WELF1011 Introduction to Social Work in Australia Spring 2024Matlab

Java Python WELF1011 Introduction to Social Work in Australia

Spring 2024

1 About Introduction to Social Work in Australia

1.1 An Introduction to this Subject

This subject introduces students to social work, its common values, different perspectives, and current debates. Diverse constructions of social work embedded in different knowledge systems and models will be explored. Social work perspectives in a multicultural cosmopolitan Australia will be analysed including, amongst others, Indigenous social work, White western social work, Pacific social work, Afrocentric social work, memorial social work, Brazilian social work, etc. An overview of the changing Australian socio-political environment, policy and practice context will be explored and the role of social work in the different fields of practice analysed, to locate strategies for generating positive and creative social change.

1.2 What is Expected of You

Study Load

A student is expected to study an hour per credit point a week. For example a 10 credit point subject would require

10 hours of study per week. This time includes the time spent within classes during lectures, tutorials or practicals.

Note for Summer Terms:  As Summer subjects deliver the same content and classes over a shorter period of time, the subjects are run in a more intensive mode. Regardless of the delivery mode, the study hours for each subject in Summer will be around 30 hours.

Attendance

It is strongly recommended that students attend all scheduled learning activities to support their learning.

Approach to Learning

In this subject, we are committed to a decolonised approach to learning and teaching. The subject privileges diverse knowledge traditions derived from diverse backgrounds in a multicultural cosmopolitan Australia and beyond. Stu-dents are positioned as both learners and teachers:  students come from diverse cultural backgrounds, have diverse experiences (professional & personal) and therefore each one will be expected to teach and also learn from others.

The subject is delivered through weekly workshops and online lecture recordings. Guest lecturers will also be inter- viewed and recordings shared online to enhance learning and teaching. You are expected to listen to these recordings before the workshops which are held face-to-face. Weekly workshops are meant for discussions, this means students must come when they have listened to and read pre-assigned weekly learning  materials for active participation in discussions.

Online Learning Requirements

Subject materials will be made available on the subject’s vUWS (E-Learning) site (https://vuws.westernsydney.edu. au/). You are expected to consult vUWS at least twice a week, as all subject announcements will be made via vUWS. Teaching and learning materials will be regularly updated and posted online by the teaching team.

Special Requirements

Essential Equipment:

Not Applicable

Legislative Pre-Requisites:

Not Applicable

1.3    Changes to Subject as a Result of Past Student Feedback

The University values student feedback in order to improve the quality of its educational programs. The feedback provided helps us improve teaching methods and subjects of study.  The survey subjects results inform subject content and design, Subject Outlines, teaching methods, assessment processes and teaching materials.

You are welcome to provide feedback that is related to the teaching of this subject. At the end of the semester you will be given the opportunity to complete a Student Feedback on Subject questionnaire to assess the subject. If requested by your subject coordinator, you may also have the opportunity to complete a Student  Feedback on Teaching (SFT) questionnaire to provide feedback for individual teaching staff.

As a result of student feedback, the following changes and improvements to this Subject have recently been made:

–  Workshop hours have been increased from 1.5 hours to 2 hours to allow more time for discussion and student engagement

2    Learning and Teaching Activities

Teaching Weeks	Topic	Readings	Assessment Due
Week 1 22-07-2024	Introduction to social work; Person-in-Environment framework (PIE); unifying social work values like social justice, human rights, empowerment; social work ethics (including Global Social Work Statement of Ethical Principles, AASW Code of Ethics)	Chenoweth, L & McAuliffe, D 2017, The road to social work & human service practice, 5th edn, Cengage Learning Australia, Melbourne, VIC. (Chapter 1 Starting the journey: An introduction to social work and human service practice, pp.1-31 Australian Association of Social Workers 2020, Code of Ethics, Australian Association of Social Workers, Canberra, ACT IASSW 2018. Global Social Work Statement of Ethical Principles. Available at https://www.ifsw.org/global-social-work-statement- of-ethical-principles/

3    Assessment Information

3.1    Subject Learning Outcomes

	Outcome
1	Describe social work and the common values that underpin social work practice.
2	Discuss different constructions of social work embedded in different knowledge systems and their appli- cation in multicultural cosmopolitan Australia and globally.
3	Recognise Australia’s socio-political environment and the nature of disadvantage experienced by certain socio-cultural groups such as women,  refugees  &  asylum seekers,  First  Nations  Peoples,  older  people, People with Disabilities, LGBTIQ, the unemployed, homeless etc.
4	Describe how government policies and practices are developed and implemented to address disadvantage.
5	Develop strategies that work towards the broader goals of social justice and human rights and individual and community advocacy and empowerment.

3.2    Assessment Summary

The assessment items in this subject are designed to enable you to demonstrate that you have achieved the subject learning outcomes. Completion and submission of all assessment items which have been designated as mandatory or compulsory is essential to receive a passing grade.

To pass this subject you must:

Submit all assessment items and achieve a minimum overall mark of 50%

Item	Weight	Due Date	SLOs Assessed	Manda- tory	Threshold
Proposal	20%	Week 5, Week 6, In-class individual presentations	1, 2, 5	Yes	No
Essay	30%	08/09/2024	1, 2	No	No
Presentation	30%	Week 11, 12 group in-class presentations	3, 4	No	No
Reflection	20%	21/10/2024	5	No	No

Feedback on Assessment

Feedback is an important part of the learning process that can improve your progress towards achieving the learning outcomes. Feedback is any written or spoken response made in relation to academic work such as an assessment task, a performance or product. It can be given to you by a teacher, an external assessor or student peer, and may be given individually or to a group of students. As a Western Sydney University student, it is your responsibility to seek out and act on feedback that is provided to you as a resource to further your learning