UNIVERSITY OF KENTUCY

College of Social Work

Lexington, Kentucky 40506-0027

SW 470-001, Senior Seminar

Spring 2005

Karen Badger, Ph.DE-mail:

Office:625 POTFax: 859-323-1030

Office Hours: T/Th, 9:30 – 11:30 amPhone:257-2350

Class meets:

I.COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course is an integrative professional seminar for senior majors in social work, usually taken in the last semester of course work. Social work issues of an educational, professional and practice nature are examined. Prerequisites: SW 445 or concurrent. Open only to social work majors.

This class is a writing-intensive (W) course approved to fulfill the upper tier of the graduation writing requirement (GWR). To receive W credit for this course, you must have successfully completed at least 30 hours of coursework. (Questions about the W option should be referred to the Director of the UK Writing Initiative, Professor Janet Carey Eldred, .)

II.COURSE OBJECTIVES

Upon satisfactory completion of this course, the student will have:

  1. Reviewed social work values, knowledge and skills appropriate to the BA level and

focused on filling any gaps perceived to be present in student preparedness.

  1. Identified the most frequently encountered problems social workers face today in exercising their professional functions and activities.
  1. Demonstrated professional research skills (literature review; professional written

and oral communication skills).

  1. Further developed and demonstrated critical thinking skills throughout the course.
  1. Identified the impact of discrimination on individuals and groups affected by social,

economic, and legal bias or oppression such as those distinguished by income, age,

physical or mental ability, religion, affectional orientation, or cultural and social diversity and any related social marginalization.

  1. Developed the ability to integrate social work theory and practice by way of a detailed analysis of actual case situations.
  1. Demonstrated knowledge of the process necessary to obtain future social work employment and/or apply to graduate educational programs.
  1. Become familiar with professional organizations and their relationship to the formation of a professional identity and professional development.
  1. Written a paper that is essentially free of mechanical errors (grammar, punctuation, spelling and syntax) and awkwardness, using a style that is appropriate to the purpose and the audience.
  1. Demonstrated an ability to discover, evaluate, and clearly present written evidence in support of an argument in the subject area, utilizing American Psychological Association (APA) documentation style.
  1. Developed awareness that composing a successful text frequently takes multiple drafts, with varying degrees of focus on generating, revising, editing, and proofreading.
  1. Written a competent, interesting essay about a complex issue (discipline-specific) for a general university audience.

III.CONTENT

Students in Senior Seminar will have taken most of the required courses in the curriculum. Therefore, only supplemental content pertaining to the foundation areas of study will be introduced.

Students will be required to select and comprehensively analyze an actual case from the micro- and macro-system perspectives. This requires the integration of content taught in all required courses (Human Behavior and the Social Environment, Policy, Research, and Practice I and II) and demonstration of mastery of such content through its application in practice.

Students will be required to write a single authored, 23 - 36 page paper, demonstrating formal writing that is drafted, reviewed and revised. Specific instructions regarding this assignment can be found under the section VI. 1. entitled the final integrative paper.

IV.REQUIRED TEXT

Szuchman, L. T. & Thomlison, B. (2004). Writing with Style: APA Style for Social Work, 2nd edition.Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.

V.ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION

Attendance in this class is required. Discussion and participation are highly valued. Students are expected to attend class prepared to participate. Acceptable reasons for excused absences are listed in the Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook.

Three (3) or more unexcused absences will result in the final grade being lowered by one letter grade.

Students are expected to come to class on time and prepared to participate, as well as to conduct themselves in a professional manner, and turn off pagers and cell phones.

VI.ASSIGNMENTS, GRADING CRITERIA, AND GRADING POLICIES

  1. Final Integrative Paper: Each student will submit a final paper that includes the sections outlined in the “Instructions for Preparation of the Integrative Paper” at the end of this syllabus. Each section should be clearly labeled, and each section must begin with complete sentences describing the content of the section.

Each section of the completed paper must contain a discussion of relevant issues and make reference to theory and concepts, as they are relevant to the particular case/issue. Each section of the completed paper must also be written essentially free of mechanical errors (grammar, punctuation, spelling, and syntax) and awkwardness, using a style that is appropriate to the purpose and the audience.

To assist with the achievement of these goals, a draft-and-review process will be utilized throughout the writing of this paper. The draft and review process will consist of both peer review workshops of drafts and instructor review and commenting for the draft of each section. The paper will be divided into four sections and reviewed at the completion of each section. Students will receive a grade for each draft review and for the submission of the final paper.

The completed document should be approximately 23 to 39 pages in length (excluding cover page and reference pages), double-spaced with 1¼ - 1½ inch margins, and typed and written in APA style, with the exception that each section must start at the top of a new page.

References are expected to be utilized for the writing of this paper in appropriate sections, and should be cited according to APA style (5th ed.).

Students are expected to keep all drafts and rewrites in a folder. When turning in a rewrite of a particular component of the paper, the draft of those same sections should accompany it. All drafts and rewrites must be turned in along with the final paper.

