Define Critical Reflection, including its theoretical foundations Within the field of social work, the professionals have to recognize and evaluate their own personal values, thoughts and beliefs. A social worker must be able to recognize how their personal preferences may or may not affect their behaviors and decisions in their daily practice. For this reason, critical reflection is a very important concept to be knowledgeable of within the social work profession. Critical reflection can be defined as a process that an individual has that allows them to identify their behaviors, which are then questioned and evaluated in order to create different ways of reacting (Savaya & Gardner, 2012).…
Faith Harper was a 37-year-old African female from Kenya. In Kenya she was a practicing general surgeon that everyone admired. In hopes of a happy life, Faith married a Caucasian man named Bob and moved to the United States. The hopes of a happy and successful life deteriorated when Bob became controlling and abusive. He would beat, kick, chock, and even force her into doing different sexual activities.…
Introduction This literature review is focusing on the behavioral issues that all of the women in the Brigid’s Hope program deal with on a daily basis and how it may effect some more than others and their ability to be able to become self-sufficient. I wanted to bring attention to this issue because lately, I’ve been able to recognize some of these behavioral issues in the women affecting them to the point where they have not been able to complete the program within the time frame given. Within the last month of interning at the Brigid’s Hope…
This paper will be discussing The McKinney-Vento Act. It all began in the early 1980s, when the responses to widespread and increasing homelessness was dealt with on a local. In 1983, the first federal task force on homelessness was created to provide information to localities on how to obtain surplus federal property (Education for Homeless Youth, 2006). President Ronald Reagan was not in favor of creating homeless services and felt that the issue did not require federal intervention. Advocates around the country demanded that the federal government acknowledge homelessness as a national problem that required a national response.…
Throughout the world, homelessness is an ongoing problem that affects millions of people on a daily basis. Many people face an intense struggle to survive harsh conditions and stay alive. It is a constant effort to break out of the homelessness despite the fact that the society turns against the homeless population. Homelessness is a societal issue that cuts through every race, age, and cultural background; however, the lack of affordable housing is a common issue homeless people share. Societal issue, such as homelessness affects micro, mezzo, and macro levels of social work.…
Downtown San Diego, California, aka America’s finest city is a redesigned beautiful community of high rise buildings, a plethora of restuaruenats, shopping venues, and quaint living environment. Downtown San Diego consists of upper middle to affluent neighborhoods, with an extravagant night life, social scene and a hotspot for tourists. However, nestled away downtown, between the areas south of Market Street and north of San Diego Bay between Petco Park and Interstate 5 are the most concentrated areas of homelessness consisting of veterans, women, men, and families, with mental illnesses, disabilities, substance abuse issues, and other issues. Downtown San Diego in particular, accounts for nearly 15 percent of San Diego’s homeless (San Diego Union Tribune, 2015).…
Early upon entering the College of Social Work I became interested in the homeless population. In my junior year, I took the time to volunteer with the Renaissance Community Center, an organization that provides various services to Homeless individuals in Tallahassee. Volunteering here taught me about people and the effects of interpersonal communication, how the availability of services can aid people during personal crisis, and the limitations of resources and access on a vulnerable population such as the homeless. This experience is valuable to me as it increased my interest in the population and my awareness of how it intersects with values and the purpose of social work.…
a. What effective communication styles and skills have you observed between social workers and clients? How can you learn these skills? I have observed effective communication between a social worker and a client each time I participate in a session with an experienced social worker. I have observed several communication skills on many different occasions including active listening, taking turns, using open ended questions, paraphrasing, and summarizing skills between social workers and clients to name just a few. While sitting in on sessions with my field instructor I often times find myself amazed at her ability to always say the right thing at the right time, to ask the best questions at the best time, and to lead a client to a targeted…
What’s the first thing that the human mind thinks of when the words homeless individual is brought up? Is it a middle aged man on the side of the road with ripped pants and a torn up coat, or is it a mother struggling to keep her family alive? It was recognized that the starting point of homelessness is followed back to when the pilgrims originated during the 1640’s, homeless people during this time period were considered dangerous and police were always on the hunt for them. In addition to this, towns during this time like Baltimore and Philadelphia had an increased number of homeless people than any town in America.…
As I have learned throughout my time as a social work student at Carleton University, I have become familiar with the generalist perspective of social work practice. My understanding of the general perspective stipulates, that it is better for a social worker to have a strong understanding of multiple theories and ways of practice, rather than being proficient in solely one theory or practice. This is directly related to the changes that have occurred at my placement, I have luckily been able to learn from two supervisors. Therefore, I was able to develop 2 distinct practices, which were influenced by my first supervisor Hadiya, and my second supervisor Caitlin. Both of the practices that I have learned were developed by watching how both of my supervisors respond to different experiences, as well as their interaction patterns with the residents of Harmony House.…
For many years, society has looked down upon the homeless because of their social status. People have been given the notion that the homeless are in the situation that they’re in because of many taboos that society looks down upon like alcohol, drugs, and gambling. People should be showing the homeless compassion and offer help, instead are met with mean actions and awful words towards their way of life. Not all homeless people are in their situation because of addictions. There are a great number of homeless people out there who are veterans that struggle with mental disorders that they received from past wars, such as PTSD, that do not allow them to live a normal life.…
Growing up in a southern Alabama town of less than 10,000 residents, I was not truly aware of the issue of homelessness. Homelessness was only a subject which I had seen in the news and in movies. However, when I became a peer helper as a junior in high school, my perception soon changed. I became part of a peer mentoring program, in which I counseled underprivileged and troubled middle school students. Through this program I discovered that homelessness was not a problem rooted in major cities, for it lied even in a town as small my own.…
My first experience with a LCSW gave me a strong desire to never become one. This was due to the fact that my abused best friend was scared that my mother had reached out to CPS for help. While individuals interested in social work may say that their career goals stem from the fact that they would like to “help people”, I understand that social workers cannot change people’s lives, but people can change their own life. And social workers often have the keys and the ability to teach an individual how. Any profession can be considered a “helping profession”: we need dentists, nurses, doctors, accountants, even IRS agents.…
Throughout this semester we have discussed and practiced various techniques that can be used when working with clients. This semester at Loyola has enhanced my understanding of what it truly means to be a social worker, from the classroom perspective. In my field placement, I do not believe it is directly related to social work, but I was able to use a social worker perspective when interacting with the children in the program. This course was the only course that provided me with hands-on experience of engaging with different types of clients. In my other classes, we did not do case demonstrations instead, we discussed different theories and perspectives about individuals and family systems.…
a. In looking back over the courses you’ve taken thus far, what are the key themes and lessons that you feel will be the most prominent in your mind as you enter the field of social work? This could be a concrete tool or practice, or perhaps a theme or way of thought. As I reflect back on the courses that I have taken thus far, I have learned many great themes and lessons that will be prominent in my mind as enter the field of social work. The most valuable lesson I have learned is who and what should guide my work with individuals from such vulnerable populations.…