Introduction into the concepts and methodologies of Social Cultural Work
In this seminar we will look into different areas of Social Cultural Work, an approach aiming for the recognition of everyday culture and the ability of everyone for artistic expression. Social Cultural Work – according to our understanding – aims for the democratisation of culture and art and a radical availibility of access to it for everyone. Social Cultural Work with its methods can highlight exclusion and discriminatory practices and help to remedy them. Cultural Studies as developed by Stuart Hall and Raymond Williams will serve as an orientation as well as concrete examples of a community orientated Social Cultural Work, which we aim to find in Berlin.
By the help of specific cases we want to look at the role which culture, art and media has in the everyday life of the adressees and in the practice of Social Work. We will thereby focus on discrimination and exclusion and the inaccessibility of art and culture for many sgements of society and discuss intervention strategies.
Students will choose a focus in this field for their own ethnographic study and discover the area of Social Cultural Work executed by the projects chosen as well as their methodology and target groups. The projects can be located in all different areas of Social Work in the city of Berlin – using cultural methods for reaching their aims.
An introduction into filming (with a video camera of the university if the Corona regulations allow us) as well as editing (either accordingly at the universitys media lab or online) is part of the seminar. The tutors of the media lab will assist students with their video/ photo/ audio projects. For mid-June we plan to participate in an exhibition with the „station of urban cultures“ as well as other actors from the district of Marzahn-Hellersdorf where the university is located. We will also participate in an online workshop with a class from the Bob Schapell School of Social Work in Tel Aviv on Social Cultural Work, working with unattended minor refugees in Tel Aviv and Berlin.
Grading:
Engagement, study of relevant literature, realisation of an ethnographic research project as a common project of a group of a about 5 students and the (artistic) presentation of the outcome or planning and execution of a cultural intervention (50 percent of the grading).
Writing of an individual reflection paper (50 percent of the grading). |
