Searching for a Capacity Building Model in Social Work Education in China

This paper contains our reflections about our experiences in employing a capacity building model for training social workers to conduct community development work in rural China. Unlike the conventional approach to social work practicum, our approach advocates an educational practice of capacity building; not only for local people and learners, but for educators as well. It stresses that the educator should assume a non‐expert role in relating to his/her students so that the students will do the same with local people. We challenge the concept of the social work educator as an expert because it gives a teacher the power and authority to dominate students, which disempowers students during the learning process. In the same vein, we challenge the desire of social work students to become experts in rural development, which in turn disempowers local people from taking charge of the future direction of their lives in rural China. The capacity building approach subscribes to a critical pedagogy that calls for a re‐invention of self by challenging tradition and culture, and by developing academic knowledge, the habit of inquiry and critical curiosity about society, power, inequality, and social change.     

Developing Wellbeing as a Critical Tool in Social Work Education: An Example from the Field of Learning Disability

This paper will explore how ‘wellbeing’ is used in social work education to develop a critical understanding of the current English personalisation agenda, in relation to people with ‘moderate to severe’ learning disabilities. Drawing upon a short thematic analysis of policy for Learning Disability and Social Work Education, the paper will develop the argument that social wellbeing is an important factor for critical engagement and practice with this service-user group. Based upon teaching – incorporating service user and care views, as well as current research-in-progress, Schalock's (2004) taxonomy of wellbeing is developed to focus upon three themes: friendships and relationships; community engagement and structural factors. The importance for social workers of exploring aspects of community, in its widest sense, is emphasised, contrasting with a narrower view presented in policy implementation. The application of wellbeing as a practice and analytical concept therefore provides a framework for a critically reflective and engaged practice.     

Critical social work and competency practice: a proposal to bridge theory and practice in the classroom

Social work education in North America is increasingly focused on competency criteria and micro skills training for future practitioners. Market forces are transforming the nature of social work practice in Canada, and social work regulators are concerned about the lack of evidence-based competencies in social work education. Since the Controlled Act of Psychotherapy was proclaimed in 2017, social work practitioners are in a position to offer psychotherapy services; as a result, universities are under greater pressure to shift to competency-based learning that meets the requirements of a regulated profession. This has raised concerns about the narrowing focus on critical social work theory in preparing students for practice. The divergence between anti-oppressive and direct practice schools is widening with the result that many students have difficulty bridging the gap between critical theory and competency-based practice. This paper attempts to integrate both traditions by offering students a course that directly links critical analysis of structural barriers and client centered interventions. The course is part of a developing critical competency curriculum that focuses on methods of facilitating empowerment and change in the helping process by articulating key relational components between service user and practitioner from a critical-competency perspective.     

我国高等教育亟待加强逻辑与批判性思维训练——以南京地区部分高校教学计划为例

在当前大学本科教学的课程设置中,逻辑学的开课覆盖面偏窄、覆盖率偏低,甚至空缺,缺乏对学生批判性思维的培养和训练。另一方面,却是社会需求日益增加,在升学和求职考试中,对逻辑知识、批判性思维能力的考查日益加重。各高校应该加强逻辑学课程教学,改变这种学与用、供和需脱节的现状,提高大学生逻辑思维能力。     

戴锦华的文艺批评思想述略

戴锦华的研究领域涉及电影、女性主义文学批评与文化研究。她以电影语言、西方文化理论和文化史思想史视野,开创了一条不同于传统电影史研究的“电影文化史”研究范式。在女性主义文学批评领域,她以中国文化传统和现当代历史情境为参照,勾勒出女性书写由“地心”到“地表”的浮现之旅以及现代女性话语的形塑过程。戴锦华提出“文化的位置”这一命题,不仅是寻求在新自由主义崛起的时代对于建构潜能的一次尝试,也是对英国文化研究关于文化与政治经济关系的一次回溯与反思。     

Ethical implications of the promotion of elder volunteerism: A critical perspective

This critical inquiry explores the question: What are the ethical implications of promoting normative ideals for healthy aging, such as volunteerism and civic engagement, that specifically emphasize productivity and contribution? In this paper, we identify the values and ethical standpoints embedded in the discourse promoting volunteerism and productive aging and then describe what this suggests about how older adults are viewed, valued and judged. More specifically, we argue that older adult volunteering has at times been framed in a manner that dually suggests: a) lifelong productivity is a necessary condition to be a good old person; and b) lifelong productivity is a necessary condition to be a good old citizen. We then demonstrate that the current promotion of older adult volunteerism and productive aging is ethically troubling because: 1) it fails to capture the full potential of the self — and in particular, the aging self; and 2) it grounds justice in a narrowly defined and unfair distributive scheme. An alternative model of aging is then presented based on equal regard for all persons insofar as this approach is inclusive of the diversity of older adults and aging processes, and policy implications are discussed.     

A concluding comment: Toward a critical social network analysis

The authors of articles in this special issue on “Ethics in SNA” contribute to enriching the continuing discussion of major ethical dilemmas that social network analysts need to confront. These articles encourage us to replace silence with thoughtful consideration and innovative paths forward. I highlight three themes that emerged in my own reading of these contributions: moving beyond “ethics versus science,” deepening reflexivity, and possible approaches toward a critical SNA.     

Serving public interests and enacting organizational values: An examination of public interest relations through AARP’s Tele-Town Halls

Public interest relations (PIR) is an approach to public relations scholarship and practice that contributes to the social good by integrating the concept of public interest into organizational goals and values. The need for PIR was emphasized during the COVID-19 pandemic as publics looked to organizations for information about a variety of topics (e.g., symptoms, vaccines). AARP created a series of tele-town halls to communicate with its publics, who are considered to be members of a “vulnerable population” during the pandemic. In order to understand how AARP’s Coronavirus Tele-Town Halls reflected the practices of PIR, I completed a critical thematic analysis of 28 virtual sessions that were hosted in 2020–2021. The analysis, which was guided by the tenets of PIR, found that AARP’s communication (1) highlighted common life course milestones of its publics, (2) emphasized the quality of the information, and (3) provided avenues to engage with the organization and its experts. Based on these findings, I developed theoretical implications that reflect a critical perspective on PIR and suggest future research avenues that seek to build this ethical and socially meaningful approach to public relations.     

从语言习得关键期假说探讨幼儿学英语

近年来,随着我国对外语人才需求的增加,幼儿学英语的现象也逐渐普及,外语学习到底应该从何时开始？本文通过探讨语言习得关键期假说与外语学习之间的关系,说明了外语学习并非开始的越早越好。