SW 480 Diversity Awareness in Social Work Practice 3 Semester Hours Spring Social Work Program Mission Statement

Transcription

1 SW 480 Diversity Awareness in Social Work Practice 3 Semester Hours Spring 2015 Instructor: J.R. Seaman, MSW, MBA, PhD Office Phone: Office: Harbor Center, 1031 N. Academic Way jrseaman@lcsc.edu Social Work Program Mission Statement The mission of the social work program at Lewis-Clark State College is to prepare students for entry-level generalist practice. We are committed to the preparation of professional social workers instilling the knowledge, skills, and values to address the needs and potential of individuals, families, groups, communities, and organizations. Drawing on an ecological, strengths-based perspective, the program prepares students to engage as professional social work practitioners who will be able to provide competent services with integrity to promote social justice and human rights recognizing the dignity and worth of the person. Graduates are prepared for practice with diverse populations understanding the person-in-environment influence on identity development and relationships. Through courses, internships, and student activities, the program aims to foster in its students a celebration of differences among people and a belief that respecting these differences enriches the quality of life for all. Graduates will practice from a set of ethical principles inherent in the social work profession, including the recognition that professional development is a life-long learning process. Finally, our program is dedicated to the inclusion of non-traditional aged, rural, and lower income students. The program is also devoted to providing students the opportunity to engage in meaningful research projects, in the community in which they live, by conducting program evaluations and needs assessments through our research sequence which culminates in a public symposium. Note: Last day to add class/es or to drop on-line is January 27, 2014; last day to drop class without W grade on transcript is February 3, Last day to withdraw from class/es or college for the semester is April 10,

2 Course Description This course synthesizes knowledge, values, and skills regarding diverse experiences among client systems to allow students to demonstrate their understanding of how diversity characterizes and shapes the human experience and is critical to the formation of identity. The dimensions of diversity are understood as the intersectionality of multiple factors including age, socioeconomic class, color, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression, immigration status, political ideology, race, religion, sex, and sexual orientation. Students appreciate that, as a consequence of differences, a person s life experiences may include oppression, poverty, marginalization, and alienation as well as privilege, power, and acclaim. For practice application focus on differences that lead to discrimination and oppression will be highlighted. Introduction and Overview The profession of social work relies on a person-in-environment perspective for understanding human behavior. The environment consists of the physical, social/cultural, psychological, and spiritual influences that shape how individuals and groups make meaning of their experiences. This course is designed to build on materials from all previous social work courses in order to demonstrate an understanding of a client system based on the system s identity forged by experiences influenced by the environment. Purpose of the Course in the Curriculum This course is part of the senior capstone activities which includes field and research. This course is designed to allow senior social work students to demonstrate their ability to apply material from HBSE, Micro, Mezzo, Macro, Policy, and Research courses to the understanding of diversity and differences among our client systems. After demonstrating an understanding students will then assess how this diversity and differences is associated with forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination. Programs and services for this client system will also be analyzed to determine their support/interference for client goals. This course also requires students to recognize and manage their personal differences and identities and explore how this knowledge impacts their relationships with clients. As a result of the focus on competency based education, the faculty has identified within the LCSC curriculum where the Core Competencies and Practice Behaviors are addressed and measured. Below are three of the ten Core Competencies and six Practice Behaviors that are addressed in this course. As this course is part of the capstone activities, the practice behaviors below will be observed and measured. -2-

