SWK 110 Introduction to Social Work

Instructor Contact Information

Instructor Name:  Sheri Narin

Office Phone:  (336) 599 - 1181 ext. 424, Office Location: L130 on the Person County Campus.  Office Hours are posted by door.  Virtual office hour is announced in the weekly announcement.

Email Address:  narins@piedmontcc.edu

Fax:  (336) 598 – 0453

Secretary Phone: Nancy Watts, (336) 599-1181 ext. 437

Faculty Website Address: http://www2.piedmontcc.edu/faculty/narins

Course Information

Course Description:  This course examines the historical development, values, orientation, and professional standards of social work and focuses on the terminology and broader systems of social welfare. Emphasis is placed on the various fields of practice including those agencies whose primary function is financial assistance, corrections, mental health, and protective services. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of the knowledge, values, and skills of the social work professional.

Course Objectives:

1. Student will develop a timeline of the history of social welfare and social programs, and link that knowledge to evolution of current social welfare programs.
2. Student will identify, list and describe the central themes underlying social work.
3. Student will demonstrate the development of critical thinking skills through evaluating social welfare systems and programs and identifying strengths and weaknesses in the programs.
4. Student will identify at least two fields or settings of social work practice in which they are interested in working and identify at least two skills needed to work in those fields.
5. Student will identify at least three different needs/practices in working with each of the following special populations: women, lesbian, gay and bisexual people, children and youth, the elderly, and people with disabilities.
6. Student will identify at least three different needs/practices in working with each of the following special cultural populations: Asian Americans, Native Americans and Alaskan Natives, Mexican Americans, African Americans, and Puerto Ricans.
7. Student will develop an understanding of social work in other countries through contacting and getting information from a social worker in another country.
8. Student will compare and contrast social work in rural, urban, and suburban contexts.

Prerequisites and Co-requisites: None 

Course Topics: The course will cover the following topics in the order below:
Part I. A Social Worker Makes A difference

Module One: Orientation and Chapter One: A Child Welfare Case: The Social Worker in Action

Part II: Social Work in U.S. Society

Module Two: Chapter Two: Social Welfare: A Response to Human Need and Chapter Three: Social Work: A Comprehensive Helping Profession.

Module Three:  Chapter Four:  The Emergence of Social Work as a Profession.

Part III. Social Work Career Options

Module Four: Chapter Five: Entry to the Social Work Profession and Chapter Six: Fields of Social Work Practice

Module Five: Chapter Seven: Settings for Social Work Practice

Part IV. The Practice of Social Work

Module Six: Chapter Eight: Values and Ethics in Social Work

Module Seven: Chapter Nine: Competencies Required by Social Work Practice

Module Eight: Chapter Ten: The Role of Social Work in Prevention

Module Nine:  Chapter Eleven: Social Workers throughout the world and Chapter Twelve:  The Challenges for Social Workers in Rural America

Module Ten:  Chapter Thirteen: Domestic and International Gang Terrorism and Chapter Fourteen: Social Work with U.S. Causalities of the Middle East Wars

Part V. Social Work Practice with Special Populations

Module Eleven: Chapter Fifteen: Social Work Practice with Women and Chapter Sixteen: Social Work Practice with Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual People.

Module Twelve: Chapter Seventeen:  Social Work Practice with Children and Youth and Chapter Eighteen: Social Work Practice with Older Americans.

Module Thirteen:  Chapter Nineteen: Social Work Practice with People with Disabilities.

Module Fourteen: (Choose one chapter to read) Chapter Twenty:  Social Work practice with Muslims in the United States OR Chapter Twenty-one: Social Work Practice with Asian Americans OR Chapter Twenty-two:  Social Work Practice with American Indians and Alaskan Natives.

Module Fifteen: (Choose one chapter to read) Chapter Twenty-three: Social Work Practice with Mexican Americans OR  Chapter Twenty-four: Social Work Practice with African Americans OR Chapter Twenty-Five:  Social Work Practice with Puerto Ricans.

Part V. Social Workers in Action

Module Sixteen: Chapter Twenty-Six: Social Workers in Action: School Homicide and the Death Penalty

Specific Course Requirements: In addition to the requirements for any distance learning course (see: http://www2.piedmont.cc.nc.us/DL/hardware.htm for further information), you will need access to Microsoft word for submitting assignments.


