Essentials in professional social work

Essentials in Professional Social Work

D e p a r t m e n t o f S o c i a l W o r k

A M R I T A P U R I C A M P U S

WORKSHOP FOR SEMESTER I MSW STUDENTS (BATCH 2011-13)

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Workshop for Semester I MSW Students

(Batch 2011-13)

Prepared by: Mr. Sooraj P S

Dept. of Social Work

AMRITA Vishwa Vidyapeetham

University

Amritapuri Campus

Kollam-690525

Facilitator

Dr. Renjth R. Pillai,

In-charge,

Academics

The Dept. Team

Mr. Rajeev M M,

Mr. V S K Kurup,

Mr. Anand P K,

Ms. Surya Krishna,

Mr. Sooraj P S

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Workshop for Semester I MSW Students

(Batch 2011-13)

Sl: No Contents Page no

1 Context of the workshop 3

2 Methodology 3

3 The ice-breaker 4

4 The balloon game 5

5 Trust fall game and free listing 6

6 Effective Communication 9

7 Healthy Study Habits 10

8 Time Management 11

9 Social Responsibility 12

10 Importance of Social Support and Stress Management 13

11 The mirror game 14

12 Meditation and breathing exercise 15

13 Outcome of the programme 16

14 Appendix 17

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Context of the workshop

Under the nurturing shade of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, one of the fastest growing universities in India, the Department of Social Work at Amritapuri Campus has grown-up to find a space among the most prominent centers of Social work learning in Southern India. The enviable progress of the department owes greatly to its convergence with Mata Amritanandamayi Math, the world renowned non-governmental organization. In the meantime, the department has brought forth three batches of professional social workers who spread over various national and international organizations and institutions of higher learning. By now, the fourth batch (2010-12) has waved to the fresher candidates enrolled for the 5th batch (2011-13) of MSW program at the department.

Master of Social Work (MSW) program at Amrita includes both theoretical and field level trainings. The curricula of social work here, foresee the students to be socially sensitive, responsible, empathetic and self-worthy. It is important to inculcate these elementary qualities among the fresh aspirants right from the beginning of the course. Keeping in mind this fact, an all-embracing induction program was organized in conjunction with the welcoming ceremony of the batch MSW 2011-13. The program was held at the CIR room (116) in the university building on 18th August 2011.Dr. Renjith R Pillai, Assistant Professor & Academic in-charge facilitated the program with extensive backing from Mr. Rajeev MM, Vice-Chairperson and Field Work in-charge, and other faculties; Mr. V S K Kurup (Lecturer),

Mr. Anand P K (Lecturer), Ms. Surya Krishna (Lecturer) and Mr. Sooraj P S (Field Work Coordinator). Methodology Goal

To get the fresher students acquainted among themselves and with the basic themes of social work profession.

Objectives

• To draw out the primary objectives of social work profession for the new candidates.

• To highlight the significance of team work in professional social work. • To introduce important concepts such as empathy, social responsibility, and social

support. • To spotlight the importance of time management and healthy study habits for the

students.

The Process

The one-day workshop was comprised of 10 sessions each of them expected to cater outcomes that are explicit and precise. The sessions included role-plays, games, discussions, work chart preparations, free listing and ice-breakers. The program was based on a participatory methodology with the facilitator frequently engaged in conversation with the participants. The ice breaker session at the beginning provided a dynamic ambience for the rest of the sessions. Periodic slots were given for intervals and revitalizing workouts. Feed backs from the participants were gathered at the end of the day.

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Session 1: The ice-breaker

Aim

To get the group members introduced to each other thereby creating an active platform for the workshop.

Process

Dr. Renjith initiated the session calling out for four volunteers from the 32 participants. After much hesitation, 4 volunteers came forward with wobbly movements not knowing what to do. Each of them was asked to throw colored soft balls at the fellow participants so as to select their desired group members. Within no time, the volunteers started smashing the balls and the audience burst into laugh. 4 groups each with 8 members were formed with the volunteers as team leaders. The groups were asked to sit in circles and acquaint with each other. Later, the group leaders disclosed the names, degrees and favorite pastimes of each of the group members.