Assignments are due on the assigned date. Drafts and rewrites turned in more than one week late without an acceptable excuse will not receive the benefit of careful review and feedback, and will be penalized 3 points per day.

Grades will be based on:

  1. Demonstration of integration of theory and knowledge.
  2. The application of theory to practice.
  3. Quality and organization of content.
  4. Writing ability, including spelling, grammar, punctuation, syntax, sentence and paragraph construction, and use of a style appropriate to the purpose of the paper and the audience.
  5. APA style compliance.

You will be requested to submit two copies of your final integrative paper to the instructor. One copy will be graded by the instructor; the second copy will be used for the SACS assessment and should be a clean copy, with only your social security number listed at the top of the page. All other identifying information (your name, instructor’s name, and course and section number) should be removed.

Important: To pass the course and fulfill the upper tier of the GWR, you must submit all formal writing assignments and earn a grade of C or better on each assignment. You will receive a peer review and a chance to revise your paper prior to submission to the instructor. Any major assignment (drafts of final paper and complete final paper) that receives a D or below must be revised to demonstrate adequate competency and the revised paper must be resubmitted for a new evaluation. You may resubmit each draft to the instructor one additional time within 10 days of the date your instructor returns the corrected draft to you. If you fail to achieve a C grade on the final version of any major writing assignment, you will receive a failing grade for the course.

Note: Assignments or requirements other than the major assignment (integrative paper) become a factor in the final determination of your course grade only if you have achieved a grade of C or higher on all formal written assignments.

  1. Professional resume and cover letter. Following class instruction at the CareerCenter, students will be required to submit a professional resume and cover letter, as if applying for a real job position or an imaginary job at a real agency. Fine business paper is not necessary for this assignment. Further details concerning the instructor’s expectations will be provided in class.

Grades will be based on:

  1. Cover letter, including appearance and writing style
  2. Presentation of resume, including appearance and spelling.
  3. Organization of resume.
  1. Individual presentation addressing major section of integrative paper: Each student will be responsible for presenting information for a major section of the integrative paper. In most cases these will be co-presentations. Co-presenters are expected to collaborate to ensure material is thoroughly covered without undue overlap. The presentation should include a thorough description of theories or social work concepts and at least one example of how the material applies to the student’s individual case. Every attempt should be made to make the presentation interesting and clear. Students are expected to use at least one textbook source; the instructor has most of the textbooks used in required social work courses and will make them available for loan. Students also are expected to provide handouts for class members; the handouts should include the source(s) used.

Grading will be on a pass/fail basis with points awarded as follows: pass – 15 points; low pass – 10 points; and fail – 0 points. Grades will be based on:

  1. Demonstration of understanding of theory and concepts.
  2. Thoroughness of material presented.
  3. Presentation of material to classmates (clarity, organization, and voice projection).
  1. Individual presentation of journal article: Each student will review an article from a social work journal that relates to his/her case and present to the class a summary. This may be an article from the student’s literature review for the major paper. Students should be able to demonstrate that they can read and make sense of articles presenting research findings.

Grading will be on a pass/fail basis with points awarded as follows: pass-5 points; low pass-3 points; and fail-0 points. Grades will be based on:

  1. Thorough coverage of journal article (e.g., research question, methodology, findings, implications, and limitations).
  2. Demonstrated understanding of article content and findings.

Calculation of the Final Grade will be as follows:

Integrative paper

Drafts of four sections (15% each draft)60%

Final paper15%

Individual presentation re: major section of paper10%

Professional resume & cover letter10%

Individual presentation of journal article 5%

100%

Numerical Grades relate to letter grades as follows:

A: 90%- 100%, B: 80%-89%, C: 70%-79%, D: 60%-69%, F: Below 60%

VII.ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Part II of Student Rights and Responsibilities (available online at heep:// states that all academic work, written or otherwise, submitted by students to their instructors or other academic supervisors, is expected to be the result of their own thought, research, or self-expression. IN cases where students feel unsure about the question of plagiarism involving their own work, they are obliged to consult their instructors on the matter before submission.

When students submit work purporting to be their own, but which in any way borrows ideas, organization, wording or anything else from another source without appropriate acknowledgement of the fact, the students are guilty of plagiarism. Plagiarism includes reproducing someone else’s work, whether it be a published article, chapter of a book, a paper from a friend or some file, or something similar to this. Plagiarism also includes the practice of employing or allowing another person to alter or revise the work which a student submits as his/her own, whoever that other person may be.

Students may discuss assignments among themselves or with an instructor of tutor, but when the actual work is done, it must be done by the student, and the student alone. When a student’s assignment involves research in outside sources of information, the student must carefully acknowledge exactly what, where and how he/she employed them. If the words of someone else are used, the student must put quotation marks around the passage in question and add an appropriate indication of its origin. Making minor changes, while leaving the original organization, content and phraseology intact,is plagiaristic. However, nothing in these Rules shall apply to those ideas which are so generally and freely circulated as to be a part of the public domain (Section 6.3.1).

