THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
-Course Outline-
Fall 2005-Summer 2006
Lawrence Campus
Instructor: Professor Edward R. Canda, Ph.D.
Phone: 785-864-8939, Office: 203 Twente Hall; email: edc@ku.edu
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Students will enroll in one of the following course numbers and titles, depending on degree level, for summer 2006:
(BSW) SW 560: Topics in Social Welfare: Korea
Post-BSW level continuing education: SW 690: Current Issues in Professional Social Work Education: Korea
(MSW) SW 855 Studies: Korea
Post-MSW level continuing education: SW 890: Current Issues in Professional Social Work Education: Korea
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This study abroad program introduces social work students to connection s between diverse Korean philosophies and spiritual traditions in relation to social work practice and social welfare in the Republic of Korea. It also compares these Korean perspectives with American concepts and approaches to social work and social welfare. In addition, it offers the opportunity for extended study in East Asia on connections between culture and social welfare. The purpose is to increase students’ knowledge of East Asian (especially Korean) cultures and social work so that they can engage in more effective service with Korean, Korean-American, and East Asian-American communities in particular, and also with culturally diverse communities in general.
This course emphasizes the importance of appreciation for cultural diversity, especially the importance of understanding cultural, historical, and religious contexts in different countries as they shape social work and social welfare. Students will be given an introduction to opportunities for strengths and empowerment oriented social work internationally.
As a “service-learning” course, the educational experience will prepare students to make contributions to the university and community by sharing insights from the course through field experience, practicum, volunteer service, and professional service.
Recruitment and selection of students are completed in early Fall semester. Orientation classes (approximately 7-10 2 hour sessions) are held from late Fall semester through Spring semester. The study abroad portion of the program will occur during three weeks in summer semester, approximately May 30-June 21. A final debriefing class will be held in mid July.
In Lawrence, all lectures will be conducted in English. In Korea, educational activities will be conducted in English or in Korean language with interpretation and translation. Assignments will be tailored to the degree level of the student.
See the concluding section of this outline for more information on sponsorship and student eligibility.
By the conclusion of this course, students will be able to:
1. Understand general aspects of Korean history, culture, and language.
2. Identify and describe the major Korean philosophical, religious, and ideological bases of traditional and contemporary approaches to social work and social welfare, including Buddhist, Christian, Confucian, Shamanistic, and secular perspectives.
3. Identify and explain the impact of these Korean perspectives on the formation of Korean social work and social welfare.
4. Compare and contrast these Korean approaches to social work and social welfare with the philosophies and ideologies of social work common in the United States.
5. Describe the ways that these Korean approaches shape the practice of social work and social welfare within Korean governmental and nongovernmental agencies.
6. Understand the relevance of the larger East Asian cultural context to Korean culture and social welfare, including comparison between characteristics of Korean and Japanese or Chinese cultures.
7. Identify opportunities for strengths and empowerment oriented social work practice with culturally diverse communities in the United States and internationally, in particular with Korean, East Asian, and East Asian-American populations.
III. CURRICULUM THEMES:
The overarching themes that guide the total curriculum of the School of Social Welfare are integrated throughout the practice-oriented curriculum. This course provides a venue for students to learn about social work practice through a cross-cultural lens. Participants will have the opportunity to observe culture-specific and internationally based approaches to social work practice in rural and urban community settings and agencies in the Republic of Korea.
The strengths perspective is a humanistic, empowerment approach to social work practice that operates on the assumption that all persons have mental, physical, spiritual, emotional, and environmental resources. Students are encouraged to extend their understanding of assessment, conceptualization of barriers, selection of social work practices, and client collaboration to assist in working with client systems. Specific cultural and historical experiences of Korean people will be investigated as capacity enhancing areas for social work practice.
Social justice is a key component in this social work practice course. Social justice influences student's definition of barriers, client systems and client strengths. Students will learn to integrate the experiences of vulnerable people to create and evaluate social work practices that expand opportunities for oppressed, stigmatized and marginalized populations. This course will highlight an international perspective on social justice including ways to successfully negotiate needed environmental resources, and that promote a more just, humane and responsive environment.
