Course description

The discipline “Deontology of social work” is a normative discipline from the specialty “231 Social work” for the educational program “Social pedagogy”, which is taught in the 1st semester in the amount of 3 credits (according to the ECTS European Credit Transfer System).

The purpose of studying the normative/discipline “Deontology of social work” is the formation of theoretical and practical knowledge in bachelors of social work regarding the mission, values, ethical principles and standards of social work, developed by international schools of social work and associations of social workers, which form the categorical apparatus of ethics of social work and on which the technologies of local practice of social workers are based and research in social work is organized and carried out.

Tasks (goals) of the course:

• acquiring theoretical knowledge regarding ethical concepts and scientific approaches to understanding the relationship between mission, ideals, values and principles in social work, their retrospective development and formation;
• formation of theoretical and practical knowledge regarding the sources of conflicts of interest and ethical dilemmas in social work and possible ways of solving them;
• understanding of ethical requirements for conducting research in the practice of social work and general approaches to making professional decisions;
• awareness of ethical and deontological requirements for the professional activity of social workers (including remote work) and the need to implement ethical standards;
• understanding of ethical decision-making models in the practice of social work, the role of professional duty and responsibility in the professional ethics of a social work specialist;
  formation of professional etiquette skills of future social workers.

Scope of the course:

Full-time study: 90 hours, of which:
64 classrooms (32 hours – lectures, 32 hours – seminars/practical),
26 hours of independent student work.
Correspondence form of education: 90 hours, of which:
20 hours classroom (6 hours – lectures, 14 hours – seminars/practical),
70 hours – independent work of students.

Acquired competencies and program learning outcomes:

Integral competence:

IC The ability to solve complex specialized tasks and practical problems in the field of professional activity or in the process of learning, which involves the application of certain theories and methods of social work and is characterized by the complexity and uncertainty of conditions.

General competences
GC4. Ability to apply knowledge in practical situations.
GC11. Ability to identify, pose and solve problems.

Professional competences:
PC2. The ability to predict the course of various social processes.
PC7. Ability to cooperate in an international environment and recognize intercultural problems in professional practice.
PC11. Ability to provide assistance and support to clients, taking into account their individual needs, age differences, gender, ethnicity and other characteristics.
PC16. Ability to adhere to ethical principles and standards of social work.

Program learning outcomes:
PLO3. Identify, formulate and solve tasks in the field of social work, integrate theoretical knowledge and practical experience.
PLO11. Use prevention methods to prevent possible deviations in mental development, behavioral disorders, interpersonal relationships, to resolve conflicts, prevent social risks and difficult life circumstances; to possess methods of preserving and strengthening physical and mental health of a person.
PLO17. Establish and maintain relationships with clients on the basis of mutual trust and in accordance with ethical principles and standards of social work, provide them with psychological support and exhaust clients.
PLO18. Establish cooperation with representatives of various professional groups and communities; use strategies of individual and collective representation of clients’ interests.
PLO20. Identify ethical dilemmas and contradictions in professional activity and apply supervision tools to resolve them.

Keywords: Deontology of social work, ethics of social work, principles of social work, values of social work, ethical dilemmas, clients, social worker, ethical decisions, professional etiquette

Prerequisites: The study of the academic discipline is based on competencies formed synchronously in the process of studying the academic discipline: “Introduction to the specialty”, sufficient for understanding the content characteristics and components of social work, global and domestic ethical principles and professional values of social work, understanding the nature of conflicts in the practice of social work work, awareness of professional duty in the organization of activities of a social work specialist.

Educational methods and techniques that will be used during the teaching of the course: Explanatory-illustrative, research, search (heuristic), problem presentation of educational material, interactive and methods of stimulating learning (conversation, brainstorming, discussion, work in pairs/groups, etc.), visual (presentations, demonstration of video materials), design (creating projects), work with educational and methodological literature

Academic Integrity: The independent work assignments for each topic completed by graduate students are expected to be their original thinking. Failure to cite used sources, fabrication of sources, plagiarism, interference with the work of other applicants are, but are not limited to, examples of possible academic dishonesty. The discovery of signs of academic dishonesty in the applicant’s written work is a reason for the teacher not to credit it, regardless of the scale of plagiarism or deception. Any form of breach of academic integrity will not be tolerated.
Attending classes is an important component of learning. In any case, students of higher education are obliged to comply with all the deadlines set for the implementation of the planned types of educational work.
Literature. All literature that students cannot find on their own will be provided by the teacher for educational purposes only, without the right to transfer it to third parties. Students are also encouraged to use other literature and sources that are not among the recommended ones.
Scoring policy. The assimilation of theoretical material from the academic discipline by students of higher education is checked through an oral survey, preparation of questions for seminar classes, current programmed control of knowledge, assessment of the ability to analyze problem situations by solving practical tasks. At the same time, the following must be taken into account: attendance at classes and activity of the student of higher education during practical/seminar classes; using a mobile phone, tablet or other devices during class for non-educational purposes; plagiarism and plagiarism; untimely performance of the assigned task. The final semester grade is defined as the sum of points from all planned types of academic work and assessment.