Teaching Gender in Social Work - MailChimp

historical moment when women first stepped into the public domain of the
local administration of poor relief, they had serious difficulties in seeing human
suffering as an economic issue. They were reluctant to view problem through
the lens of patriarchy and capitalism. For them it was not something that
could be solved by administration or reorganisation, based on the rules of the
existing economic order. This factor explains, in addition to all the common
prejudices of patriarchy, why women were not suitable as policy makers but
were in demand as social case workers controlled by their male colleagues.
On the other hand, one could argue that the problem of reconciling the
principles of economy and emotion in social work was solved in two different
ways by the two sexes. Those who had the power to make decisions withdrew to
administration, because the problem could be more conveniently handled there.
The solution women had to develop in order to survive with their “well-developed
sense of charity” was the ideology and narrative that we now refer to as social
work.
Process Drama in Teaching Gender and Social Work History
– An Example of Best Practices in Teaching
Teaching the history of social work aspires to promote understanding of the
relationship between the past and the present, mediating socio-historical knowledge
and the formation of “historical consciousness”. Drama education can be
successfully utilised in teaching the history of social work, and in many other
areas. The basic idea is that education and learning with drama is always conducted
in groups. Collaboration and a sharing of the expertise of students and
of the teacher should improve the social, communicative and group work skills
of students; and it is an opportunity to employ the dialogical teaching method.
In addition, it serves as a practical example of the application of drama as a
method in social work practice.
Drama provides means for examining the actions of individuals, groups
and communities (even whole societies) in certain historical situations or at
particular moments. Drama education is based on experiential learning and
the capacity of individuals to empathise and identify with different characters
or situations. At the same time, the means provided by drama and role-playing,
for example, can promote students’ reflection on their own personality and
life history, clarifying their self-image, values and attitudes, and strengthening
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