The document outlines two assignments for social work students, focusing on assessing group process and social advocacy. It emphasizes the importance of effective communication and group cohesion in collaborative projects, noting both strengths and challenges encountered during group work. Additionally, students are tasked with writing proposals for social advocacy to address social issues and policies, integrating research and critical analysis.

1. Assignment 1:
Assessing Group Process 4: Group Project Goals
As a clinical social worker, evaluating the effectiveness of
clinical strategies is an expectation of the NASW Code of
Ethics (2017). Sometimes, clinical strategies and techniques
that are effective in one setting may not work in another
situation. It is important to understand what works and what
doesn’t.
Also, self-assessment is an integral part of becoming a clinical
social worker.
Make sure each question is outlines with the questions below,
with their own references and in-text citations, and in their own
separate sections in the order below.:
· Describe the strategy (assigned in Week 7) you implemented
in your Group Project (in attachments).
· Describe the process and the level of difficulty/comfort you
found in doing this Assignment. (Assignment was hard due to
team members being really busy and having time to
communicate on the project)
· Explain how this strategy may or may not have empowered or
supported the group.
· Describe the progress of the group in completing the
project/goal. (Group came together at the end was able to bring
all their drafts into a compilation for edit and have a finished
project. (Final Project is in attachments)
· At this point, the literature review and the advantages and
disadvantages should be complete.

2. Group Process Assignments should integrate course concepts
related to group process. Assignments should demonstrate
critical thought when applying course material to your group
experience. Support ideas in your Assignment with APA
citations from this week's required resource (in attachments).
Required Resource (In attachments). Every other reference
should be from 2013-2019.
Proudlock, S., & Wellman, N. (2011).
Solution
-focused groups: The results look promising. Counselling
Psychology Review, 26(3), 45–55.
Assignment 2:
Putting Social Advocacy Skills into Action
Writing a proposal that functions as a focus of change is a
significant part of being a social worker/policy advocate. This
is your opportunity to use your advocacy skills to change and
improve the lives of others.
In this Assignment, you write a proposal for some form of
social advocacy that will seek to change a social,
organizational, or legislative policy. The proposal may also
involve advocacy for the amelioration of a social problem. The
purpose of this assignment is to thoughtfully and thoroughly
plan how you will advocate changing a social problem or policy

3. that is of interest to you.
The policy practice/advocacy can take whatever form you wish
and can be on any level: agency, community, state, or federal.
You will submit a prospectus (3–4 pages) that describes the
problem that is being addressed and the expected advocacy
activities.
By Day 7
Submit your assignment.
Make sure that each question below is outlined separately with
their own in-text citation and references. Be specific when
describing the social problem or policy you would like to
change and address the following:
· If you selected a policy, when was the policy enacted, by
whom, and for what reason?
· How are you going to work to change the policy/problem (i.e.,
plan for social advocacy)?
· How will your efforts address the policy/social problem
described?
· Is continued policy practice/advocacy needed to make a long-
term impact? Why or why not?

4. The prospectus will need to be well researched and written
using APA guidelines. Data should come from at least five
sources. References should be from 2013-2019.
Make sure that your assertions are supported by appropriate
research and reputable resources.Political Strategy in Policy
Advocacy
Political strategies evolve as a result of a sequence of actions
and verbal exchanges with policy makers and stakeholders. A
social worker and policy advocate may find himself or herself
in the role of political activist as well.
This week you examine how to use power resources to create
and put into action a political strategy that has been designed to
increase the chances that a policy proposal will be successfully
enacted to change and improve the lives of people. You develop
a series of political strategies to address one aspect of the
situations and/or problems facing family members in the
families you are introduced to through case studies presented in
the readings and the media of this week. You also write a
proposal for a policy practice or social advocacy that will seek
to change a social/organization/legislative policy or advocate
for the amelioration of a social problem.Learning
ObjectivesStudents will:
· Analyze political strategies related to social work

5. · Create proposal for social advocacy
· Apply social advocacy skills
· Evaluate long-term impact of policy practice and advocacy
Running Head: ASSESSNG GROUP PROCESS 3
1
ASSESSING GROUP PROCESS 3
5
Assessing Group Process 3
Week 7 Assignment 2
Daniel Anderson
January 13, 2019
Group process is how a group of people work together to get
something done. Working in a group is a good experience when
the group members cooperate. Within our Wiki group project,

