Assignment Code: MSW-005/TMA/2022-23

Course Code: MSW-005

Assignment Name: Social Work Practicum and Supervision

Year: 2022-2023

Verification Status: Verified by Professor

Answer all the five questions. All questions carry equal marks. Answers to question no. 1 and 2 should not exceed 600 words each.

Q1) Discuss the significance of supportive supervision in field work practicum open and distance learning mode.

Ans) Preparing knowledgeable and productive workers who can address complicated client needs in a variety of public and private human care contexts is the primary goal of social work education. In social work education, scientific inquiry is combined with the instruction of ethical principles and practical skills. The social work training equips practitioners to carry out a range of tasks utilising different social work practise approaches. It is essential that aspiring professionals receive education and training at levels appropriate for their significant duties and the demands of their job.

The practitioner must intervene in a number of human systems and at various levels due to the increasing complexity of life. The social work educational system must develop professionals who can work sensitively and empathetically at the community level across a greater geographic range, in addition to preparing professionals for senior and supervisory level positions. According to experts in the area, master's degree students' expectations do not align with the realities of social work practise at the community level, where they are most needed.

The explosion of information technology has created a number of new routes for connecting with prospective students who have previously been shut out of the higher education system. Social work educators have experimented with online/web-based learning, multimedia projects, interactive TV, and other educational techniques, just like many other professional education systems. The majority of these technological advancements have enhanced students' understanding of the theory and informational materials in social work courses.

The traditional model of social work education hasn't shown to be able to keep up with the demands of modern society for social development and the management of social development programmes. Additionally, there is a clear need for social workers in places with limited educational options and resources. Local organisations are forced to use paraprofessional and non-social work workers due to a lack of professionally educated social work professionals.

One of the most important advancements in the field of social education system has been the extension of the alternative educational method of distance learning to social work education. Many educational institutions in nations like the UK, USA, Canada, and Australia offer BSW and/or MSW degrees online. The authors of a review came to the conclusion that course and programme outcomes attained in social work online education courses and programmes are equivalent to those achieved in traditional face-to-face programmes after thoroughly analysing the existing material.

The Indira Gandhi National Open University's School of Social Work identified the need to start a different educational programme to meet the training requirements of the sizable number of untrained staff members already working in the social welfare sector. The SOSW considered that a huge number of people who are unable to benefit from the traditional, expensive, and full-time educational system could be assisted by a distance education programme. The School was a pioneer in the design of the first three-year Bachelor of Social Work degree programme, which was based on the distance learning approach and supported by a need assessment study.

Q2) Describe any two models of social work practicum.

Ans) The approach used by American social workers from the 1920s through the 1960s, according to Zastrow, was the diagnosis of clients' issues, the reasons of which were thought to be in the clients themselves. To diagnose and address issues, this medical paradigm was employed. Genetics, illnesses, early trauma, metabolic disorders, conflicts within the individual, and coping mechanisms were thought to have an impact on emotional and behavioural issues. These issues received medical designations and were classified as mental diseases. The medical model was compassionate and recognised those as human beings who could benefit from care.

In the 1960s, social workers in the United States reemphasized the idea that an individual's environment influenced them and was probably a factor in their clients' problems. Clients received the services they required thanks to a reform strategy that aimed to alter their system. To ensure that children received an education in India's underserved areas, Balwadis were constructed. They were given a mid-afternoon snack or supper to improve their nutrition. To encourage patients to take care of themselves, health care facilities were established.

Family planning organisations made an effort to persuade families to have fewer kids so that life would be better and less stressful. The ecological approach concentrated on how people interact with environments that might not support a healthy balance. The idea of the people as distinct entities is rejected in favour of the idea of them as systems that actively exchange energy across their boundary with other existing systems, such as the family and community. The individual receives assistance to better adapt to the surroundings. The social worker makes sure that the environment meets the person's needs.

The ecological model aims to assist people, families, and small groups in coping better with life's regular changes, such as maturing, birth, death, illness, marriage, divorce, empty nests, and other life cycle transitions. Social workers also deal with how individuals, families, and groups interact with their surroundings. The maladaptive patterns are recognised, and the proper methods are used to address them. Making sure that the environment works with the person to satisfy their needs by providing services and making resources accessible is another aspect of social work in this paradigm.