Outcomes

The participants could know the names and interests of their classmates and the strangeness in their minds was removed to a certain extent. A sense of belongingness was developed among the group members. A lighthearted atmosphere, perfect for the running of other sessions was created.

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Session 2: The balloon game

Aim

To highlight the elementary objectives of the social work profession

Process

Students were made to sit in a large semi-circle. From one end of the semicircle, students were asked to count, not with numbers, but by telling elephant, goat, cat and dog respectively. 4 subgroups were formed, though it was not easy for the members to find their own counterparts. For that, the students had to make the sound of the specified animals loudly and locate the similar sorts. In a little while, the

room became deafening with grunts, rumbles, meows and barks. Once the groups were set, all the participants were given balloons to blow. After, they were told to strike the balloons up in the air not allowing them to fall down. All the students keenly took care of their balloons, though a few were unlucky to lose the game with fallen balloons.

Outcomes

After the exercise, a few questions were thrown at the students. They were;

• How many of you kept the balloons in the air till the end and how many could not?

• How many of you helped the others in the exercise? • How many of you were concentrated only in your own balloons?

Most of the students replied they were concerned about their own balloons only. This was illustrative of the trend followed by the contemporary society, wherein the majority finds no time to bother about the poor and the suffering. A few students tried helping others also without being distracted from their own balloons. This precisely showed what is expected from a trained professional social worker; to help others, to have care & concern for the fellow citizens, to work towards the advancement of the downtrodden and lending your hand for the fallen ones so as to retrace their lost lane of life. The primary objective of social work, viz. helping the deprived and underprivileged ones without losing ourselves was thus described to them with this demonstrative example

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Session3: Trust fall game and free listing

Aim

To highlight the importance of team work among the students

Process

7 boys and 7 girls were called out. One volunteer each from boys and girls were put to climb over two benches. The other 6 members of each group stood in a queue behind them in two parallel rows. The persons in the queue were asked to clasp each other’s hands firmly, more or less making a cradle. The remaining part was obvious for the onlookers and they started cheering up the volunteers. The volunteers on the tables were asked to fall freely to the “hand-cradle” behind them! Five tries were given to the group members.

Later, each of the participants were asked to recall a person whom they like the most and reminisce a few good qualities in him/her. Then, they were told to recall another person whom they do not like at all along with the wicked traits in him/her. All the participants were told to pen down the good and bad traits in the chart sheets fixed on the platform.

Outcome

After the first exercise, the volunteers were called for to share their experiences after their five heroic attempts of free wall. Both of them told that they were scared to fall in the first try. As they fell for the second and third times, a sense of trust was growing towards the ‘cradle-makers’. Once they felt that the group members will hold them up, it was just effortless to plunge into the cradle. When in a team; we experience a sense of confidence,

strength, belongingness and optimism, they added. The significance of team work and mutual trust was conveyed candidly with this exercise. As the mood of laughter and glee spread the air, the participants were getting closer to each other and they waited keenly for the following sessions.

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In the free listing exercise, students scribbled down the desirable as well as detrimental qualities of the persons in their lives and the list went long. The facilitator added that it is important for every persons,especially those in the field of social work,to establish firm and effective interpersonal relationships. It is obvious that a person with generally agreeable qualities can make friends easier, establish good affinity with people and work amidst people in an acceptable way. Likewise, a person with unwelcome traits may fail to create interpersonal relationships and go disappointed while working with people. Through this exercise,the generally agreeable and inacceptable behaviors were listed down by the students themselves as follows. This exercise worked as a means for self evaluation and reform above and beyond cataloging the essential and disallowed qualities for a professional social worker.

Desirable traits

Undesirable traits

Supportive nature Tolerance Affection Empathy Humor sense Helping nature Practical thinking Determination Compassion Listening skills Patience Truthfulness Trust Loving nature Leadership skills Coordinating skills Positive regard Calmness Good personality Rational nature Confidence Charismatic character Being understanding Responsible nature Being passionate Ever smiling Hardworking nature

Short-temperedness

Laziness Impatience Telling lies

Rough behavior Criticality

Selfishness Arrogance

Teasing behavior Disturbing nature

Ruthlessness & killing behavior

Quarrelling Temper tantrums

Anger Cheating behavior

Irritating nature Over confidence

Sensitiveness Ego complexes

Shouting nature Nail-biting

Egoism Possessiveness Over smartness

Autocratic nature

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Session 4: Effective Communication

Aim

To demonstrate the importance of effective communication

Process

Three volunteers were asked to tell the names of actors of their choice. South sirens Mohanlal, and Mammootty came up instantly along with Govinda, the actor-politician. The class was split to three groups with these names respectively and each of the groups was given separate themes to perform on stage. The themes were as follows:

• Group Mohanlal: Dilemma of a student who is being fantasized by his/her friends to go for the chartbuster movie recently released in town; on the eve of exam.

