This exam has five questions, each work 10 marks, for a total of 50 marks. You must answer each question. When answering the questions, remember: you are a social worker, not a lawyer.
Shane: A Case Study
Shane, a young Aboriginal man from central Victoria, had an early life full of chaos. His family moved house a lot due to poverty and his parents often fought about money or other things. His dad was sometimes violent and sometimes was violent towards Shane’s mum. His dad would try to find work, but had little education or skills and could not hold a job for long. His father, an Aboriginal man, came from a family who had suffered a lot of disruption and trauma over many generations—both his mother and his grandmother had been removed from their families, with the resulting trauma and disruption to culture, country and child-rearing skills.
Shane’s mother had come to Australia in the 1980’s as a refugee, and had grown up in a large migrant family with a father who was alcoholic and often violent. Shane had a large extended family on both sides, and his aunts and uncles often took him and his sisters for months at a time while the parents tried to get things together. Although loving and well-meaning Shane’s parents were often stressed, tired and too worried to pay much attention to what the children were doing—and often did not pull them up when they were behaving badly. When Shane was three he ran out on the road when no-one was watching him and was hit by a car, which left him with a permanent limp.
Shane had trouble understanding when he was in trouble at school or in the neighbourhood, and would become enraged when someone tried to discipline him, as it aroused deep shame which he did not have the resources to deal with. By early adolescence he had been in trouble with the police on many occasions and had a number of convictions for stealing cars.
Shortly after Shane turns 15 there is a notification to Child Protection about his younger sisters, who had complained at school that there was no food in the house and the parents had gone away and left Shane in charge. Shane had hit them several times to try to get them to do their homework and to cook. The children were put into the care of a white family in the city, and Shane is charged by the police for assault, and is told to expect a summons to appear in court.
Question 1 (10 marks)
You are the social worker at Shane’s school who made the notification to child protection. You didn’t realise that Shane would be charged as a result of your actions. Shane comes to you, very angry, and accuses you of making the report. What do you say to Shane about this?
Question 2 (10 marks)
Shane calms down, and asks what is going to happen to him next. What do you tell him about what to expect, and what his options are?
Question 3 (10 marks)
Shane spends a short period of time in youth detention, and his sisters are returned home. Shane’s parents are afraid that if he comes back home to live, his sisters will be removed again, so after a big fight with his parents, Shane moves out. He stops attending school and a friend of a friend charges him $50 a week to live in the shed out the back of the house. There is no kitchen or running water in the shed, and he has to use the outdoor toilet. He isn’t allowed to use the facilities in the house. He lives like this for two years, when the landlord tells Shane somebody else will be moving into the shed with him, and that Shane will have to share or be evicted.
Shane is now 17, and comes to the local youth drop-in centre, where you now work as a social worker. He comes to the drop in centre to use the shower, and eats any food available. He complains to you about his housing situation, but doesn’t want to cause a fuss as he can’t afford anything else. What do you do?
Question 4 (10 marks)
One year later you are still working at the drop in centre when you get a phone call from Shane, who is detained in the local inpatient unit. He was taken there by police after he was found talking to himself and yelling at passers-by in the local shopping centre. He says he has a Mental Health Tribunal hearing next week, and he wants you to come and represent him, as there are no mental health legal services available in this part of central Victoria. He is concerned that they are going to lock him up forever, and asks you what is going to happen to him. He says he has nobody else to turn to. What do you tell him?
Question 5 (10 marks)
Before the hearing, you go and visit Shane in hospital, to see how he is going. While you are waiting, you overhear two of the staff discussing Shane, and one of them says ‘All these blackfellas are all the same. I don’t know why we bother bringing them in here, when they’d be better off in prison anyway.’ The other one, who you recognise as a social worker, replies ‘This one will end up there for sure. I only made the assessment order to keep him off the streets.’
What are your options in this situation? What are the different ways in which you might respond?
The marking criteria for this assessment are:
• Accurate and in depth coverage of the legal and social context (what is happening and why?)
• Demonstrated understanding of the relevant legal frameworks (what law is relevant?)
• Articulate a response in line with social work roles, skills and values, consistent with legal frameworks and best practice (what should you do?)
• Apply sophisticated written communication skills to present complex information in accessible and culturally appropriate ways (How have you made your argument?)
