ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides the history and status of social work and social work education in Vietnam, in the context of neighboring Southeast Asian countries. It describes the development of social work as an emerging profession in the rapidly changing economic context of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and explores the role international collaboration has played in its development. The book discusses the methods and findings of comprehensive needs assessment conducted during the first year of Social Work Education Enhancement Project (SWEEP). It addresses curriculum development in the international context, showing how SWEEP curriculum development activities comprised a model of developing social work curriculum internationally. The book examines the need for building leadership capacity to advance social work education in an international context with a focus on developing countries.