• Group Mammootty: Plight of a youngster who is being forced by the peers to take a drink.

• Group Govinda: the dilemma of a fresh graduate who yearn for joining MSW, but is sandwiched against parent’s pressures to go for MBA or MCA.

Each of the groups had to play these themes in three different ways, viz. the aggressive response, assertive response, passive response and their consequent impacts. After a

heated discussion for 5 minutes, the groups turned up with their role-plays ready!

Outcomes

After the role plays, a discussion was carried out by the facilitator on the ideas conveyed by each of the sets of plays. The role plays presented a scenic representation of the ambience created by aggressive, assertive

and passive responses. Aggressive reactions resulted in violent behavior, hostility, wretchedness and embarrassment, while passive responses caused submission, remorse and unfavorable consequences. Assertive and firm reactions yielded dignity, reconciliation, concord and authority over the situation. Assertive responses foster healthier, long-lasting and trust worthy relationships while other modes of reactions induce frail and unhealthy relationships.

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Session 5: Healthy Study Habits

Aim

To discuss the different ways to develop healthy learning habits

Process

The participants were divided into three groups and asked to sit as three circles. Every group was given a case vignette containing two instances. The first case was about Krishna, a gifted boy who happens to fail in his exam, whereas the second case was about Raji, a girl who used to forget everything that she learns by-heart. At the end of the vignette, 10 questions were given for the students to be discussed on and presented. Chart papers were provided to every group to point out their vital arguments and opinions.

Group leaders presented the nicely highlighted charts at the end of the exercise.

Outcomes

The participants pointed out that the given monograph discussed two situations that are found so common among adolescents nowadays. In the first case, though Krishna was brilliant in his studies, he got distracted due to his newly bought Walkman. He started reading the books with headphones in his ears and thought that he had learned everything. Parent’s supervision was also inadequate. While in the second case, Raji was not at all interested in her studies. All she did was to replicate the notes and learn them by rote. These two cases were proven ill-habits of students at Schools. The participants came out with valuable strategies to modify unhealthy study habits. Some of the opinions evolved in the discussion are given below:

• Prioritizing the stuffs to study and allotting ample time to each will reduce the work load.

• Adequate parental supervision is essential. • Developing a positive attitude towards learning is important. • Setting small, specific and realistic goals will work. • Study with your heart, not by heart. • Balance work with fun, don’t mix them up.

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Session 6: Time Management

Aim

To discuss the importance of effective time management

Process

The class was split to 4 groups with the names of animals of their own choice. They grumbled, groaned and creaked to find the analogous pairs and formed their groups. Each of the groups was given matrix sheets with day and time slots preset on it. The students were told to classify their daily chores into social, familial, work-related and personal spheres. The students had to color the matrix with 4 distinct colors so as to show the time they distribute for each of the 4 spheres.(yellow=social;red=work-related;green=familial;violet=personal).

Outcomes

The session provided a means for self-evaluation for all the students. They could analyze and comprehend the time they devote for each of the 4 important realms in one’s daily living. The facilitator told that a rule of one third is considered ideal by the behavioral scientists in this respect.ie. 8 hours of sleep, 8 hours of work and the remaining 8 hours equally devoted for familial, personal and social commitments.

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Session 7: Social Responsibility

Aim

To introduce and discuss the concept of social responsibility

Process

The groups were given sheets with peculiar shapes drawn on it. The figures were marked with numbers from 0 to 9. Then, the students were asked to visualize the most severe health concerns in the region they live and rank their severity in a scale of 10. The health issues should be written across the parallel lines in the diagram and should be joined each other using a pencil resulting in a closed loop. They were also made to think of the efforts they have put to reduce or exterminate it and rank the extent of their efforts in a scale of 10. The efforts-loop should be drawn below the distress-loop. Within a while, all the participants came out with their distress and effort loops most of them matchlessly contrasting in sizes.

