INERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON

SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION IN THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD ISSUES & CHALLENGES

ANNOUNCE KARVE INSTITUTE OF SOCIAL SERVICES- PUNE , INDIA

14 to16 January 2013

DILEMMAS IN SOCIAL WORK RESEARCH PRACTICES UNDER SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION

(SANT GADGE BABA AMRAVATI UNIVERSITY, AMRAVATI) MAHARASHTRA, INDIA

Present By MR. SHAMBHARKAR DEVIDAS PRALHADRAO

(B.S.W, M.S.W, SET,NET-SOCIAL WORK)Assistant Professor

shambharkar.devidas@gmail.com

Mahatma Jyotiba Fule College of Social Work, Yavatmal -445001Maharashtra, India

 

Introduction: Social work education has crossed seven decades in India. Amravati division crossed thirty five years of experience in social work education with the eight social work education institutes in the western Vidarbha belt (i.e., five districts – Amravati, Akola, Yavatmal, Buldhana and Washim) of Maharashtra State.

Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University, Amravati provides social work education curriculum at the Bachelor of Social Work (B.S.W.), Master of Social Work (M.S.W.) and Doctorate in Philosophy of Social Work ( Ph. D). There is no M.Phil. (social work) programme in any Social Work college under the S.G.B.A. University.

Continued……. Throughout the history of social work, various practice models have emerged as guides to help practitioners synthesize theories and organize their views in deciding how to intervene with various practice situations. Since 21st century, however, a new model has emerged that is based primarily on the scientific methods and scientific evidences. This new model, which is currently receiving a great deal of attention in social work and allied field, is called evidence-based practice (EBP).

Social work aspired to be a science-based helping art (Zimbalist, 1977). Despite this aspiration, most of the 20th century was marked by a gap between research and practice so that the direct social work practice was not effective. Research has been one of the most neglected methods of social work.

 

Objective of the Study:

To examine and explain the status and dilemmas in the practice of social work research under social work education(Sant Gadge Baba Amravati University, Amravati)

To explore the possibilities to overcome dilemmas in the practice of social work research under social work education.

Methodology:

The study has been conducted with the unconstructed interviews of social work educators and social work students regarding their experiences of the abovesaid issues. Secondary data and self experiences as an educator are also used in the study as ‘exploratory’ in qualitative manner .

Importance & Central feature of Research in Social Work Practice:- Historically, social workers have used a combination of research and practice strategies to advocate for improved social conditions for underserved populations, such as the poor, immigrants, political refugees, child abuse victims, and criminal offenders. Research and evaluation comprise central feature of social work practice that can foster and appraise the profession's progress towards its mission.

Research and evaluation are important because they give social workers permission to be curious and creative, as well as systematic and thorough in their activities that involve assessment, prevention, and intervention efforts with individuals, families, and communities. The term research generally refers to a systemic and thorough search or examination that involves the collection of data.

Central feature of social work Research in Social Work Practice :

SOCIAL WORK

RESEARCH

SOCIAL CASE WORK

SOCIAL GROUP WORK

SOCIAL WELFARE

ADMINISTRATION

SOCIAL ACTION

COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION

Continued…… According to U.G.C., New Delhi, model curriculum for Social Work education, the social work research is to equip learners to utilize and conduct research as service managers to improve services, evaluate, develop new services and intervention methods: strategies techniques and also, be an effective consumer of other researchers.

University Grants Commission : Social Work Education Directives

According to UGC curriculum development report 2001 Social Work education has identified three major domains and the fourth is elected domains as fallows. Three of these domains are titled as; the Core Domain, the Supportive Domain and Interdisciplinary Domain. While the fourth cluster is titled as Elected Contained. The Core Domain of the Social work Profession is that which characterizes the profession for its philosophy, ideology, practice, values, ethics, theory and concepts. Social Work Research is included as the part of core domains.

Continued… UGC, directives about the research paper: (BSW & MSW)

For BSW research paper has been prescribed for the syllabus of second year and the group research project has been prescribed for the syllabus of BSW third year.

For MSW the research paper has been prescribed for the syllabus of MSW first year and the individual research project has been prescribed for the syllabus of MSW second year.

THE REAL SCENARIO OF THE SYLLABI OF BSW & MSW IN SGBAU, AMRAVATI The University of Sant Gadgebaba Amravatii University, Amravati (SGBAU)has designed the syllabi for the courses of BSW & MSW. Research is a compulsory subject for both the courses.

