Students will select a topic on which the NASW has issued a Social Justice Issue Brief
(https://www.socialworkers.org/Advocacy/Social-Justice/Social-Justice-Issue-Briefs).
Explore an issue from multiple viewpoints, with an emphasis on ethical implications and theories that underpin the decisions people make about them.
- Include an introduction that clearly prepares the reader for what is to come in the paper.
- Select a Social Justice Issue Brief topic from the NASW. Provide an introduction which prepares the reader for the topic areas that will be explored in the paper.
- Briefly describe the issue and specify why the issue is potentially controversial.
- Clearly describe the social work profession’s position on the issue, informed by the NASW Code of ethics . Discuss the implicit and explicit social and economic justice components presented in the issue brief.
- Clearly describe your personal position on the issue and your rationale for holding this position.
- Describe the values and beliefs held by those who have other positions on the issue (there may be more than one depending on the issue). Evidence is often used or interpreted differently by those who have different positions on the same issue. Present the evidence from the perspective of each of these positions. Discuss the ways these beliefs facilitate or limit social and economic justice outcomes.
- Discuss the similarities, differences, and intersections among these positions and the NASW’s position.
- When stepping back and looking at all of the positions presented, how successful has each been in influencing public opinion on this issue?
- As a social worker, how will you handle when your personal position on an issue is not aligned with the NASW’s position? How will you handle when a client’s position is not aligned with your own?
10.Include a conclusion that wraps up the paper and highlights the key learning experiences from writing the paper.