Outcomes

The session was an eye opener for the participants. The diagram illustrated the extent of the serious nature of the social issues whilst the efforts taken by the members of the society towards resolving it. Firstly, It is the responsibility of the citizens to act against the social issues rather than grumbling on the authorities or the governing system. The concept of social responsibility was thus brought together.

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Session 8: Importance of Social Support and Stress Management

Aim

To discuss regarding effective stress management and to highlight the relevance of social support in stressful situations

Process

Two volunteers were called out for. One was told to play a starving lion and the other, a tricky goat. The rest of the class stood in a circular wall safeguarding the goat from the lion. The lion walked around the circle, often peeping through the weaker parts of the wall to catch the goat. Then, all the group members powerfully resisted and the goat also hid on safer sides of the wall. Later, the roles were interchanged for the goat as well as the lion.

Outcomes

After the exercise, both the lion and the goat were told to share their experiences on the play. The ‘goat’ told that she felt safe while in the circle, as she knew that there are a number of friends to protect her. However, as a lion, it was stressful to be alone and fight against many. The lion also shared similar experience. He added that while he became the goat, he was not quite sure about the safety of the wall, at first. Later, a sense of trust and security was developed towards the wall-makers and the play became a fun for him. These sharing literally revealed the relevance of social support in combating several stressors in daily life. The primary, secondary and tertiary social support structures lessen the impacts of stress and prevent maladaptive behaviors.

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Session 9: The mirror game

Aim

To introduce the concept of empathy

Process

The class was divided into two groups. The groups stood in two parallel rows facing each other. At first, each of the students on the right side was told to do some actions as they like. Members of the other row facing them were told to imitate the actions, just like a mirror does. The mirror roles were replaced by others later.

Outcomes

The concept of empathy was explained to the audience after the exercise. Empathy, an important principle and quality for the social workers was more or less a new term for them. Empathetic participation is similar to what a mirror does. It reflects the mood and psychological environment of the person before us ie. the client. Empathy is all about understanding a person by placing ourselves in his or her condition without losing ourselves.

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Session 10: Meditation and breathing exercise

Aim

To demonstrate stress relaxation techniques and highlighting its importance in social work practice.

Process

Mr. V S K Kurup explained the significance of de-stressing the body, mind and intellect in order for their smooth and relentless functioning. He prompted some of the basic steps in ‘pranayama’, a proven stress alleviation technique, for the students. He also demonstrated some of the simple breathing exercises that could be easily practiced by the students regularly. Later he discussed the role of stress relaxation techniques in the practice of professional social work, with the students.

Outcomes

The students got a basic impression on meditation and its relevance in the realm of professional social work.

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Outcome of the programme

Opinions and feedbacks were collected from the participants at the end of the session. Some of them are:

“The program could make us feel free and we-feeling was evoked within us”.

“I felt it was my stepping stone to the field of social work. To convey it in one word, it truly was an

infotainment program”.

“The workshop made us come out of the shell we were in and made us do introspection on ourselves”.

“An excellent kick start for my course in social work”

“The role play on types of communication was too good”

“Energizing and refreshing session, I felt that the faculties are extremely supportive”.

“What I liked the most was the friendly attitude of the teachers here”.

“The session on pranayama and meditation was quite useful”

“I felt like the clock ran so fast this day”

“Feeling proud to be a part of Amrita”

“I felt the session was so intensive and little bit exhausting”

“Thank you sir, for this wonderful day”

“I am so happy today, because I feel that I have made my choice right”

“After this day, I feel I have become a more socially responsible person”.

“I could understand myself through this programme”.

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APPENDIX I

*Adapted from the Stress Management Workbook, Dept. of Psychiatric Social Work, NIMHANS, Bangalore

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APPENDIX II

*Adapted from: Psycho-social support for children in disasters Workbook, Dept. of Psychiatric Social Work, NIMHANS, Bangalore

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APPENDIX III

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY CHART

*Adapted from: Life-Skill Education Workbook, Dept. of Psychiatry, NIMHANS, Bangalore

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