Diversity includes the skills that show respect, sensitivity and appreciation for the contributions of diverse populations. In this course students will cultivate an appreciation for clients and colleagues who are differentiated by race, ethnicity, culture, religion, spirituality, class, sexual orientation, age, gender, and ability. Immersion in Korean culture will give a strong first hand experience of the importance of cultural diversity as it intersects with other forms of diversity. International comparison of social work approaches and critique of global system impacts on social welfare will heighten students’ appreciation for diversity around the world.
Consistent with a critical perspective, students in this course raise questions about, reflect upon, and systematically evaluate and apply the divergent theories and knowledge claims upon which social work is based.
IV. LIBERAL ARTS PERSPECTIVE:
The course draws on the liberal arts as a vast and rich source of learning. As a practice course, the effort is to apply relevant knowledge and values from all sources that could illumine and guide actions to achieve the profession’s social welfare purpose. Thus students are supported and challenged to use their knowledge from courses on history, literature, social sciences and fine arts along with the knowledge gained from life experiences and the accumulating body of professional knowledge.
V. PROFESSIONAL PURPOSE AND VALUES:
A clear sense of professional purpose and the values embodied in social work’s value system and code of ethics provide a necessary focus for selecting and using knowledge and perspectives from a rich array of learning resources, not least from the diverse client populations served by the profession. This clarity is at the heart of the course’s fundamental task of translating broad statements of professional purpose and values as reflected in the school’s mission statement and curriculum themes into specific purposeful practice acts.
VI. TOPICS:
ü Religiously based perspectives (i.e. Buddhist, Christian, Confucian, Shamanistic)
ü Secular perspectives (i.e. human behavior theories, political ideologies, governmental social welfare principles)
ü Individual, family, group, and community based practices
ü Social management and administration
ü Poverty and marginalization in relation to rural and urban issues
ü Human rights
ü Health
ü Mental Health
ü Children and Adolescents
ü Women’s Issues
ü Globalization and Economic Issues
ü Community Empowerment
ü Understanding East Asian and International Historical and Cultural Context
ü Comparison with other East Asian and American social welfare issues and approaches
ü Culture Specific Assessment and Practices
ü Internationally Based Assessment and practices
VII. READINGS:
The Korean Overseas Culture and Information Service (1998). A Handbook of Korea. Seoul, Korea: Moonhwa Printing Company.
Kim, R. E. (1998). Lost Names: Scenes from a Korean Boyhood. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Korea Foundation, Ed. (1996). Korean Cultural Heritage: Thought and Religion. Seoul, Korea: The Korea Foundation.
Van Hook, M., Hugen, B. & Aguilar, M (2001). Spirituality within Religious Traditions in Social Work Practice. (chapters on Buddhism and Confucianism) Brooks/Cole.
Articles:
Canda, E. R. (1995). Bodhisattva, sage and shaman: Examples of compassion in traditional Korean religions. In Ho Youn Kwon, Ed., Korean Cultural Roots: Religion and Social Thoughts, pp. 31-44. Chicago, Ill: North Park College.
Canda, E. R. (2002). Wisdom from the Confucian classics for spiritually sensitive social welfare. Currents: New Scholarship for the Human Services. Retrieved 11/12/2002: fsw.ucalgary.ca/currents/Canda2/canda2_main.htm.
Canda, E. R. & Canda, H. J. (1996). Korean spiritual philosophies of human service: Current state and prospects. Social Development Issues, 18(3), 53-70.
Canda, E. R., Shin, S. I., & Canda, H. J. (1993). Traditional philosophies of human service in Korea and contemporary social work implications. Social Development Issues, 15(3), 84-104.
Kang, M. C. & Canda, E. R. (1995). Opening the word-gate: The innovative style of a Korean shaman. Shaman’s Drum, summer, pp. 49-55.
Helpful Web Sites
www.LifeinKorea.com/culture/spotlight.cfm
www.seoulsearching.com/culture/
Search for:
Korea.net: see section on Religion, Social Welfare Services, Culture, and Arts
Statistical Handbook of Republic of Korea
English online newspapers: Korea Herald, Korea Times, and Chosun Ilbo
Also, for summaries about Korean social welfare, see http://english.mohw.go.kr
These and/or other reading materials will be provided by the instructor and guest speakers in Lawrence and Korea.
