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career aspirations of a social worker
career aspirations of a social worker
specific role of social worker
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The most important social workers in society are those who enter the child welfare system. Since many children don’t always grow up in monogamous households those in the welfare system need assistance the most. According to Williams- Mbengue (2012) “Nearly three million American children are put into welfare systems and cared for by social workers.” Imagine being a social worker in the welfare system, taking care of children who come from impoverished biological homes, and a large majority of them experiencing some form of abuse or neglect (Meloy & Phillips, 2012). As a social worker, it can be very emotional and stressful handling a child in the system, especially if a child was just taken from their biological home. If it wasn’t for the social worker who helped my best friend, Alyssa would be one of the three million children in the welfare system. It is said that, “Children who enter child welfare systems at such a young age are at risk for a countless number of developmental, physical and mental health problems” (Meloy & Phillips, 2012). Alyssa could have also been at risk for developmental, physical and mental health problems. Helping a child through a traumatizing experience can cause a social worker to be emotionally attached. Social workers who are emotionally attached often go home and ponder questions in their head after leaving their work environment. Dwyer (2007) completed a study based on how social work can cause anxiety and stress. One of the many questions the employee’s worried about in the study was “will my employers support me if something goes wrong when working with a child (Dwyer, 2007)?” Many of these questions social workers ponder about have to deal with both foster care and adopted children. Fos... ... middle of paper ... ...lied Developmental Psychology, 33(5), 252-259. Mitchell, M., Kuczynski, L., Tubbs, C., & Ross, C. (2010). We Care About Care: Advice by Children in Care for Children in Care, Foster Parents and Child Welfare Workers about the Transition into Foster Care. Child & Family Social Work, 15(2), 176-185. Rhodes-Courter, A. (n.d). About Ashley. Retrieved from http://www.rhodes-courter.com/about.html Ward, B. W. (2012). Adoptive Parents' Suspicion of Preadoption Abuse of their Adopted Children and the Use of Support Services. Child: Care, Health and Development, 38(2), 175-185. Williams-Mbengue, N. (2012). Big Decisions for Little Children. State Legislatures, 38, 9. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1210596499?accountid=14971 Williams-Mbengue, N. (2008). National Conference of State Legislatures. Permanency: A Key Concept for Children In Foster Care. 2-9.
“About two-thirds of children admitted to public care have experienced abuse and neglect, and many have potentially been exposed to domestic violence, parental mental illness and substance abuse” (Dregan and Gulliford). These children are being placed into foster care so that they can get away from home abuse, not so they can move closer towards it. The foster children’s varied outcomes of what their adult lives are is because of the different experiences they grew up with in their foster homes. The one-third of those other foster children usually has a better outcome in adult life than the other two-thirds, which is a big problem considering the high percentage of children being abused in their foster homes. Although, the foster care system has most definitely allowed children to experience the positive home atmosphere that they need there is still an existed kind of abusive system in the foster care program that is unofficial but seems to be very popular. Foster care focuses on helping children in need of a temporary stable environment; however, foster care can have negative impacts to the children and the people around them concerning the foster child going through the transition, the parents of the foster child, a new sibling relationship, and problems that arrive later influencing the foster child long-term.
Social agency and the court authorizing the placement, and caregivers are responsible for the continuing monitoring to ensure that the child in placement receives adequate care and supervision (Downs, Moore and McFadden, 2009, p.275). Services for children in foster care are a teamwork effort of the different parties involved (Downs, Moore and McFadden, 2009). Unfortunately in Antowne’s situation the agency and the court system failed him because although he was removed from his mother, the abuse and neglect continued. The systems involved did not provide the safety net Antwone needed.
There is nearly 400,000 children in out-of-home care in the United States right now (Children’s Right). Just about every day children are being shipped in and out of foster homes and group homes. Most people want the best for children in foster care and decide to take care of them until their parents can possibly recover. The foster care system can have both a negative or positive effect on children, foster parents, and biological parents because of the gaps in the system. Foster cannot not be avoided but the some aspects of the foster care system can be avoided if the missing gaps were filled.
