Assignment Description
Government policy impacts social justice problems. Some policies may create social justice problems just as they attempt to correct them. To successfully address social justice problems, social workers must have the knowledge and skills to locate, access, analyze, and interpret public policy.
Based on your analysis of the social justice problem in the Week 2 assignment, select a current enacted policy that is presently a law to analyze using relevant local, state, or federal policy resources. Your analysis must also address the problem that affects your chosen diverse cultural group (for example, based on race, religion, disabilities, gender orientation, socioeconomic status, or access to services). This will be the policy you analyze for not only this assignment, but the Weeks 6 and 9 assignments as well. Be sure to incorporate constructs that have been covered in this course into your analysis. You will compile all of the assignments you complete throughout the course in Week 9, so as you receive feedback for each assignment, revise your work as necessary.
By successfully completing this assignment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following CSWE EPAS competencies and general practices:
CSWE EPAS Competency 5: Engage in policy practice.
C5.GP.A: Use social justice, anti-racist, and anti-oppressive lenses to assess how social welfare policies affect the delivery of and access to social services.
Related assignment criteria:
Describe the purpose of a currently enacted policy that addresses the social justice problem for a chosen population, using scholarly literature for support.
Describe how the policy connects to the chosen social justice problem, using scholarly literature for support.
Describe the historical issues and context that led to the creation of the social problem and policy development, including details about voting outcomes and legislative leaders, using scholarly literature for support.
Describe the programs and services provided through the policy, using scholarly literature for support.
Describe the impact of the historical influences on the implementation of the policy, using scholarly literature for support.
Assignment Instructions
To complete this assignment, select a local, state, or federal policy that targets the form of oppression and discrimination you described in Week 2 (for example, the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA), Veterans Millennium Healthcare Act, Affordable Care Act (ACA), Adoption and Safe Families Act, Medicare, Medicaid, Temporary Aid to Needy Families Act, Social Security Act, or a relevant state or local policy, such as state or local affordable housing policies or health and safety policies related to COVID-19).
Then, complete the following:
Describe the purpose of a currently enacted policy that addresses the social justice problem for a chosen population, using scholarly literature for support.
Remember, this policy must be enacted—in other words, it must be passed legislation.
Describe the programs and services provided through the policy, using scholarly literature for support.
What are examples of the programs and services that are being offered as a result of your chosen policy?
Who is the target population for these programs and services?
Describe how the policy connects to the chosen social justice problem, using scholarly literature for support.
Connect the policy to the social justice problem you selected by giving a brief description of the problem. Is it a new problem, something that has recently arisen, or an old problem that has never been resolved?
Describe the historical issues and context that led to the creation of the social problem and policy development.
Include information about the voting outcomes for the policy and the legislative leaders who influenced the policy historically and in the present.
Include the impact these historical features have had on the policy’s implementation.
Guidelines
Use scholarly, peer-reviewed literature to support your claims.
Review the Policy Selection and Background rubric for information on how your work will be graded.
Remember that your instructor will be providing feedback on your assignments. Use that feedback to improve the content of your final assignment submission in Week 9, Policy Analysis and Recommendations.
Category: Masters of Social Work
Choose a social justice problem that addresses the needs of a specific population or subgroup that interests you. Use the Capella library, Internet, United States Congress website (located in the Assignment ResourcesLinks to an external site. reading list), or any relevant state or local website that provides policy and social justice information to help guide your research. Also, refer to the resources above as needed to help guide your search.
After you have chosen a problem, write a 4–6 page exploration of the topic and address the following:
Analyze the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination of your chosen population or subgroup that exist within this social justice topic (for example, based on race, religion, disabilities, gender orientation, socioeconomic status, or access to services).
In your analysis, describe how the oppression and discrimination impacted this population or subgroup.
Support this with data on the number of people affected that you have found during your research.
Analyze ethical problems associated with your selected social justice problem.
Use the NASW Code of Ethics web page, located on the Assignment ResourcesLinks to an external site.reading list, to guide your analysis:
What ethical considerations in your selected social justice problem must be addressed?
What are implications for social work practice and positive client outcomes?
Describe the current enacted policies for this social justice problem.
Research current enacted policies that seek to address this social justice problem. Important:These policies must be passed legislation currently in practice. Legislation can be at the local, state, or federal level.
Analyze how effective these policies are in addressing the needs of your chosen population or subgroup.
Do the policies effectively address the social justice problem? Provide a rationale that includes scholarly, peer-reviewed research.
Assess the impact these policies have had on your selected population or subgroup.
What policy constraints exist for this population or subgroup?
Compare advocacy methods for the selected social justice problem.
What are the strengths and challenges of the advocacy methods? What additional steps could be taken to address the challenges?
Competency 1: Use social justice, anti-racist, and anti-oppressive lenses to assess how social welfare policies affect the delivery of and access to social services. (C5.GP.A)
Describe the current enacted policies to address the selected social justice problem. (C5.GP.A)
Assess the impact of policies related to the selected social justice problem on a specific population or subgroup. (C5.GP.A)
Compare advocacy methods for the selected social justice problem. (C5.GP.A)
Competency 2: Demonstrate cultural humility by applying critical reflection, self-awareness, and self-regulation to manage the influence of bias, power, privilege, and values in working with clients and constituencies, acknowledging them as experts of their own lived experiences. (C3.GP.B)
Analyze the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination that exist within a selected social justice problem and their impact on a specific population or subgroup. (C3.GP.B)
Analyze the ethical problems associated with the selected social justice issue with support from scholarly sources. (C3.GP.B)
Analyze the feasibility of policies related to the selected social justice problem. (C3.GP.B)
Competency 3: Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and consistent with expectations for members of the social work profession.
Communicate in a manner that is scholarly, professional, and consistent with expectations for members of the social work profession.