SHZ 529 - Current Problems of Human Rights

This course aims to enable master’s students to examine and critically evaluate contemporary human rights issues from the perspectives of social work and social policy, based on the historical, philosophical, legal, and social foundations of human rights.

The course aims to enable students to analyze contemporary social issues on the basis of human rights, social justice, equality, and human dignity and to evaluate the effects of human rights violations on individuals, families, groups, and societies at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels. In this context, rights-based, preventive, and advocacy-oriented approaches in social work will be linked to contemporary human rights issues.

The course also aims to enable students to evaluate contemporary human rights issues such as migration and forced displacement, poverty and social exclusion, access to rights for disadvantaged groups, discrimination, digitalization and artificial intelligence, privacy and data security, disasters and crises, and cultural and social diversity within the context of national and international developments.

Within this framework, students are expected to relate national and international human rights instruments and protection mechanisms to contemporary issues, compare practices across different countries, and critically and academically evaluate rights-based social work and social policy approaches to contemporary human rights challenges.

This course examines contemporary human rights issues emerging in the 21st century on the basis of the historical, philosophical, legal, and social foundations of human rights. Human rights issues are addressed from social work and social policy perspectives at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels. The course also examines national and international human rights mechanisms, access to rights for disadvantaged groups, migration, poverty, digitalization, artificial intelligence, disasters, and crises through rights-based and comparative perspectives.

·     Historical, Philosophical, Legal, and Social Foundations of Human Rights

·     The Changing Nature of Human Rights and Contemporary Human Rights Issues in the 21st Century

·     Relationships Between Human Rights, Social Work, and Social Policy

·     National and International Human Rights Instruments, Conventions, and Protection Mechanisms

·     Evaluation of Rights-Based, Charity-Based, and Obligation-Based Approaches in the Context of Contemporary Human Rights Issues

·     Social Justice, Equality, Human Dignity, Discrimination, and Social Exclusion

·     Analysis of Human Rights Issues at the Micro, Mezzo, and Macro Levels within the Ecosystem Approach

·     Ethical Issues and Professional Responsibility in the Context of Human Rights

·     Cultural and Religious Diversity, Intercultural Interaction, and Human Rights

·     Contemporary Human Rights Issues in the Context of Migration, Asylum, Refugees, and Forced Displacement

·     Access to Rights for Children, Women, Older Adults, Persons with Disabilities, and Other Disadvantaged Groups

·     Human Rights Dimensions of Poverty, Employment, Social Exclusion, and Social Protection

·     Human Rights in the Age of Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence: Digital Inequality, Privacy, Ethics, and Data Security

·     Contemporary Human Rights Issues in Disaster, Crisis, and Trauma Situations

·     Advocacy, Participation, Inter-Institutional Collaboration, and Multidisciplinary Approaches in the Protection of Human Rights

·     Analysis of National and International Social Policies from a Human Rights Perspective

·     Contemporary Human Rights Issues from International and Comparative Perspective

·     Anadolu Üniversitesi Açıköğretim Fakültesi. (t.y.). Sosyal politika. Anadolu Üniversitesi Yayınları.

·     Ankara Üniversitesi Açık ve Uzaktan Eğitim Fakültesi. (t.y.). Sosyal politika. Ankara Üniversitesi.

·     Aysan, M. F. (2020). Geleceğin Türkiye’sinde sosyal politikalar. İLKE İlim Kültür Eğitim Vakfı.

·     Canatan, K. (2014). İnsan fenomeni: İnsan doğası hakkında dini ve felsefi soruşturmalar. Açılım Kitap.

·     Carvalho, M. I., & Albuquerque, C. (2025). Human rights-based social work perspective, ethics, and practice: An exploratory literature review. Journal of Human Rights and Social Work, 10, 647–661. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41134-025-00393-9

·     Gedik, M. (2021). AHSEN-Sosyal hizmet modeli: İslâmi sosyal hizmet yaklaşımı. Efe Akademi Yayınları.

·     Gencer, T. E., & Cılga, İ. (2017). Sosyal hizmeti yeniden düşünmek: Sosyal çalışmalar üzerine eleştirel tartışmalar. Nika Yayınevi.

·     Gómez-Ciriano, E. J., Martínez-Herrero, I., & Cummins, I. (2026). Human rights in social work: Key themes for an emerging paradigm in education, practice and research. Policy Press.

·     Güngör, F. (2019). Hakkın elinden tutmak: İnsan haklarını yeniden düşünmek. Nobel Akademik Yayıncılık.

·     Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights. (1994). Human rights and social work: A manual for schools of social work and the social work profession (Professional Training Series No. 1). United Nations.

·     Thompson, N. (2016). Kuram ve uygulamada sosyal hizmeti anlamak (B. Yıldırım, Çev.; 3. bs.). Dipnot Yayınları.

·     Tokol, A., & Alper, Y. (2013). Sosyal politika (4. bs.). Dora Yayıncılık

·     Ahn, E., Choi, M., Fowler, P., & Song, I. H. (2025). Artificial intelligence (AI) literacy for social work: Implications for core competencies. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research, 16(1), 9–26. https://doi.org/10.1086/735187

·     Cummins, I., Gómez-Ciriano, E. J., & Martínez-Herrero, I. (2026). Human rights and the challenges of digital social work. In E. J. Gómez-Ciriano, I. Martínez-Herrero, & I. Cummins (Eds.), Human rights in social work: Key themes for an emerging paradigm in education, practice and research (pp. 157–171). Policy Press. https://doi.org/10.56687/9781447374145-012

