| CODE | SWP4051 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Specialisms in Social Work | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 04 - Years 4, 5 in Modular UG or PG Cert Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 6 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Social Policy and Social Work | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit examines the development of current social work practice and the growth of its specializations. It is an opportunity to understand and critically analyse current practices both locally and abroad. The study-unit will review current understanding of the generalist nature of social work practice. Evolving from generalist practice, different forms of specializations will be considered, namely specialisation by: 鈥� Client groups (elderly, children, etc) 鈥� Client characteristics of particular condition (intellectual disability, mental ill health, HIV, etc) 鈥� Social problem (domestic violence, addiction, etc) 鈥� Method of intervention (groupwork, community work, etc) 鈥� Practice orientation, approach or mode of work (family therapy, cognitive behavioural therapy, etc) 鈥� Particular aspects of service (intake, intermediate treatment, etc) 鈥� Practice setting (hospitals, schools, etc) 鈥� By some combination of the above. Students will be reflecting on important questions such as: What constitutes generalist practice in social work? What constitutes specialist practice? What is the relationship between generalist and specialist practice? What mixture of generalist and specialist social work practice best serves the interests of social work services users? The main aim is for the student to acquire a critical understanding and ability to evaluate current developments in the local social work scene, to be in a position to influence such developments. The expected outcome is a shared appreciation for the need of a more integrated service delivery system, complemented by corresponding developments in social work education and training and the professionalisation of social work practice. Students are also expected to learn how to manage and evaluate their own capacity to develop professional competence in various specializations of social work and to make links across specialisms. Notions such as evidence based-social work, service users involvement, collaborative social work & multi-agency working will be further explored. Reading list: Bamford, T. (2015) A contemporary history of social work: learning from the past. Policy Press. Bamford, T., & Bilton, K. (2020) Social work: Past, present and future. Policy Press. Blom, B. (2004) Specialization in social work practice: Effects on interventions in the personal social services. Journal of Social Work, 4, 25鈥�46. doi:10.1177/1468017304042419. Cole, M. (2019) 鈥楽ocial work supervision in Malta: A specialism in the making鈥�, Clinical Supervisor. Routledge, 38(2), pp. 326鈥�344. doi: 10.1080/07325223.2019.1582393. Cole, M. and Kenely, N. (2022) 鈥楽ocial Work鈥�, in Vella, S. and Galea-Curmi, E. (eds) Social policy in Malta: An introduction. Midsea Books, pp. 223鈥�240. Epstein, D. (2019) Range: Why generalists triumph in a specialized world. Riverhead Books. Gambrill, E. (2013) Social work practice: A critical thinker鈥檚 guide (3rd ed). Oxford University Press. Godfred, B. (2016) Generic or specialist profession? Identifying social work in community learning disability teams. Journal of Integrated Care, 24, 4, pp. 214 鈥� 224. Horwarth, J., & Shardlow, S. M (2003) Specialism: A force for change. In J. Horwath & S. M. Shardlow (Eds.), Making links across specialisms: Understanding modern social work practice (pp.1 鈥� 21). Russell House Publishing. Lavalette, M. (2019) What is the future of social work? Policy Press. Littlechild, B. (2020) Working with conflict in social work practice. Open University Press. Littlechild, B., & Smith, R. (2013) A handbook for interprofessional practice in the human services: Learning to work together. Pearson. Raeymaeckers, P. (2016) A specialist鈥檚 perspective on the value of generalist practice: A qualitative network analysis. Journal of Social Work, 16, 5, pp. 610 鈥� 626. Rogowski, S. (2020) Social work: The rise and fall of a profession? 2nd edition. Bristol University Press. Stevenson, O. (2005) Genericism and Specialization: The Story since 1970. British Journal of Social Work, 35, pp. 569-586 More readings will be added depending on the process of the credit, interests of students and the subject chosen by students for presentations/workshops. |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Seminar | ||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Holger Suarez |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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