Social work through the life course

Abstract

During the late 1980s, social work education ‘became increasingly aware of the impact of oppression and discrimination on clients and communities’ (Thompson, 1993, p. 1). For example, CCETSW requirements for the DipSW award attached a high priority to an antidiscriminatory approach in college and placement teaching and assessment (see CCETSW Paper 30, 1991). The CCETSW document which outlined the guidance notes for the teaching of child care in the DipSW course stressed that ‘all social work students should have a sound knowledge of human growth and development, [and] the significance of race, culture and language in development must be understood’ (CCETSW, 1991, p. 14). The Children Act, 1989 states that the race, culture, language and religion of children and young people must be addressed in the provision of services. In order to meet the needs of and help the development of any child, black or white, it is essential that social workers operate with adequate knowledge, understanding and sensitivity.