HOW MUCH "INTERNATIONALIZATION"?
Richard J. Estes
University of Pennsylvania
The questions of "why" and "how" to internationalize social work education
are the subjects of Chapters 1 and 2. The question of "what" to
internationalize is covered in 48 of the volume's 52 chapters. The
question of "how much" versus "how little" international content to
include in social
work programs is the focus of this chapter.
The Context For International Curriculum Development
In some respects, the question of "how much" versus "how little"
international content to include in social work programs is more difficult
to answer than questions of "why," "how," or "what" to internationalize.
The reason for this is that questions of curricular intensity often first
require answers to other questions, many of which have little or nothing
to do with the merits of the specific proposal under consideration. Long
years of experience in curriculum development, for example, have taught me
that issues of organizational climate, politics, and perceived
institutional constraints are at least as important in solving the
curricular intensity equation as are the substantive merits of a
particular initiative.
Questions of curricular intensity are further compounded by the
reality that:
1. Curricular intensity questions are fundamentally value questions,
i.e., they can be answered only in the context of the importance
attached to the content by individual faculty members, by students,
and by others who are responsible for giving direction to the
program's overall development.
2. Curricular intensity questions are also contextual questions, i.e.,
they must be answered in the context of:
a. the unique organizational conditions, educational priorities,
and realistic resource constraints that exist in individual
programs at particular points in time;
b. the educational mission, program priorities, and long-range
development objectives of the larger colleges and universities of
which programs are a part; and,
c. other competing, equally compelling, pressures on curricula for
increased attention to other subject matter of relevance to the
profession.
3. Curricular intensity questions are also stewardship questions, i.e.,
they must be answered with reference to the legitimate wants, needs,
and expectations of other "stakeholders" in the educational
enterprise. At a minimum these stakeholders include:
a. accreditation bodies;
b. alumni, field agencies, prospective employers;
c. students;
d. other faculty members who teaching and research interests are
elsewhere; and
e. others persons and institutions that have legitimate interests
in the "products" of social work education (including funding
bodies, trustees, Boards of Overseers, and, in many cases, families
of students as well).
In seeking to internationalize social work education, then, faculty
and administrators of particular programs are best advised to consider the
organizational implications of their efforts in relation to all of the
above matters. Apart from introducing one or more elective courses into the
curriculum, efforts to significantly internationalize programs are not
likely to succeed unless and until all of the preceding value and
contextual matters have been adequately addressed. Thus, a universal
prescription for the internationalization of all social work curricula is
neither possible nor desirable.
GUIDELINES FOR INTERNATIONALIZING SOCIAL WORK EDUCATION
Having emphasized the individualized nature of each social work program,
there are general criteria that curriculum planners should find helpful in
determining the extent to which international content can be introduced
into their programs. I have used these criteria in developing my own
international courses. They have also been helpful in determining the
type and amount of international content to include in required and
elective courses that are not specifically designated as "international"
courses. These criteria should also offer general guidance concerning the
amount and intensity of international content that can be appropriately
introduced in required foundation and advanced curricula courses.
In introducing international content into social work programs, then,
specific consideration
should be given to:
1. course (or program) goals and learning objectives (i.e., whether the
course requires cognitive mastery of a particular body of knowledge
versus demonstrations of skill in cross-cultural practice versus
demonstrations of skill in conducting comparative policy analysis
versus some combination of these goals);
2. the nature of the course (or program) content (i.e., whether the
course is designed as a survey of a wide range of social development
topics versus specialized courses on particular topics [e.g.,
comparative social security or the social work dimensions of world
hunger, population dynamics, etc.]);
3. the nature and depth of analytical skills that students are expected
to acquire (e.g., memorization of particular bits of information
versus skills in critical thinking);
4. the educational level of students (e.g., undergraduate versus M.S.W.
versus doctoral);
5. the amount of time and other resources available to students for
undertaking research on topics of relevance to international social
work (e.g., including faculty resources and the number of semesters of
study available to the student); and,
6. the degree of originality expected of students (e.g., completion of a
time-limited term paper on an already well-defined topic versus the
writing of original thesis or dissertation).
In addition to these course-specific considerations, attention must
also be given to the
following contextual, largely resource, issues:
7. the extent of available institutional resources to assist students
with their international studies including: library resources; access
to interested and knowledgeable faculty members; opportunities for
"independent studies" on relevant topics when needed; flexibility in
taking relevant international courses outside of the program,
including in other units of the university or in other universities;
the availability of study abroad opportunities, etc.);
8. "international" field placement opportunities in the program's
network of community agencies, including: opportunities for students
to develop skills in working with culturally diverse population
groups; opportunities for social development-related field
experiences; opportunities for international social work experiences
either within the general region of the program or, when appropriate,
in other states, regions, or countries (through formal
"linkage/twinning programs" with social work programs located in
other countries);
9. the extent of administrative support for efforts to internationalize
the curriculum, i.e., both within and outside of the program--
including efforts to acquire special resources in support of the
program's international efforts; and,
10. competing pressures on programs for curricular coverage of other,
equally compelling, content areas. In general, proponents of
curricular internationalization will need to respond to the legitimate
concerns of other faculty members and students in ensuring that the
particular concern to these persons are adequately addressed in any
new or reorganized international courses (e.g., the inclusion of
content related to particular population groups or, more generally,
responsiveness to the organizing concepts that inform a particular
approach to curriculum development).
