify a generic model of community practice and analyze member cohesion in the three traditional modalities. The theory of energy in human ecology is developed to set the stage for an energy assessment, and the selection of strategic energy patterns in phases of organizing. Theoretical propositions with practice implications are offered for research on the relationship between strategic energy-patterns of organizing, energy costs, specialization of function, and styles of intervention.     

Attitudes Toward Advanced Licensing for Macro Social Work Practice

ABSTRACT

Trends in clinical licensing and a renewed energy to strengthen macro practice are raising questions about the appropriateness of licensure for macro social work practice. This article presents findings from an online survey of macro social work educators and macro social work practitioners exploring their attitudes toward an advanced-level macro social work license. Faculty and practitioner responders agreed that there is a role for advanced-licensing of macro social work practice; however, the lack of a collectively strong response reflects a current state of ambivalence toward advanced-level licensing for macro practice. Implications from these findings on contemporary social work are discussed.     

Teaching Successful Community Practice in Social Work

ABSTRACT

This article identifies and addresses a severe problem in the management of community practice projects of students in their second and third year in the Undergraduate Social Work program at the University of Haifa School of Social Work; namely, the current binary evaluation method based on total success or failure of the project.

Using a systems approach, this study creates a framework by which to ensure effective and positive outcomes for community practice projects carried out by undergraduate social work students (Freund, Arkin & Saltman, 1999). This framework is unique in that it draws on knowledge gained from organizational and community theories, as well as instructional theories for teaching social work practice.

The proposed framework includes three components that describe the factors necessary to help transform the student's learning experience: the organization's characteristics, the student's resources, and the evaluative measures.

This inter-conceptual approach enhances the ability of the instructor, the student, and the organization to build an appropriate organizational foundation for students operating communal programs. The underlying assumption is that an integrative approach promotes a better understanding of the components essential for building and evaluating social plans conducted by social work students.     

Social Work,Economic Conversion,and Community Practice:

With the fall of the Berlin Wall, and a new administration in Washington, hope is renewed for a peace economy. This hope is evidenced in the growth of new economic conversion projects ranging from legislative initiatives to new grassroots organizations. This exploratory survey of 15 directors of conversion projects sought to discover the kinds of strategies used and the degree of social work participation. Although results indicate that only one-third of the organizations involved social workers, there is much common ground between conversion strategies, community practice, and social work.     

Navigating the Shifting Sands of Social Work Terrain: Social Work Practice in Postmodern Conditions

In an effort to inform social work education, this article reports on part of a study examining the factors that hinder or facilitate involvement in social justice efforts. Based on a case example of Canadian international development nongovernmental organizations, the article presents the findings of an analysis of organizational documents. I argue that international development organizations' conceptions of involvement reproduce inequitable North-South power relations through a perpetuation of colonial discourses of the South. This perpetuation of inequitable power relations is evident in three main themes: the tragic South; the hero/victim binary; and the ideal of one world. The implications of these findings for social work education are outlined.     

The Experiential Community Assessment Project: Integrating Social Work Practice Skills

Although most social work students are primarily interested in micro practice, the Council on Social Work Education mandates teaching macro practice. The challenge of incorporating meaningful and relevant community assignments within practice courses is noted in the literature (Koerin, Reeves, & Rosenblum, 2000 Koerin, B. B., Reeves, J. and Rosenblum, A. 2000. Macro-learning opportunities: What is really happening out there in field?. Journal of Baccalaureate Social Work, 6(1): 109–121.  [Google Scholar]). This article discusses the Experiential Community Assessment Project (ECAP) that integrates social work practice skills through interviewing a community leader, attending a community meeting, and using publicly available data to assess at risk neighborhoods. Grounded in experiential learning theory, a series of reflection papers are used to help students process what they are learning. A capstone poster presentation is required at the end. Suggestions and recommendations are made for using or adapting this project within other social work curricula.     

