SOWK 101: Student's Reply Post for Human Resource Development Board #1

This assignment is a student's response to a discussion board prompt in a SOWK 101 course. The student provides replies to two classmates' posts, each reply being approximately 350 words and incorporating insights from scholarly sources published within the last five years, along with biblical integration. The student engages in direct conversation with the classmates, offering additional perspectives and supporting arguments with references in current APA formatting. The replies analyze the challenges faced by Liz Murray in the film "Homeless to Harvard" and the significance of social workers, emphasizing the impact of community, lack of emotional support, and the role of government and healthcare facilities. The responses also discuss the impact of parents' actions, bullying, and the importance of a child's innocence. The student highlights the role of social workers in providing support and service to those in need.

Running head : REPLY POST
Reply Post
Name of the student :
Name of the university :
Authors note :

1REPLY POST
Reply to Student One
Tennelie, your thread is truly appreciable. Your perspective on the character of Liz in the
Homeless to Harvard has truly brought a new perspective on the concept of the social worker.
The life of Liz Murray, who was born with drug-addicted parents, was really tough. However, I
would like to add that what makes it even more challenging for Liz as a child was the community
she was growing on in. The community was filled with the emblematic urban culture, which was
filled with gangs, violence, and drugs. I think it was very tough, as you have mentioned in your
thread, but it was also tough for her sister as well. Growing up watching your parents get high to
cause great emotional havoc on the mind of the children. Due to the emotional complications that
they face, it causes a tumultuous and unsupportive family where many children are ended up
feeling unloved as well as unimportant. This type of emotional trauma not only impact the mind
of the children in the early stage but also affect them in their adulthood (Rho, 2014). You have
correctly mentioned that she faces some of the obstacles which includes food and houses, but I
also feel the major obstacle that is faced by her is the lack of emotional support and proper care
which is one of the primary need of the children in such a young age. You have correctly brought
up the issue here that if full working time also makes the person end up in poverty, then the
wages and the coverage need to be increased, and I think here the role of the government is
significant. There will be many cases like this in society, but the government in coloration with
the healthcare facility must fight it and remove the obstacles that they are facing. I think in the
movie, the loss of innocence is well portrayed. The role of the social worker is noteworthy while
social worker is supposed to help the child to cope up with the problem and improve the life of
the child here we see exactly opposite (Ellison et al. 2014). Here the social worker comes instead

2REPLY POST
and asks the girl to help her mom. The thread correctly highlights the distinct role of the social
worker in a poorer country.
Reply to post 2
In the thread, you have correctly highlighted the struggle of the young girl Liz. From a young
age, she was introduced to drugs through her parents. The lack of education on the part of the
child also intensified the hardship of the children. You are correct in saying that she did not feel
motivated. As a young child, it is the duty of the caregivers and the parents to shape the life of
the children, and here it is evident that Liz did not receive any such love, support, and care from
her surroundings, which added to her hardships. The cause of the bullying also played a major
role in the child connectivity to the school as it has been observed in the cases. For instance, the
child felt disconnected from the school and could not attend, as is evident in the case of Liz as
well (Menesini & Salmivalli, 2017). The child was not only devoid of the love of her parents but
was rejected by the school and society as well. However, here the child never gives up attitude
was truly significant. The thread is really correct ins saying that is is the duty of the parents to
look after the child, not the child's duty to look after their parents. The innocence of the child has
swept away due to the situation she was in. Innocence means freedom from guilt and sin.
However, her drug-addicted parents and the society at large took away the innocence she was
having. The innocence of the child was gone due to the violence and the hurdles that life gave to
her. How can the child be pure-hearted when the mother is fighting for money in order to buy
drugs. The impact of the social worker on the life of Elizabeth, as highlighted in the thread was
truly significant. The worker that worked with Liz showed the value of the service. One of the
main objectives of the social worker is to impart service to the individuals and the group who is

3REPLY POST
in need, and here exactly that happened (Southwick et al. 2016). At last, the girl was placed in
the right environment that helped her safe place.

4REPLY POST
References
Ellison, N. B., Vitak, J., Gray, R., & Lampe, C. (2014). Cultivating social resources on social
network sites: Facebook relationship maintenance behaviors and their role in social
capital processes. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 19(4), 855-870.
Menesini, E., & Salmivalli, C. (2017). Bullying in schools: the state of knowledge and effective
interventions. Psychology, health & medicine, 22(sup1), 240-253.
Rho, W. J. (2014). Triple Helix for Social Innovation: The Saemaul Undong for Eradicating
Poverty. Journal of Contemporary Eastern Asia, 13(1).
Southwick, S. M., Sippel, L., Krystal, J., Charney, D., Mayes, L., & Pietrzak, R. (2016). Why are
some individuals more resilient than others: the role of social support. World
Psychiatry, 15(1), 77.