·     Lee, J. Y., Pace, G. T., Cha, H., Rao, S., Hahm, H. C., An, R., & Denby-Brinson, R. (2026). Commentary: ETHICS—An ethical framework for artificial intelligence (AI) use in social work research. Journal of the Society for Social Work and Research, 16(4), 699–711. https://doi.org/10.1086/739116

·     Mabefam, M., Meribe, N., & Archibong, E. (2025). Human rights perspectives in social work practice with African immigrants in Australia: ‘It starts with respecting them and making them feel like humans’. The British Journal of Social Work, 55(5), 2541–2559. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjsw/bcaf060

·     Martínez-Herrero, I., Cummins, I., & Gómez-Ciriano, E. J. (2026). An intersectional approach to human rights in social work. In E. J. Gómez-Ciriano, I. Martínez-Herrero, & I. Cummins (Eds.), Human rights in social work: Key themes for an emerging paradigm in education, practice and research (pp. 95–110). Policy Press. https://doi.org/10.56687/9781447374145-008

·     Nyahunda, L., & Ncube, E. M. (2025). Positioning social work roles in disaster and climate resilience endeavours in South Africa. Journal of Human Rights and Social Work, 10, 265–277. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41134-025-00378-8

·     Ricciardelli, L. A., Loy, A., & Bantry-White, E. (2026). Preserving the integrity of evidence-based social work in the age of AI: A proposed ethical framework. Journal of Evidence-Based Social Work, 23(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/26408066.2025.2587092

·     Temel Ulusal ve Uluslararası İnsan Hakları Belgeleri

·     Avrupa Konseyi. (1950). İnsan haklarını ve ana hürriyetleri korumaya dair sözleşme (Avrupa İnsan Hakları Sözleşmesi).

·     Birleşmiş Milletler. (1948). İnsan Hakları Evrensel Beyannamesi.

·     Birleşmiş Milletler. (1966). Ekonomik, Sosyal ve Kültürel Haklara İlişkin Uluslararası Sözleşme.

·     Birleşmiş Milletler. (1966). Medeni ve Siyasi Haklara İlişkin Uluslararası Sözleşme.

·     Birleşmiş Milletler. (1979). Kadınlara Karşı Her Türlü Ayrımcılığın Önlenmesi Sözleşmesi.

·     Birleşmiş Milletler. (1989). Çocuk Haklarına Dair Sözleşme.

·     Birleşmiş Milletler. (2006). Engellilerin Haklarına İlişkin Sözleşme.

·     Türkiye Cumhuriyeti. (1982). Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Anayasası.

Rules and Reminders

• Attendance/participation of at least 70% is mandatory for this course.

• By the midterm (Week 8), students whose attendance falls below 70% will receive a 10% deduction from their course grade.

• By the final exam (Week 16), students whose overall attendance is below 70% will have their assignments deemed invalid. In such cases, mere participation in group work will not be considered sufficient.

Reminders Regarding Assignments

• In group assignments, students may receive different grades within the same group. Grading will be based on each student’s contribution to the assignment and their performance during the presentation (knowledge and command of the subject).

• Assignments required for this course are as follows:

  • A written report (Word document) in place of the midterm exam,

  • A presentation (PowerPoint file) in place of the final exam, submitted in digital format.

• Printed submission will only be required in special cases, which will be decided in consultation with the students.

• Midterm (substitute) assignments, whether individual or group, must be submitted as digital Word files by the specified date and time.

• All assignments must be prepared in accordance with the IZU Thesis Writing Guidelines. (Second-year students are also expected to apply the digital literacy skills they acquired in the Computer Literacy course.)

Plagiarism Check

• All assignments will be checked through the TURNITIN plagiarism detection system.

• Assignments with a similarity rate below 20% will be accepted for evaluation.

• Assignments with a similarity rate above 20% will be subject to grade deductions, in line with the criteria outlined in the grading rubric, depending on the level of similarity.

• Further details can be found in the following resource: Turnitin Plagiarism Evaluation Video.

Rules and Reminders Regarding Assignments

• Midterm and final assessments may be conducted through individual and/or group assignments determined by the course instructor.
• Individual and/or group assignments prepared for the midterm assessment will be submitted as academic written reports in Word format through the designated digital platform by the specified date and time.
• For the final assessment, students may be required to prepare and deliver a PowerPoint presentation based on individual and/or group work in accordance with the course schedule.
• In group assignments, group members are not necessarily required to receive the same grade. Students will be evaluated individually based on their contribution to the assignment, fulfillment of assigned duties and responsibilities, mastery of the subject, ability to develop academic content, and presentation performance.
• Assignments must be prepared in accordance with the relevant graduate-level academic writing requirements and thesis writing guidelines of Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University. Students are expected to comply with academic writing, citation, referencing, and bibliography requirements.
• All sources used in assignments must be cited in accordance with academic ethical principles and APA 7th edition citation and referencing guidelines.
• Assignments prepared within the scope of the course will be submitted digitally. If deemed necessary, the course instructor may require the submission of a printed copy.
• Submitted assignments may be checked using the Turnitin similarity detection system. The similarity report will be considered one of the criteria used to evaluate the academic originality of the work.
• The Turnitin similarity rate is expected to be below 20%. Assignments with a similarity rate above 20% will be evaluated separately by considering the nature of the similarity, citation practices, direct quotations, and principles of academic integrity. Grade deductions may be applied when necessary.
• Plagiarism, using quotations without proper citation, submitting another student’s work as one’s own, misrepresenting sources, and other practices that violate academic integrity principles will not be accepted.
• Students are responsible for submitting their assignments by the specified date and time. Late submissions will be evaluated in accordance with the course assessment criteria unless the student provides a valid and documented excuse.
• Students are expected to use current scientific literature, national and international human rights instruments, and the required and supplementary course materials in their assignments and presentations.