Building a Predominantly Web-Based Course from Face-to-Face and Interactive Video Pilots: Administrative Skills for Social Work Practice

SUMMARY

This paper describes the design, development, pilot, and revision of a predominantly web-based macro social work practice course on administrative skills required for all MSW students at Michigan State University, a Research I, land grant university. The course was intentionally developed in stages, first in a face-to-face (F2F) and interactive video (ITV) setting and then predominantly online after content revision and update. The course uses streamed videotaped lectures as a central teaching format, with extensive use of discussion boards and other interactive tools. The contributions made by the F2F and ITV iteration will be highlighted, along with lessons learned from multiple online replications.     

Empowering Students for Community Organization Practice

Abstract

Community organization courses often focus on discussions of collaboration and campaign strategies. Seldom are students taught how to carry out the tactics needed to enact these strategies. In addition, community organization courses typically minimize the importance of the confrontation tactics that are often necessary to achieve social change. The author describes methods used for classroom instruction in power analysis and confrontation politics.     

Social Work Leadership: Identifying Core Attributes

This article argues that social work academics are educationally remiss for not defining the concepts touted as important for the profession and for our students. Through a content analysis of published literature, the author distilled five core attributes of social work leadership that underpin all other knowledge, personal, and skilled capacities. These core attributes are defined and how they have been used to date is described. This work is aspirational, and the author hopes that other academics and social work professionals may add to its thinking and application.     

Assessing the Integrity of Community Organization and Administration Content in Field Practice

The effort to ensure that students acquire knowledge and skills in macro social work practice requires considerable attention in the face of stronger interests in micro practice on the part of students and their field instructors. This study evaluates the effectiveness of the field component at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to provide learning opportunities for the development of macro practice skills and knowledge. Over 85% of the student respondents had responsibility for at least one macro practice activity during their first field placement. Although a majority of the macro practice assignments were related to organizational interventions and very few to community interventions, the study provides guidance for improving the teamwork of faculty and field instructors in an articulated approach to field learning.     

Insights on Professional Identification and Licensure from Community Practice Social Workers

ABSTRACT

This article describes a qualitative study designed to explore both how community practice social workers identify professionally and to examine their view towards professional regulation. Thirty-five MSW-level social workers in a large metropolitan region who self-identified as community practice social worker participated in in-depth interviews. The respondents shared their views regarding professional identification as social workers and the impact of professional identity on their work as community practitioners. Approximately half of the respondents indicated that they only sometimes or never identify as a social worker. The respondents were generally critical of the licensing burden placed upon them as community practice social workers.     

Protecting the Inclusion of Macro Content in Generalist Practice

Maintaining the integrity of macro focused curriculum content in a generalist academic program is a central issue in social work education. The authors describe forces affecting social work education that have resulted in an increased focus on micro level practice to the detriment of macro level practice. They present a generalist curriculum model for highlighting macro focused curriculum content. The model's components include: (1) curriculum goals; (2) curriculum themes; (3) liberal arts foundation; and (4) curriculum content and learning strategies. The authors highlight the model's advantages for creating a pro-activist educational atmosphere.     

Community Work:

This article presents a typology of models of community work currently extant in the United Kingdom. It focuses on clarifying theoretical points through analysis of the currently most widely accepted contemporary models in use throughout the UK: community care; community organization; community development; social/community planning; community education; and community action, and developing models of feminist community work, and black and anti-racist community work. The typology presented is organized on a continuum from models focused on ''care'' to those focusing on ''action.'' Each model is analyzed in relation to the following characteristics: strategy; workers' main roles; and typical agencies and examples of work. Selected critical key texts treating each model are documented. Discussion highlights similarities and differences among the models particularly with regard to techniques and skills and ideological traditions to provide a framework to understand community work practice.     

Social Work Field Education as Social Development

SUMMARY

This article will discuss social development models and their application to the establishment of social work field education in Lithuania. A model of field education as social development is presented and discussed, with reference to promoting core social work knowledge, values and skills, establishing relationships between educational and social welfare institutions, and identifying the impact of field education programs on community well-being. Examples from the authors' experience in educational program development and implementation are presented, along with implications for international social work education.     

