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Legal and Ethical Contexts of Practice (SCWK90055)
Graduate courseworkPoints: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
For information about the University’s phased return to campus and in-person activity in Winter and Semester 2, please refer to the on-campus subjects page.
About this subject
- Overview
- Eligibility and requirements
- Assessment
- Dates and times
- Further information
- Timetable(opens in new window)
Contact information
August
Please refer to the LMS for up-to-date subject information, including assessment and participation requirements, for subjects being offered in 2020.
Overview
Availability | August |
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Fees | Look up fees |
This subject provides an overview of social work ethics and the Australian and Victorian legal systems. It explores values and principles upon which human services law and social work ethics are based. The subject examines current legal and practice issues which practitioners can expect to encounter in such practice areas as child protection, family law, domestic violence, mental health, guardianship, and working with refugees.
Intended learning outcomes
By the end of the subject students should be able to:
- understand the interconnectedness of social work practice and law
- understand the nature of the legal and ethical context of practice and the implications for social work practice.
- understand the notion of rights, their definition and their enforcement
- articulate the interrelationship between access to justice and socio-economic factors, gender, sexual orientation, Aboriginality and ethnicity
- articulate and understand the ethical and legal responsibilities of social workers in their practice generally, and in a range of common practice contexts.
Generic skills
Students who complete this subject should be able to:
- critically analyse texts and practices;
- understand recent developments in social work contexts of practice;
- link theory to practice;
- competently communicate in ways relevant to both academic and practice contexts;
- undertake independent research.
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Eligibility and requirements
Prerequisites
n/a
Corequisites
None
Non-allowed subjects
None
Inherent requirements (core participation requirements)
The University of Melbourne is committed to providing students with reasonable adjustments to assessment and participation under the Disability Standards for Education (2005), and the Assessment and Results Policy (MPF1326). Students are expected to meet the core participation requirements for their course. These can be viewed under Entry and Participation Requirements for the course outlines in the Handbook.
Further details on how to seek academic adjustments can be found on the Student Equity and Disability Support website: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/student-equity/home
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Assessment
Due to the impact of COVID-19, assessment may differ from that published in the Handbook. Students are reminded to check the subject assessment requirements published in the subject outline on the LMS
Description | Timing | Percentage |
---|---|---|
A written paper
| Mid semester | 40% |
2 short tests (15% each) | Mid semester | 30% |
A written paper
| End of semester | 30% |
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Dates & times
- August
Principal coordinator David Rose Mode of delivery On Campus (Parkville) Contact hours 24 contact hours (7 x 1.5 hour lecture, 7 x 1.5 hour seminar and a 3 hour lecture) Total time commitment 170 hours Teaching period 31 August 2020 to 1 November 2020 Last self-enrol date 11 September 2020 Census date 5 October 2020 Last date to withdraw without fail 9 November 2020 Assessment period ends 5 December 2020 August contact information
Time commitment details
170 hours
Last updated: 3 November 2022
Further information
- Texts
Prescribed texts
Rice, Day & Briskman (2018) Social Work in the Shadow of the Law (5th Edition). The Federation Press.
- Related Handbook entries
This subject contributes to the following:
Type Name Course Master of Social Work - Links to additional information
- Available through the Community Access Program
About the Community Access Program (CAP)
This subject is available through the Community Access Program (also called Single Subject Studies) which allows you to enrol in single subjects offered by the University of Melbourne, without the commitment required to complete a whole degree.
Entry requirements including prerequisites may apply. Please refer to the CAP applications page for further information.
- Available to Study Abroad and/or Study Exchange Students
This subject is available to students studying at the University from eligible overseas institutions on exchange and study abroad. Students are required to satisfy any listed requirements, such as pre- and co-requisites, for enrolment in the subject.
Last updated: 3 November 2022