Impact Of Drought On A Community: A Case Study

Challenges Faced by Newcomers in the Community

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In the stated case, it is evident that the community is suffering due to the many years of drought. The drought has negatively impacted the local economy, the morale, as well as the overall well-being of the community. The locals, or rather the more established people, have started experiencing tensions due to the new arrivals. A section of the locals believes that the newcomers are unemployed people who depend on government support and thus are only destined to destroy the town. At the same time, George, along with his wife Mary and two children named Tom and Anna, have just arrived in the town. Tom, aged 7 and in year 1, and Anna, aged 8 and in year 2, have recently been enrolled in a nearby primary school. The Home School Liaison Officer (HSLO) has also conducted a mandatory reporter guide and outlined several observations. First, the report notes that the family arrived at Ruralville, from Melbourne, to seek a better and affordable lifestyle. Second, George, the father of the two children, was 27 years old and of Greek Heritage. Third, the arrival of Anne and Tom was not planned. Fifth, the family sought transfer to a local rented public housing probably due to the prevailing drought.

The HSLO’s report also indicated that Mary was often nervous especially when picking children from school and even avoided contact with other parents and staff. In some cases, the children missed school, but when present, they seemingly enjoyed the routine and this proved that they were ready to learn. Besides this, the children did not always bring all the required materials to school including lunch, and when asked, they would either imply that their mother was sick or had hurt herself. Additional information from the case study is that a parent representative had visited the home of the family and found the yard in a mess. Also, Mary appeared nervous and did not want to open the door. The representative also heard George yelling in the background and this was a clear indicator that Mary was living in an abusive marriage. The parent representative left with a notion that such people never join or help.

Social workers are assisted by a set of guidelines when making decisions. They have to serve the interest of their clients even if such decisions may contradict what they do in their real life (McMahon & Camberis, 2017). As a result, such decisions are hard to make given that two guiding principles may conflict (Reisch & Jani, 2012). As such, there is a notable conflict when dealing with George’s family and the community. The Aboriginal people place great importance on the family as it defines how the child will connect with the environment (Healy, 2012). Certainly, the problems that the children were experiencing had emanated from the family since the parents were not concerned about school activities. The people in the region also value their land and this could be the main reason why they fear that an influx of people into the town would destroy the economy. Additionally, education is of great importance in the community and in the event where a child misses classes or is inactive, a class parent representative is sent to their homes to check on the situation.

The Effects of Drought on the Local Economy and Community Well-Being

The community, in this case, is dealing with the hardships that come along with years of drought. There is a drop in property value, and as a result, new people have streamed in the community looking for cheaper accommodation and “tree changes”. The local economy is deteriorating, the morale of the people is dropping, and the overall well-being of the community is somewhat poor. Due to the notable scarcity of resources, the people are beginning to become bothered by the influx of people into the town. The locals even go to the extent of describing the newcomers as ‘doles’ bludgers, or in other words, jobless people who solely depend on government support. Another challenge that is evident from the case study is discrimination. The parent representative, for instance, portrays discrimination in saying that “those types never join, or help, anyway.” This statement was probably triggered by the fact that George was of Greek heritage and also did not want his children to get engaged in Aboriginal activities. Adams (2011) notes that rights of children are often talked about but rarely granted. The law does not continuously offer children the right to express their desires (Sue, Rasheed & Rasheed, 2015). This fact is evident from the case noting that the children fail to go to school with the required materials, including lunch. When asked, the children say that their mother was either not feeling well or had hurt herself. It is, hence, true to conclude that Mary was in an abusive marriage considering that even the representative had noted George’s yelling voice. Additionally, the family is suffering from social exclusion as Mary rarely interacts with other parents and staff from the school. Adams (2011) describes social exclusion as an umbrella term denoting multiple factors which include abuse and neglect, poverty, family breakdown, poor performance at school, and lack of family support.

