Academic writing skills:key to successful writing skills in social work and human services

Writing skills in social work and human services

Who am I?

• Jo Mensinga• Lecturer in Dept of Social Work and Human Services• Social worker for 32 years – last17 as an academic

• Professionally, I know that

communication is very important • Personally, writing has also

helped me ‘think’.

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Who are you?

• Say hello to the person next to you

• Discuss: What your experience of writing has been Why you are at this workshop and Come up with a question you would like answered by the end of this session

• Share the question.

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Opportunity to learn:

University provides opportunities to learn:• The content of ‘stuff’– e.g., communication skills, theories of helping, ethics, organizational practice, social policy• Processes of how to present the ‘stuff’- e.g., PowerPoint presentations, emails, essays, video-recordings, poster presentations, sometimes exams … most of these involve WRITING in some form!!

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Writing skills in social work and human services

KEY IDEA!!!

How do you get your message across???

•Need to be clear about what your message is

•Need to adhere to the rules of writing… formal vs. informal writing

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Healey, K. and Mulholland, J., (2007), Writing skills for social workers, Sage, London.

Call Number: 808.066361 HEA

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Contextual approach to writing (Healy

& Mulholland):

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Professional purpose

Audience

Institutional context

Writing skills in social work and human services

Diversity:Are many different agency contexts in the human services work:• Non-government counselling• Hospital• Centrelink – what’s it called now?• Housing support• Mental Health• Child protection – Non-government and government• Employment and training

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Diversity:Are many different domains of practice in the human services work:• Work with indiv’s/families/partners• Group work• Community work• Social Policy• Research and evaluation• Management, leadership and admin• Education and training

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Diversity:Many different forms of writing in the human services sector:• Emails, letters, newsletters• Records, reports• Funding applications, policy proposals• Media reports• Journal articles and conference presentations

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Diversity:

Many different forms of domains of practice and writing in the subjects you will do at uni:• Emails, letters, newsletters• Records, reports, reflective journals• Funding applications, policy proposals• Journal articles … essays• and Conference presentations … posters, presentations

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Writing skills in social work and human services

For all of these areas, remember:

WhatWhen WhyHowWho

With your partner, discuss how this applies in the uni context.G:\writing skills FORM.doc

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(Healy & Mulholland)

Professional purpose

Audience

Institutionalcontext

Whatever!

Resources on line…

• http://www.jcu.edu.au/tldinfo/writingskills/documents/RaoChanockVisualGuidetoEssayWriting.pdf

• http://www-public.jcu.edu.au/libcomp/index.htm

Writing skills in social work and human services

What is the message you want to get across?

Need to read what is being asked/required of you by the lecturer/organization

Do the necessary research (remember to take notes and do an ongoing bibliography)

http://libguides.jcu.edu.au/content.php?pid=97207&sid=728416 re googling

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Wikipedia• Wikipedia celebrates its 10th(?) year and looks to

the future• Wikipedia is the most widely used reference work in

the world. • Originally Jimmy Wales and Larry Sanger tried to

create Nupedia but, after nearly a year of work, almost no articles had actually been published. So, they decided to try a wiki inviting collaborators, saying: "Humour me. Go there and add a little article. It will take all of five or ten minutes."

Writing skills in social work and human services

What is the message you want to get across?

• Do a fast write, to get your ideas down on paper

• Revisit what is required of you

• Write a draft in the form required, including the right referencing style

• Read it out loud

• Revisit what is required of you

• Write the final draft

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Writing skills in social work and human services

Revisit the question you asked at the beginning

• Discuss what you have learnt at this workshop, review your question and decide whether it has been answered. Do you need to ask it in the larger group?

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Writing skills in social work and human services

REMINDER!!!

• Please complete the Feedback form!!!Place image/s here