1 SW 696 Fall 2005 Social Work 696 Mary C. Ruffolo, Ph.D., ACSW Social Work Practice with Children and Youth Office: (734)936-4799 Fall 2005 (Intensive Focus Course) SSW Bldg #2726 Thursday, 9:00-12:00 E-mail: [email protected] Course Description: This advanced level methods course in the Children and Youth in Families and Societies concentration builds upon the foundation level practice methods course and prepares students for employment in the many human service delivery systems which address the needs of children, youth, and their families. This cross-cutting skills course encompasses both direct/micro (i.e., assessment, intervention, prevention) and indirect/macro (program design, evaluation, administration, community organization, policy analysis) practice methods used to address problems presented by or to children and youth in a variety of contexts. The development of social work skills applicable to promotion, prevention, remediation and social rehabilitation activities with diverse child and youth populations at all levels of intervention will be emphasized Course Content: Effective social work practice with children and youth requires a holistic and multi-leveled approach, an emphasis on prevention and early intervention, and the involvement of families, other primary caretaking adults, and involved professionals, in the identification, development, delivery, and evaluation of services. In addition to being able to assess and intervene with children and youth, social workers must also develop the skills necessary to assess the resources and the risk factors which may exist in the child’s or youth’s family, neighborhood, community, and in the larger social environment. In this course the emphasis of intervention is as much on the context as on the individual. Intervention strategies focus on ways to bring about change at levels such as the classroom or school, the peer group, and the community or population, as well as at the individual level. Indirect practice skills covered in this course are aimed at promoting interpersonal competence, self-esteem, self-efficacy, achievement, and moral development in children and youth by making the contexts within which they develop more responsive to their developmental needs. Throughout the course, cultural competence and sensitivity to differences among families and the impact of worker/client differences in values, experiences, and power will be emphasized. In addition, the student will learn to understand the significance of “multiple identities” (the interaction of factors such as age, ability, personality, environmental conditions, ethnicity, citizenship and immigration status, social class, gender, sexual identity and religion) in shaping the uniqueness of families and individuals. Course Objectives: Upon completion of the course, students will have demonstrated advanced-level skills in translating and applying a developmentally sensitive, resiliency focused, collaborative,2 SW 696 Fall 2005 multisystems intervention perspective in working with diverse populations of children and youth, families and communities. In addition, students will have demonstrated advanced skill in using evidence-based prevention, intervention and rehabilitation practice guidelines to develop micro, mezzo and macro interventions that address child, youth, family and community goals and priorities. Specifically, students will be able to: 1. Effectively communicate with and establish developmentally sensitive, culturally appropriate collaborative relationships with children, youth, their families, and other significant members of their social environments in every level of social work intervention. 2. Apply collaboration building and consultation skills within and across child and youth serving organizations to strengthen families and organize communities in response to the program practice and policy needs of diverse populations of children and youth in different child-serving settings. 3. Assess risks, protective and promotive factors that contribute to child and youth safety, health, security and well-being. 4. Effectively seek out needed information and become familiar with formal and informal resources available to meet the diverse needs of children, youth and their families. 5. Develop evidence-based change interventions that build on child, youth, family and community strengths and resources at the micro, mezzo and/or macro system levels. . 6. Incorporate social work values and ethical principles in planning and implementing interventions for children and youth and their families. 7. Use relevant child, youth and family policy initiatives, laws and judicial decisions to advocate for improvements in the delivery of interventions that support the strengths of diverse child, youth, family and community systems and promote social justice. 8. Evaluate the usefulness of current knowledge, research and evidence based practice methods in work with diverse populations of children, youth and their families who live in communities where they experience discrimination and oppression due to gender, sexual identity, race, ethnic background, language, age, ability, religious preferences and poverty. Course Design: The course instructor will select readings and design assignments for the course. Various classroom teaching strategies may be used, including lecture, multimedia presentations, small and large group discussion, presentations by students and guest lecturers, role plays, and experiential exercises. Student’s experiences in the field will be used as much as possible in assignments and case presentations and discussions.3 SW 696 Fall 2005 Relationship to curricular themes: a. Multicultural and diversity issues will be emphasized throughout this course, not only in relationship to direct intervention with children and youth and their families and communities, but also in regard to the need to develop and maintain effective collaborative relationships with other community resources and service providers. Students will learn to recognize the existence of group differences in a number of areas (such as nonverbal communication, individual and family values, family and community structures, preferred and accepted responses to crisis, response to exclusion or oppression) and how these may impact intervention relationships with children, youth, and their families. b. Social