Satisfactory resolution of the course-specific issues will
substantially increase the likelihood of particular international courses
achieving their goals. Resolution of the contextual issues should
allow for inclusion of steadily increasing amounts of international
content into many required and elective courses, including those not
specifically designated as "international" courses. The successful
resolution of both sets of issues will enhance considerably the
possibility that education for international social work will emerge as
one of the central educational purposes of at least some
programs.
APPROACHES TO EDUCATION FOR INTERNATIONAL SOCIAL WORK
In general, three distinct approaches to curricular intensity characterize
the teaching of international content in American social work education.
These approaches reflect alternative solutions to the contextual issues
identified above. They also reflect varying degrees of institutional
commitment to preparing social work students for careers in international
social work. As a consequence, each approach reflects a different level
of educational commitment in preparing students for practice in the
larger global system.
Level I The "Selective" Approach
Level II The "Concentrated" Approach
Level III The "Integrated" Approach
The "Selective" Approach
In the "selective" approach to international education, international
issues are studied primarily for the purpose of helping U.S. students gain
a fuller understanding of the international dimensions of domestic social
problems (e.g., the impact on domestic social services of the growing
numbers of political and economic refugees, of other economic migrants, of
AIDS, of international drug
trafficking, etc.).
The "selective" approach requires students to engage in limited field
practice situations with persons of diverse socio-cultural backgrounds.
In this way, students are helped to understand the importance of culture
in the lives of socially distinct ethnic, racial, religious, and
linguistic groups. Similarly, students are helped to find more
culturally-appropriate methods for responding to the service needs of
persons whose values, cultures, social norms, and traditions are at
considerable
variance with their own.
Apart from cross-cultural and other "ethnic-sensitive" experiences
that students encounter as part of their field practice, the international
content covered by the "selective" approach tends to be available through
electives. As a result, the "selective" approach succeeds in reaching
only a limited number of self-selecting students; in turn, the approach
makes comparatively modest demands on the resources of particular programs.
The "Concentrated" Approach
In the "concentrated" approach to international education, international
social work, international social welfare, and international social
development are identified as discrete fields of practice within the
profession. Often, programs are structured such that students can
choose a "major" or "concentration" in international social work or
international social development.
The focus of the "concentrated" approach is to help students acquire
a deep understanding of the complex national and international forces that
shape social work practice and welfare policy development in the U.S. and
elsewhere. Students are also expected to demonstrate an understanding
of recurrent social problems that are rooted in international social,
political, and/or economic inequalities (e.g., racism, the global
feminization of poverty, minority/majority group conflicts, global
poverty, etc.). Through a combination of required and elective courses
and specialized field practica, students are expected to develop skill in
working with groups of "oppressed" and "marginalized" people in having
their legitimate needs addressed by the larger societies of which they are
part.
The "concentrated" approach to international education makes many
demands on the resources of educational programs. The nature of these
demands, however, are more or less comparable to those made by other
groups of students associated with other areas of specialized or
concentrated study (e.g., in aging, child welfare, mental health, etc.).
Social work education's response to the resource requirements of students
concentrating in international social work can be justified on the basis
of the far-reaching international roles that these students are expected
to eventually carry in pursuing international careers both in the United
States and other countries.
The "Integrated" Approach
The "integrated" approach to international education requires the
emergence of specialized social work programs that view education for
international social work as central to their educational mission. The
goal of such programs is to prepare significant numbers of social workers
for leadership roles in international social work, international social
welfare, and international social development.
Drawing upon a range of interdisciplinary and inter-sectoral courses
and field practica, students in fully integrated programs of
international education are expected to develop analytical skills
in understanding the complex social, political, and economic forces that
sustain human suffering worldwide. Drawing on their practice skills,
students are expected to give leadership to local, national, and
international efforts aimed at improving the "human condition" of socially
oppressed
people.
The majority of graduates of "integrated" approaches to international
social work education are likely to eventually pursue careers outside the
U.S., i.e., in non-governmental (e.g., private development assistance
organizations), quasi-governmental (e.g., specialized agencies of the UN),
or governmental organizations (U.S. Agency for International Development).
The resource demands on social work programs of the fully
"integrated" approach to international education are considerable. The
justification for the commitment of these resources, however, is the
profession's past comparative neglect of important international issues.
Also, and as important, the range of international career opportunities
that exist for social workers with specific knowledge and practice skills
for work at the international level are known to be extensive.
The curricular requirements for each level of international coverage
are compared more formally in Charts 9 through 13. The charts examine the
contribution of each level's approach to internationalizing social work
education in relation to: the educational purposes; the learning
objectives; the general structure and location of international content;
field practice considerations; and, finally, international student
recruitment issues.
- Chart 9
- Educational Purposes Associated With Alternative Approaches to
Internationalizing Social Work Education
- Chart 10
- Learning Objectives Associated With Three Approaches to
Internationalizing Social Work Education
- Chart 11
- General Structure and Location of International Content in
Alternative Approaches to Internationalizing Social Work Education
- Chart 12
- Field Practice Considerations Associated With Alternative
Approaches to Internationalizing Social Work Education
- Chart 13
- International Student Recruitment Issues Associated With Three
Approaches to Internationalizing Social Work Education
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Excerpted from Richard J. Estes (1992) _Internationalizing Social Work
Education: A Guide to Resources For a New Century_ (Philadelphia:
University of Pennsylvania School of Social Work).
Permission is granted to disseminate this docuent so long as proper credit
has been given to the source.