Continued… DILEMMA OF BSW STUDENTS : According to UGC, research paper is set for BSW second year and group project for third year whereas SGBAU, Amravati has set both research paper and group project for the third year. Because of this, students have to deal with the double pressure of learning the theory of research paper and at the same time implementing the theory into the group research project. This hampers their easy and natural academic and professional development. That is why students term DISSERTATION as

“DANGER TENSION.”

Continued….This pressure is instrumental in their inability to link actual research theory to group research dissertation. They cannot link their research skill and knowledge with field work practice. They are never taught to develop attitudes favorable to the judicious integration of practice, research, and theory anywhere .

Research is a centralized subject. But, only three unit have been prescribed in the paper three Social Welfare Administration and Methods of Social Investigation' whereas the reality is that there must be a special paper for this all important subject of research.

Continued….DILEMMA OF MSW STUDENTS :

According SGBAU, Amravati MSW syllabus, research theory for MSW first year and individual research project work for MSW second year. The students are overloaded with field work, study tour and individual research project in MSW second year and they don't get sufficient work days to perform their field work and individual research project report because excess holidays. Moreover, there is no updation of MSW syllabus like Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai and Pune University, Pune.

Continued….There is no objectivity for the evaluation of research project report e.g. quality of work. This term is very subjective. There is no objective scale to assess the quality of research project report. So the external examiner sets his own criteria and the students are under his pressure rather than generating their own ideas. The same is done internally. Beside this, they face the same problem like BSW students. They cannot link their research skill and knowledge with field work practice. They are never taught to develop attitudes favorable to the judicious integration of practice, research, and theory anywhere .

DISSCUSSION :

However, the research methodologies useful for social work practice do not seem to have taken off in India.

Social Work educators, in most of the institutions for social work education, do not carry out research, for several reasons, such as research not being considered part of their workload, priority given to contribution to development of the field of practice, lack of infrastructural support and so on.

The research course offered to social work students has hardly any relevance to practice. As a consequence, social work students fail to establish the link between research and practice. Most of them develop a notion that they have nothing to do with research.

Continued… When the social work research methods course is taught independent of social work framework, it is most probable that the class is taught social science research methodology and not social work research. It is fact that most social work students study research for only one reason - it is compulsory requirement for the degree.

RECOMMENDATIONS: A special control active mechanism should be there to monitor the exact implementation of the design of syllabus as per the recommendations of UGC .

The criteria for the evaluation of the project must be completely objective. There should not be any ambiguous criteria is like quality of work as quality of work is purely subjective term.

Continued… Research curriculum in social work needs to be redesigned to make it more relevant to social work. In the point of view research and practice should be perceived as allied aspect of social work and bound by the common goal of advancing and consolidating the theory and practice of social work.

To eliminate the following of the traditional methods urge for the modern research methods must be inculcated in the students' minds by designing full proof structure for the research project and the viva-voce should strictly be assessed covering the wide scope of the researchers project.

REFERENCE:01.Rubin Allen and Babbie Earl(2010) Methodology For Social Work Research, New Delhi, India: Cengage Learning India Private Limited.

02.ibid 03.ibid04. Barker (2003) Professional Social Work: Research Perspectives effectiveness of an intervention.

05. Day,(2008);Maschi, Bradley, & Ward(,2009)06. Wronka, J. (2008). Human rights and social justice: Social action and service for the helping and health professions. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

07. National Association of Social Workers,(1955).Bylaws of the National Association of Social Workers, New York: NASW press 8. Council on Social Work Education, 2002,Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards, Alexandria, VA: Author)

09. (Engel & Schutt, 2010).10.University Grant Commission (2001), ugc model curriculum social work education ,New Delhi, www.ugc.ac.in

11.ibid12.ibid13.ibid14.International Federation of Social Work, 2012, Global Standards. htpp://ifsw.org/policies/global-standards.

15. Lal Das D.K, (ed.) 2008, Research Methods For Social Work,03 ,Rawat Publications

16.ibid17. ibid18. ibid 19. ibid

THANKS

MR. SHAMBHARKAR DEVIDAS PRALHAD(B.S.W, M.S.W, SET,NET-SOCIAL WORK)

Assistant Professorshambharkar.devidas@gmail.comContact Number: 9421892282

Mahatma Jyotiba Fule College of Social Work, Yavatmal -445001Maharashtra, India