The Social Work Profession (переказувати)

The profession of social work is dedicated to meeting the diverse social service needs of special populations of individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities. As a practice oriented profession, social work deals with social concerns that range from societal oppression to people's emotional/behavioral problems. The social work practitioner helps at risk populations which typically include the poor and homeless, abused/neglected children and adults, people of color, women, recent refugees, chronically mentally ill, developmentally disabled, physically ill or disabled, substance abusers, criminal offenders, and the aged. In focusing on disadvantaged groups, social workers use a range of traditional and nontraditional methods to promote well-being, personal growth, and social justice, e.g., client and systems policy advocating, brokering, consulting individual, family, and group counseling/psychotherapy, mediating, researching, supervising, and teaching.

While the discipline of social work is deeply rooted in a rich, 100-year history of service, what social workers "do" is no longer traditionally defined. The role of the social worker is constantly expanding into innovative service fields wherever a compassionate response to human need is indicated.

(National Association of Social Workers)

Лексику вивчити:

To dedicate-присвячувати

Diverse різноманітний

Community громада, спільнота

Meeting удовлетворение (to meet-удовлетворять)

Social concerns соціальні проблеми

To range охоплювати, варіюватись (range-діапазон)

Social oppression соціальне притиснення

Practitioner працівник

Risk populations групи ризику

Abused ображені, скривджені

Neglected занедбані

Recent refugees емігранти

Chronically mentally ill неврівноважені

Developmentally disabled скалічені, розумово відсталі

Substance abusers токсикомани, наркомани, алкоголіки (тобто ті, що зловживають психоактивними речовинами)

Criminal offenders злочинці

The aged люди похилого віку

In focusing зосереджуючись

Disadvantaged groups незаможні (малоимущие)

A range ряд

To promote сприяти

Well-being добробут

Social justice соціальна справедливість

Advocating захист

Brokering страхування, посередництво

Counseling консультування

Psychotherapy психотерапія

Mediating посередництво

Researching дослідництво

Supervising нагляд

To offer пропонувати

Protection захист

to evolve розвиватись

to undertake проводити (предпринимать)

abandoned покинутий

the elderly люди похилого віку

infirm немічні

destitute families нуждающиеся семьи

the homeless бездомні

to attach направляти

charitable housing projects благодійні домашні проекти

to involve залучити

caseloads патронажні працівники

take up займати

statutory законний

Social work (читати і перекладати, вміти відповісти на запитання)

There is no clear and simple definition for the term “social work’. It is often used in broad sense, for example by people working in education or police force, who may see their work as including aspects of social work. In Collins Educational Dictionary social work is defined as “paid professional activity that aims to assist people in overcoming serious difficulties in their lives by offering care, protection or counseling”.

Social work does not take identical forms in all the countries where it has developed. In Britain social work evolved from the work undertaken by various charitable organizations in the last quarter of the 19^th century. From its beginnings, it was based on personal contact between a large volunteer force offering practical assistance, advice and support, and people such as abandoned or neglected children, the elderly and infirm, destitute families and the homeless. These early volunteer social workers were attached to hospitals, courts and prisons. Others, perhaps attached to charitable housing projects, visited people in their homes.

Nowadays social workers are involved in a broad area of work, although there is a tendency of caseloads to concentrate on problems such as old aged, disabilities of various kinds, low income and family relationship. Working with children also takes up large part of social-work time. Some of the duties of the local authority social services department are statutory, that is, service required by legislation. Other provision is at the discretion of the local authority and therefore varies from area to area.

Social work is a professional and academic discipline committed to the pursuit of social welfare, social change and social justice. The field works towards research and practice to improve the quality of life and to the development of the potential of each individual, group and community of a society. Social workers perform interventions through research, policy, community organizing, direct practice and teaching. Research is often focused on areas such as human development, social policy, public administration, program evaluation and international and community development. Social workers are organized into local, national, continental and international professional bodies. Social work, an interdisciplinary field, includes theories from economics, education, sociology, medicine, philosophy, politics, psychology, and as well as anti-oppressive and anti-racist discourse.

Social Work & Social Pedagogics

Social Pedagogical workers help people – young and old – to live as independently as possible again. Their work centers around providing temporary, long-term and permanent support to people who have relational, family, developmental and educational problems as well as support to people with a handicap, a temporary or structural psychosocial limitation, a mental disorder or illness. The support they offer consists of supervision and/or home support or home treatment as well as support and treatment in an institution. Social pedagogical workers passionately help people function to the best of their ability.

The professional field of social pedagogical workers is very broad. Graduates can find careers in a substantial number of institutions including institutions for the mentally-handicapped, penitentiary institutions (prisons and forensic psychiatric centers), juvenile psychiatric hospitals, detox centers, social care centers. In general hospitals the social pedagogical workers perform their duties in a number of different departments including children’s wards. If you have affinity with the target group of senior citizens , you can also work as a social pedagogical worker in nursing homes and rest homes. Social pedagogical workers can also help (multi-problem) families, offering support to parents in upbringing their children.