scholarly journals Reflection on teaching effective social work practice for working with Muslim communities

10.18060/172 ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khadija Khaja ◽  
Chelsea Frederick

In many academic departments like social work, psychology, and psychiatry there is a growing consensus that teachers need to instruct students to be culturally competent especially if they are going to be effective helpers with diverse populations. Multicultural instructional counseling methods are imperative if we are to ensure that our students of counseling are well prepared to work with diverse families, particularly those from Muslim backgrounds. In this narrative the author writes about the challenges of teaching non-Muslim students effective counseling techniques with Muslim families. Culturally innovative teaching methods are illustrated to facilitate students’ learning how to be effective counselors with Muslim communities.

2019 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 1201-1218
Author(s):  
Patrick O’Leary ◽  
Mohamad Abdalla ◽  
Aisha Hutchinson ◽  
Jason Squire ◽  
Amy Young

Abstract The care and protection of children are a concern that crosses ethnic, religious and national boundaries. How communities act on these concerns are informed by cultural and religious understandings of childhood and protection. Islam has specific teachings that relate to the care and guardianship of children and are interpreted in diverse ways across the Muslim world. Islamic teachings on child-care mostly overlap with Western understandings of child protection, but there can be some contested positions. This creates complexities for social workers intervening in Muslim communities where the basis of their intervention is primarily informed by a non-Muslim paradigm or occurs in secular legal contexts. The purpose of this article is to address at a broad level the issue of how overarching concepts of child protection and Islam influence social work practice with Muslim communities. It addresses a gap in practical applications of the synergy of Islamic thinking with core social work practice in the field of child protection. For effective practice, it is argued that social work practitioners need to consider common ground in Islamic thinking on child protection rather than rely on Western frameworks. This requires further research to build evidence-based practice with Muslim families.


10.18060/32 ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 85-103 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Hodge

While there is growing interest in incorporating clients’ spiritual beliefs and values into social work practice, several studies have shown that social workers lack the necessary training to address spiritual issues in a culturally competent manner. This paper addresses this need by providing an annotated spirituality training course for use in various settings. Topics or domains covered in the curriculum include ethics and values, research and theory on spirituality, the nation’s spiritual demographics, the cultures of major spiritual traditions, value conflicts, spiritual interventions, assessment approaches, and the rights of spiritual believers. A number of potential assignments are offered,which are designed to promote practitioner self-awareness, respect for spiritual diversity, and an enhanced ability to assess and operationalize spiritual strengths to ameliorate problems in practice settings.


2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
pp. 316-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gizem Arat ◽  
Narine Nora Kerelian

Hong Kong is a self-branded international city in Asia. Culturally competent service delivery for ethnic minorities is a nascent arena in the social work profession within the territory. This article attempts to depict the ways in which ethnic groups are situated within local social work practice, reviews the Hong Kong context of a culturally responsive social work profession, and proposes a framework for a more inclusive social work curriculum. In this framework on culturally competent social work education, the authors argue that social harmony and social justice are not mutually exclusive, calling for a (re)conceptualization of social harmony inclusive of social justice.


Author(s):  
Jennifer Yates

This article describes issues related to culturally competent social work practice with religiously fundamentalist families in public school settings. It addresses the history of religious fundamentalist identities, the complexity inherent in such identities, and the nature of fundamentalism. A review of issues related to culturally competent practice in educational settings is offered. Recommendations informed by spiritually sensitive and strength-based approaches are discussed. Challenges to working effectively with religiously conservative and fundamentalist families in educational settings are also explored. Emphasis is placed upon the practitioner’s role in developing spirituality-sensitive therapeutic relationships by improving religious literacy, developing enhanced self-awareness, and approaching clients from a perspective of cultural humility and a lens of intersectionality.


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