The family accuses her when a young girl from a lower caste is sexually assaulted by the landlord's son in the rice fields. They work to keep the situation secret. To keep their daughters safe, lower caste families increasingly stop sending them to school or even hiring them to work on the farm. The social worker would deal with the girl's specific emotional issues and low self-esteem. The social worker supports the family as they come to terms with their inability to stop the higher-class persecution. If it is feasible, the social worker might inform lower caste families of their legal, social, and constitutional rights and, if that fails, assist them in communicating with the landlord or the media.

It might be simpler for the student to work at the family and individual level. Even for the social worker, working with the community would be more challenging. The learner has two options: they can either follow or watch the supervisor in action, or they can cautiously approach. Female students frequently find it more challenging to challenge powerful male community members. The student could gain valuable experience by approaching media organisations or activist groups working for specific topics with ideas.

Q3) Answer any two of the following questions in about 300 words each: 10x2

a) What are the problems faced by social work trainees undergoing field work practicum?

Ans) A social work trainee is exposed to families as one of the main areas of field work as part of their fieldwork practicum. Under the competent supervision of the supervisor, a student social worker must interact with the families who are experiencing difficulties. The steps for a student to complete his fieldwork practicum with families are listed below:

1. Collecting and Identifying Information: This is the beginning phase where the trainee should collect the personal details of the client.

2. Assessing the Client’s Needs: The trainee should understand the problems and needs of the client. This can be begun by obtaining as much information as possible on the client and his family. The trainee can achieve this by reading material about the specific problems from files, if available.

3. Understanding the Stages of Family Life Cycle: It provides an opportunity to the student to understand the stage a family is going through and its related problems. This would help the student learn the strategies used to cope with these problems.

4. Home Visit: The trainee needs to visit the client’s house in order to understand the environmental factors contributing to the problem. This may be done in addition to holding the session in office. It is however advised to conduct the session in the client’s house. This would also help to assess the relationships and communication pattern present among the members.

5. Learn to draw a Genogram and Ecomap: The student can gradually engage in activities such as drawing a genogram or an eco-map as these activities will help the trainee to understand the problem from the perspective of family’s interaction with its environment.

6. Building a Relationship with the Client: The trainee needs to use his skills of building a rapport and empathic understanding. The trainee needs to be non- judgmental and possess positive regard for the client and all his family members. This can be done under the close supervision of his guide.

7. Protecting Confidentiality: Another skill to be used by the trainee is to maintain confidentiality by avoiding discussing about the client with others who are not related to the problem. The reports that are written should be kept highly confidential.

8. Problem Identification: The trainee should develop the skills to identify the problem based on the information gathered about the family and its environment.

b) Explain the components of field practicum in IGNOU model.

Ans) It was difficult to design a field practicum programme for social workers using remote learning, especially in light of certain social work educators' concerns about providing distant learning options for social work courses in India. For a wide range of student populations, the School of Social Work at the Indira Gandhi National Open University launched the BSW Course. The use of self-instructional study materials is supplemented by the use of audio-visual media and face-to-face interaction with instructors in the study centres, as is true of remote learning mode.

The goal of the Field Work Program is to give students access to a variety of social work learning experiences. The BSW students enrol in the course at various levels of knowledge and expertise. The field experience is supposed to expand on the knowledge that each student already has. A considerably more mature student who may have worked in an organisation similar to those chosen for Field Placements as well as a young, inexperienced student who has just finished senior high school must both have their training needs met by the Field Practicum.

Designing pertinent field-based learning has taken on much more significance with the availability of MSW, PG Diploma in Social Work, and M. Phil programmes in the horizon. Given the importance of field-based learning, successful completion of fieldwork is a requirement for receiving a social work degree. For the Social Work course to be successfully completed, fieldwork performance must meet minimum standards.

