Teaching Policy Practice: Developing Skills to influence change

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Teaching Policy Practice Developing Skills to
influence change

• Morag McArthur
• m.mcarthur_at_signadou.acu.edu.au
• Joanna Zubrzycki
• Australian Catholic University,
• Canberra, Australia
• JSWEC Glasgow July 8-9 2004

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Areas to cover

• Examining the relationship between policy
  practice and change
• how policy has been traditionally taught,
  particularly in Australia
• Assumptions that underpin policy teaching at ACU
  especially the skills required.
• 5 principles for ensuring social workers and
  other human service practitioners understand the
  links between policy practice and influencing
  change.

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How is policy is taught in social work programs?

• Fundamental basis of Social Work practice is the
  essential nature of the relationship between
  knowledge, skills and values
• policy as knowledge.
• Policy as a practice context
• In Australia Ife, (1997) argues that policy has
  been marginalised from the real practice of
  social work
• US approach assumes program development,
  community development and contributing to the
  policy debate are essential components of social
  work practice - See Jansson - Policy Practice

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Contextual issues for teaching policy as practice
at Australian Catholic University

• situated in Canberra great learning environment
  many opportunities to link the wider policy
  processes.
• substantially increased emphasis on policy
  practice
• We were responding to policy practice
  opportunities in the Canberra employment market
  - need to respond to the immediacy of the policy
  communities.

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Underlying Assumptions about how policy practice
is understood

• assumptions policy work only takes place in
  designated policy positions egs
• Policy is what other people do ie experts
• Policy requires specialised and different sets
  of skills to that required in more traditional
  fields of practice

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Our Practice Assumptions

• Policy practice supports social works purpose in
  facilitating social justice. Policy action
  emerges from within social work practice Ife,
  1997
• Policy should be regarded as not just as a task
  for policy workers but rather part of all
  social work practice
• Fook (2002) argues that
• Social work students have already developed
  identifiable skills from other practice
  interventions that assist them is working with
  and in policy to affect change .

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Policy work continuum (Jansson, 1994)

• Policy Sensitive practice
• understand the wider practice context
• - social workers recognise and observe the
  implications of wider systems on individuals
• Policy related practice actively engage their
  skills eg understanding power, to assist specific
  clients. Informed by knowledge of existing
  policies, ensure that individuals are receiving
  fair implementation of existing policies.
• Policy Practice -occurs when direct service
  practitioners engage in class advocacy that is,
  seek policy reforms that benefit a range of
  people

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Educational Assumptions

• Adult learning principles
• The assessment and evaluation processes need to
  make judgments about the adequacy of student's
  knowledge and the competency of their skills
• A learning environment is required where students
  have the opportunity to learn and practice skills
• Janssons model for policy practice.

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-History of the Welfare State -Theories of the
state -Institutions of Government -Policy
frameworks -Stages of Policy Development -
Examples of Development of Different
Policies -Policy language -Different policy
discourses
KNOWLEDGE
POLICY PRACTICE
SKILLS
VALUES

-Policy Analysis research conceptual,
analytical -Interactional listening, group
work skills, persuasion oral and written,
networking,, negotiation, social
linkage -Political understanding and working
with power, developing influence, advocacy,
political action, using the media -Value
Clarification ethical decision making
framework, analysis
-Social Work values and ethics -Ethical Decision
Making -Value and theoretical frameworks -Congruen
ce between personal values and values
underpinning policy
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The Workshops Are Based on Five Core
Elements/criteria

• Deals with a current policy problem
• Examines a different stage of policy development
• Has as a consultant to the process - a social
  worker who works as a policy practitioner the
  consultant provides material to support the
  scenario
• Reflects different level of government or non
  government roles in the process And
• Provides students with experience of developing
  and practising policy skills.

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Core principles for enhancing learning

• Using Workshops to define skills and an
  opportunity to practice the skills
• Clearly identify the change (who, what, when)
• Demystification identifying and clarifying
  current skills as transferable eg group work
  skills, fun, by doing find out its not so hard.
• Experiential learning workshops
• Modeling essential for social workers to be
  involved to provide role models for policy
  practice.
• Integration through the assessment processes,
  student identify links between the development of
  knowledge and skills, feedback which produces
  confidence

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Example 1 Child Protection Review

• Development of Stakeholder positions (policy
  analysis)
• Oral and writing skills in persuading
  (interactional)
• Political skills
• Value clarification

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Example 2 Vietnam Veterans health promotion

• Develop and assess arguments and specialized
  knowledge from a specific stakeholder position on
  the problem of alcohol use in the veteran
  community
• value positions affect political and
  organisational developments
• Skills in developing communication strategy
  policy development and implementation, evaluation

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Implications and Conclusions

• Very positive feedback from students, graduates
  and agencies
• Through providing a learning experience such as
  this students are more readily able to see how
  they can engage in policy at a number of levels.
• Further work needs to be done to transform policy
  from a knowledge area into an integrated and
  explicit practice framework
• Policy practice is fundamental to the
  realization of the core social work objective of
  social change