3 EPAS Competency & Expected Learning Outcomes (aka: Practice Behaviors) A Recognize and manage personal values in a way that allows professional values to guide practice B. Analyze models of assessment, prevention, intervention and evaluation for aspects of oppression or discrimination A. Recognize the extent to which culture s structures & values may oppress, marginalize, alienate, or create/ enhance privilege/ power. B. Gain sufficient self-awareness to eliminate the influence of personal biases and values in work with diverse groups. C. Recognize and communicate their understanding of the importance of difference in shaping life experiences. D. View themselves as learners and engage those with whom they work as informants A. Understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination B. Collaborate with colleagues and clients for effective policy action A Continuously discover, appraise, and attend to changing locales, populations, scientific and technological developments, and emerging societal trends to provide relevant services; B Provide Leadership in promoting sustainable changes in services delivery and practice to improve the quality of social services K Negotiate, mediate, and advocate for clients. I. SIX REQUIRED TEXTS AND READINGS 1. Fadiman, A. (1997). The spirit catches you and you fall down. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 2. Murphy, Y., Hunt, V., Zajicek, A.M., Norris, A. N., & Hamilton, L. (2009). Incorporating intersectionality in social work practice, research, policy, and education. Washington, D.C. NASW Press. 3. NASW (2007). Standards for Cultural Competence in Social Work Practice. Document available online: or: paste this URL into your search address: -3-

4 4. NASW Code of Ethics: 5. Congress, E. P. (2004). Culture and Ethical Issues in Working with Culturally Diverse Patients and Their Families: The use of the Culturagram to Promote Cultural Competent Practice in Health Care Settings. Copy in Blackboard Documents 6. American Psychological Association. (2010). Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (6 th ed.). Washington, D.C.: Author. EPAS Competency & Expected Learning Outcomes (aka: Practice Behaviors) C. Attend to professional roles and boundaries A Recognize and manage personal values in a way that allows professional values to guide practice B. Analyze models of assessment, prevention, intervention and evaluation for aspects of oppression or discrimination A. Recognize the extent to which culture s structures & values may oppress, marginalize, alienate, or create/ enhance privilege/ power. B. Gain sufficient self-awareness to eliminate the influence of personal biases and values in work with diverse groups. C. Recognize and communicate their understanding of the importance of difference in shaping life experiences. D. View themselves as learners and engage those with whom they work as informants A. Understand the forms and mechanisms of oppression and discrimination B. Collaborate with colleagues and clients for effective policy action A Continuously discover, appraise, and attend to changing locales, populations, scientific and technological developments, and emerging societal trends to provide relevant services; B Provide Leadership in promoting sustainable changes in services delivery and practice to improve the quality of social services K Negotiate, mediate, and advocate for clients. -4-

5 CLASS GUIDELINES 1. Confidentiality will be observed concerning attitudes and feelings expressed by students during class discussions and experiential exercises. 2. Students will respond to one another in a respectful manner, despite differences of opinion or perspective. This course is based on the premises that oppressive bias and prejudice are inherent in our society; that all members of our society hold such harmful views, by virtue of social membership; and that, as social workers, we are obligated to strive toward recognizing and overcoming them, in preparation for ethical and humane professional work. At the same time, such a task is a lifelong process to which we should be committed. 3. The course will provide focus and structure for mutual exploration of attitudes and beliefs regarding diversity. 4. This course will not be used for personal catharsis or therapy. Students who experience extreme discomfort related to the issues are encouraged to seek personal counseling. As well, students are encouraged to consult privately with instructor regarding any such issues or conflicts, if they so desire. CLASS ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING PROCEDURES: Overview 1. Intersectionality/Reaction Papers based on readings in both text books There will be 10 Reaction Papers related to readings in both text books, Fadiman and Murphy, et al. These will be posted on Blackboard under Assignments. See the Class Schedule and Deadlines for due dates. Each reaction paper is worth 25 points = 250 points for the course st Structured Experience for the course is a (Self-assessment): There is a document titled Structured Experience # 1 on Blackboard. Fill out the form and submit it by Monday Jan 26 at 8 P.M. Late submissions will not get points but it is a required assessment. (25 points) 3. Culture Gram Using the material in the article by Elaine Congress on Culturegrams, construct Lia Lee s culturegram. This assignment cannot take the form of a paper. Rather students are encouraged to find another medium for communicating the necessary information for a culturegram. The article will be posted on Blackboard. (100 points). 4. Final Assignment in this class: What have you learned in the course and what is your personal plan? (200 Points) Students will write a 6-8 page paper discussing their plan for culturally competent practice. You must include content from the NASW Standards for Cultural Competence (link listed under Required -5-

