Thursday
The main theme of Thursday’s
lectures was cultural diversity which was addressed both by Juri Killian from the
University of Kassel in Germany and Inga Gaižauskaitė from Mykolas Romeris University in Lithuania. In
addition the German and American student panels presented us some of their
local social work practices.
In his presentation Mr. Killian
talked about the German immigration policies and how it has evolved since World
War II. Although the history and the present of immigration are very different
in Finland and in Germany both countries seem to share the same expectations
for the future immigrants: ”high qualified migrants” i.e. people with good
education as well as young and healthy people for low paid jobs in elderly
care, construction sites etc. At the same time as they are welcomed inside the
EU and the countries mentioned, refugees, asylum seekers and other unwanted
groups of people find it even harder to get through the borders. Mr. Killian’s
presentation was followed by an interesting discussion about multiculturalism at
different levels.
Ms. Gaižauskaitė based
her lecture on IFSW ethical guidelines as well as Universal Declaration on
Cultural Diversity by UNESCO. She
challenged us to think about which cultures we belong to and what European
identity is and could be. Our cultural background plays an important role when
in contact with different cultures. Ms. Gaižauskaitė reminded us that
culture is inherited and learned and it is not easily changed. We as social
workers and individuals experience cultural diversity and globalization from
our own cultural perspectives. As an EU member Lithuania is prepared for
immigrants on macro level e.g. in legislation. But there is a huge cap between
macro and micro level as individuals and communities are still not prepared for
multiculturalism.
German students gave us an
interesting insight in social work in Germany, in both private and public
services. The biggest social work field in Germany is working with young
people. The students presented a hypothetical case of a young drug addict and
his treatment options as well as plenty of information and first-hand
experience about the work at a youth center in Kassel. The American students gave
us a glimpse of the areas of social work they have expertise in. It was
interesting to learn about the different methods and programmes they use to
help people as many social problems are similar in Europe and in the USA. We
were impressed by the large amount of practical training both the Germans and
the Americans have in their curriculum as they had clearly gained expertise
from these experiences. Apparently, the Americans also knew that ice hockey is
a good ice breaker in Finland.
Tens of delicious dishes from all around the world were served at Pot Luck Dinner on Thursday evening.
Meri Isojärvi, Maija Kujala and Ulla
Mehtätalo from the University of Lapland
Ei kommentteja:
Lähetä kommentti