understanding and practice of the following educational competency and practice behaviors.

ignature Assignment: The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate your understanding and practice of the following educational competency and practice behaviors. E.P. 2.1.4 Engage diversity and difference in practice • Recognize the extent to which a culture’s structures and values may oppress, marginalize, alienate, or create or enhance privilege and power • Gain sufficient self-awareness to eliminate the influence of personal biases and values in working with diverse groups • Recognize and communicate their understanding of the importance of difference in shaping life experiences • View themselves as learners and engage those with whom they work as informants UNDERSTANDING DIVERSE COMMUNITIES WALKING TOUR/ COMMUNITY VISIT Take a walking tour of a community different from your own and fairly unfamiliar to you. Do not do a population you have already done for another course. Spend at least 2 hours in this community. During your tour, take pictures, gather information about restaurants, services, lack of services, stores, etc. Take brochures, local newspapers, etc. Keep your eyes, ears, and heart open and you will learn an amazing amount. Bring a notebook or a tape recorder and camera with you on your excursion to help capture all of your impressions. (Be sensitive to people’s personal boundaries.) Some examples of possible communities are: Muslim, Jewish, Area where many are below the poverty line, HIV/AIDS clinic or community, Latino, Asian, African American, Predominately Caucasian, Gay/Lesbian Neighborhood, Affluent, Immigrant, Government Houses a.k.a project, etc. The following are some suggested activities for your community visit: • Eat a meal in an ethnic restaurant • Go window or grocery shopping: compare prices to those in your neighborhood • Visit a public agency (for example, a library, school, police station) • Visit a social welfare agency (for example, social security office, senior center, day care center, welfare office) • Visit a religious organization • Check out available housing • Collect neighborhood newspapers or newsletters and read up on the activities and news • Collect informational pamphlets about community services from the racks in libraries, groceries, and religious facilities • Speak with community members or community leaders or workers in the neighborhood about their impressions. You may wish to arrange this in advance. After your visit write a 5-6 page paper including all of the elements in the following outline: Introduction: Briefly give an overview of the location/population you visited. Give a brief overview of the issues for that group. Provide a snap shot too of the area of research you will discuss. 1 paragraph only. Neighborhood Description: 2-3 pages • Give the exact location of your visit. Literally describe the look and feel of the community. • What are the special aspects of the neighborhood? What stood out to you as interesting, beautiful, etc.? • What did you learn about the common needs or challenges of people who reside in this community? Are there any needs that are unique to the specific culture of the residents? Be specific. • What evidence of social services did you find in the community? Are these services sensitive to the unique needs of the residents? How could the level of sensitivity be improved? • How did you feel during your visit? In what ways are you similar to or different from the members of the community? Talk in detail about your personal reactions to your visit. What did you learn about yourself? (Consider your age, gender, race, and religion). Historical and Current Context of Population 2-3 pages Review at least 4 articles from journals, reputable papers or books about the population you visited. You may also review a website of a program or advocacy group on your population. Use your researched information to shed light on your observations from your visit. Answer the following: • Provide an historical context for what you witnessed and explain the relationship to the current state of affairs that you observed. What is the history of treatment of the population? • How do education, politics, culture, and values help us understand the neighborhood and the issues? • What are the current needs, risk, and vulnerabilities of the population based on research? How does the research relate to what you observed on your visit? Appendix: Submit at least 5 pictures with captions of what you saw. DO NOT COPY pictures from the Internet. You must take these pictures yourself! You can use a smart phone and they do not need to be the best quality. But they should give an idea of some of the interesting things you saw in the community. References: You should have at least 4 references in addition to the textbook. Use APA 6th edition style.