Fall 2004, Blackboard

 Instructor:                         Sheri Narin    

Office:                                L130

Office Hours:                    Posted by office door or by appointment

Virtual Office Hour:        To be announced weekly

Phone:                                (336) 599 – 1181 ext. 424

Email:                                narins@piedmont.cc.nc.us

Course Website:                http://courses.piedmont.cc.nc.us

Faculty Website:               http://www2.piedmont.cc.nc.us/faculty/narins 

 Textbook:

Congress, Elaine P., (1999) Social Work Values and Ethics: Identifying and Resolving Professional Dilemmas. Chicago: Nelson-Hall Publishers. ISBN:  0-8304-1492-4

 Course Description:

 This course introduces the professional standards, values and issues in social services. Topics include confidentiality, assessment of personal values, professional responsibilities, competencies and ethics. Upon completion, student should be able to understand and discuss multiple ethical issues applicable to social work and apply various decision-making models to current issues. This course is a unique concentration requirement of the Social Services concentration in the Human Services Technology program.

 Prerequisite/Corequisites:

None

Course Objectives:

1. Student will be able to describe the general ethical standards of the field of social work.
2. Student will be able to contrast the ethical guidelines of the National Association of Social Workers and the National Organization of Human Service Education, as well as other ethical guidelines.
3. Student will be able to recite the ETHIC method for addressing ethical dilemmas.
4. Student will be able to apply the ETHIC method to specific and general ethical dilemmas.
5. Student will identify their own ethical beliefs and describe conflicts that may arise for them in applying professional ethical standards.
6. Student will be able to describe ethical issues that arise in specific areas, including mental health, child welfare, health care, group and family work, aging, professional settings, HIV and AIDS, and supervision and management.

Evaluation:

Your grades will be based on the following:

Discussion Board participation: 200 points
Homework Assignments: 200 points
Examinations: 200 points
Small Group Project: 200 points
Two written projects: 200 points

Major Assignments

Each module has specific assignments. See Course assignments for specific details.
Some of the major assignments in this course will include:

* Reading assignments for each module
* Discussion board assignments for each module
* Homework assignments for each module.
* Small group assignments
* Three exams

Examinations

There will be three examinations.  The first examination will cover modules one through five and will involve questions that help you apply the learned material.  The second examination will cover modules six through ten and will have a similar format to the first exam.  The third examination will cover eleven through sixteen and will have a similar format to the first exam. 

 You are encouraged to use the questions under course documents as a study guide for the exams.

Written Projects

Written Projects
You will write two papers, each two to three pages, on a topic related to ethics in social work and the topic you choose from the list below:

·  Mental Health

·  Substance Abuse

·  Child Welfare (Child Abuse, foster care, adoption, juvenile delinquency)

·  Aging (Housing, Elder Abuse)

·  Disabilities

·  HIV and AIDS

·  Health Care

·  Dual relationships

The paper will include at least four references, only two of which may be from the Internet. The paper should use a font of 12, one-inch margins, and be single-spaced. The references will be listed on a separate page, in MLA or APA style.

The paper will include:
A brief description of the ethical issue, examples of ethical dilemmas that arise from working with individuals who are experiencing difficulties with this issue, a description of the different elements of which a social worker should be aware, and a plan to ethically resolve these dilemmas, within the NASW Code of Ethics.
The first project is due by 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, October 17, 2004.
The second project is due by 8:00 pm. on Sunday, November 21, 2004.

There is further information under Module Assignments and under Written Projects on Blackboard.

Group Project

The class will be divided into small groups.  Your group will develop a code of ethics for the Piedmont Community College human services students. The code of ethics will cover whatever topics your group believes should be included in the code of ethics.

Your grade on this project will reflect both the final project, assignments that you submit during the process, and your level of participation, as evaluated by other group members.

To complete this assignment, it may be helpful to research other schools that may have developed a student code of ethics. However, remember the rules about plagiarism!

There is further information under Module Assignments and under Small Group Project on Blackboard.

Homework

Homework assignments are given as stated in the module assignments.  There is a homework assignment almost every week. Assignments are due by 8:00 p.m. on the Sunday of the week of that module. For example, a module three assignment would be due by 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, September 14, 2003.

There is further information under Module Assignments on Blackboard.

Discussion Board Assignments

Discussion forum assignments include answering questions and responding to other students replies.  The guidelines are below:

Criteria for Discussion Questions

The criteria for earning an A on a discussion:

The criteria for earning a B  on a discussion:

The criteria for earning a C on a discussion:

Feedback should be helpful to the student receiving it. Feedback will be evaluated for the following:

For discussion forum activities, your initial posting to the two questions is due by 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday of each week. Your responses to other students are due by 8:00 p.m. on Sunday of each week. For example, for module one, your initial postings should be by Wednesday, August 25, 2004 at 8:00 p.m., and your responses should be by 8:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 29, 2004.

 There is further information under Module Assignments on Blackboard.

 Grading Scale:

 A = 1000 to 900, B = 899 to 800, C = 799 to 700, D = 699 to 600, F = Below 600

 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.

Attendance Policies for this class:

Attendance in this class is considered through participation in discussion forums.

Policies

1)      Assignments are to be turned in on the date due. Homework and minor assignments that are late will have the grade reduced by 5 points per day (that includes weekends).  Larger projects will have the grade reduced by 10 points per day.  Late discussion board postings will have the grade reduced by 1 points a day for the first day, and 2 points a day after that.  An assignment is considered late anytime after the designated time due.  For example, if the posting is due at 8:00 p.m. and you post it at 8:10 p.m., your grade would be reduced by one point.

2)      Assignments with excessive grammatical or spelling errors (excessive as subjectively defined by the instructor) will be returned with one opportunity to make corrections, within 2 days.

3)      Below is the PCC Plagiarism Policy:

5)      Respect confidentiality.  Being actively involved in class may involve some level of sharing of personal information.  You are expected to treat the classroom with the same level of ethical responsibility with which you would treat a job or internship.  Do not share personal information about other students outside of the classroom.  This includes discussing this information with your fellow classmates.

6)      If you choose to drop the class, you are responsible for completing and turning in the withdrawal slip.  If you have stopped coming to class but not turned in a withdrawal slip, your grade will continue to be reduced by your absences and noncompleted assignments, and you will receive an “F” for the class.

7)      Please contact the instructor, by phone, email, fax, in person, paper airplane, telepathy or other means, at any time if you have questions!

 Location Schedule:

Online.

Student Success Center:

Piedmont Community College now offers a comprehensive package of services to assist students with their academic success.  The Student Success Center, located in Room G-204, 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.

Students with Disabilities:

 If you have learning or other disability, and you want to request special accommodations to ensure equal access to education at PCC, please see Shelly Stone at the Office of Student Development or call her at 599-1181, ext. 210.  The information that you provide to Ms. Stone will be kept confidential.

Email Guidelines

·  Use a greeting and sign your name

·  Refrain from saying anything that you wouldn't say in person

·  Check your spelling and grammar

·  Use a title that is clear

·  Never forward someone else's email without their permission

When sending email to your instructor, please follow the same rules, and

·  In the title, put the course code (PSY 255, SWK 220, HSE 110, etc.), your name, and to what this is in reference (Module two homework assignment, etc.).

·  Emails that do not identify the speaker in the title line may be deleted to protect from viruses.

Drop Date

The last day to drop this course with a "W" is October 13, 2004.

Class Schedule and Due Dates:

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