Putting Your Solution into Practice, Center for Community Health and Development. Dale, D., &Mitiguy, N. Planning, for a change: A citizen's guide to creative planning and program development. How much, or to what extent, is this problem occurring? helping neighbors and communities in trouble, Which examples describe actions that fulfill civic responsibilities, not civic duties? 2. Or, if you are working with a large group of people who cannot easily see what you are writing, use two pieces. Let's consider . Rich and poor. These mostly relate to quality of life and economic opportunity that directly and immediately impact people's lives in a place. During the height of the debate, Americans surveyed estimated the amount of their taxes going to welfare at as much as 60%. Which community issue are you most interested in solving? If you do succeed in bringing about the solution you are working on, what are the possible consequences? . Women still lag behind men in wages and top leadership positions held, although they are now more likely to attain a college degree. Learning it takes courage. It's the intellectual equivalent of bungee jumping: once you've leaped off the bridge, there's no going back, and you have to trust that the cord will hold you. All Rights Reserved. \hline \text { ANOVA } & {\text { df }} & {\text { SS }} & {\text { MS }} & F & \text { Significance } F \\ Worldwide, 97 million people become impoverished by seeking needed medical care, as reported by the World Health Organization (WHO). Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Critical thinking is a vital skill in health, human service, and community work. Clearly, these two exercises are meant for different times. Write the problem statement, and ask participants, "Why does this problem exist?" As a result, the towns refused to deal with the transit authority, even though it was now under completely new -- and ethical -- management. San Francisco, CA: Author. ), Define the problem in terms of needs, and not solutions. They're all right to an extent: critical thinking is all of these things, and more. Relational. These surroundings encompass the interplay of all dwelling species, climate, climate, and natural sources that have an effect on human survival and economic activity. Despite recent anti-bullying initiatives, more than 20% of American students report being bullied. Actually using critical thinking to solve problems and address issues is, of course, the reason for learning it. Social stratification. You're now ready to go on to generating and choosing solutions, which are the next steps in the problem-solving process, and the focus of the following section. Lawson, L., Donant, F., &Lawson, J. Some of these religious groups also tend to be healthy and glued together by the values they share. All of these issues are problems that affect many people in a society, rather than problems that affect only a few. These community problems would ultimately distract the government from focusing on national problems. The gatekeepers are the primary people that would be most interested in solving the problem in the community. Avery, M., Auvine, B., Streibel, B., & Weiss, L. (1981). 1 The PACER National Bullying Prevention Center indicates that obesity and other appearance issues are among the top reasons children report being bullied. Donate now. . When you come across a politician's statement in the media, do you accept it at face value? This will give you a view that's as nearly objective as possible, making it more likely that you'll be able to interpret information accurately and resolve problems and issues effectively. At present, 22% of animal species are at risk of extinction. Raise money for animals. Discussing social issues can be contentious, but it's also an important part of making progress on these problems facing society. A damaged environment is one of the worst things possible. 1. Many do not have shelter, a basic human need for survival. stay informed on important issues by reading or watching news Volunteering for public service, citizen should volunteer for public service: citizens should participate in society by going above and beyond the duties required of them: Ways to be a good citizen include: The emphasis in what follows is on the second set of assumptions, that which refers to the problem itself. Brainstorm all possible solutions to the problem. create a claim identifies solution In your family, a close friend of yours or your boss or co-worker at work can be a problem with your relationship. Climate change is one of the most devastating problems the world has ever faced. It demands that you be supportive, encouraging, and honest, and that you act as role model, constantly demonstrating the process as you discuss it. You'd need all the information before you could reasonably address the issue. Then, you write three body paragraphs, each discussing a single solution. You can specify conditions of storing and accessing cookies in your browser. NASW's goal is twofold: encourage those who can vote to exercise their right and work to eliminate barriers to participation. Here are only five of the many issues I think the government needs to address to move in the right direction, since it feels like we've been moving backwards since November 2016. Helping others learn to think critically can take place in a classroom -- it's essentially what higher education is all about -- but it's probably even more common in other situations. 1994-2023The University of Kansas. Citizens uphold our system of government by voting. preference for living in a close-knit group. Learn the process of examining, analyzing, questioning, and challenging situations, issues, and information of all kinds. You can't trust members of that ethnic group, because one of them stole my wallet. voting in local, state, and national elections Analyzing Root Causes of Problems: The "But Why?" to remain available. We are currently facing the most critical environmental issues in human history. These immigration-related stresses affect many people. Even small children can learn about such things as cause and effect -- a specific event having a specific result -- through a combination of their own experimentation and experience and of being introduced to more complex ideas by others. Although many Americans feel their leaders are the biggest problem they face, governments, corporations, and communities are working to fix some of the top social issues. Without information that's logically consistent and at least close to complete, you can't draw conclusions that will help you effectively address an issue. Underemployment and unemployment. First, we'll consider the nature of problems in general, and then, more specifically, on clarifying and defining the problem you are working on. Yes, a student in educational institutes faces various issues. Common social issues that impact large portions of society include: Poverty Homelessness Climate change Overpopulation Immigration stress Civil rights Racial discrimination Gender inequality Health care availability Childhood obesity Bullying Poor leadership Poverty and Homelessness Poverty and homelessness are worldwide problems. While the magnitude of that thought can be extremely overwhelming, don't allow yourself to feel helpless, not knowing where to begin. Every day, there are health epidemics affecting our populations. When people are sick or hurt, they need access to medical care to get better. While infectious disease experts continue to learn about new strains and treatment options, the COVID-19 pandemic is a top public health concern of 2021. The word "critical" here means approaching everything as if you were a critic -- questioning it, analyzing it, putting it in context, looking at its origins. Have people's perceptions of the problem changed significantly? Neither of these examples "proves" anything, because it's based on only one instance, and there's no logical reason to assume it holds for a larger group. Generally, problems that affect groups of people - children, teenage mothers, the mentally ill, the poor - can at least be addressed and in many cases lessened using the process outlined in this Chapter. Racial and religious discrimination are the two significant social issues in America, Africa, and the world. When you are gathering information, you will probably hear all four types of information, and all can be important. A slightly smaller share (13%) say this is a major problem in the suburbs. Finally, apply the criteria to the alternatives you've come up with, and decide which is most likely to achieve the results you want. Morrison, E. (1994). A problem-solving resume should be specific when it comes to listing these skills. It does, however, take time, both to formulate and to fully analyze the problem. Common social issues that impact large portions of society include: Poverty and homelessness are worldwide problems. Analyzing Community Problems and Solutions, Section 1. They long to belong to supportive and accepting communities beyond their family. If all the evidence points to something being true, your emotional reaction that it's not true isn't helpful, no matter how badly you want to believe it. Updated . Citizens also have the opportunity to go beyond their civic duty and set an example of model citizenship. Honolulu, HI: Neighborhood Justice Center of Honolulu, Inc. Interaction Associates (1987). Political issues are problems and opportunities that get attention such that they influence political choices such as platforms, policies, votes, donations, political participation and protests. The Constitution requires all citizens to vote by law. Teens' social media and texting habits are changing the way they communicate, date, learn, sleep, exercise, and more. You might determine that that situation would require that there be sex education available through a variety of sources; that condom dispensers should be placed in various public places, and that pharmacies and convenience stores display birth control devices in ways attractive to teens; that every teen needed to have at least one caring adult in his or her life; and that the community valued youth and their contributions. 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