Social Work and Social Policy Practice: Imperatives for Political Engagement

Abstract

This article discusses why and how social workers need to engage in social policy practice and how such engagement necessitates political action. The local conditions relating to health, education, housing, employment, gender equality and socioeconomic infrastructure in majority of communities in the Asia Pacific region are largely neglected by professional social workers. To make a difference in those communities and to do justice to their own professional values and principles, social workers need to engage in policy practice in several ways. They may also need to re-examine the profession’s non-political and non-religious neutral stand. It argues that to facilitate their necessary political engagement, social workers need to understand and work with local politics and power structures. Such a stand calls for new thinking and altering some aspects of the nature of social work education and practice in the region.

Transforming Classroom Learning Through Community Study Projects in Macro-Social Work Practice Courses

“…To this end, social work faculty and researchers have identified community projects and policy advocacy action projects to develop macro-practice skills and learning outcomes through innovative assignments. Some of these action projects include the use of experiential advocacy assignment (Manalo, 2004), case-based collaborative learning model (Kilbane, Freire, Hong, & Pryce, 2014), practising policy, pursuing change and promoting social justice (3P) approach (Heidemann, Fertig, Jansson, & Kim, 2011), advocacy week model (Kilbane, Pryce, & Hong, 2013), internet-based assignment (Tower & Hartnett, 2011) and policy practice engagement (PPE) model (Pawar, 2019; Weiss-Gal & Gal, 2018). The findings of these studies document how creative assignments have been used to achieve macro-practice skills.…”

مقیاس ممارسة السیاسة الاجتماعیة للأخصائیین الاجتماعیین Social Workers’ Social Policy Practice Scale

“…The reliability was verified by the Cronbach alpha coefficient, and the split-half method, after applying the scale to a sample size of (50) social workers. (CSWE, 2008, p.6;2015, p.8;Cummins et al, 2011, p.2 (Pawar, 2019) . ‫ﻭﻫﻨﺎﻙ‬ ‫ﻤﻤﺎﺭﺴﺔ‬ ‫ﻤﻬﺎﺭﺍﺕ‬ ‫ﻤﻥ‬ ‫ﺍﻻﺴﺘﻔﺎﺩﺓ‬ ‫ﻤﻨﻬﻡ‬ ‫ﻴﻁﻠﺏ‬ ‫ﻗﺩ‬ ‫ﺍﻻﺠﺘﻤﺎﻋﻴﻴﻥ‬ ‫ﺍﻷﺨﺼﺎﺌﻴﻴﻥ‬ ‫ﺒﺄﻥ‬ ‫ﺃﻭﻀﺢ‬ ‫ﻓﻬﻡ‬ ‫ﺍﻵﻥ‬ ‫ﺍﻟﻤﺘﺨﺼﺼﺔ‬ ‫ﺍﻫﺘﻤﺎﻤﻬﻡ‬ ‫ﻤﺠﺎﻻﺕ‬ ‫ﻋﻥ‬ ‫ﺍﻟﻨﻅﺭ‬ ‫ﺒﻐﺽ‬ ‫ﺍﻟﺴﻴﺎﺴﺔ،‬ (Rocha,2007 ,p.1) .…”

“…‫ﺃﻥ‬ ‫ﻜﻤﺎ‬ ‫ﺘﺤﻠﻴل‬ ‫ﻤﻥ‬ ‫ﻭﺃﺸﻤل‬ ‫ﺃﻭﺴﻊ‬ ‫ﺍﻟﺴﻴﺎﺴﺔ‬ ‫ﻤﻤﺎﺭﺴﺔ‬ ‫ﺃﻨﺸﻁﺘﻬﺎ‬ ‫ﻤﻥ‬ ‫ﻨﺸﺎﻁﺎ‬ ‫ﺃﻭ‬ ‫ﻤﻬﻤﺔ‬ ‫ﺍﻟﺴﻴﺎﺴﺔ‬ ‫ﺘﺤﻠﻴل‬ ‫ﺃﻥ‬ ‫ﺤﻴﺙ‬ ‫ﺍﻟﺴﻴﺎﺴﺔ،‬ (Cummins et al, 2011;CSWE, 2008CSWE, , P.6, 2015) . (Pawar, 2019;Yelga, 1975 (Cox et al, 2015;Hardina et al, 2007, Dalrymple & Boylan, 2015) . (Dalrymple & Boylan, 2013, p.6;Patti, 1974 (Ezell, 2001, p.26;Hardina et al, 2007, p.274 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17.…”

Survival or Building-up Strategy: A Case Study in Sri Lanka on the Link Between Initial Condition for Labour Migration and the Benefits for Families and Community

“…At the international level, some suggest that this appropriate development package should include an appropriate environment for trade, debt relief, investment and effective aid for LDCs (Abella, 1992; Appleyard, 1991, 1995; Ghosh, 1992a, 1992b). At the national level, some suggest that migration must be brought into mainstream development planning (Kelegama, 2011), and it is development which brings to everyone the benefits of development, ensuring a certain level of human and economic resources as an initial condition to enhance their progress further, while some others suggest to bring about imperatives for local political engagement through appropriate policy practice combined with professional actions at the community level (Pawar, 2019). In the context of appropriate development, occurring on the basis of these assumptions, even if emigration occurred, it would be as a corrective measure to bridge the gap in development and improve the situation of the migrant’s family.…”