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Project: Part 2: Putting Social Advocacy Skills into Action Writing a proposal that functions as a focus of change is a significant part of being a social worker/policy advocate. This is your opportunity to use your advocacy skills to change and improve the lives of others. In this Assignment, you write a proposal for…
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Discussion: Policy Proposals In your reading for this week, you meet Jose and Iris, two individuals who are in situations that require assistance and guidance from a professional social worker and policy advocate. In this Discussion, create a policy proposal that will impact the situations faced by either Jose or Iris. Describe the trade-offs…
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Week 6: Developing Policy Proposals Early in the process, policy advocates have to establish policy goals . . . Do they want basic change or incremental change? . . . What points of a proposal are most important to them? . . . What style of approach will be most effective? —Bruce S. Jansson, Becoming…
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Small Group Discussion: Policy Agendas There are challenges to agenda building that if not dealt with carefully and skillfully can adversely affect an issue or a proposal that you are trying to place in front of a decision maker. On the other hand, no matter how expertly you build an agenda for your issue or…
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Week 4: Ecology of Policy in Social Work Settings The planning process can be seen as developing a road map for getting from “here” to “there.” “Here” is the current situation and “there” is the solution developed . . . “ —James Midgley & Michelle M. Livermore, The Handbook of Social Policy The ecology of…
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Discussion: Policy Process and Public Opinion Managing public opinion and understanding the balance between its influence and your advocacy goals is a delicate matter. It is a task fraught with uncertainty because, as a policy advocate, you must navigate through the territory of politicians, bureaucrats, and lobbyists whose primary goals are to appease and please…
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Discussion: Analyses of Social Problems in Case Studies As a social worker, often you need to use your policy advocacy skills to ensure that your clients are receiving the services that they need. Although you may tend to think of policy advocacy skills as separate from your clinical social work skills, they are very similar.…
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Small Group Discussion: Social Change Projects What does policy have to do with clinical social work? Connecting policy to direct practice can be a challenge for some micro social workers. However, policies affect the lives of each and every client who walks through your door. Policies affect clients ability to access and pay for services.…
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Discussion: Policies and Social Problems Why is it important for social workers to understand policy? When you think of policies, you may tend to think of the federal policies that support services such as Medicare and state policies that support education and welfare services. However, sometimes the policies that have the greatest impact on clients…
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Week 2: Social Policy and Advocacy Skills The focus of Week 2 is on policy advocacy skills and the impact of social policy on the practice of social work. You will identify an agency or organization, examine one of its policies, and describe that policy as well as the social problem it addresses. You will…