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CODE 117968
ACADEMIC YEAR 2025/2026
CREDITS
SCIENTIFIC DISCIPLINARY SECTOR SPS/08
LANGUAGE Italian
TEACHING LOCATION
  • GENOVA
SEMESTER 2° Semester
SECTIONING Questo insegnamento è diviso nelle seguenti frazioni:
  • A
  • B
  • MODULES Questo insegnamento è un modulo di:

    AIMS AND CONTENT

    AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

    Detailed aims and learning outcomes

     

    Class attendance, participation in educational activities and individual study will enable the student to:

    - Know the historical origins and evolution of social work;

    - Clarify goals and functions of the profession;

    - Identify the values, operating principles, and attitudes that guide professional practice;

    - Get to know the Code of ethics in its various parts;

    - Be aware of the disciplinary, civil, criminal, and administrative responsibilities associated with professional practice;

    - Apply theoretical principles to complex situations, addressing ethical dilemmas that arise in professional practice.

    TEACHING METHODS

    Class lectures with slides will present the main topics of the course and will require the active involvement of students through questions, reflections and discussion.

    Cases and situations presenting ethical dilemmas will be proposed, through texts or videos, in order to develop group discussions and identify possible paths for professional practice.

    SYLLABUS/CONTENT

    INTRODUCTION

    Social service as a profession and as a discipline. International definition of social service.

    PART ONE: HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL FOUNDATIONS

    Brief history of poverty and welfare in Europe from the Middle Ages to the Modern Age. Origins and development of social service in Anglo-Saxon countries and Italy. Reflections on social service today.

    PART TWO: ETHICAL-VALUE FOUNDATIONS

    Ethics and professional deontology. Values, operating principles, attitudes. Code of ethics for social workers. Ethical dilemmas: possible conflicts between values and principles. Case studies presenting complexities and dilemmas.

    RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

    Textbooks and reading materials for attending students

    G. Pieroni, M. Dal Pra Ponticelli, Introduzione al servizio sociale, Carocci, Roma, 2005  (da pag. 11 a pag. 199)            

    Knowledge of the following documents is required:

    Global Definition of Social Work (IFSW, IASSW, Melbourne, 2014)

    Global Social Work Statement of Ethical Principles  (IFSW, IASSW, Dublin, 2018)

    Codice Deontologico degli Assistenti Sociali (CNOAS, Roma, 2020)

    - Legge 23 marzo 1993 n. 84 “Ordinamento della professione di assistente sociale e istituzione dell'albo professionale”.

    - Legge 8 novembre 2000 n. 328 “Legge quadro per la realizzazione del sistema integrato di interventi e servizi sociali”

    Other materials will be quoted during the lectures and posted on aulaweb.

     

    Textbooks and possible reading materials for non-attending students.

    The same texts and papers given for frequent attendees with the following additional text:

    R. Cutini, Promuovere la democrazia. Storia degli assistenti sociali nell’Italia del secondo dopoguerra (1944-1960), Viella, Roma, 2018

    capitolo 2  pp. 37-57; capitolo 5  pp. 95-111; capitolo 8  pp. 147-160

    TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

    LESSONS

    Class schedule

    The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

    EXAMS

    EXAM DESCRIPTION

    The examinwill be an oral

    ASSESSMENT METHODS

    Exam questions will be designed in such a way as to test the acquisition of not only descriptive but also argumentative knowledge and skills.

    One question will be proposed for each of the following three areas:

    - Origins and evolution of social work

    - The social work profession and the professional order

    - Professional ethics and Code of ethics for social workers

    Students who have valid certification of disability or Specific Learning Desorders (DSA) on file with the University may request the use of compensatory measures during the exams (e.g. additional time, concept maps, modifications in the written/oral mode), following the guidelines (p. 5) published here. In any case, for further information, please contact the Department's disability liaison: Isa.Fanlo@unige.it