SOAD9109 Social Development

2016

4.5

1 x 2-hour lecture weekly
1 x 1-hour tutorial weekly

1 Admission into MSWGE-Master of Social Work (Graduate Entry)
2 3 of SOAD9102, SOAD9103, SOAD9110, SOAD9212, SOAD9060
3 Admission into MSWQS-Master of Social Work (Qualified Social Worker Entry)
4 Admission into MPP-Master of Public Policy
4a Admission into GDPPA-Graduate Diploma in Public Administration
4b Admission into GCPP-Graduate Certificate in Public Policy
4c Admission into MPA-Master of Public Administration
4d Admission into MPM-Master of Public Sector Management
Must Satisfy: ((1 and 2) or (3) or ((4 or 4a or 4b or 4c or 4d)))

1 of SOAD9101, SOAD9104 has been successfully completed

Core topic in MSWGE - Master of Social Work (Graduate Entry)

This topic in the broad field of social development enables students to enhance their analytical, critical and practical skills in social development. Social development is a practice for social change based in a human rights framework, an understanding of social structures and power dynamics and a community development approach. The topic sets out the structural context of practice through introducing social policy ideas and mechanisms of delivery; ideological debates about social and welfare needs and how they should be met, administrative, financial and legal measures to deliver social policies, and the consequences and benefits of social policies. Theories of community development as collective action for social change are included, as are theories of community organising and advocacy, working within the state and sustainability. While the focus is on Australia, intemational trends in social development are also canvassed.

This topic aims to:

• Introduce students to social development as a field of practice for social change;Develop an overview of the historical development of social policy in comparative contexts
• Enable students to critically analyse current Australia social policy proposals, current pathways and to compare options and alternatives;
• Introduce community development values, ethics, concepts and practices to social development
• Support students to question their own assumptions in the light of conflicting opinions and information;
• Develop a framework and grounding that will enable them to contribute to social development in their professional social work careers.
• Provide students with the opportunity to develop critical, analytical and practical skills relevant to participating in social development activities, particularly skills in advocacy and negotiation.

On successful completion of this topic students should be able to:

• Articulate the values, ethics, theoretical underpinnings and purpose of social development;
• Describe the historical development of key trends in social policy in Australia and elsewhere, including some of the contested ideological debates about social welfare;
• Provide an overview of the key theoretical threads in the community development, organising and advocacy literature;
• Describe the practice frameworks they will use in social development illustrating how they have questioned their own assumptions in the light of conflicting opinions and information;
• Develop their advocacy and negotiation skills as it applies to their individual use of self;
• Articulate the critical, analytical skills they are developing to contribute to social development in their professional careers.