Labs of Contextualized Urban Social Work
Community Techniques
Points of view
To get students engaged with residents in their neighbourhood we provide several community techniques that can help build bridges between the students and the residents.
The first technique is the field diary (Stephens and Cooper, 2009). The diary is a container or a vessel for sifting, observing, questioning, and categorizing everything you are coming to know and understand; in other words, it is a place to process what you experience. The field diary is the first step in connecting and understanding the neighbourhood and its residents.
When the field diary is made by both students and residents, it gives a wonderful opportunity to compare notes and dive into eachothers' experiences.
Questions for the diary
Use these questions to help students and residents along in writing their field diary.
- What have you learned from the activity?
- To what extent does this experience influence you as person?
- How does this help you understand the neighbourhood better?
- In what way and how much has this practice improved your sense of being present in a place?
- How did you feel in the urban space?
- What questions have arisen for you during the practice?
Partners
