Instructor: Nancy A. Amos, ACSW,
LCSW
Phone:
677-3614
E-mail: amos@hilltop.bradley.edu
Office Hours: M 4:00p.m. - 5:00p.m.; W 10:00a.m. - noon; TH 3:00p.m. - 4:00p.m.; F 10:00a.m. - noon; and by appointment
Class Schedule: T and TH 1:30p.m. - 2:45p.m. MOR 413
Accommodation: Any student with a disability or special need who requires accommodation should inform the instructor at the beginning of this course.
Non-discrimination Statement: Students will be expected to display respect of fellow students' and potential clients= unique characteristics including race, color, religion, creed, ethnic or national origin, age, veteran status, disability, socioeconomic status, gender, sexual orientation, and political orientation. All written assignments will use non-discriminatory language.
Confidentiality: Any information shared in this course which is protected under legal codes or the NASW Code of Ethics must be treated ethically.
Intercollegiate Competition: Any student representing Bradley University in an intercollegiate competition may be excused from class for a scheduled event if she/he discusses this with the instructor in advance and with the proper documentation. Students will be allowed to make up any work; however, the student has the responsibility to arrange this with the instructor.
Creation of a Proper Learning Environment: The instructor encourages students to ask questions and to critically evaluate class material. However, this must be done while still creating a proper learning environment. Any behavior which disturbs the learning of others such as talking with peers during a lecture or presentation by a peer will not be allowed and the student will be asked to leave class. Students are encouraged to discuss with the instructor any concerns or suggestions for improvement for the class as soon as possible and not to wait until the end of the course. This allows the instructor to modify the course to meet student needs as much as possible.
Relationship to Other Courses in the Social Work Curriculum: This course is designed to follow the Child Welfare I course (Theories of Child Welfare) and to prepare students for a social work field placement at a child welfare site. It uses the knowledge of both generalist social work practice as taught in the micro, mezzo, and macro social work practice classes and of social work theory as is taught in the Human Behavior in the Social Environment series. It is, however, open to other majors who have an interest in learning the social work skills used in the child welfare system.
Generalist Practice Principles: The following eight generalist practice principles support all courses in the social work curriculum:
1. A systems approach provides the basic framework for understanding the generalist practice perspective and planning interventions with multiple systems.
2. Problems in living are presented from a person-in-environment perspective, with focus on the transactions between individuals and the environment.
3. Assessments and interventions must address both intrapsychic and environmental strengths and stressors.
4. Generalist practice involves assessments and interventions at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels.
5. Practice is based on the problem-solving process and the knowledge, skills, and values which are applicable across settings with diverse populations and in a variety of problem areas.
6. Critical analysis of social problems is inherent in and results in both practice and policy responses.
7. Empirical research provides a solid foundation for both education and practice, and generalist practitioners are expected to participate in practice evaluation activities.
8. Generalist practice often requires the social worker to function in multiple roles depending on the needs of the client system.
Course Description: This course will teach skills necessary to practice at the bachelor=s degree level in a child welfare setting. The application of the planned change process to child welfare practice will be studied. Also included will be the assessment of abuse and neglect, working with multi-disciplinary providers, conducting groups with children, using child welfare placements, securing wraparound services, premanency planning, and special issues in child welfare such as working with street gangs and special needs children. Cultural and ethnic issues in working with children will be emphasized and students will examine the ethical issues of this field of practice.
Course Objectives:
Knowledge - Students will be able to demonstrate knowledge in the following areas:
1. The application of the person-in-environment model as it applies to working with children
2. The differentiation between public and private child welfare services
3. Family preservation program models
4. The placement process and the continuum of services including adoption, foster care, and residential treatment
5. The permanency planning process
6. Services available to children in the juvenile justice and the mental health system
7. The case management process
8. The assessment of abuse and neglect and other risks
9. The treatment planning process in child welfare
10. The procedures and practice of the legal system related to child welfare practice
11. The application of specific interventions such as group work and engaging involuntary clients as they apply to child welfare practice
12. The array of services available to children and families including medical
13. The process of political and funding advocacy as it relates to acquiring services for families and children
14. The needs of special groups of children such as physically or mentally challenged and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered youth
15. The methods of providing for the safety of the social worker involved in child welfare practice
Skills: Students will be able to demonstrate skill in the following areas:
1. Assessment of child welfare problems including neglect, abuse, emotional abuse, and other risks
2. Using a strengths assessment
3. Writing a child welfare treatment plan and working with a family to achieve its goals
4. Documentation in a child welfare setting
5. Engaging child welfare clients including family members
6. Case management in child welfare
7. Working with a multi-disciplinary team in a child welfare setting
8. Working with the Wrap-Around process
9. Working in accordance with the Permanency Planning Initiative guidelines
10. Using program evaluation methods in a child welfare setting
11. Working with diverse children and families
Values: Students will be exposed to social work values including
1. A commitment to family-centered practice
2. A commitment to assuring the safety of children as the first priority
3. A belief in the right of each child to a permanent family
4. A respect for all persons involved in the child welfare system regardless of racial and ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientation, national origin, disability status, gender, veteran status, socioeconomic status, or political orientation
5. A belief that clients should be empowered to work for their own needs and goals
6. A commitment to working toward policies and practices that are consistent with social work ethics
7. A commitment to understanding how the reality construction of the social worker can influence practice with children and families
Resources:
Text - Mather, J. and Lager, P. Child Welfare - A Unifying Model of Practice. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2000.