Spirituality-Based Social Work Values for Empowering Human Service Organizations

Abstract

This paper is based on three premises: (1) Spirituality is seen as an asset from which the client system draws its innate strengths to empower itself, (2) Just as it is important for social work clients to build on individual spiritual strengths to overcome personal challenges, it is equally crucial for human service organizations to implement spirituality-based professional values in organizational contexts, and (3) Spirituality issues need to be examined from the perspective of macro social work education. Based on these premises, the goal of this paper is to construct a conceptual framework that links spirituality-based social work values to empowerment strategies that can be employed in macro social work practice. Adding to the existing dimensions of social work knowledge relating to spirituality, this paper examines spirituality as empowerment issues. Also, the author explores spirituality-centered social work skills, focusing on organizational management and leadership skills.     

Spiritual Programmes for Prisoners in India: Insights for Criminological Social Work Practice

This study is based on 198 prisoners in prisons of three Indian cities – Mumbai, Pune and Delhi, who had undergone spiritual programs conducted by the Art of Living and Brahmakumaris. The main objectives were to understand the prisoners’ perceived implication of the programs for themselves and the future use. Results showed that younger prisoners, the religious minorities, those who personally engaged with the programs by doing some self-practice and those who had at least matriculation level education, were more likely to see the spiritual programs as personally positive, i.e. as giving a sense of personal peace and also see its continuous use as a way of life for the future. They also did better on parameters of hope, well-being, coherence, happiness and peace. This has implications for criminological social work practice, where a case is made for spiritual interventions, geared towards increasing the chances of prisoners to turn their lives around.     

Preparing Social Work Students for Interdisciplinary Practice

Summary

This article reports findings of an MSW interdisciplinary practice curriculum experiment. A diverse group of students at ten schools of social work were provided with specialized fieldwork and training. The agencies represented a broad array of services, fields of practice client populations and professional disciplines. Students encountered frequent interdisciplinary disputes and often found social workers coordinating interdisciplinary teams, a role upon which social work curricula rarely focus. This specialized experience seems to have not only enriched students' preparation for interdisciplinary work, but also deepened their understanding of social work as a unique discipline.     

Critical Variables for Infusing Community Content into a Clinical Program

ABSTRACT

This empirical study seeks to identify effective methods for infusing community material into a clinical social work program. It draws from Diffusion of Innovation Theory (Rogers, 1995b) and the Transtheoretical Model (Prochaska, DiClemente, &;Norcross, 1992) to guide implementation. Based on qualitative and quantitative data from a variety of sources, the results identify variables critical in the change process and some preliminary outcomes of that change. Findings suggest that teaching community content can be enhanced through developing a pool of outside community guest speakers and field trips, addressing the varying faculty development needs of professors teaching macro and micro social work courses, and defining and redefining the concept of community during implementation and change processes.     

Assessment of Integration of Disability Content into Social Work Education

ABSTRACT

Three hundred members of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) responded to a survey regarding the inclusion of disability content in social work courses and supports needed to increase disability content. Although respondents generally agreed that disability content is important in social work education, its inclusion is inconsistent, with most frequent inclusion in courses on diversity and least frequent inclusion in courses on research. Respondents identified barriers to increasing disability content, including lack of resources for teaching, lack of relevant faculty expertise, and an overcrowded curriculum. Strategies and resources for infusing disability content into social work education are discussed.     

The Social Work Outreach Service Within a School of Social Work

ABSTRACT

This article describes a unique community outreach service that is designed specifically to meet the needs of the local community, provide training ground for social work students, and experiment with the development of new practice models. Located within a school of social work, the service was born in an atmosphere in which both the university and the school were being called upon to play a greater part in the community. Since its inception in 1992, it has successfully served the local community through direct service, community organization activities, and consultation. Despite these successes in outreach to the community, internal challenges continue to exist.