6 Texts and Readings above). You may wish to make a notes file from the very beginning of the class for this final assignment. These notes might be about something you learned as you go along in the course. Highlight succinctly things you learned while engaging in this course that were most meaningful for you. What aspects did you already know? What challenged your preconceptions? What piqued your curiosity and made you want to learn more? What questions were aroused in your mind that would merit further investigation and exploration? Include in your discussion, what does this learning mean for your practice? Types of clients you could help. Discuss how what you learned about cultures and families relate to your previous and current work experience. What groups and culture do you want to learn more about so that you might more effectively provide social work services? Describe any population with which it may be difficult for you to work/analyze the reason for this. State whether this is something that you feel that you should overcome, and whether you should do something to make it easier for you to work with this population. What more do you need to know? Describe what more you want to learn about other cultures and diverse families. Discuss some of the ways that knowledge could be effectively acquired. You may want to document your statement with information you have acquired about certain populations, societal need, and resources for developing cultural competence. Include in your paper Action Steps: List three to five actions that are reasonable and feasible for you to do that will increase your cultural competence. (200 points) 5. 2 nd Structured Experience a final Self-assessment: This assignment will be toward the end of the course and will be placed on Blackboard later in the course. (25 Points) Assignment Points EPAS Practice Behaviors Reaction papers (25pts each) A, A, A and B, K Final Paper + Personal Plan & A, D, B self-assessment Culturegram A and C Structured Experience papers C and B Total Possible Points 600 Points -6-

7 Grades Based On the above 5 Assignments: % of possible points = A 90 94% of possible points = A % of possible points = B % of possible points = B % of possible points = B % of possible points = C % of possible points = C 60-64% of possible points = C- Below 60% of possible points = F A. Deadline for Submission of Class Assignments Assignments or tests must be submitted to the instructor by 8 P.M. on the date it is due. All assignments will be submitted through Blackboard for the course SW 480. Faxing class assignments is NOT permitted. Late assignments and tests will not be accepted. On the rare occasion of a medical, personal, or family emergency, the student may request permission to hand in a late paper. Discretion of late paper acceptance is entirely up to the instructor. Grade will automatically be reduced by 10% per weekday. No extra credit points are given. In the event a quiz or assignment is missed, to make up the work, the student must contact the instructor and request permission to make up the work assigned by the instructor. Makeup work is due within 5 workdays of the test, or the student will receive a failing grade for the test. NOTE: Only work submitted before the close of the last scheduled class session of the course will be accepted for inclusion in the grade for that semester. Policy Regarding Course Incompletes Students are expected to complete all work before the final session of the class. Work that is not turned in at the time assigned may not be handed in late without the prior consent of the instructor. Work that is not turned in will result in the loss of points for that assignment. Major work that could result in an incomplete for the semester has specific guidelines as follows. Incompletes are not granted automatically. A grade of I may be assigned only in cases of illness, accident, or other catastrophic occurrence beyond the student s control. It is the responsibility of the student to request, in writing, an Incomplete prior to the end of the term and to complete, with the instructor, the University required, Petition for Incomplete Grade. All work must be completed by the deadline specified by the instructor, which must be on or before the last day of the fourth week of classes in the next term, excluding summer session. Students who do not complete the Petition for Incomplete Grade, or who fail to complete the required work, will be assigned a grade of F. -7-