6. every team member understands their roles and contribution. As
a result, every team member collaborates in the brainstorming
of the project and making sure that it is completed. Since every
team member is unique with a different professional
background, working in a group helps in coming up with ideas
that will lead to the successful completion of the project.
Moreover, each team member learns from others during the
whole process and hence improves their working skills.
However, working in a group comes with various challenges,
but it is also beneficial. This is because many people prefer to
work alone instead of working in a group due to the fear of loss
of productivity and feelings of some members being competitive
instead of being cooperative.
One of the observable strengths of the group is communication.
During the initial planning of the group, the team members
agreed on the communication means which is through emails
and texting. The group understands that communication is very
important when working with different people. This helps to
avoid misunderstanding and conflicts in the group. Moreover,
communication through email and texting makes it easy to pass
information when the group members are not together. The
other strength observed in the group is the willingness to share
ideas freely. We understand that two heads are better than one
when it comes to teamwork. I am impressed with the team
because there is no aspect of one or two members trying to show

7. or make the other members feel like their ideas are better than
the rest. According to Toseland and Rivas (2017), differences in
ideas and opinions or views can lead to conflicts which can
interfere with the working progress of the group. As a result
when each and every member of the group respects the
perspective of the other members, working in a becomes very
easy.
The other strength of the group is timekeeping. Keeping time
when working in a group can prove to be very difficult.
However, I have noticed that every member of the group is time
conscious. This has helped us work towards achieving our goal
of completing the Wiki project. Moreover, timekeeping prevents
the wastage of resources and personal time.
Unfortunately, working in a team also comes with its own
weaknesses. One of the unavoidable weaknesses is conflict
among the team members. The group consists of different
people with different backgrounds which can result in
disagreement especially when it comes to sharing ideas and
perspectives (Chris, 2017). At the initial process of working in
the group, one of the members felt left out with regards to the
delegation of responsibilities. The member felt that his duties
were less important compared to the duties of the other team
members. As a result, the member failed to attend two
consecutive group meeting. When one of us approached him, he
explained that he did not feel like he was part of the team.

8. However, in the next group meeting, the issue was raised, and
the member understood the reason for delegating such duties.
Without addressing the issue, the team member could have
bailed out on the team. It was also made clear that it is
important for each team member to voice their concerns instead
of keeping quiet and expecting the problem to solve itself.
In order to assist the group process, the best strategy to use is to
adopt communication skills. It is important to communicate
clearly when working in a group. This is because through
communication each member in the group can explain their own
ideas which help in achieving the group goals (Centre for
Teaching Excellence). Communication also allows each person
to express their feelings in an opening manner without fear and
compromise. Group members with good communication skills
also learn how to listen carefully to others and in turn learn to
appreciate their viewpoints. Communication also allows group
members to ask questions so as get clarification on the ideas
and emotions of others. Additionally, communication makes it
easy to sense how others feel based on their non-verbal
communication which includes facial expressions and body
language. Communication also helps members to reflect on the
activities and interactions of the group and encouraging other
group members to work hard towards achieving the goals of the
group. Communication helps team members work together even
when they have different ideologies and viewpoints. This is

9. because unspoken assumptions can destroy the productive
grouping function. In other words, good practices of
communication skills help build a healthy climate for
discussions and work (Centre for Teaching Excellence).
The other strategy that can be adopted is group cohesion. Group
cohesion fosters action-oriented behaviors such as self-
disclosure and trust (Proudlock and Wellman, 2011), openness,
support and respect. Strong group cohesion leads to positive
group outcomes and better attendance. Additionally, it is
important to use compliments in the group process.
Compliments and praise from peers within the group have a
unique authenticity and force that assures each team member to
continue opening up and share more ideas (Proudlock and
Wellman, 2011).
References
Chris, J. (2019). 7 Pros and Cons of Group Work - Joseph
Chris Partners. Retrieved from http://www.josephchris.com/7-
pros-and-cons-of-group-work

10. Toseland, R. W., & Rivas, R. F. (2017). An introduction to
group work practice (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
Proudlock, S., & Wellman, N. (2011).