“The goal is to live a full, productive life even with all that ambiguity. No matter what happens, whether the cancer never flares up again or whether you die, the important thing is that the days that you have had you will have lived”. Gilda Radner. The word ambiguity can represent something different based on the situation. The word ambiguity can represent a situation leading to confusion, chaos, uncertainty and many more. When we think of the word ambiguity we can relate it change. Change is the only certainty in this world today and the pace of change is ever increasing. We all know that change isn’t easy and every day that passes we need to deal with an increasing amount of ambiguity. Ambiguity creates complexity and means decision making is difficult. In the book we have taken a look at case study 8.2 and have related it to
Who I identify as, including identifying as a social worker once I graduate, will have some level privilege and power attached to the chosen identities. Gelfand, Sillivan, and Steinhouse (2002) noted that there are may dimensions that influence our personal and professional relationships with others, and these dimensions shape how we see and interact with, include or exclude them, and ways that we oppress or discriminate against them. As a social worker whose clients share my same identity, we may benefit by my having a shared understanding of cultural norms and expectations to reach a common goal. For clients who share commonalities with me, we may benefit by being able to work more collaboratively and possibly a more trusting relationship than one that must be built over time. However, just as similarities can be empowering, I must remember that the client knows best despite our shared identities that may speak otherwise. In addition, challenges can arise when there is no commonality in identities or when identities between myself and a client are radically different. In these times, as a social worker who has a degree of power in a relationship with people seeking help, that I must acknowledge to myself that my power can impede on inclusively practicing and remain self-aware (Gelfand, Sullivan, & Steinhouse,
My passion for helping and supporting those whose economic and financial standings have hindered their growth in our society, has driven me towards social work. I feel I have exhausted every possible avenue in my current degree field. Pursuing a master’s in Social Work, will give me the diversity that I need, while aiding me in bringing my dreams of working more in depth with clients, by helping assist them with their individual needs and issues to reality. The Social work field also offers versatility which allows me to work in many dimensions, such as clinical, case management, and many other composites which enables me to help every population. Becoming a social worker gives me other benchmarks in which I can use to evaluate programs,
Modern social workers are frequently tasked with certain objectives by their agencies, which leave little room for any work beyond specific treatments and timeframes (Gitterman & Knight, 2016). Although social workers are bound to the set of ethics put forth by the NASW, practitioners are often limited to focusing on the issues of the individual rather than the larger societal issues that may be behind those concerns. Additionally, many social work students end up working in direct practice, rather than macro work. There is a need for social workers to engage at the macro level in order to facilitate community organization and empowerment.
Make a critical reflection on any two areas of knowledge (knowledge base) in International social work practice.
Prior to starting this course the MA Social Work course and the PPSWP module I felt very confident in the aspects of communicating effectively and working with a diverse range of people, and after the reading the professional capabilities framework I believe that I hold the same personal values which is expected of a social worker. The PCF6 talks about the importance of critical reflection and reflective practice explaining that it helps improve accountability, professional development and helps to you understand your own tacit knowledge and gain new knowledge, which improves outcomes and experiences for social workers. (Capabilities within the PCF, 2016)
This is difficult process and should be coupled with use of theoretical approaches. Adams et al (2008) advocates that social workers need to use an eclectic approach to their practice by selecting different elements from theories in order to produce one approach appropriate for the individual’s needs. Epstein (1992) suggests that to overcome the limitations of theories continuous reflection and debate is vital to incorporate complex
As a Human Service major what better way to learn more about the profession than from someone who has experience in the field. I chose to interview a friend of mine, Florence Martus. Mrs. Martus is employed through the city of Fredericksburg, VA with the Department of Social Services. This agency is located at 608 Jackson St, Suite 100 Fredericksburg, VA 22401. Virginia Department of Social Services provides many services to the public such as, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Medicaid, Adoption, Child Care Assistance, Refugee Resettlement Service, and Child and Adult Protective Services. From conducting this interview I have learned how much the Department of Social Services
As a single mother who has confronted poverty, I am committed to reforming community intervention and advocacy practices. I have a particular interest in improving the accessibility and funding of offering all services under one umbrella within orphanages’. As a result of my own experiences, I am familiar with the despair and frustration endemic to individuals struggling to survive. I am convinced that increasing individuals' access to services that are representative of a community showing family resemblance can make the difference between despondency and hope. I am applying for my masters in social work so that I can pursue my life-mission: to establish successful orphanages’ that present a family resemblance with umbrella services across
The sub themes were: 1) having both doubts and curiosity about performance measurement in social work and 2) feeling being torn between what can be measured and what cannot be measured.
Social work is a career that I have recently become interested in pursuing. I spent many years with misconceptions concerning the sector. However, following three years of working close by these experts, I have picked up a more profound comprehension of the significance of the work.I am especially interested in working in child welfare along with terminally ill children. I have got to a stage in my career where I have started to search out instruction that will make me more efficient in creating plans and providing services for vulnerable people. I am confident that the skills that I will gain from completing a social work master’s degree will help me collaborate with people in need and aid sustainable growth in their lives.
Over the semester I have learned many new aspects of social work that have helped deepen my understanding of what social work is really about. This course has taught me things that will help me become a better person and will also help me with my future working with children.
What attributes of the effective practitioners in public welfare did you see in Tim’s dealing with Fannie Mae, Jolene, and the boys?
When entering the social work profession, their many different values to learn. And one is our private opinions that we must put aside for professional ones. This means that everyone’s beliefs, ethnic background and religion are wrong in each other eye sight because we have all different views on what we believe in, and how we need to live our lives. According to competency two engage diversity and difference in practice Social workers understand how diversity and difference characterize and shape the human experience and are critical to the formation of identity. The dimensions of diversity are understood as the intersectionality of multiple factors including but not limited to age, class, color, culture, disability and ability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression, immigration status, marital status, political ideology, race, religion/spirituality, sex, sexual orientation, and tribal sovereign status. Social workers understand that, because of difference, a person’s life experiences may include oppression, poverty, marginalization, and alienation as well as privilege, power, and acclaim. Social workers also understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination and recognize the extent to which a culture’s structures and values, including social, economic, political, and cultural exclusions, may oppress, marginalize, alienate, or create privilege and power (2015 Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards). (2015, July 15). My personal and
I feel that my education at the University of North Texas has prepared me for a career in social work because it gave me opportunities to branch out of my comfort zone and become familiar with multiple populations of people. Before entering the BSW Program at UNT I was set on working with the geriatric population. I had worked with geriatrics before and was very comfortable with them, forming connections was easy, and I felt this was the population I was meant to be working with. Once I was accepted into the program though I learned that just because I had experience and was comfortable working with this specific population, it didn’t mean I had to continue working with them. My professors provided us with many opportunities to learn about and become familiar with many different populations. Learning to work with more than one population has helped me build my patience and tolerance levels, it has even helped me become more flexible