Child Welfare Employee Licensure Study Guide - IL DCFS
NASW Code of Ethics - Students should provide their own copy.
Other readings will be distributed in class or will be available in the Bradley University library.
Speakers from child welfare agencies and visits to social service agencies serving children and their families
Videos and role plays to demonstrate and practice specific skills
Learning Evaluation:
Note: All written work should be typed, double-spaced, and grammatically correct. All references must be properly documented. Use of non-biased language is expected in written assignments and in class discussion. All assignments and examinations must be completed and turned in by the due date unless prior arrangements have been made with the instructor. Failure to do so will result in a deduction from the grade.
Students will be evaluated on the following areas:
A. Class attendance and participation - 20 points
B. Review of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services web site (http://www.state.il.us/dcfs) - Write a 1 - 2 page review of the five most interesting points that you learned on the web site and describe your personal reaction to something on the site. DUE February 6
C. Test 1 - 50 points March 1
D. Child Observation - DUE March 15 - 20 points
The object of this assignment is to develop your sensitivity to the special consumers of child welfare services - children! Observe a child 0 - 8 years that you do not know. You can call a day care center and request to visit; you can sit at the mall; you can visit a YMCA or other place that children gather. Describe the behaviors that you see. Which of the behaviors seem age appropriate? Do any of the behaviors seem abnormal? (Consider social, cognitive, emotional, physical, and moral development.) Remember, much of children=s communication is nonverbal. How are the adults around the child responding to the child? How do the behaviors of the adults influence the child? You should observe the child for at least 15 minutes.
Write a 2 -3 page summary of your observations. Include the time, location, and day that you observed the child.
E. Agency Observations - 30 points
Students will spend 5 hours observing in child welfare agencies. Due to confidentiality and licensing regulations, STUDENTS CAN ONLY OBSERVE IN AGENCIES WHICH ARE ON A LIST PROVIDED BY THE INSTRUCTOR. These agencies have met with the instructor and have agreed to provide structured learning opportunities for students which will not violate their clients= confidentiality of the laws requiring background checks.
Students will provide the instructor with a form signed by the agencies documenting their attendance. Students will also write a 2 - 3 page summary of their observations. DUE May 3
F. Topic Paper - 50 points
Pick a question about child welfare practice that you would like to know more about. An example would be Why do some foster care placements fail?
Go to the academic literature and find three references that deal with your question. Only one can be purely from the internet and your class text and materials are only to be used as supplements.
Write 5 - 7 pages which describe your problem and approaches which you found in the literature. Are there any studies that are published showing the effectiveness of particular interventions? What are your assessments of how well current approaches meet the needs of children, their families, and society? DUE April 19
G. Test 2 (During Final Exam time) - 50 points May 15 12 noon - 2:00p.m.
50% of this test will be a take-home which will be distributed prior and due on this date.
Grading will be as follows:
280 - 252 A
251 - 224 B
223 - 196 C
195 - 168 D
Below 195 is failing.
Course Schedule:
Week 1 - January 25 COURSE INTRODUCTION
The expectations and requirements for the course will be distributed and explained. The class will then focus on how child welfare practice fits with and includes generalist social work practice. Students will work in small groups to demonstrate how the person-in-environment perspective and human behavior theories, particularly Maslow, are necessary in child welfare practice. Since all students are not social work majors, the licensing requirements for practicing social work will also be briefly reviewed.
Week 2 - January 30, February 1 WHERE and WHY CHILD WELFARE SERVICES ARE DELIVERED The class will look at both public and private and for-profit and not-for-profit agency models. The Purchase of Service model will be studied. The importance of advocacy in the development of child welfare policy and funding will be emphasized. The role of poverty and interventions proven to break the cycle of poverty will be discussed. The class will then discuss how to make a child and family-friendly environment in which to provide child welfare services.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapter 1
Week 3 - February 6, 8 HOW TO PROVIDE CULTURALLY SENSITIVE AND ETHICALLY SOUND CHILD WELFARE SERVICES
The rationale for culturally sensitive services will be reviewed. Emphasis will be on ways to make child welfare services culturally sensitive. Students will participate in a foster care simulation to help develop these ideas. Students will also review the parts of the NASW Code of Ethics which are particularly relevant in child welfare services. The study of the use of self and self-awareness will be included in reactions to the DCFS web site.
