Orientation to Social Work and Human Services
The summary is 1500 words, plus relevant journal entries which will be attached to the end of your paper.
Purpose
This summary is a reflection on the student’s developing understanding and knowledge of SWHS concepts, social problems, the industry and of your emerging professional identity as a Social Work or Human Services practitioner. The summary will draw on research as well as entries to your reflective journal.
???? Additional Information
Journal entries – ongoing throughout the semester
Complete your journal entries throughout the semester in the Notes section of Cadmus. This will make it easier for you to review them to work out how they connect to your learnings, and it will be easier to transfer them into your paper at the end. You can upload images if you want to.
Note: Only attach the journal entries you refer to in your paper, not your whole journal.
Please be aware that we cannot see your notes pages, so you must attach your journal entries for your assessment into your paper. Don’t just leave them in the notes section or we wont be able to see them and you will be marked as having no journal entries.
How to write a Reflective Summary
Essentially this paper is a reflection on your key learnings throughout the semester and how they intersect with your knowledge of key concepts, construction of social issues, knowledge of the industry and your values and beliefs.
The overall aim of the paper is to reflect on your emerging sense of yourself as a practitioner.
Brain Dump
One way to start is to do a brain dump – write on butcher’s paper:
Key Learnings
Social Issues/the Industry
Own Values/beliefs
Then draw lines to show the connection between these – ie:
In what way does learning one connect to the key concept of ethics, and/or of practice frameworks and/or of critical refection, etc.
In what way does learning one and these threshold concepts shape your view of social issues e.g. poverty, or ‘deservingness’. Or industry issues e.g. funding and targeting of services.
How do your own values shape your thinking around these threshold concepts and social issues.
Suggestion: upload an image of your brain dump to the Notes section, so you can refer back to it as you write
And most importantly, what does the literature say about all of this. Back up everything you are saying with reference to the literature.
Reflective Writing
Refer to slides about your journal entries for Assignment 3 from the reflective writing lecture in week 3.
Focus on 3 or 4 key learnings. Think about what you knew about this concept at the beginning and what you know about it now, then discuss this learning journey. Your view might not have changed, in fact the journey might have been confirming knowledge you have or deepening this knowledge. Or it could be a complete shift or something completely new.
Make links to your reflective journal entries. Attach reflective journal entries as appendices (only attach those you refer to in the text, not the whole journal).
Back everything up with research.
Structure
Read the Academic Skills section in Blackboard re how to structure an academic paper. Even though this is a reflective summary it is still an academic paper.
The way you structure your paper is really up to you, but all papers need:
an introduction
a body
a conclusion
One way to write this paper would be to have a clear paragraph or two on each learning.
Then you describe what you have learned, how you have learned about it and why knowing this is important. See Example 1 (in resources) .
Another way you could write is as demonstrated below in Example 2 (in resources), where the learnings are integrated to demonstrate the interconnections between all the learnings you have embraced over the semester!
Both ways of structuring your paper are correct, it is really up to work out what structure helps you present your ideas in the best way for you.
You can use headings or not, it’s up to you. However, if you do use headings make them relevant to the section.
Use this section to outline any helpful information for students, or resources you’d like students to refer to:
E.g. Marking Rubric
Attach these in the Resources section below.
You can also encourage students to use the Checklist: How to write an Essay included below. Adapt it to suit your task.