University of Minnesota, Duluth

SW 8051 - School  Social Work

Fall 2002

3:00-4:50 p.m., Wednesday

Bohannon Hall 103

Office Hours

Thursday, 10:00-11:00 a.m. 

I am happy to schedule appointments with you at other times as well.

Course Description

This course presents an overview of social work practice in educational settings, including the roles and functions of social workers within a complex ecological system. The course also addresses skills and knowledge needed by social workers in a school setting.

Course Objectives

Required Texts

Bye, L. & Alvarez, M. (2006). School Social Work: Theory to Practice. Belmont, CA: Thompson Brooks/Cole.

DESCRIPTION OF ASSIGNMENTS

Meeting Observation

Social and Developmental History

Conduct a social and developmental history on a child and write up a summary report with conclusions and recommendations. All identifying information should be made up to protect the identity of the people involved in this assignment.

The social and developmental history should include:

Research Paper on Interventions

Select a specific problem that students, preschool through high school graduation might face. For example, the problem could be institutional racism, poverty, homelessness, learning disabilities, depression, parental drug or alcohol abuse, physical or sexual abuse, neglect, eating disorders, school phobia, attention defect, emotional illness, gang involvement, teen age pregnancy or other problems. Explain the cultural competence that will be necessary to intervene effectively with the problem. Address how the strengths perspective and the generalist social work model would influence your choice of levels (micro, mezzo or macro) at which to intervene. Discuss how the environment such as an urban or rural setting would influence your choice of intervention.

This paper should be between 8-10 pages in length and should have an introduction, main body and summary. In the introduction you will give an overview of what you will cover in your paper and explain the problem you are addressing. Cite the professional literature on the prevalence, nature, causes, and treatment of the problem. Explain the role that school social workers might play in addressing the problem and any ethical dilemmas they may encounter. Describe the ways the interventions have been evaluated and empirical evidence that the interventions are effective. Be sure to follow APA guidelines and address implications for school social work practice. In the body of your paper include citations from a minimum of 6 research articles from the professional literature and list them in the reference section.

Presentation of Research Paper

Presentations should be 20 minutes long and should be well-organized, informative and interesting. They should include the following:

Weekly Written Reflection on The Reading

The weekly written reflection on the reading provides an opportunity for you to process your thoughts and feelings about the material covered.  I am looking for more than a summary of the concepts presented in the reading.  The weekly reflection needs to include your critical reaction to the issues covered.  A hard copy of the reflections will be handed in every week at the beginning of class and should address readings assigned for that class. You need to clearly state which content you are addressing.  The reactions are to be dated, typed and no longer than one page. Late reactions will not receive credit but must be turned in to meet the course requirement. Reaction papers will be graded on a 0 to 4 scale.

Guidelines for ALL written assignments

All written assignments should be typed, double-spaced, have a one-inch margin and be printed in a 12-point font.  They are to have page numbers and be stapled together.  Check your papers for errors in spelling and grammar.  Spell out entire words rather than using contractions such as “weren’t” or “didn’t.”  Be sure to cite your text and the other readings in the body of your paper using the American Psychological Association (APA) format.  Remember that when you use the APA format you need to cite the page number when you use a direct quote. Also, include a complete list of references.  Written work with errors will lose points.

The instructor is willing to read first drafts of papers and give feedback up to (but not after) five days before the due date.  Late papers are not accepted unless special arrangements have been made with the instructor.  Requests for an extension on papers must be submitted in writing at least 5 days before the assignment is due.

Written reports will be graded according to the following:                                                                    

Attendance and Class Participation

Class participation is important because the exchange of ideas is necessary in the quest for knowledge.  Active class participation facilitates learning not only for the individual participating but for the other class members as well.  In order to obtain full credit for participation students need to attend all classes.  If you are not in class, you will not receive credit for participation during that period.  Students who miss more than two classes will be at risk of failing the course.

Developing the ability to participate in a group discussion is essential in the social work field. In class students are expected at all times to demonstrate courteous listening skills.  In other words, when someone is speaking, others are quiet and attentive. 

Class participation will be graded as follows:

A = Excellent Participation includes frequent and appropriate contributions which:

B = Regular contributions that are not so integrative or interpretive such as:

C = Little contribution such as:

D = Minimal participation such as:

F = No participation.

Course Requirements

Disabilities

I am eager to make accommodations to guarantee to students with disabilities access to class sessions, course material, and the activities of the class. You are encouraged to contact the Access Center-Disability Services to discuss and arrange reasonable accommodations. In addition, please let me know as soon as possible if you have a disability for which accommodations will be requested.

Ground Rules for Class Discussion

We can assume that discrimination exists in many forms (e.g. sexism, racism, classism, ageism, homophobia, anti-Semitism, ableism, etc.).  Any critical understanding of these various "isms" means that we need to recognize that we have been taught misinformation about our own group as well as about members of other groups.  This is true for dominant (e.g., white, male, upper class, heterosexual, able-bodied, etc.) and subordinated (e.g., people of color, women, poor, and working class, gay/lesbian, disabled, Jew, etc.) group members.  Based on these assumptions, then, let us agree that we cannot be blamed for misinformation we have learned, but we will be held accountable for repeating information after we have learned otherwise.  People and groups are not to be blamed for their subordinate positions.  Let us assume that people are always doing the best they can.  Let us actively pursue information about our own groups and those of others.  Let us share information about our own group with other members of the class but never demean, devalue, or in any other way put down people for their own experiences.  We each have an obligation to actively combat myths and stereotypes about our own groups so that we can break down the walls which prohibit group cooperation and group gain.  Let us create a safe environment for open discussion.