 

Textbooks, Supplementary Materials, Hardware and Software Requirements

Required Textbooks: Morales, A. and Sheafor, B. Social Work: A Profession of Many Faces.
Tenth Edition. Allyn and Bacon, 2004. ISBN:  0-205-37607-X

Supplementary Materials: None

Course Website address:
http://courses.piedmontcc.edu, then login and click on SWK 110 Introduction to Social Work

Hardware Requirements: Please follow the hardware recommendations mentioned at : http://www2.piedmont.cc.nc.us/DL/hardware.htm, with the addition of access to Microsoft Word.

Software Requirements: You may need Acrobat Reader for some assignments.  You can get information on downloading it through http://www2.piedmont.cc.nc.us/DL/plugins.htm.  There is no cost for the download.

Assessment and Grading

Testing Procedures:

Your exams are given through Blackboard and you have an hour to complete the exam.  Once you have started the exam, you will need to complete it at that time. There will be sixteen exams, in addition to the initial syllabus quiz and reference quiz.  Each exam will become available the Monday morning of that module and will become unavailable at midnight on the Sunday of that module.  Missed exams cannot be made up.  Exams consist of questions in the following formats:  Multiple choice, fill in the blank, matching, short essay and true/false.

Grading Procedure:  

Grades are based on the following assignments:

Introductory and concluding activities: 30 points
Discussion Board activities: 340 points
Module Exams: 260 points
Projects: 200 points
Small Group Project or alternative: 150 points
Miscellaneous: 20 points

(Subject to change)

The grade breakdown is as follows:

Introductory activities, to be completed in the first week of class, are worth 30 points, or 3% of your grade. These include changing your email address on blackboard, emailing the instructor, completing a syllabus quiz, and completing first discussion board posts.  This will also include an activity of references.  These activities will help familiarize you with the class structure and online learning processes and requirements.

Discussion board postings are worth a total of 340 points, or 34% of your overall grade. You get two discussion board grades each week, one for your response to the question(s), and one for your responses to other students? responses. Each grade will be worth up to 10 points.   Discussion board posts demonstrate your knowledge of the chapters in the textbook and provide an opportunity to apply the learned principles to theoretical questions.  Your responses assist other students in considering additional perspectives.  This is a vital part of an online course.  Your answers are expected to be thorough and well thought out to earn a high grade in this area.  Please see policies below for very important information on discussion board posts.

Exams will be worth a total of 260 points, or 26% of your overall grade. You will have an exam for each module (each week) and the exams will be worth 15 to 20 points each.  Exams are open book and will reflect your knowledge of those chapters. 

You have three projects that are due through the semester for a total of 200 points. Project One is worth 65 points. Project Two is worth 70 points. Project Three is worth 65 points. There is also an extra credit opportunity with project three.  These projects demonstrate application of learned materials to specific concepts and activities.

The small group project will include working in a group (to be assigned) and there will be several steps along the way. The total for the work in the group project will be 150 points, or 15% of your final grade.  The small group project will encourage teamwork and problem-solving while dev eloping a program that demonstrates the concepts of prevention in human services.  There is also an alternative project available.

There are 20 points available for miscellaneous items.

Academic Integrity

In addition to good academic performance, students should exhibit honesty and integrity. If there is any question that academic honesty and integrity are not honored, students may be required to redo assignments in the presence of an instructor-selected monitor. Proof of dishonesty, including plagiarism, will make students subject to disciplinary action. Please consult your college catalog for more information.

 Piedmont Community College Plagiarism Policy

7.5.1

PLAGIARISM

Whether intentional or unintentional, plagiarism is ?the wrongful act of taking the product of another person's mind and presenting it as one's own" (Alexander Lindey, Plagiarism and Originality, 1952).

The following acts are examples of intentional plagiarism:

Copying material from a published source to avoid having to devise one?s own ideas.

Failing to give clear and proper credit to an idea, phrase, or quotation taken from a source.

Purchasing a pre-written paper.

Having someone other than the stated author complete an assignment, or part of an assignment.

