IAS352 PRACTICES AND SKILLS IN INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY WORK
Module1: Community work and practice: Ethics, roles and skills of community workers
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· Module 1
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Community work and practice: Ethics, roles and skills of community workers |
· Overview
This module is about the practice skills of community work based on the collective and communitarian approach to human services. It is mainly concerned with how community workers organise and apply their knowledge and experience constructively in Indigenous contexts. The module discusses the "basic ingredients of doing community work" (Bryant, 1976 p. 1). It provides the insights, ideas, techniques and information that community workers require to facilitate their activities with individuals, community groups and organisations.
The module takes you through the values and principles that underpin the nature and function of community work within a social justice framework; and the relevant skills for 'best practice' in community work. You will also familiarise yourself with the Code of Ethics for both Australian community workers and social workers.
In this module you will engage in the following activities to assist with your learning:
· read several short readings related to the module;
· reflect on your understanding of the readings in this module;
· continuously jot down notes from these readings;
· write down your reflections and perspectives in your blog.
· Key Concepts
The key concepts to be explored in this module are community work, practice roles and professional responsibilities: Community work:
· community
· power
· empowerment
· needs assessment
· inclusiveness
· participation
· engagement
· intervention
Practice roles:
· community development practice
· capacity building/strengthening
· community action
· social planning
· advocacy and social action
Professional responsibilities:
· Practice Guidelines
· Code of Ethics
· Conceptualising and defining community work
There are a range of theoretical perspectives, models and roles in community work practice because the way practices and skills in community work are conceptualised and defined is influenced by several factors including the following: a) The value assumptions that people hold about the nature and function of community work and community development - For example, - Is community work viewed as an expression of liberal democratic values or is it viewed within human rights and socialist framework of reference? b) People's experiences in different social, cultural and political contexts. c) People's perspectives on the relationship between community work, community development work and other forms of planned interventions such as social work (casework). For instance, a professional social worker may view case work skills as vital in community work whereas professionals from youth work and education background may not see the relevance. In view of the above factors, there is ongoing debates about acceptable conceptualisations and definitions of practice skills in community work. It is unlikely that a consensus about the practice skills and techniques of community work will be reached. As you will note in the literature in this module, different approaches and value assumptions inform community work but there are some shared perspectives over relevant and appropriate practice skills in community work. Find below some essential knowledge, skills and qualities necessary for effective community work practice: a) Knowledge - Principles and processes of community work; social theories and policies; organisational analysis, group work theory, purpose and processes. b) Skills - Communication - verbal, written and presentation; working with people from diverse backgrounds - empowerment activation; research and observation; strategic planning and reflective practice; leadership, negotiation and innovation; facilitation skills; advocacy - assisting communities to be more self-determining and self-reliant. c) Qualities - Competence; empathy, sensitivity, respect, integrity, flexibility, commitment to change and inclusion, reliability.
d) The social, cultural and historical context of Aboriginal and Torres and Torres Strait Islander Australians.
· Swimming The River Wayne Miller 28 05 14
Swimming The River Wayne Miller 28 05 14
Duration: 5:53 User: n/a - Added: 23/06/14
YouTube URL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pce3xrgmi7w
Watch the video.
Assessment 1 consists of three short writing tasks. These tasks are located in Learning Modules 1, 2 and 3. In each task you are required to write approximately 500 words in your blog. You can link to your blog by clicking on the link above.
For Assessment 1 Blog Task, read the the following articles:
Gilchrist, A 2009, The well connected community: A networking approach to community development ,(2nd Ed.), The Policy Press - Chapter 2.[ebook]
Kenny, S 2011, Developing communities for the future , (4th Ed.) Cengage Learning - Chapter - 1.
Available at CDU Casuarina and Batchelor Institute Libraries or other University libraries.
Twelvetrees, A 2008, Community Work , (4th Ed.) McMillan, pp.1 - 18.
When you have read these texts, go to your blog and in your own words write:
· your understanding of community work,
· analyse the authors’ philosophical perspectives of community work,
· your reflection on the strengths and limitations of community work.
· Readings
The readings for this module are:
Alston, M 2009, Innovative human services practice: Australia's changing landscape, Palgrave Macmillan. Available at CDU Casuarina and Batchelor Libraries.
Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW), 2010, AASW Code of Ethics, AASW, Brisbane.
Australian Association of Social Workers (AASW), 2015, Preparing for culturally responsive and inclusive social work practice in Australia: Working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples , AASW, Melbourne.
Australian Community Workers Association (ACWA), 2017, ACWA Code of Ethics , ACWA, Melbourne.
Australian Community Workers Association (ACWA), 2017, ACWA Practice Guidelines , ACWA, Melbourne.
Bennett, B & Zubrzycki, J 2003, "Hearing the stories of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander social workers: Challenging and educating the system" , Australian Social Work, vol 56 no. 1 pp. 61 - 70.
Briskman, L 2007, Social work with Indigenous communities, Federation Press, pp. 160 – 168 - (Ebook).
Burchill, M, Higgins, D, Ramsamy, L & Taylor, S 2006, " Working together: Indigenous perspectives on community development ", Family Matters, 75 pp. 50 - 59.
Campbell, D & Hunt, JE 2013, "Achieving broader benefits from Indigenous land use agreements: Community development in Central Australia", Community Development Journal, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 197-214.
Dudgeon, P, Wright, M, Paradies, Y, Garvey, D & Walker, I 2010, "The social,cultural and historical context of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians" in N Purdie, P Dudgeon & Walker R (eds) Walking together: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander mental health and wellbeing principles and practice, ACER pp. 25 - 42.
Fejo-King, C 2011, "The National Apology to the Stolen Generations: The Ripple Effect" , Australian Social Work, vol. 64, no. 1 pp. 130-143.
Gilchrist, A 2009, The well connected community: A networking approach to community development The well-connected community: A networking approach to community development ,(2nd Ed.)The Policy Press: Bristol - Chapter 2. This can be downloaded as an eBook from the above link.
Hardcastle, D, Powers, PR & Wenocour, S 1997, Community practice: Theories and skills for social workers, Oxford University Press: New York - pp. 1- 30. Available at CDU Casuarina and Batchelor Libraries
Kenny, S 2011, Developing Communities for the future , (4th Ed.) Cengage Learning: Melbourne - Chapters 1, 7 & 8. Available at CDU Casuarina and Batchelor Libraries
New South Wales Department of Community Services, 2009, Working with Aboriginal people and communities - A practice resource , New South Wales Government.
Nickson, A, Dunstan, J, Esperanza, D & Barker, S 2011, "Indigenous Practice Approaches to Women, Violence, and Healing Using Community Development: A Partnership between Indigenous and non Indigenous Workers", Australian Social Work, vol. 64, no. 1 pp. 84-95.
Popple, K 1995, Analysing community work: It's theory and practice, Open University Press: Buckingham. Available at CDU Casuarina and Batchelor Libraries
Sherwood, J 1999, " Community: What is it ?", Indigenous Law Bulletin, vol 4 no. 19 pp. 1 - 4.
Twelvetrees, A 2008, Community Work, (4th Ed.) McMilan: Basingstoke - pp. 1 - 18. Available at CDU Casuarina and Batchelor Libraries
eReadings: Some of the links above take you to an electronic copy of this item in the eReadings collection set up for this unit. This site is password protected. You will need to use your CDU login to access eReadings.