Meaning and Values: Developing Empowering Practice: A Learning and Development Manual

For use - across the helping professions - both in professional training and in academic teaching that goes beyond simply delivering lectures...the 36 exercises, guidance on using them, case studies and suggestions for further learning in this manual will help stimulate discussion, debate and understanding about: how values - sometimes personal, sometimes shared - are central to our lives, and the people we work with; how these values help us make sense of our experiences and create meaning in our lives; and how an understanding of spirituality, religion and culture can illuminate and deepen our meaning making, at both an individual and a wider level.It also includes: how, nevertheless, the power that other people have over us can sometimes undermine our values and meaning making, and make us feel we have little or no control over our lives; and How the 'helping professions' can work in an empowering way with people who feel demoralised, helpless and oppressed in ways that respect their values and sense of meaning."This Learning for Practice" manual is closely linked to: "Religion & Spirituality and Values", both by Bernard Moss, and "Power & Empowerment" by Neil Thompson." Learning for Practice" is a collection of manuals, being developed under Neil Thompson's guidance, to support training and teaching across the helping professions. They will ensure that practice is informed by appropriate understanding of accessible theory and professional knowledge. With a wealth of experience, and expertise in promoting learning these authors provide important insights, ideas and guidance that will be of great benefit in delivering high-quality learning and development events. Experienced tutors and trainers will be able to engage immediately with the materials, but there is sufficient guidance provided to enable those with less experience to use the exercises effectively with appropriate support.This practice manual will help leaders or trainers revisit the territory of values and their importance for professional people work practice, and will help them facilitate this important learning for those they are supervising or training. It will also stress how the trainers' own values come through in the training, and put emphasis on a spirit of shared exploration and honest enquiry, where both trainer and trainee are open to having their own values challenged and developed in the process. It promotes this as the style of learning most likely to succeed in placing values-based practice at the heart of all people work, and all of the education and training that seeks to support it. Each section of the book's three sections contains an introduction; twelve main exercises, with guidance notes; a case study; a conclusion; and a guide to further learning.

Table of Contents:
PrefaceIntroductionThe importance of valuesIntroduction: Understanding valuesExercisesConclusionGuide to further learning: valuesFinding meaning in life and workIntroduction: understanding religion and spiritualityExercisesConclusionGuide to further learning: spiritualityPromoting empowermentIntroduction: understanding empowermentExercisesConclusionGuide to further learning: empowermentConclusionReferences

About the Author :
Bernard Moss is Professor of Social Work Education and Spirituality, and Director of the Centre for Spirituality and Health, at Staffordshire University. His recent publications include Values (RHP 2007) and Religion and Spirituality (RHP 2005).Neil Thompson is Professor of Social Work and Well-being at Liverpool Hope University, where he is Director of the Institute for Applied Social Sciences, and a Director of Avenue Consulting Ltd (www.avenueconsulting.co.uk), a company offering training and consultancy across the 'people professions' - that is, the helping professions plus management, supervision and leadership more broadly. He has over 100 publications to his name, including best-selling textbooks, papers in learned journals and training and open learning materials.