In this case, when dealing with the children, it is appropriate to adopt and mobilize skills, knowledge, and resources to create a community where each child reaps the benefits of a safe, permanent and caring family (Turner, 2017). Also, there should be efforts aimed at providing alternative or additional care when need be. Child abuse may take many forms among them emotional, physical or sexual. In this case, it is true to say that the children were undergoing emotional abuse since there is no evidence of sexual or physical abuse. In some cases, they witnessed their abusive father harassing their mother and often went to school without food. George’s family moved to Melbourne as George had secured employment with a large construction company, but the onset of the drought rendered him unemployed. Additionally, the children were denied the right to interact with other children during the aboriginal activities. The HSLO noted that upon the enrollment of the children in the school, Mary had characterized the children as Aboriginal. However, when the Aboriginal liaison educator contacted the family, George dismissed the earlier assertion and categorically stated that the children were not to engage in any Aboriginal-related activities at the school. This was an attempt to deny the children their right. George ought to know that interacting with other cultures is essential for knowledge purposes and will also ensure that the children live a healthy and beneficial life (Bullis, 2013). In case of unemployment, as seen in George’s case, all the relevant government agencies should be prompt in addressing the issue and providing an employment chance for the family. Besides this, the family needs some counseling considering that there is a probability that Mary is suffering from abuse.

Addressing Abuse and Providing Support and Resources for Families and Children

In a review of the case study, there is additional information that I would need to know. For instance, the case outlines that the nation experienced many years of drought; it is not clear why the Australian government never bothered to intervene on the challenge. Drought impacts the local and international economy and I would like to know what effort the citizens put to eradicate the issue. The locals in any area should receive new arrivals happily which is not as stated in the case study (Parker & Wang, 2013). Moreover, I would like to know if there were other social challenges experienced which caused such an attitude among people. I would also like to know why the children were not allowed to participate in aboriginal-related activities in school. This is because the aboriginal activities are intended to strengthen the communities by uniting them (Jones, Burke & Westman, 2013). More information should be provided to explain why the parents seemed ignorant in regard to their children education (Wattis, Standing & Yerkes, 2013). From the case study, it is evident that child failed to go to school as a result of their parents’ failure. Finally, I would like to know why women such as Mary subjected themselves in abusive marriages. Clearly, men from this community lacked respect for women as they are always yelling when they can talk and solve marriage problems.

The additional information would have been helpful when undertaking assessment through various ways. In some cases, assessments may be ignored and assumed to be time-consuming due to the incomplete information (Clark, 2015). However, the additional information would help in making informed planning. Also, it can help in understanding the government and parents’ obligations as they seem to have failed in various situations (Eekelaar, 2017). Moreover, the additional information will assist in understanding the competence levels of the children in the community (Moos, 2013). In my assessment, I will reflect and understand the adequacy of resource provision. This is because the case study outlines several challenges which uncover inadequacy of resources. In addition, the information would also help in understanding the need for information sharing (Strong & Cohen, 2013). For instance, the community members seem not to understand their roles in society as they are not welcoming to the new arrivals. Also, women should know their position in society to avoid staying in abusive marriages.  Finally, the information would guide in conducting assessments among the community groups, children, schools, staff, and other interactions (Epstein, Seron, Oglensky & Saute, 2014). Basically, the additional information would help in eradicating the challenges experienced in the community.

The Importance of Cultural Awareness and Understanding

When solving family matters, it is advisable to get a starting point from a personal point of view. Of course, when solving this case, I had to compare and contrast my personal experiences of family life with those of George’s family. This type of contrast enabled me to know the aspect that was missing in the family and the possible ways of filling the gap. The children, for instance, missed school, but when present, they seemingly enjoyed the routine and this proved that they were ready to learn. As such, it is evident that the children are more than ready to execute their duties as learners. However, their parents are hindering them from their cause as they are not giving them the needed attention. Therefore, to make the children more fruitful at school, I had to consider my personal family life and determine what can be done to solve the problem. Also, considering that the George and Mary are outsiders, I had to adopt other ways of dealing with people from diverse cultures. Notably, what works in one culture might not work in another (Morley, 2016).