Schedule of Topics and Reading Assignments

Selected Readings

Atlas, R.S. & Pepler, D.J. (1998). Observations of bullying in the classroom. The Journal of Educational Research, 92, 86-99.

Bowen, N.D. (1999). A role for school social workers in promoting student success through school-family partnerships. Social Work in Education, 21, (1), 34-47.

Brown, R.T. & Sawyer, M.G. (1998). Medications for school-age children: Effects on learning and behavior. New York: Guilford.

Corcoran, J. (1998). Solution-focused practice with middle and high school at-risk youths. Social Work in Education, 20, 232-243.

Desselle, D. & Perlmutter, L. (1997). Navigating two cultures: Deaf children, self-esteem, and parents' communications patterns. Social Work in Education, 19, (1), 23-30.

Elias, M.J. & Tobias, S.E. (1996). Social problem solving: Interventions in the schools. New York: Guilford.

Epstein, M.H., Kutash, K. & Duchnowski, A. (1998). Outcomes for children & youth with behavioral and emotional disorders and their families: Programs & evaluations best practices. Austin, TX: Pro-ed.

Ford, J. & Sutphen, R. D., (1996). Early intervention to improve attendance in elementary school for at-risk children: A pilot program. Social Work in Education, 18, (2), 95-102.

Franklin, C. (1995). Culturally relevant school programs for American Indian children and families. Social Work in Education, 17, (3), 183-193.

Glasser, W. (1997). A new look at school failure and school success. Phi Delta Kappa, 78, 597-603.

Goren, S.G. (1996). Child protection and the school social worker. In R. Constable, J.P. Flynn, & S. McDonald, EDS), School social work; Practice and research perspectives (3rd Ed., pp. 355-366), Chicago: Lyceum.

Grant, D. & Haynes, D. (1995). A developmental framework for cultural competence training with children. Social Work in Education, 17, (3), 171-182.

Guetzloe, E. (1997). The power of positive relationships: Mentoring programs in the school and community. Preventing School Failure, 41, (3), 100-104.

Kopels, S. (1992). Confidentiality and the school social worker. Social Work in Education, 15, (4), 203-205.

Lewis, M.R. (1998). The many faces of school social work practice: Results from a research partnership. Social Work in Education, 20, 177-190.

Margolin, S. (2001). Interventions for nonaggressive peer-rejected children and adolescents: A review of the literature. Children & Schools, 23, (3), 143-159.

MacDonald, G., Sheldon, B. & Gillespie, J. (1992). Contemporary studies of the effectiveness of social work. British Journal of Social Work, 22, (6), 615-643.

Mash, E. J. & Terdal, L.G. (1988). Behavioral assessment of childhood disorders (2nd Ed). New York: The Guilford Press.

Nastasi, B.K. & DeZolt, D.M. (1994). School interventions for children of alcoholics. New York: Guilford.

Palmer, T. (1995). Programmatic and non programmatic aspects of successful intervention: New direction for research. Crime & Delinquency, 41, (1), 100-131.

NASW. (1996) Social work code of ethics. Washington, DC: Author

Pryor, C. (1996). Techniques for assessing family-school connections. Social Work in Education, 18, (2), 85-93.

Raines, J. (1996). Appropriate vs. least restrictive: Educational policies and students with disabilities. Social Work in Education, 18, 113-127.

Rathvon, N. (1999). Effective school interventions: Strategies for enhancing academic achievement and social competence. New York: Guilford.

Sanders, D. (1999). Classroom observation: An instrument for assessment. In R. Constable, S. McDonald, & J.P. Flynn (Eds.). School social work practice and research perspectives (2nd Ed.). Chicago: Lyceum.

Senge, P. (2000). Schools that learn: A fifth discipline field book for educators, parents, and everyone who cares about education. New York: Doubleday.

Singgham, M. (1998). The canary in the mine; The achievement gap between black and white students.Phi Delta Kappa, September, 9-15.

Toy, J. (1991). Coming out groups. Social Work in Education, 13, (4), 257-264.

Underwood, M., Dunne-Maxim, K., & Ahrens, R. (1995). Managing sudden violent loss in the schools. Social Work in Education, 17, 125-128.

Wall, J.C. (1996). Homeless children and their families: Delivery of educational and social services through school systems. Social Work in Education, 14, 177-183.

web resources:

This is an update regarding the World Wide Web Resources for Social Workers (WWWRSW) and Information for Practice (IP).

WWWRSW has been in operation since 1994 and continues to be located at:

http://www.nyu.edu/socialwork/wwwrsw/

WWWRSW has been substantially upgraded and currently contains 65,000 links. In the past year we removed approximately 2000 links to lower quality services and have added approximately 7000 new links. The majority of these links are to the "grey literature" - full text scientific, technical and policy reports. In addition, WWWRSW contains links to 2200 scholarly journals and newsletters, of which, 110 are to sites that provide full text articles. A wide range of links to relevant government agencies, educational institutions and professional organizations are also included. WWWRSW is updated daily.

Indiana's Standards for School Social Workers, http://www.sde.state.id.us/MOST/SocialWorker.htm

http://www.nsdc.org/library/jsd/peterson233.html Article by Kent Peterson on School Cullture

http://www.cmh.umn.edu Center for Mental Health

school based interventions http://www.interventioncentral.org/index.shtml#ideas