In the United States there are approximately 397,000 children in out-of home care, within the last year there was about 640,000 children which spent at least some time in out-of-home care. More than 58,000 children living in foster care have had their biological parental rights permanently terminated (Children’s Rights, 2014). Due to the rising number of children in foster care and the growing concerns of the safety, permanency, and well-being of children and families, the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 was signed into law. On November 19, 1997, President Bill Clinton signed the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, to improve the safety of children, to promote adoption and other permanent homes for children who need them, and to support families (Child Welfare League of America). The Adoption and Safe Families Act also promotes adoption by offering incentive payments for States. During the FY of 1999-2003 the payment to states which had exceeded the average number of adoptions received $20 million (Child Welfare League of America). The ASFA improved the existing federal child welfare law to require that the child’s health and safety be a “paramount” concern in any efforts made by the state to preserve or reunify the child’s family, and to provide new assurances that children in foster care are safe (Shuman, 2004).
Social workers are viewed by the world to be “fixers” in society. The general public sees social workers as just “people who work in child protective services”, they do not know about the other things that social workers are also involved in. I interviewed, Stuart Brewster, a therapist for children and families, he graduated from the university of Washington with a masters degree in social work.
Social workers are generalist practitioners that utilize various theoretical frameworks to assist in problem-solving for individuals, family, groups, and communities. They aim to provide interventions at any level based on the need of their clients. The generalist social worker assist with a broad scope problems and can be found in a variety of institutions. When assisting with adult clients who suffer with social development due to childhood trauma, social workers must know what trauma is. Trauma is prevalent in the social work community, almost every social worker has had a client that has suffered from trauma. In order to assist adults that have social development issues stemming from childhood there are The four-fold principles
This paper will contain research done about foster care, including a brief history and progressing along to the system today. This research interested me because it is a professional career option after graduation. I found both positives and negatives about the foster care system that children and foster parents go through on a daily basis. As the paper progresses I will be explaining these positives and negatives in more detail. Throughout the paper I will be referencing different scholarly sources that explain foster care in different ways. Overall, this paper will show different aspects that the general public may never know about foster care.
Stott, Tonia. "Placement Instability And Risky Behaviors Of Youth Aging Out Of Foster Care." Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal 29.1 (2012): 61-83. Academic Search Premier. Web. 4 Jan. 2014.
Child welfare services should create a better environment in foster care homes. Children face mental and physical trauma every day in foster care homes like emotional distress, unstable mental health and surroundings, developmental delays etc. High trauma rates in children who currently reside in foster care or did, amounting to “one-half to two-thirds,” raises everyday (Dorsey, Burns, Southerland, Cox, Wagner, and Farmer 871). A nationwide social services policy on how to become a foster care parent or child should focus on the mental, emotional and physical state of the individual to decrease foster care abuse.
Zlotnik, J. L. & Cornelius, L. (2000). Preparing Social Work Students for Child Welfare Careers:
Williamson, Lisa A. "Providing Support And Stability To Students In Foster Care." Education Digest 79.3 (2013): 62. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 23 Dec. 2013.
Social Work is a profession that prides itself on the ability to cultivate positive relationships with people who may be very different from us. There may be differences in age, race, personality, gender, socioeconomic status, health, sexual orientation, rank, power, and privilege, as well as beliefs regarding religion and politics. The experience of these differences can cause a Social Worker to feel emotionally and cognitively disturbed. The ability to become aware of and consciously attend to these internal disturbances can positively affect the quality of relationship we are able to
For years, when I thought of Social Workers, I imagined a person coming into a client’s home and taking their kids away for neglect. Later, I found out that social workers could go into so many dimensions, such as clinical social workers, case mangers, and even administrative positions in agency settings. Furthermore, I realized that I was maturing into an adult. For example, when I began telling people of my decisions to become a social worker, a lot ...
The social work profession is defined as “a practice-based profession and an academic discipline that promotes social change and development, social cohesion, and the empowerment and liberation of people (ISFW, ‘Global Definition of Social Work’, 2016).” The definition may be true about the profession but it is more in depth than just that. To me, the profession’s primary focus is to help others through life as much as we can while letting them make their own choices and guiding them. In society, social workers are utilized in many different nonprofit and government roles. They serve the community in many different ways from monitoring parent visits to helping people through mental illnesses. Human beings are so complex and things that happen
The work of a social worker is complex and all encompassing. Social workers work in many capacities seeking justice, liberation, and equality. There work is global, as they work to put policies in place to govern practices. To keep up with societal shifts and generational changes there learning is continuous. As new questions rise so does the need for the continuation of research, not only to answer these questions but to implement into