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It is now increasingly understood that there are different types of knowledge, all of which contribute to the ability of members of the children's workforce to do their jobs well. A helpful way of understanding the identity and range of these different sorts of knowledge has been suggested by SCIE in a SCIE Knowledge Review: 'Types and quality of knowledge in social care' (Pawson et al, 2003) which puts forward 5 types of knowledge.
These can be explored in more detail on the following page
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Knowledge Agency
Read through the different types of knowledge that make up the knowledge agency:
User Knowledge
Users of social care services are not passive recipients of 'treatment' but active participants who possess vital first hand knowledge gained from using services.
ATD Fourth World is an example of an organisation that helps to ensure that service voices are heard.
Practitioner Knowledge
Social care is conducted through the medium of practitioner's knowledge, some of it based on the worker's experience of working with families in similar backgrounds who face similar problems.
Organisational Knowledge
All modern organisations engage in governance and regulation, and these activities provide the broad knowledge frameworks that shape social care. Such materials furnish an overview of the operation of social services in the wider contexts of government agencies, local and regional authorities and local communities.
Some examples might be:
Children Act 2004
Children Act 2006
Every Child Matters publications
Research Knowledge
This knowledge is derived from empirical enquiry such as reports, evaluations, assessments both together combine to produce an evidence base.
Some examples might be:
- Commission on Families and the wellbeing of Children (2005)
- Department of Health (2001) The Children Act Now: Messages from Research. London: The Stationary Office.
- UNICEF (2007) Child Poverty in Perspective: An overview of child well-being in rich countries, The United Nations Children's Fund, 2007
Policy Community Knowledge
This form of knowledge sets social care in it's wider policy context, and means that vital knowledge about services exists in the broader policy community of ministries, the civil service and think tanks.
For example this knowledge might be generated through regular meetings with local MPs to ensure they are aware of community level issues in their debates in government.
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Practitioners will need to apply all these sorts of knowledge in the context of family work, and it is important for you to understand how this knowledge can and should contribute to your work with families who are coping with poverty. All this knowledge can be made available to you with the help of your agency, and in this way they can support you in your work with parents in poverty.
- Start page
- Types of Knowledge