VIII. ASSIGNMENTS:
A. Journal (40%)
Students are expected to keep a reflective learning journal throughout all phases of the course (i.e. orientation in Lawrence and study abroad in Korea). The journal will be used in conjunction with (but not limited to) guiding questions provided by the instructor and guest presenters about topics of interest. The journal must identify (1) a record of major learning activities, including required orientation meetings and group study abroad events as well as individualized learning activities and excursions undertaken for this course; (2) insights about Korean culture and approaches to social work that are of special interest to the student as gleaned from the activities; (3) comparison with American approaches to social work and social welfare; (4) reflection on major insights and practical plans for how to apply learning to social work practice and community service; (5) in a concluding section of this journal, the student must make a commitment to ways that learning can be applied within practicum/field experience, professional practice, or volunteer community service after the commencement of the course. This journal will be submitted to the instructor at the final debriefing meeting in Lawrence by July 15.
Students will develop a multimedia documentary (including photographs, video, commentaries, cultural artifacts and records) that depicts the group’s learning experience in a way that can be shared with academic, professional, and community groups. All students will contribute materials and ideas for this project according to roles negotiated with the instructor. The graduate student/professional participants will take a leadership role in compiling this material for presentation purposes.
This exam consists of multiple choice and short answer type questions. It provides a structure to help students identify key information points within readings and lectures.
D. Class Participation (prerequisite for grade of B or better)
Students will be evaluated on the extent that they actively contribute toward making the class a collaborative learning group. This means that students will be evaluated on the extent that they contribute to class discussions with questions and comments based on their understanding of the material, treat the comments of fellow students with respect and interest, and are open to perspectives different from one’s own. Students will be expected to demonstrate respect for Korean culture and the Korean hosts. Attendance and timeliness are also very important. Students are expected to attend
Students are expected to utilize the study abroad opportunity in Korea as a basis for further travel and study in Korea, Japan, or China. Students will develop a summary of their additional learning regarding the East Asian cultural context of social welfare based on this additional travel study. Specific guidelines will be provided by the instructor. This assignment can add up to 10/100 points extra credit in the final course grade calculation.
NOTES:
More details on all assignments will be provided in class.
The instructor will assign a letter grade at the end of summer session. The final grade of record will be based the course number of enrollment, since some course numbers only allow s/u grades.
Instructor: Professor Edward R. Canda, Ph.D.
Phone: 785-864-8939, Office: 203 Twente Hall; email: edc@ku.edu
This Korea-based study abroad program is part of the KU Kansas Asia Scholars program, which is funded by the Freeman Foundation via the KU Center for East Asian Studies. Professor William Tsutsui is the Director for the Kansas Asia Scholars Program. Professor Edward Canda is the Director of the Korea portion of the program and the instructor for this course. The course is operated with the cooperation of the KU Office for Study Abroad.
In Korea, our host institution is Sung Kyun Kwan University in Seoul. Sung Kyun Kwan University is an educational exchange partner with KU. Professor Seung-Hee Park of the social work department is our Korea-based host and travel organizer. Professor Park has been a Visiting Scholar in the KU School of Social Welfare. His specialty is philosophy and ideology of Korean social welfare and social policy in comparison with social welfare in the USA. Professor Canda has been affiliated with SKKU since 1976-77, when he was a Graduate Fellow of East Asian Philosophy and Fulbright Scholar there. Hwi-Ja Canda, LSCSW, is the program coordinator. She is a medical social worker experienced in social work practice issues both in the United States and Korea.
As a scholarship program, student participants are selected on the basis of excellence in academic performance, demonstrated commitment to cross-cultural and international social work, and interest in Korean culture. Most costs of students related to tuition, travel, and educational expenses are paid by the scholarship. Six to seven students are selected to participate in each of four years, beginning 2002-2003. This year, 2005-2006, is the final year of the program.
Students may be at the undergraduate or graduate level. They must be social work majors or enrolled in social work courses. Students who are graduating before summer 2006 can also enroll for professional continuing education credits.