Assignment: Readings from Child Welfare - A Multicultural Focus, Second Edition, ed. Neil A. Cohen, Meedham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon, 2000.
NASW Code of Ethics
Week 4 - February 13, 15 A PRACTICE MODEL FOR CHILD WELFARE
This section presents a model for practice with children which is based on the problem-solving model of generalist practice. Students will study the model and, in role plays, will practice its application.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapter 2
Week 5 - February 20, 22 USING THE RANGE OF CHILD WELFARE SERVICES
Students will review the range of services to children. Emphasis in this course will be on how to select the appropriate level of care. A speaker will discuss her practice in independent living programs.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapter 4
Week 6 - February 27 ASSESSING NEGLECT
March 1 - Test 1
Students will learn the legal definition of neglect, the minimal parenting standards, and review child development milestones. A film showing types of neglect will be shown.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapter 5
Week 7 - March 6 - NO CLASS - NASW LOBBY DAY
If students attend and write a one-paper paper outlining one way in which advocacy could assist the delivery of child welfare services, they will receive 5 extra points.
March 8 ASSESSMENT OF PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL ABUSE
Students will see a film that demonstrates how abuse is manifested. A discussion will follow with a child welfare specialist regarding the interventions following an assessment of physical abuse.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapter 6
ASafe Start@ - An Ounce of Prevention Paper, 2000
Hand-outs
Week 8 - March 13, 15 ASSESSMENT AND INTERVENTION WITH SEXUAL ABUSE AND THE USE OF DCFS PROTOCOLS
Students will learn to recognize sexual abuse and the way to intervene. This will include also children as sexual offenders and treatment in JSO programs. A film will demonstrate appropriate interviewing techniques and students will practice with role plays. An investigator from DCFS will discuss his work and will introduce the CERAP protocol.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapters 3 and 7
Hand-outs from DCFS study guide
SPRING BREAK - ENJOY!
Week 9 - March 27, 29 USING LEGISLATION AND CONSENT DECREES
THE ORGANIZATION OF IL DCFS
ENGAGING THE RESISTANT CLIENT
Students will discuss laws such as those surrounding permanency planning, confidentiality, reporting, and licensing and the DCFS consent decrees which direct child welfare practice. The organization of the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services will be explained with emphasis on how the organization influences the delivery of services. Next, students will practice engaging difficult clients through role play. Students will watch a demonstration, receive guidelines, and then practice the skills.
Assignment: Hand-outs of laws and consent decrees
Hand-outs from the DCFS study guide
Week 10 - April 3, 5 PROVIDING ADOPTION SERVICES
THE CASE MANAGEMENT PROCESS
Students will read about the adoption process and will have a speaker who provides adoption services. Discussion will include techniques such as using life books, the issues in transracial adoption, and the future of adoption. Students will then receive a model for case management and will practice using the practice framework.
Assignment: Falberg, Vera AThe Life Story Book@
Hand-out summarizing case management
Week 11 - April 10, 12 WORKING ON A MULTI-DISCIPLINARY TEAM
MEDICAL AND PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES FOR CHILDREN
Students will learn the skills needed to work on a multi-disciplinary team and will then visit (if possible, otherwise the speaker will come to class) an agency serving foster care children with psychiatric needs. Included will be how loss including divorce influences development and emotional well-being of children.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapter 10
Week 12 - April 17, 19 CONSIDERING THE NEEDS OF CERTAIN CHILDREN
CONDUCTING GROUPS WITH CHILDREN
The class will learn about the needs of children with physical challenges, children who are parents, children who commit delinquent acts, and children who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered and how these needs must be included in assesment and treatment planning.
Assignment: Mather and Lager - Chapters 8, 9, 11
Readings from Mallon, Gerald P. We Don=t Exactly Get the Welcome Wagon - The Experiences of Gay and Lesbian Adolescents in the Child Welfare Systems. New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 1998.
Hand-out about group work with children
Week 13 - April 24, 26 TESTIFYING IN JUVENILE COURT
USING THE WRAP-AROUND PROCESS
Students will receive guidelines for testifying in court and will practice. The class will then be introduced to the wrap-around model.
Assignment: Handouts about testifying
Materials provided by the Child and Adolescent Local Area Network
Week 14 - May 1, 3 WRITING WRAP PLANS
WRITING DCFS TREATMENT PLANS
Students will see both plans demonstrated and will work in groups to complete a plan of each type.
Assignment: Review the LAN materials and the sample plans provided
Week 15 - May 8 STAYING SAFE WHILE WORKING IN CHILD WELFARE
STAYING SANE WHILE WORKING IN CHILD WELFARE
Students will discuss their concerns and suggestions and the class will look at ways shown to reduce the risk of injury and to enhance the enjoyment of working with children.
FINAL EXAM: MAY 15 12:00noon - 2:00p.m.