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On 22nd September, professor Hilde Wågsås Afdal from Østfold University College in Norway, gave us an introduction to literature review. Conducting a literature review is often a part of a research process at advanced levels. However, there is variation in how systematic these reviews are. At the seminar, we learnt about the difference between scoping and systematic literature reviews, and we learnt how we can use different digital tools to conduct a literature review. The seminar was attended by almost 90 participants, including BSW, MSW and PhD students, as well as staff from all partner universities – in addition to guests from other institutions. You can find the slides from the presentation here.

About the Seminar

Many researchers, especially in professional disciplines, have a professional or personal experience from their field of study. This poses a number of challenges for the researcher. How should one relate to one’s own experiences from the field one is researching? How can one make use of these experiences in research and at the same time avoid biases? The seminar will help the resilient students reflect on how they situate themselves in their respective projects. These are some of the topics covered in this seminar for PhD-students where we have invited Cecilie Basberg Neumann to give an introduction about situatedness in research.

The students came away with many valuable insights to help them implement their tasks in the social work field. Here is what one student had to say:

It was a very important seminar for me, I had learnt a lot on how to situate myself in the project and reflect my position as a researcher. It made me reflect on my research topic and think of anticipated challenges that I may encounter and how to manage them.

Catherine Manda, PhD Student, Institute of Social Work, Tanzania

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I learned a lot during this session, like:

1. Before going to the field, the researcher has to make a work structure in a logical way emphasizing on that which is connected to own experience.

2. Personal experiences may be relevant to research. However, a researcher has to privilege objectivity taking into account vulnerability and academic experience to avoid bias.

Genereuse Mukayisenga, PhD Student, University of Rwanda

About the Facilitator – Professor Cecilie Neumann

RESILIENT’s PhD students will be attending a seminar on Situatedness at Oslo Met University on 2nd September during their visit to Norway.

About the Seminar

Many researchers, especially in professional disciplines, have a professional or personal experience from their field of study. This poses a number of challenges for the researcher. How should one relate to one’s own experiences from the field one is researching? How can one make use of these experiences in research and at the same time avoid biases? The seminar will help the resilient students reflect on how they situate themselves in their respective projects. These are some of the topics covered in this seminar for PhD-students where we have invited Cecilie Basberg Neumann to give an introduction about situatedness in research.

About Professor Cecilie Neumann

Cecilie Basberg Neumann is a professor at the Department of Social Sciences at Oslomet, where she researches topics related to health, work and social inequality. Together with Iver B. Neumann she has written the books Forskeren i forskningsprosessen. En metodebok om situering https://www.cappelendamm.no/_forskeren-i-forskningsprosessen-cecilie-basberg-neumann-iver-b-neumann-9788202366407 and Power, Culture and situated research methodology. Autobiography, Field, Text https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007%2F978-3-319-59217-6

Gender Webinar Recording

On 21st-25th March 2022 the project committee and PhD students all met at Makerere University in Kampala. It was our first meeting in-person since the project started up and we were glad to get to know each other better. We also got the chance to meet the MSW students at Makerere University. The gathering at Makerere marked the beginning of the PhD period for our students. They all presented their projects and received feedback from project members and supervisors. In addition, two seminars were held: Researching everyday lives, facilitated by Ann Christin Nilsen and Community social labs, facilitated by Janestic Twikirize. A part of the social program was a visit to Ndere Cultural Centre for an encounter with local musicians and dancers.

On March 1^st the RESILIENT project organized a webinar on research ethics (https://resilient.uia.no/seminars/). The webinar was attended by approximately 80 participants across the four partner universities, including also participants from universities in Turkey and Germany.  

March 1^st

Research requires many ethical considerations. Researchers have a responsibility to adopt, reflect on and behave according to research ethical principles and guidelines vis-à-vis the people that participate in and/or are affected by research, the research community and society at large. Ethical reflexivity should be an integral part of any research process, from beginning to end.

At this workshop we invite the participants to reflect on and discuss research ethics. The participants will get an introduction to what research ethics are, and why we need such ethics.

Time: March 1^st at 8-11 (Norway)/9-12 (Rwanda)/ 10-13 (Uganda/Tanzania)

Programme:

8-8.15: Welcome and presentation of participants
By Ann Christin Nilsen, Project leader RESILIENT

8.15-9: Research ethics – what and why?
By Professor Elisabeth Staksrud, former leader of the Norwegian national committee on research ethics in humanities and social sciences.

9-9.15: Break

9.15-10: Research ethical dilemmas. Group work and Q&A
By Elisabeth Staksrud

10- 10.15: Break

10.15 – 11: Research ethics – guidelines and procedures
By Professor Stella Neema, Department of Sociology and Chair of the Makerere University School of Social Sciences Research Ethics Committee

The RESILIENT team participated at the International Conference on Social Work organized by the University of Rwanda from 23rd up to 26th November 2021. The theme of the conference was: “Towards Ubuntu and Sustainable Development: Social Work position in achieving SDGs”. Conference website: https://www.ubuntusocialwork.live/welcome/
At the conference, the RESILIENT team presented preliminary finds from a review of social work curricula.

Abstract: Re-imagining social work education in East Africa

Social work is an emerging professionalized field in most of Africa. As an academic discipline, social work builds on a broad and interdisciplinary spectrum of theories, whereof most are “Eurocentric”. In line with postcolonial thought, social work’s epistemic complicity with empire cannot be left unacknowledged. For social work theories to be relevant and responsive to local communities, they have to be contextualized, challenged and advanced. We argue that advancement of social work as an academic professional discipline in Africa requires an attentiveness to how theoretical knowledge can be indigenized. Indigenization is a contested term. In our usage, it refers to how social work can be culturally relevant and respond to diverse local contexts. We understand indigenization not as a replacement of dominant (colonial) knowledge systems, but as weaving together different knowledge systems so that learners can come to understand, develop and challenge both. We address the following questions: What does indigenization of social work mean and what does it imply for the education of social work? What is the current situation like at three East African universities with social work programmes, and what are the challenges and opportunities for the emerging professionalization of social work in these contexts? Empirically, the article will build on a review of the curriculum of undergraduate programmes in social work at three East African universities and, for comparison, one Norwegian university. Theoretically, it is informed by literature on indigenization in the legacy of standpoint epistemology.

Authors:
Janestic Twikirize, Makerere University, Uganda
Eric Awich Ocen, Makerere University, Uganda
Zena Mnasi, Institute of Social Work, Tanzania
Charles Kalinganire, University of Rwanda, Rwanda
Cecilie Revheim, University of Agder, Norway
Ann Christin Nilsen, University of Agder, Norway