Unintentional Plagiarism occurs when a student provides sources for his or her work, but the sources are cited incorrectly or inadequately. Handbooks with documentation rules for Modern Language Association (MLA) and American Psychology Association (APA), two source documentation styles, are housed in the Caswell County Campus Resource Center and in the Person County Campus Learning Resource Center. Students are also encouraged to speak with their instructors when they are uncertain about documenting their sources in class assignments.

Plagiarism will result in disciplinary action, and repeated offenses will lead to increased penalties that may ultimately result in expulsion from the College, as set out below:

A student who unintentionally plagiarizes will receive a warning and instruction on proper citation, style, and usage for the first offense.

A student who unintentionally plagiarizes a second time in a single course will receive a course grade of F in the course in which the student plagiarized.

A student who intentionally plagiarizes will receive a course grade of F in the course in which the student plagiarized.

If a student receives a course grade of F due to plagiarism, the course instructor will notify the Dean of Student Development using the Plagiarism Incident Report Form.

If a student receives three course grades of F due to plagiarism, as determined by records kept in the office of the Dean of Student Development, he or she will be expelled from the College.

Legal Reference: G.S. 115 D-20

History Note: Effective January 20, 2004

Turnitin.com

 In furtherance of its Plagiarism Policy, Piedmont Community College has a license agreement with Turnitin.com, a service that helps prevent plagiarism in student assignments. To encourage original and authentic written work, any written assignment created in this course may be submitted for review to Turnitin.com (http://www.turnitin.com) and will become a searchable document with the Turnitin-protected and restricted use database. 

Assignments and Participation

Assignments and Projects:
The specific requirements for each module can be found under ?Assignments? on Blackboard.  Generally, each week will involve reading one or two chapters, answering at least one discussion board question, responding to two other students? responses for the discussion board question, and completing a module exam.  There will be small group assignments most weeks and three projects due during the semester.  The first project is due during week six, the second project is due during week ten, and the third project is due during week thirteen.

 The last day to drop this class with a “W” is October 19, 2007.

Class Participation or Attendance:
From the Piedmont Community College Catalog: 

Regular attendance at all class meetings is necessary for students to learn important concepts.  In this regard, the following class attendance policy is established: 

1. A student is expected to be regular and punctual in meeting all classes.  To receive credit for a course, the student must attend prior to the census point and a minimum of 80 percent of classes, labs and shop hours.  Failure to attend class is an absence, regardless of the reason.  Absences are counted from the first scheduled meeting of the class, not the first day the student attends.  All work missed during absences must be made up to the satisfaction of the instructor.  Failure to complete required assignments will negatively affect the student's final grade.

2. A student who exceeds the 20 percent limit of absences may be dropped by the instructor through the eighth week of the semester.  If a student exceeds the 20 percent limit after the eighth week, the instructor is authorized to award the student the "I" or "F" grade as warranted by the student's performance.

3. Any exceptions to this policy must be authorized by the instructor. 

 For this class, your attendance is counted through your participation in the class.  You will see a column in the grade book for each week and this will reflect whether you participated in the online course that week.  Lack of participation will strongly affect your grades and you may be dropped from the class if there are more than three weeks in which you did not participate.

Punctuality:
Assignments are due at specific dates and times, and information on all assignments is posted on the course website.  Assignments may be completed early when available.  Late discussion board posts will not be graded.  Projects that are late will have 10 points deducted for each day that they are late. The exam for each module may not be taken after midnight on the Sunday of that module.

Course Ground Rules

1)     Please contact your instructor with any problems or concerns!

2)     Participation is required and you are expected to communicate with other students in team project.

3)     You are responsible for learning how to navigate in Blackboard, and for asking for assistance when you are having difficulty. Address technical problems immediately.

4)     Keep abreast of course announcements.  There will be a weekly announcement posted Sunday evening or Monday morning for that week, and other announcement may be made as well.  You should check the Blackboard site at least three times a week for new announcements.

5)     Observe course netiquette at all times, etc.

6)     If you choose to drop the class, you must complete a drop form.  If you do not complete the drop form you will receive an ?F? in the class.  Guidelines for Communications

Guidelines for Communications

Email:

         Always include a subject line, with your name, the course number and the topic of the email.