The minimum academic penalty for an academic offense, such as cheating or plagiarism, is an E in the course (Section 6.4.1).

VIII.COURSE CALENDAR – This calendar is tentative pending changes due to availability of Guest speakers. A sign-up sheet for individual presentations will be distributed no later than the fourth class.

Jan 12: Course overview. Review of course requirements and individual assignments.

Discussion of the expectations of the Integrative paper.

Sign up for individual presentations

Jan 17:Review of psychosocial evaluation.(Come to class with a case you are thinking of using for your integrative paper).

Review of APA writing style

.

Jan 24:Review of micro and macro issues

Jan 26:UKCareerCenter (Stuckert Bldg., located on Rose Street across from Singletary Ctr.)-Donna Baldwin Hunt. How to write a resume and cover letter. How to get a job, before, during and after the interview.

Jan 31:Follow up discussion regarding resume writing and job applications

Draft of Module 1 due for class: Peer review workshop: Module 1

of integrative paper

Feb 2:Review of major theories of human behavior

Due to instructor: Draft of Module 1 of integrative paper

Section 1: Presentation of the Case

Section 2: Individual and Family Issues

Section 3: Macro-system Issues

Feb 7:Review of major human theories continued

Glenna Wash, Social Work records officer, will distribute & collect degree

application cards for May degrees.

Due:Cover Letter and Resume

Feb 9: Review of the micro problem solving process

Last day for filing application for May degree

Feb 14:The ethics of the profession (come to class prepared to identify and discuss an ethical issue that applies to your case)

Feb 16:Class cancelled: Instructor at a conference

Feb 21: Continuation of ethics of the profession

Draft of Module II due for class: Peer review workshop: Module II of integrative paper

Feb 23:Review of policy analysis and development

Feb 28Continuation of review of policy analysis and development

Due to instructor: Module II of integrative paper

Section 4: Theoretical Orientation

Section5:Micro Problem-solving Process

Section 6: Ethical Issues

March 2:Review of macro problem solving process

Preparing for graduate education: Dr. Janet Ford, Director of Graduate Programs

March 7:Continuation of review of macro problem-solving process

March 9:Draft of Module III due for class: Peer review workshop: Module III of integrative paper

March 14:Spring break: no class

March 16: Spring break: no class

March 21:Review of Research Design and Implementation

Due to instructor: Module III of integrative paper

Section 7: Social Policy History & NASW Position

Section 8: Macro/Political Process Model

Section 9: Macro Problem-Solving Process

March 23:Continuation of Review of Research Design and Implementation

Asking good research questions and designing research to answer them.

Class Discussion of the research questions selected for your papers.

March 28:Continuation of review of research design and implementation

March 30: Draft of Module IV due for class: Peer review workshop: Module IV of integrative paper (except for reference page)

April 4:Draft of reference page due for class: Peer review workshop: review of integrative paper reference page

Licensing and Certification, Beth Mills, MSW, Field Director, College of Social Work, University of Kentucky

April 6:Presentations of journal articles

Due to the instructor: Module IV of integrative paper

Section 10: Research Question/Hypothesis

Section 11: Literature Review

Section 12: Research Methodology and Implications

Section 13: References

April 11:Continued presentations of journal articles

April 13:Continued presentations of journal articles

April 18:Practicing in the work environment: professionalism and other issues

April 20:Open class: guest speaker (choice of students)

April 25:Development of a continuing education plan

Self and class evaluations

Integrative Paper due to instructor at the beginning of Class:

Deadline is firm.

Unless case of a documented excuse that meet with instructor’s satisfaction and/or is consistent with the Student Rights & Responsibilities Handbook.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PREPARATION OF THE

FINAL INTEGRATIVE PAPER

Overall Format:

Margins are to be set at 1¼ - 1½ inch on all four sides of the double-spaced text. You should use a “running head” related to the title of your paper. Page 1 will be the Title Page. Headings for each section must follow APA format. Each page should be numbered, and references must be APA style. Start each of the sections listed below on a new page and use 12-point standard font for all text.

You are expected to submit a professional looking paper that is grammatically correct, contains appropriate sentence structure, and is free of misspelled words. This paper should be a source of pride – an opportunity for you to integrate and synthesize all that you have learned.

The paper will be reviewed according to modules defined below. Please see the course calendar in the syllabus for due dates for peer and instructor reviews.

Module I: Section 1. Presentation of the case; Section 2. Individual and family issues;

Section 3. Macro-system issues

Module II: Section 4. Theoretical orientation; Section 5. Micro problem solving process;

Section 6. Ethical issues

Module III: Section 7. Social policy history and NASW position; Section 8. Macro/political process

model; Section 9. Macro problem-solving process

Module IV: Section 10. Research question/hypothesis; Section 11. Literature review;

Section 12. Research methodology and implications; Section 13. References

OUTLINE

I.PRESENTATION OF THE CASE

Insuring that client confidentiality is protected, choose a case that will give you a solid basis for discussing the topics listed below. Using APA-style subheadings, address these points at a minimum, (length: 3 – 5 pages):