8 Academic Honesty and Plagiarism Part of the mission of Lewis-Clark State is to educate students to be ethical. Students share with the faculty the responsibility for academic honesty and integrity. The University expects its students to do their own academic work. In addition, it expects active participation and equitable contributions of students involved in group assignments. Violation of the Academic Integrity Statement, in whole or part, could result in an F grade for the course. The following acts of academic dishonesty are not acceptable: Cheating: using or attempting to use unauthorized materials, information, or study aids in any academic exercise (e.g., an exam). Fabrication: unauthorized falsification or invention of any information or citation in an academic exercise (e.g., a paper reference). Plagiarism: representing the words or ideas of another as one s own in any academic exercise (e.g., failing to cite references appropriately or taking verbatim from another source). Facilitating academic dishonesty: helping or attempting to help another to commit academic dishonesty (e.g., allowing another to copy from your test or use your work). Professional Writing Standards All printed work submitted to this professor should be prepared at a college standard of professional editing in accordance with the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (6 th Ed.). Therefore, allow sufficient preparation time for proofreading and correction of typos, misspellings, and grammatical errors. The reason for this expectation is that professionals are often judged based upon the quality of their written work. Carelessness in spelling and editing suggests that there will also be mistakes in the substance of the work. Therefore, written work, which has misspellings and other editing problems, will be graded down on this basis alone. All work must be completed in 12 font, preferably Times New Romans style or a similarly readable style. BIBLIOGRAPHY Anderson, J. (2003). Strengths perspective. In J. Anderson & R.W. Carter (Eds), Diversity perspectives for social work practice (pp.11-20). Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Appleby, G.A., Colon, E., & Hamilton. J. (2007). Diversity, oppression and social functioning: person-in-environment assessment and intervention (2 nd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon Brill, N., & Levine, J. (2004). Working with people: The helping process (8 th ed.). NY -8-

9 Corey, M.S. & Corey, G. (2006) Becoming a helper (4 th ed.) Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. Diller, J.V. (2004). Cultural diversity: A primer for humans services (2 nd ed.). Belmont CA: Thompson. Egan, G. (2006). Skilled helping around the world: Addressing Diversity and Multiculturalism. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. Fadiman, Anne (1997). The spirit catches you and you fall down. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus & Giroux. Fiske-Rusciano, R. (2008). Experiencing race, class, and gender in the United States (5 th ed.). Boston: McGraw Hill. Fong, R, & Furuto, S (Eds). Culturally competent practice: skills, intervention & Education. (Allyn & Bacon Green, J.W., (1999). Cultural awareness in the human services: A multi-ethnic approach (3 rd ed.). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon. Harper-Dorton, K., & Lantz, J. (2007). Cross-cultural practice: Social work with diverse populations (2 nd ed.). Chicago, IL: Lyceum Books, Inc. Hirsch, E.D., Kett, J.F., Trefil, J. (1988) The dictionary of cultural literacy: What every American needs to know. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Company. Jones, J.E. (1997). Prejudice and racism (2 nd ed.). New York: NcGraw-Hill. Kerwin, C., & Ponterorro, J.G. (1995). Biracial identity development: Theory and Research. In J. Ponterorro, J.M., Casas, L.A. Suzuki, & C.M. Alexander (Eds.), Handbook of multicultural counseling (pp ). Newbury Park, CA: Sage. Lum, Doman (2011). Culturally competent practice: A framework for understanding diverse groups and justice issues. Belmont, CA:Brooks/Cole. Lum, D. (2005). Cultural competence, practice stages, and client systems. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. Reichert, E. (2006). Understanding human rights: An exercise book. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Rothenberg, P.E. (Ed.). (2004). White privilege: Essential readings on the other side of -9-

10 racism (2 nd ed.). New York: Worth Publishers. Rothman, J. (2006). Cultural competence in process and practice. (Allyn & Bacon) Smith, T.B., (2006). Practicing multiculturalism: affirming diversity in counseling & Psychology. Pearson Publishing. Wing Sue, D., (2006) Multicultural social work practice. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons. Yellow Horse Brave Heart, M. & Chase, J. (2005). Social work practice with First nations people, In D. Lum (Ed.), Cultural competence, practice stages, and client systems (pp.32-55). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. -10-