History, Issues, and Policies: Social Work for Children in Canada

This report provides a comprehensive overview of social work for children in Canada. It begins by exploring the historical context, detailing the evolution of child welfare policies and the role of social work in addressing issues faced by children. The report identifies key issues such as discrimination, abuse, and the challenges faced by immigrant children. It discusses the need for historical references in social work practice and the importance of understanding past approaches. The report also covers the application of different social work approaches, professional and legal structures shaping child welfare, and the need for policy reformation. It concludes by emphasizing the dynamic nature of social work and the importance of government support and HR development in the field of child care.

Running head: SOCIAL WORK FOR CHILDREN IN CANADA
Social Work for Children in Canada
Name of the university
Name of the student
Author note

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................2
Issues faced by child population................................................................................................2
Historical issues.....................................................................................................................2
Longer term history of social work........................................................................................3
Need of historical reference of social work...........................................................................4
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................5
References..................................................................................................................................6

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Introduction
History of social work in Canada not only elaborates transition of social policies and
welfare procedures but also the execution of professional social work and details of their
authorities. The issue which has been identified mostly within such systems is in spite of a
well-developed plan, execution has become difficult due to lack of cooperation in societal
level. In case the history of development is being discussed, emergence of several themes can
be identified in this due course. It states commitment of social workers in dual levels such as
they have to improve political, social and economic change through social work in order to
minimize issues and sufferings. As it is universally acknowledged that social problems
regarding child population are increasing in terms of its complex nature and quantity; hence,
nation is in need of more social workers within Canadian province (Ives, Sussman & Denov,
2015). The following report intends to discuss social issues faced by Canadian child
population and policies implied for their wellbeing.
Issues faced by child population
Historical issues
In Canadian provinces, according to (Casw-acts.ca, 2019), children welfare in fields
of education, health have always been responsibility of local NGOs and social development
department of Government. Although, legal jurisdiction system is active against child care
yet it is not as unified as it should be. Public criticism and faulty management describes the
deterioration of system. In order to response against the social and economic issues of
society, social work has started to address the problems since the beginning of 19th century.
There is a tradition which have been controlling the scenario of child care. Traditional
thought of considering children as their property is being perceived as child protection; in
reality which is not.

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Canadian child welfare organisation was first established in Toronto in the year of
1891. Consequently, in 1893, Canada’s legislation approved the Ontario's Act for preventing
the practice of Cruelty against children and Better Protection of them (Forrester, Westlake &
Glynn, 2012). Taking inspiration from Ontario, Quebec decided to follow up the trend of
developing law under the ideologies of Catholic Church. Unlike these two, legislation of
other provinces were not approved before 1977. Although all the jurisdiction do not follow
identical pattern of policies, principals are to some extent similar in terms of concepts. Since
the mid- 20th century, modifications were made. Secondary records has shown child care is
considered as a task of women where very few social workers involve themselves. The
central problem was children’s unruly temperament and their development of their mental
health. Later, following the news article of Cbc.ca. (2019), the complexity of such issues
increased in terms of discrimination, abuse, indigenous status and various genetic
malfunction. The demographic structure and their needs changed with the progression of time
and arrival of immigrants is the biggest reason behind this. The scenario is changing
continuously, that is why, and there is aneed of amending traditional child care program.
Currently, it has been highly criticized for giving services which are not appropriate for
current social scenario.
Longer term history of social work
Child welfare activities are inseparable part of social work and most of the issues are
associated with negative stories among which finding the authentic one is difficult. Many
times, it has occurred to public that lack of social workers or lack of expertise are the reasons
behind faulty execution of reformation plan. The problem is rather than one-on-one contact
by visiting families and child care organisations, workers have started to following up
secondary data to understand the scenario. Due to the need of several fieldworks, as described
in (Casw-acts.ca, 2019), the recruitment and retention of employees becomes difficult in this

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field. As a result, issues with children welfare are increasing and consistently being escalated
due to lack of adequate assistance. However, the blame directly goes to parents and workers
while there are requirements of amending the entire process.
According to history, social workers have found there are several factors which
influence the degradation of child health and position within the society. The increased rate
of unemployment, domestic violence and lack of moral sense among families greatly
influence children and their mental health. Community support and social environment is the
another thing which is needed to address by workers in terms of providing appropriate
atmosphere to grow up (van Bijleveld, Dedding & Bunders‐Aelen, 2015). In addition to
that, the tendency is to overlook the struggles of children who have migrated with their
families and consistently trying to connect with ideology of new culture and place. Adults
face issues regarding adjusting too, yet as stated in (Canadianimmigrant.ca, 2019), immigrant
children are the one who face lot of challenges regarding managing with foreign
environment; to be specific emotional stress occurs being failed to understand the transition.
Moreover, since the beginning of 20thcentury, the identification of genetic diseases
among children has increased rapidly. Special care and providing appropriate diet is not
possible for most of the families. Traditionally, child care association along with taking care
of mental imbalance of children, has been treating diseases like autism as well.
Need of historical reference of social work
Outside the formal social work, considering the past references is necessary because it
enhances the idea of a social worker regarding the handling policy. Besides, according to
Thetyee.ca. (2019), the society is changing in terms of an increase in indigenous and
immigrant population. Balancing both the current situation with the traditional requirements
is consistently becoming complex. A case of autism cannot be handled with professionalism

