Department of Social Pedagogy and Social Work
Today, social work is considered to be the fastest-growing and the most developed profession in Ukraine and in the world, as more and more governments and employers become aware of the considerable impact of social workers in the communities. In recent years, it has become separated as an independent niche among other spheres. Together with the improvement of regulatory and legal support of the professional activity of social field specialists and the circle of clients being expanded, the content, methods, and forms of work of social workers are also changing. Social work has undergone significant changes due to the changes in the territorial structure of Ukraine. The establishment of amalgamated territorial communities led to the reorganization of institutions that provide social services and the very system of their implementation.
On the one hand, such a situation shows the prospects for the development of this niche, but on the other hand, it poses new challenges and sets new requirements for specialist training. The Department of Social Pedagogy and Social Work of the Faculty of Pedagogical Education, which was founded under the rector’s decree, is responsible for the quality of specialist training in the social sphere.
The realization of educational and professional programs at the Department is the response to the needs of modern society, predetermined by the demand that exists at both state and regional levels. There is a need for training competitive and competent specialists in the field of social work, who will be able to solve complex specialized problems of social and individual context in a professional and comprehensive manner, as well as problems in the context of social groups, communities that provide socio-pedagogical, psychotherapeutic, correctional and rehabilitation services to socially vulnerable categories of people (persons with disabilities, the elderly; participants of hostilities and ATO / JFO (Joint Forces Operation) operations, their families; internally displaced persons, etc.).
A special feature of the Department’s activity is close cooperation of its teachers with the institutions and organizations that conduct social and socio-pedagogical work. These include the Department of Social Protection of the Department of Humanitarian Policy of Lviv City Council, Lviv City Center for Social Services for Families, Children and Youth “Mizh namy” (“Between Us”), Lviv Regional Center for Social Services, the Center for Social and Psychological Aid, Lviv Regional Council Training municipal institution and Rehabilitation Center of basic general education “Dovira” (“Trust”), Lviv Rehabilitation Center for children with musculoskeletal disorders “Dzherelo” (“Source”), secondary schools, gymnasiums, and lyceums of Lviv, NGO day-care center “Rodyna Kolpinha” (“Kolpinh`s Family”), Charity Foundation ”Dim Myloserdia” (“House of Mercy“) named after Pope John Paul II, and others.