What I've learned

I've learned many things this semester, many of them personal. I've learned a lot about First Nations beliefs, which is important to me because I didn't know about the traditional ways they view things. I admire how accepting they are of different people, differences to them are gifts. I love that they believe that everyone has something to offer. "European Canadian" culture doesn't see it the same way. Most of the time we're just concerned with whether someone can contribute in the way we need them to and if they can't, they are useless. I also learned how important it is to consider the medicine wheel when making decisions. It takes the most holistic approach of all of the community and personal development models that I have studied this semester. It looks deeply at how certain things will impact all of a person's being.

I've also learned to make sure I know about all causes and aspects of a problem before I judge the people involved in it. You can't judge people and say that all of their problems are their own fault. Many times people fall into situations by chance and they are unable to help themselves. I've learned that as social workers, we have to put away our judgments and give people the tools they need to help themselves. I have also learned that empowering clients and people in the community is more effective than just going in and giving them money or some other kind of physical resource. People are more likely to flourish if they know how to take care of themselves rather than depend on social workers and community practitioners.

When we watched the documentary "No Place to Call Home", I found myself so appalled at how hard the family was working to get themselves out of their situation, but nothing seemed to be working. They moved from place to place and their land lords kept treating them so badly. The children were so strong, understanding of their situation and supportive of their mother. She worked so hard at her multiple jobs, but it was still barely enough to make rent every month. There was nearly no money for extras and her children often went without. When she refused to take welfare money, I thought it was because she was too proud, but after listening to talk about why, I realized how discriminatory our policies are. If she had decided to go on assistance, she would be receiving less money than she made working three jobs. It wasn't worth it. I have learned so much about how the programs that are meant to help people, can actually put them into worse situations. Through this video, I also learned a lot about multi-generational poverty. Mrs.Rice was in the same situation that her mother was in, and her grandmother. I learned how difficult it can be to get yourself out of poverty in our country. Many people would say that Mrs.Rice's boyfriend is lazy and should be doing more to provide for his family, but he most likely has many personal issues that were not discussed on film. I've also learned that it is not necessarily my place to judge the severity of someone's personal issues. He may have had severe depression or anxiety which can be a majorly debilitating hurdle to overcome when you are trying to work.

Lastly, I have learned a lot about myself. I have learned that I judge people very quickly without even realizing it sometimes. I think that that is human nature, but it is something that I have to learn to control if I want to be a good social worker. Secondly, I have learned that if I lack motivation, I have a very difficult time getting things done. I will be honest, I hated doing these blog assignments. I learned a lot from doing them and from reading other people's, but all through the semester, I wasn't passionate about them, so they got pushed to the wayside until I had all of my other assignments done. I am still working on teaching myself how to get motivated, even if I don't want to do something and that all of my classes are of equal value. I have learned where my true passions are and I hope to be able to work with families like the Rice family one day.

- Morgan