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without knowing the fact that how it used to be treated previously within Canadian province
(Glisson, Green & Williams, 2012). Therefore, it has been observed that even vising
families and having conversation with them can increase practical knowledge about current
scenario, however, going through the past references and historic incidents help to understand
the situation better. Due to several political changes, immigration has been a consistent issue
to Canada. Immigrants are generally from Asian background and perceive to achieve high
academic or professional excellence within a foreign province. Children generally face
problems to understand new culture and system before understanding the education.
Therefore, it can be said if such basic education can be started at home, if parents help them
to gain a perception of change then it will be easier for children.
3. Current context of the social work
Application of the different social work/areas
The assignment attempts to select the issues encountered by the children in Canada.
This falls under the segment of social work area of Child Welfare.
Intersection of the issue with other issues and populations
Poverty is one of the main reasons for which the children encounter issues affecting
their growth and development. If the parents are immigrants or refugees, uncertainties hover
over their survival strategies. If the criminal justice system is not stable, concerns regarding
the safety and security of the people gets intensified.
Municipal laws and policies shaping the issue
Mention can be made of the Convention of Rights for Children, which has been
implemented by Canada for protecting the fundamental rights of the children. Along with
this, Optional Protocol to the Convention of Rights of Child on Involvement of Children in

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Armed Conflict is also considered for legalizing the promotion of safety and security for the
children.
Professional regulatory requirements shaping the issue
In order to ensure child welfare, Federal and State government of Canada needs to
adhere to the standards and Codes. Along with this, license is essential in terms of conducting
social work, surveys and field experiments regarding the issues. The standards cover the
areas of healthcare, accommodation, food and nutrition, education among others.
Application of the standards of social work education to the issue
The schools and the educational institutions ought to conduct articulation, so that
proper value is generated for the stakeholders investing in the administration services.
Complying with the ethical code of conduct is crucial for gaining trust, loyalty and
dependence from the clients and the customers. Graphical representation of the progress of
children would reflect standardization for the social work education.
Is the social work in the transition phase for the issue?
The social work for child welfare is indeed on a transition phase. Typical evidence of
this lies in public assistance programs, employment schemes for the community members.
Indulging in the social work itself reflects the leap from graduation phase. Registration for
the social work is also an evidence for the transition phase.
Conclusion
It can be concluded that Historical influences are nothing but guidelines yet workers
should follow conditions of individual cases where assistance of local government and
civilians are necessary. Considering the dynamism of social requirement regarding children
issues, policy reformation is necessary where Government has to take part actively. Their

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responsibility will be not only to support NGOs but also to revise social work policies related
to child care and concentrate on developing HR capabilities of child care department.

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References
Canadianimmigrant.ca. (2019). Children of immigrants and their challenges. Retrieved from
https://canadianimmigrant.ca/living/parenting/children-of-immigrants-and-their-
challenges
Casw-acts.ca. (2019). Canadian Association of Social Workers Releases Major Research on
Social Workers and Child Welfare | Canadian Association of Social Workers.
Retrieved from https://www.casw-acts.ca/en/canadian-association-social-workers-
releases-major-research-social-workers-and-child-welfare
Casw-acts.ca. (2019). Putting Children First: Social Workers and Child Welfare in Canada |
Canadian Association of Social Workers. Retrieved from
https://www.casw-acts.ca/en/putting-children-first-social-workers-and-child-welfare-
canada
Cbc.ca. (2019). Child welfare crisis 'most serious issue that we face' in Manitoba, families
minister says at summit | CBC News. Retrieved from
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/child-welfare-reform-1.4483934
Forrester, D., Westlake, D., & Glynn, G. (2012). Parental resistance and social worker skills:
Towards a theory of motivational social work. Child & Family Social Work, 17(2),
118-129.
Glisson, C., Green, P., & Williams, N. J. (2012). Assessing the organizational social context
(OSC) of child welfare systems: Implications for research and practice. Child abuse &
neglect, 36(9), 621-632.
Ives, N., Sussman, T., & Denov, M. S. (2015). Introduction to social work in Canada:
Histories, contexts and practices. Oxford University Press.

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Thetyee.ca. (2019). How Canada Created a Crisis in Indigenous Child Welfare | The Tyee.
Retrieved from https://thetyee.ca/News/2018/05/09/Canada-Crisis-Indignenous-
Welfare/
van Bijleveld, G. G., Dedding, C. W., & Bunders‐Aelen, J. F. (2015). Children's and young
people's participation within child welfare and child protection services: a state‐of‐
the‐art review. Child & Family Social Work, 20(2), 129-138.