While BSW students must complete 25 fieldwork days, MSW students must complete 45 to 60 full fieldwork days. Students will be required to perform a brief research project in addition to their field placement work during the PGDSW programme. Both internal and external examiners who evaluate BSW students have equal weight. In evaluating the work of the pupils, objectivity is supposed to be maintained.

Each student is paired with a Field Work Supervisor because it is crucial for field practicum students to get individualised supervision and guidance. Supervisors must be licenced social workers with an MSW degree. Each year, supervisors receive an orientation to their job and responsibility via teleconference, radio, and in-person meetings.

Q4) Answer any four of the following questions in about 150 words each: 5x4

a) What are the areas of practice in correctional social work?

Ans) It speaks of implementing social work ideas in a penal setting. Probation and parole officials, institutional counsellors, and other personnel who provide therapeutic and ad hoc therapeutic services in a correctional context fall under the purview of correctional social work. It is not a simple road, however, since there are many obstacles in the administration of justice and the rehabilitative approach to criminals. The existence of these obstacles sustains the notion that behaviour can be changed by coercive punishment and also works against advancements in therapy.

The profession of social work began to take shape in the 20th century, and it is now responsible for carrying out the social welfare mandate of enhancing wellbeing and quality of life. As a result, social work includes activities aimed at enhancing human and societal situations as well as reducing human suffering and social issues. As compassionate professionals, social workers help people improve their competence and functioning, access social support and resources, provide compassionate and effective social services, and broaden the social structures that generate possibilities for all members of society.

b) Explain different styles of supervision.

Ans) Under the categories of active and reactive, typical styles of supervision are as follows:

1. Philosopher-Philosophical Style: Sometimes supervisors launch into philosophical abstractions that have little or no application from the student’s point of view. They often use either lengthy explanations or brief global statements, which frequently make the new learner extremely frustrated as important case material is not dealt with directly.

2. Theoretician-Theoretical Style: The supervisor often uses theory as the primary focus and believes that the mastery of theory leads to good practice. According to this style, once the theory has been mastered, the student can deal with future case material on their own.

3. Technician-Technical Style: This style is very different from the other two styles. Instead of being philosophical or theoretical in orientation, the supervisor deals almost exclusively with details of case problems and relates them to technical skills. It is a problem focused and interactionally oriented style of supervision in which questions are asked in highly specific and empathic ways.

c) What are the objectives of field work?

Ans) Fieldwork is designed to provide the student with an opportunity for a practical, “real world” experience for the purpose of developing direct leadership, programming, and administrative skills sufficient for entry into a professional career. At the completion of Fieldwork, students will have:

1. Gained exposure to and responsibility for varied practical situations under qualified supervision.

2. Gained knowledge and competence in working with individuals and groups in a structured program setting.

3. Developed an in depth understanding of kinesiology and health interests and needs, and the variations of services delivered by multiple kinesiology and health service agencies and organizations.

4. Demonstrated through actions a level of competence in leadership, programming, and administrative abilities, as well as a commitment to human values and ethics.

5. Demonstrated analytical and research abilities by means of written reports on the organizational structure and administrative functions of the Fieldwork agency.

d) List the guidelines for in-service placements in an organization.

Ans) The field work programme cautions students about potential problems with these placement situations and reserves the right to approve paid employment places as field placements if they meet the following requirements:

1. Each of the required field hours must be overseen by a new MSW field supervisor. This supervisor must meet the program's educational requirements for social work.

2. The exercises must be suitable for the programme level or area of specialisation of the student.

3. The exercises themselves need to engage the learner in new knowledge.

4. Caseload management is necessary in this position to ensure that the student's educational goals are prioritised over the agency's demands alone.

5. The student must adhere to educational standards. Students with outstanding academic and professional records may be granted an employment-based exception by the Office of Field Instruction.

6. Students are only allowed to complete one employment-based internship during the course of their studies.

Q5) Write short notes on any five of the following questions in about 100 words each: 4x5

a) Role of Donor Agencies

Ans) A donor organisation is one that provides funding to other organisations so they can carry out initiatives and cover their administrative expenses. The following are the donor agency's primary responsibilities:

1. To raise money from businesses, private individuals, and interest organisations. The donor agency's primary activity is resource mobilisation. It plans public awareness campaigns for significant causes including poverty, childcare rights for children, violence against women, or any other subject the organisation deems vital.

