To the attention of SWASA 3 Students

This is to inform you that i will be posting the notes for the last lecture on the blog by Friday.

See you today in the lecture

How to write a social work dissertation

For those students writing desertation, click here for information on how to write a social work desertation. Students that i am supervising make sure you have a copy of this guide and please get intouch and we arrange when we should have a meeting. Latest has to be by end of next week. 27th/05/2011.

The Social worker in the 21st Century-SWASA 3 students

After the last lecture, i noticed that you need more light on who a social worker is in the 21st century. You need to understand the challenges, the value base for social work, the indentity, personalisation&empowerment, the uniqueness of the profession and the skills. Just click for information on the above.

What is a technique and how is it used? Reading for 1st week SWASA 3

Techniques are used to assist in the implemetantion of intervention models. Without techniques , implementation of any theory ot model is awkward, at best, and wholly impossible. Click here to read more on identifying essential techniques for social work community practice.

To the attention of SWASA 3 Students -UCU

Please click here and follow the link from wikipedia to learn more about policy analysis.
This will give you more insight about social policy. I will be posting the readings for next week as promised.

Introduction to Social Policy- Opening remarks to SWASA 3 student Uganda Christian University

Opening Remarks to Social Policy Course

By Kenneth Nyehoora Mugumya

This is intended to provide general introduction to social policy for students studying the discipline at Uganda Christian University studying social work . Its aim is to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date guide to the discipline to students.

Social policy is such a discipline like economics, sociology or law. However the term social policy is used to refer to the political changes and reform s that take place in the real world as governments or other powerful agents , seek to bring about social improvements through the provision or regulation of welfare . For instance, we talk about an increase in social security benefit entitlement as a ‘change in social policy’. The same term is used , therefore , to refer both to the academic discipline and to the object of its study.

This is perhaps misleading, although it is understandable and is well established. While completing the course in social policy and planning, we will probably want to move backwards and forwards between different topics in order to find out specific themes or issues that we will be studying at any particular time.

The course provides an introduction to the discipline of social policy , setting it in the context of its historical development and the major empirical concerns of policy development . The changes in the way social policy has been conceived and studied and the major influences behind these changes will be identified. These will be a set with broad themes looking at a shift from social administration to social policy and widening of the focus of separate study within social policy topics . What will be provided here is an introduction to each, which can then set the scene for further study.

The structure of the welfare mix in Uganda will be addressed, looking separately at the four major sectors of welfare provision- the state , the market , the voluntary sector and the informal sector . Each of these will be dealt with in s separately and we will emphasize the strengths and weaknesses of particular form of provision. However in reality these different sectors of welfare overlap – and even duplicate or contradict each other. These general features and problems to which they may give arise , will also be discussed; and each area concludes that one sector of the welfare provision cannot alone be expected to meet all of the wide range of needs and preferences for social protection that are found in complex societies .

There will be an examination of some of the major contextual influences upon policy development and policy analysis and seeks to explain how these have been addressed in the study of social policy.

The importance of ideology and theory in shaping our perceptions of welfare and examination of the major ideological frameworks that have influenced the study and development of social policy in recent times in Uganda will be explored.
The economic context within which social policy is developed , explaining how and why , economic policy in Uganda has changed in recent times .

The economic context in which social policy is developed, explaining how and why economic policy in Uganda had changed in recent times . One of the important lessons of study of economic policy is the recognition that policy changes in one country care influenced more and more by changes and developments on an international scale.

The important role played in policy development and implementation by local government in Uganda. This will involve the description of the history of the local authority involvement in the control and delivery of social policy and explanations of conflicts between central movement and local movement to which this has sometimes given rise.

Focus upon some issues that now occupy a central place in the analysis of operation of social policies – although they have sometimes been absent from policy debate and academic discussion in the past. Of particular importance in the recent development of social policy study has been recognition of the important role played by social divisions in structuring both the development and delivery of welfare services . The division of class has widely been recognized and debated within social science. It is now clear that societies are structured by diverse circumstances and experiences that result from differences in gender , race , age, and disability too- ad in indeed from the impact of other social divisions.

These major divisions and their impact on social policy take up more specific issues to do with production and consumption of welfare services within different societies . The focus here will be on how we pay for welfare services and on how we ensure that those services provided are actually available to and used by the people for whom they are intended . Although the evidence reviewed suggests that in some cases this does not happen successfully.

In conclusion the study of social policy is now characterized by a wider range of perspectives , debates and issues than ever before, there is still clear and considerable consensus on its importance as an academic discipline- and a force for social change .

Woman throws her children in Lake Victoria

What a sad story, Uganda  should  consider  establishing  a  social care  department  to address the needs  of  vulnerable  people in local communities. 

The country has  trained  more than 10,000 social workers  however they are on streets  without  jobs  yet  we  have  vulnerable women and  children  who have  urgent  needs  to be  addressed. click here  for  the  full story.

Kenneth Nyehoora Mugumya

Uganda and Health Care

Keep checking  on this  blog for health and  social care situation in Uganda.

Kenneth Nyehoora  

Hot stuff

New things will be coming soon!


-Ken-