Advocacy and Social Action
Advocacy and Social Action
Yecheskel Lunger
SWK class 613: Practice III
Professor Peter Wildeman
Introduction:
In this paper I will discuss how I can use advocacy and social action in my field placement. I will detail whom I consider to be a population at risk, and how I can empower them to achieve an equal status the rest of society, according to the guidelines provided by the book Generalist Practice with Organizations and Communities.
The populations at risk in my field placement
Populations at risk are defined (Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2012) as “those groups in society most likely to suffer the consequences of, or be at risk for, discrimination, economic hardship, and oppression.” During the time that I spent in my field placement – which is at Yeshiva Avir Yakov – I identified that children with learning disabilities and children who have difficulty with social skills are populations at risk in our school. The reason why they are at risk is, because of the preconceptions of these children’s competence and ability to interact with pears in an effective manner, as well as preconceptions about their ability to perform normally academically. When one group in society is perceived as less competent and weak, this really makes them at risk to suffer from discrimination and oppression.
My task as a Social Worker is to advocate for these populations, and to empower them. Advocacy is “representing, championing, or defending the rights of others.” Empowerment is “ensuring that others have the right to power, ability, and authority to achieve self-determination.” (Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2012)
In the next few pages I will explain in what areas these children are at risk, and what I will do to empower them.
There are many areas in which I consider these children to be at risk, but the main risk for them is that they are vulnerable to bullying. Because these children are perceived as weak by their classmates, others take advantage of them, and try to tease
Yecheskel Lunger
SWK class 613: Practice III
Professor Peter Wildeman
Introduction:
In this paper I will discuss how I can use advocacy and social action in my field placement. I will detail whom I consider to be a population at risk, and how I can empower them to achieve an equal status the rest of society, according to the guidelines provided by the book Generalist Practice with Organizations and Communities.
The populations at risk in my field placement
Populations at risk are defined (Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2012) as “those groups in society most likely to suffer the consequences of, or be at risk for, discrimination, economic hardship, and oppression.” During the time that I spent in my field placement – which is at Yeshiva Avir Yakov – I identified that children with learning disabilities and children who have difficulty with social skills are populations at risk in our school. The reason why they are at risk is, because of the preconceptions of these children’s competence and ability to interact with pears in an effective manner, as well as preconceptions about their ability to perform normally academically. When one group in society is perceived as less competent and weak, this really makes them at risk to suffer from discrimination and oppression.
My task as a Social Worker is to advocate for these populations, and to empower them. Advocacy is “representing, championing, or defending the rights of others.” Empowerment is “ensuring that others have the right to power, ability, and authority to achieve self-determination.” (Kirst-Ashman & Hull, 2012)
In the next few pages I will explain in what areas these children are at risk, and what I will do to empower them.
There are many areas in which I consider these children to be at risk, but the main risk for them is that they are vulnerable to bullying. Because these children are perceived as weak by their classmates, others take advantage of them, and try to tease
References: Kirst-Ashman, K. K., & Hull, J. G. H. (2012). Generalist practice with organizations and communities. (5th ed., Vol. 5th, p. 395). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole Pub Co. Lavoie, R. (2005). It 's so much work to be your friend: Helping the child with learning disabilities find social success. (p. xxv). New York, NY: Touchstone. Mencap. (2007). Bullying wrecks lives. Retrieved from http://www.equalpeopleinstoke.org/Libraries/Local/698/Docs/Documents/News/Mencap Anti Bulllying Booklet.pdf stopbullying.gov. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.stopbullying.gov/at-risk/effects/index.html Tonja R. Nansel, P., Mary Overpeck, D., Ramani S. Pilla, P., W. June Ruan, M., Bruce Simons-Morton, E., & Peter Scheidt, M. (2001). Bullying behaviors among us youthprevalence and association with psychosocial adjustment. Retrieved from http://jama.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=193774