         Remember without facial expressions some comments may be taken the wrong way. Be careful in wording your emails. Use of emoticons might be helpful in some cases.

         Use standard fonts.

         Do not send large attachments without permission.

         Special formatting such as centering, audio messages, tables, html, etc. should be avoided unless necessary to complete an assignment or other communication.

         Respect the privacy of other class members.

Discussion Groups:


 

         Review the discussion threads thoroughly before entering the discussion. Be a lurker then a discussant.

         Try to maintain threads by using the "Reply" button rather starting a new topic.

         Do not make insulting or inflammatory statements to other members of the discussion group. Be respectful of other?s ideas.

         Be patient and read the comments of other group members thoroughly before entering your remarks.

         Be cooperative with group leaders in completing assigned tasks.

         Be positive and constructive in group discussions.

         Respond in a thoughtful and timely manner.

Discussion Board Answer Grading Policies:

1. The criteria for earning an A on a discussion:
   • The discussion clearly answers the question.
   • There is some supporting information from a source other than the text and these sources are cited correctly, using the APA style guide to references.  This includes electronic references.
   • The references used are from legitimate websites; these websites will present information in a fair and balanced matter, i.e. it is not a website whose sole purpose is to promote a specific agenda or point of view.
   • Material used in answering a question is pertinent and related to the question. Just listing a website without tying the information in to your answers will result in your answer being graded as though no references were used.
   • There is evidence of your thinking on the subject and not simply parroting the ideas of others.
2. The criteria for earning a B on a discussion:
   • The discussion clearly answers the question.
   • There may be supporting information from a source other than the text (the same criteria applies as is stated above)
   • Material used in answering a question is pertinent and related to the question.
3. The criteria for earning a C on a discussion:
   • The discussion answers the question.
4. Feedback should be helpful to the student receiving it. Feedback will be evaluated for the following:

a.                  Clarity

b.                  Specificity

c.                  Usefulness to student (will it help the student to get a better grade on next discussion question?)

d.                  Balance - does the feedback point out strengths in the discussion as well as areas of weakness?

e.                  Helpfulness - Does the feedback provide resources to assist student in further research?

The following is an example of ?A? quality work.  The discussion board question was, ?What do you think are the most common mistakes made by social workers working in child protective services? What causes these mistakes to be made? How can these mistakes be avoided or reduced? Remember to consider the role of other agents or agencies in these decisions and the multiple party responsibilities in these situations.?  The student?s answer is below:

I believe that some of the most common mistakes made by social workers working in child protective services are: ?misidentifying serious cases, wrongful removal of children, inaccurate and incomplete data entry for tracking abuse and neglect and monitoring children in foster care, not establishing relationships with the families to make the necessary decisions, and hurting the children that they are supposed to protect.? I read an article that didn?t speak too favorably about child protection workers, but I believe the points made are very real. The article states that low salaries, high turnover rates, and staffing shortages put pressure on the remaining staff members of the agencies; this causes insufficient time for workers to establish relationships with the families and make the necessary decisions to ensure safe and stable permanent placements for the children. The heavy caseloads breed errors in documentation of case information. Another mistake is the unnecessary removals ? misidentifying serious cases or wrongful removal of children. The article calls it ?defensive social work.? It stated that child protection workers are possibly trying to protect themselves from liability (danger creation theory); if they question the safety of a child, they remove that child, which is also what they do when they actually identify safety risks for children in identifiable, abusive homes. It has been identified as the ?better safe than sorry? mentality. Some child protection workers do not want to be held accountable for ?inappropriately returning a child to an abusive parent? for fear of liability. What is most unfortunate is the fact that children can and are being hurt by abusive parents and/or child protection workers alike.

I think it is important to provide some additional oversight of child protection cases; have some form of checks and balances to ensure effective and efficient service provision. Agencies should address the recruitment and retention of its child protection workers so to ensure that the children and families are not being shuffled from one worker to another; this would increase the familiarity of the cases and reduce the number of cases per worker. Also, adequate documentation should be kept to help back up the claims of child abuse and neglect. Adequate documentation can also help in identifying what interventions are working within the agency and with the child protection workers. And, what I think is most important to the accuracy and efficiency of providing services to children and families is to engage in self evaluations at the agency and personal level. Agencies can evaluate whether or not their vision, mission, and values all support creating better results for children and families. Child protection workers can evaluate who they are, including, what their morals and values are, what biases they may have, and what drives them to do what they do. Regular self evaluations are necessary for providing children and families the best possible assistance and can also ensure better results for children and families.