While interpreting the case study, I balanced the power relationships existing between the individuals and family members through various ways. These power relationships existing between family members and individuals are a major source of stress to several people (Covey, 2013). It is not easy to achieve a balance which facilitates individual benefits and well-being. First, I clarified my values as they are considered worthwhile by guiding the individual actions and life’s structure. Managing the family and individual relationships helps in fulfilling family demands. As seen in the case study, these relationships are not well managed as parents seem to fail in their obligations. I had to think deeply and carefully to balance the relationships to acquire a great sense of individuals and family values. At the same time, values which differ from each other should be considered (Paul & Elder, 2013). Moreover, setting goals as well as expectations guided me towards balancing the power relationships and deciding on time usage. Also, I managed my time and prioritized family and friends to balance on power relationships.  Finally, I managed power relationships through effective planning and communication. For instance, daily schedules should be well-structured to ensure the individual and family needs are fulfilled.

Certainly, this assignment has provided me with a chance to learn some new concepts and interact with the reading materials. It was interesting to note that drought comes with multiple challenges. As a result of the drought, the local people have become unwelcoming and George has lost his job and become abusive to his wife and children. At times, parenting can be difficult as seen from this case, and the challenges that are associated with family problems can be painful (Briggs, 2016). Such problems, however, always have a solution and peace can be restored. Restoring peace in times of requires systematic approaches that will be effective in helping the cases of both the parents and the children. In addition to this, when dealing with family-related issues, in particular, it is always wise to determine the root cause of their problems as they will assist in solving the matter better. A poor comprehension of the matter at hand will definitely lead to poor conclusions which will negatively impact the outcome.

References

Adams, R. (Ed.). (2011).Working with children and families: knowledge and contexts for practice. Palgrave Macmillan.

Briggs, L. (2016). Chapter 12: Collaborative assessment from a cross-cultural perspective. In J. Maidment & R. Egan (Eds), Practice services in social work and welfare: More than just common sense (3rd ed., pp. 179-195). Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin

Bullis, R. K. (2013). Spirituality in social work practice. Taylor & Francis.

Clark, R. M. (2015). Family life and school achievement: Why poor black children succeed or fail. University of Chicago Press.

Covey, S. R. (2013). The 7 habits of highly effective people: Powerful lessons in personal change. Simon and Schuster.

Eekelaar, J. (2017). Family law and personal life. Oxford University Press.

Epstein, C. F., Seron, C., Oglensky, B., & Saute, R. (2014). The part-time paradox: Time norms, professional life, family and gender. Routledge.

Healy, K. (2012). Working with families. In Social work methods and s******s: The essential foundations of practice (pp. 113-136). NY: Palgrave Macmillan.

Healy, K. (2014). Social work theories in context: Creating frameworks for practice. Palgrave Macmillan.

Jones, F., Burke, R. J., & Westman, M.. (2013). Work-life balance: A psychological perspective. Psychology Press.

McMahon, C., & Camberis, A. L. (2017). Family as the primary context of children’s development.

Moos, R. (2013). Coping with life crises: An integrated approach. Springer.

Morley, C. (2016). Chapter 11: Critically examining the process of risk assessment. In J. Maidment & R. Egan (Eds), Practice services in social work and welfare: More than just common sense (3rd ed., pp. 164-178). Crows Nest, NSW: Allen & Unwin

Parker, K., & Wang, W. (2013). Modern parenthood: Roles of moms and dads converge as they balance work and family. Pew Research Center.

Paul, R., & Elder, L. (2013). Critical thinking: Tools for taking charge of your professional and personal life. Pearson Education.

Reisch, M., & Jani, J. S. (2012). The new politics of social work practice: Understanding context to promote change. The British Journal of Social Work, 42(6), 1132-1150.

Strong, B., & Cohen, T. F. (2013). The marriage and family experience: Intimate relationships in a changing society. Cengage Learning.

Sue, D. W., Rasheed, M. N., & Rasheed, J. M. (2015). Multicultural social work practice: A competency-based approach to diversity and social justice. John Wiley & Sons.

Turner, F. J. (2017). Social work treatment: Interlocking theoretical approaches. Oxford University Press.

Wattis, L., Standing, K., & Yerkes, M. A. (2013). Mothers and work–life balance: exploring the contradictions and complexities involved in work–family negotiation. Community, Work & Family, 16(1), 1-19.