2. Must pick NGOs that are dependable, effective, and well-regarded among the groups you want to reach. There are numerous NGOs that operate in various industries. To carry out their programmes, several NGOs submit aid applications.

3. To monitor the development and finance the chosen organisations. For a specific amount of time, the donor organisations finance the organisation. Regularly, the status of the work is assessed using indicators created specifically for that purpose.

4. The donor organisation evaluates the work, and if an extension is required, it frequently offers one.

b) Social Welfare Administration

Ans) In order to prevent, alleviate, or contribute to the resolution of recognised social problems, social welfare is an institution made up of policies and laws that are operationalized by organised activities of voluntary and/or governmental agencies. Through social welfare, a set minimum of social services, money, and other consumption rights are distributed to individuals, families, and groups using criteria other than those of the market or those prevailing in the family system.

The process of turning social policies into social services is known as social welfare/work administration. To effectively address the requirements of individuals, families, groups, and communities in order to promote the social relationships and adjustments required for social functioning, social welfare administration is the process. It is possible to think of social welfare/work administration as the work done by staff members to translate the social policies of organisations into the provision of social services.

c) Lifelong Learning

Ans) Lifelong Learning is an approach to learning whether in personal or professional contexts that is continuous and self-motivated. Lifelong Learning can be formal or informal, and takes place throughout an individual’s life, from cradle to grave. Lifelong learning has been described as a process that includes people learning in different contexts. These environments do not only include schools but also homes, workplaces, and even locations where people pursue leisure activities.

While the learning process can be applied to learners of all ages, there is a focus on adults who are returning to organized learning. Lifelong learning focuses on holistic education, and it has two dimensions, namely, lifelong, and broad options for learning. These indicate learning that integrates traditional education proposals and modern learning opportunities. It also entails an emphasis on encouraging people to learn how to learn and to select content, process, and methodologies that pursues self-design and self-perfection.

d) Nonverbal Communication

Ans) Facial expressions, eye movements, gestures, and voice features like tone, pitch, and resonance all fall under the umbrella of non-verbal communication, which primarily takes place during face-to-face interactions.

1. Eye-Contacts: Our emotional state, sensitivity to, and comprehension of the current situation are all highly visible in our eyes.

2. Gestures of Greeting: When making welcoming motions, the social worker must be mindful of cultural variations.

3. Body Positioning: It conveys a range of intentions and attitudes. While facing a client directly may come across as forceful, a 90-degree tilt communicates safety and openness.

4. Facial Expressions and other Movements: Even when a worker makes a concerted effort to appear non-judgmental, their facial expressions frequently indicate their disdain of a client.

5. Tone of Voice, Dress and Appearance: While a monotone or flat voice shows lack of interest, a strong, forceful tone conveys aggression, authority, and strength.

e) Client Social Worker Relationship

Ans) More than just a friendly connection is involved in the caseworker-client interaction. In the casework relationship, clients bring their feelings, attitudes, and behaviour from prior partnerships. The establishment of this working partnership aims to help the client live a personally fulfilling and socially beneficial life. The specific objective that is set to be achieved in each relationship.

1. Warmth is a positive, outgoing, energetic interest in another person and a spontaneous reaching out with joy or compassion.

2. Empathy involves experiencing with another person and putting oneself in their position. It can happen spontaneously or through 'listening with the third ear' and responding in tune to the other person.

3. Genuineness: Caseworkers rely on their own felt experiences to be real and congruent. Genuine means pre-tense-free. It's knowing who and what you are, your guiding ideas, and being on good terms with yourself.

4. Caseworker-client interactions require authority. Perlman defines authority as the capacity to work for rather than over the client. Authority in casework partnerships doesn't entail domination or imposition.

5. Transference and countertransference are frequent ways to 'work' a connection. In emotionally charged partnerships, we each bring conscious and unconscious thoughts and attitudes from previous key relationships.