Dismantling Structural Racism and White Supremacy Through Course Assignments That Integrate Faith and Learning in Social Work Curriculum

• Published in: Social work and Christianity 2022-04, Vol.49 (1), p.26-47
• Main Authors: Boamah, Daniel A, Jones-Eversley, Sharon D, Harmon, Dana K, Adedoyin, A Christson, Burton, Kelsey Leann, Sanders, Sharon, Jones, Christopher A, Nwachuku, Brittany J, Moore, Sharon E
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bible; Christianity; Critical race theory; Curricula; Faith; Racism; Religion; Religiosity; Religious beliefs; Social construction; Social justice; Social work education; Spirituality; Students; Systemic racism; Teachers; White supremacy
• ISSN: 0737-5778; 1944-7779
• DOI: 10.34043/swc.v49i.274

Recently, there has been a growing interest in the nexus of faith and the triumvirate of learning, practice, and research. Social work educators have not consistently challenged social work students to consider the importance of the constructs of faith, religiosity, and spirituality in their own learning and lives. The acknowledgment of racism as an unjust social construct is the essential social justice focus of this paper. The authors present an example of a course assignment that may be used to help students explore the significance and meaning of faith, equity, and spirituality in others and in their own lives. The Critical Race Theory (CRT) is used as a theoretical framework to discuss how educators can prepare students to have a generalist perspective that is humane and social justice driven. The ethical duty to acknowledge, explore, and teach students faith in the social work curriculum is a key aspect of the biopsychosocial-spiritual assessment.