Works Cited:

A Critical Look at Child Welfare: Defensive Social Work, 5 Feb 2005, Rick Thomas.  6 Feb. 2005 http://www.liftingtheveil.org/defensive.htm

Alexander, R., Jr., Understanding Legal Concepts That Influence Social Welfare Policy and Practice, 2003, Brooks/Cole Publishers. ISBN: 0-534-59661-4

Child Welfare: Improved Federal Oversight Could Assist States In Overcoming Key Challenges GAO-04-418T, 28 Jan. 2004, Government Accountability Office (GAO): Report Abstract. 6 Feb. 2005 http://www.gao.gov/docdblite/summary.php?recflag=&accno=A09174&rptno=GAO-04-41

The following is a response to another student?s post.  This response is also ?A: quality work:

I can understand your concern for the safety of others when a threat of harm has been established. My only concern is that maybe we (me included) are forgetting that sometimes people say things out of anger and with a limited vocabulary or means to express themselves completely. For instance, a mother speaking about the way she feels when her adolescent daughter stays out all night without calling. The mother, out of pure anger says, ?I am going to strangle that child when I see her!? Do you automatically report this information to the authorities or the Department of Social Services? I wouldn?t. What I would do is reflect back to the client the message that I am receiving. I might follow up with, ?It sounds like you are angry with your daughter because of her behavior. Is strangling her something that you would do?? Not saying that this mother would not strangle her daughter, but she may have used those terms for lack of better word choices. Like using the terms, ?I could kill ?em.? I think it is important to get as much information from the client as possible. Now if the mother says to you, ?When my daughter walks in the door, I am going to walk up to her, put my hands around her neck, and choke her until she can no longer breathe and falls over lifeless? there is definite reason to be alarmed and to contact the authorities. Sometimes clients don?t have the ?words? to express themselves or their feelings. They use what they know?regardless of how incriminating it can sometimes be. Just something to consider.

Chat:

         Introduce yourself to the other learners in the chat session.

         Be polite. Choose your words carefully. Do not use derogatory statements.

         Be concise in responding to others in the chat session.

         Be prepared to open the chat session at the scheduled time.

         Be constructive in your comments and suggestions.

Web Resources:
Information on References for Electronic Sources

American Psychological Association, Electronic References, 5^th edition of the APA Publication Manual, 2001, Retrieved 21 July 2005 from http://www.apastyle.org/elecgeneral.html

Online Services for Distance Learners

Learning Resources Center, Online Services For Distance Learners, Piedmont Community College, Retrieved July 21, 2005 from

http://www2.piedmont.cc.nc.us/DL/online_services.htm

Blackboard Student Support

The North Carolina Conference of English Instructors offers this site with support information for online learners.

North Carolina Conference of English Instructors, CEI Blackboard Support, North Carolina Conference of English Instructors web site, Retrieved 21 July 2005 from

http://www.nccei.org/blackboard/students.html

Netiquette, Or How to Mind Your Manners When Using E-Mail, Virginia Shea, Netiquette , May 1994, http://www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html, Netiquette Home Page, Retrieved 21 July 2005 from http://www.albion.com/netiquette/index.html

If you have a learning or other disability, and you want to request special accommodations to ensure equal access to education at PCC, please see Melissa Woods in the Office of Student Development on the main campus, 599-1181, ext. 210. The information that you provide Ms. Woods will be kept confidential.  If you are on the Caswell campus, p[lease see Terri Hamrick, 336-694-5707, ext. 232.

Piedmont Community College now offers a comprehensive package of services to assist students with their academic success. The Student Success Center (SSC) is located in Room G-204 on the Person County Campus and in Room K-152 on the Caswell County Campus.  The SSC provides a variety of free learning support services including computer access, tutoring, supplemental instruction, study groups, and other academic services. Visit or call Gloria Bennett, Coordinator of the Student Success Center, at 599-1181, ext. 276 to access this valuable student resource