Category: Social work

Your job is to read the book The Furrows by Namwali Serpell critically and compose review of the book. The review should include a synopsis of the book, critical analysis of the book; and an assessment of the value of the book for social workers. What can you say about this book that will make me want to read it? 
Grading and required contents:
Introduction (2): Provide a general description of the book, including the intended audience. A description of the author may be helpful. Describe your reason for choosing this book; what did you hope to learn?
Synopsis (7): Describe the main message(s) of the book. You may wish to summarize how each topic/chapter is presented.
Strengths (3): Identify, describe, and analyze what is new [to you] and useful in the book.
Weaknesses (3): Identify, describe, and analyze what is missing, incomplete, or mistaken in the book.
Implications for social work (5): Identify and describe the value of the book from a social work perspective and what social workers can apply to our practice.

https://www.alberta.ca/system/files/custom_downloaded_images/edc-ss30-1-examples-student-writing-jan-2017.pdf 

Familiarizing yourself with your agency’s mission is crucial to understanding the purpose of its existence. What is your agency’s mission? Further, programs within agencies often have specific objectives. What is the purpose of your specific program? How do you see this aligning (or not aligning) with the principles of anti-oppressive practice?  Please give a specific example. Are there actions that your agency is taking to actively engage in ADEI (anti-racism, diversity, equity & inclusion)? Respond to 1-2 other peers’ responses
Part two
Please Read “Why self-care is vital for social service professionals”. https://socialwork.simmons.edu/blog/self-care-for-social-service-professionals/ and watch this video clip “Radical self care” by Alicia Garza https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NQ7FGkfPwyE&t=1s
1. What does radical self care look like? While Alicia Garza, in the clip, is speaking to activist and movement work…think about the context of social work and the work we do for social justice. 
2.What is your goal for the semester as it relates to radical self care? What is something you are going to commit to doing weekly, biweekly and monthly? Respond to 1-2 other peers’ responses

If you have not done so, be sure to read the Case Analysis Structure Overview.
In this essay you have 5 tasks:
Give a clear and concise explanation of the case at hand.
Give a thorough philosophical exegesis of the relevant aspects of Pojman’s and Mosley’s theories.
Present an argument applying the philosophers’ arguments to the case at hand. This should include an argument justifying to whom each philosopher would give the job.
Present an argument explaining why one of the philosophers can be viewed as offering a more successful solution to the  case at hand.
In no more than one paragraph explain who you would hire and why.
Case
Consider a new position at the very prestigious Chronus Department of the Federal Government.  The Chronus Department examines how issues from the past have an impact on current affairs, and their new position aims at recruiting a new employee to be groomed to eventually assume the position of Director because the director of the department will retire n several years.  The ideal candidate would be someone who has a degree in some area of the humanities that deals with research, history, and culture, and who has a demonstrated ability to work well with others in a leadership capacity.  This position has an incredible benefits package including, healthcare, vacations, and a pension.
The Department has narrowed its selection down to two candidates:
Molly is an African American woman from a very affluent and politically active Texas family.  She attended Yale, where she earned an undergraduate degree in Anthropology with a minor in US Civics.  After graduating, she volunteered for two years in the Peace Corps, and then took a year off to tour around Europe.
Cameron is a third-generation Irish American from a working-class family in Pennsylvania.  After high school, he spent a year working with his father in a steel mill, but then decided he wanted to go to university.  He received a scholarship to Princeton, where he graduated with a degree in US History.  In his final year of school, Cameron was elected Student Body President and implemented a union for the teaching assistants. 

PLEASE REVIEW THE TOPIC AND OUTLINE IVE CHOSEN FOR THE PAPER. IT IS ATTACHED IN THE FILE BELOW
Research Proposal (Instructions and Grading Rubric Found in Appendix A) students will be given a choice of topics (or may choose one of their own) to develop a research proposal that falls into the category of program/practice evaluation (group design – survey method) or community needs assessment. Students will complete Human Subjects protection training and apply the ethical standards, while considering personal values and bias, in selecting samples, creating/selecting data collection tools (100 pts)
2.a – students will maintain a journal of their activities, thoughts, and reasonings as they develop their research proposal. Keeping a journal while working on a complex research process, encourages the student to make careful and thoughtful decisions along the way, tracking and linking each aspect of the proposal, while recognizing how personal values and bias can impact their decisions. (50 pts)
Students must turn in a working outline for the literature review (supporting evidence and sources) Due Date: 2/25
Students must turn in a working draft of the proposed method Due Date 4/21
Students must turn in draft documents of informed consent and data collection tools: Due Date 4/28
Students will engage in a mandatory class workshop for developing a research plan with mandatory attendance. Date TBD
Final Project Plan Proposal Due: 5/5
Grading Rubric for Final Research Proposal
Does not Meet Expectations
0-69% of pts
Meets Expectations
70 -89% of pts
Exceed Expectations
90%or greater
Quality of Writing (15 pts)
Numerous grammatical/spelling errors/APA errors/unorganized lacks depth, not indicative of graduate level writing. Does not follow prescribed formatting guidelines
Some APA errors (3-4); information is informative information flows in an organized manner. Follows prescribed formatting guidelines. Reflective of graduate level work.
Little to no grammatical/spelling/APA errors, follows prescribed formatting guidelines exceptional quality indicative of graduate level work
Background/Introduction of the Problem (10 pts)
Does not provide a background summary of problem area or information provided does not reflect main themes identified in literature review
. Provides a succinct (1 – 2 paragraphs) summary of the problem area developed in the literature review with 1-2 key pts missing
Provides a succinct
(1 – 2 paragraphs) summary of the problem area developed in the literature review includes all key pts
Literature Review (30 pts)
Information simply defines, describes, identifies, labels or lists; no demonstration of understanding of facts or ideas as evidenced by comparing, translating, interpreting and/or stating main ideas.
The information presented is applied, related to a concept in the current social; economic or cultural environment; or is applied to a novel situation.
A synthesis of different subtopics to come to a greater understanding of the state of knowledge about the larger issue;
The literature review should be no more than 5 pages and must have between 20 and 25 unique references of which no more than 3 can be websites. Websites are generally used to support relevant statistical information related to a population or problem area.
Problem Statement (2.5 pts)
Does not provide a problem statement or problem states is unrelated, lacks links to purpose statement and research question/hypothesis
One or two succinct statements accurately reflecting the information presented in the Introduction and literature review with only minor revisions needed.
One or two succinct statements accurately reflecting the information presented in the Introduction and literature review with no revisions needed.
Purpose Statement (2.5 pts)
Does not provide a purpose statement or purpose statement is unrelated, lacks links to purpose statement and research question/hypothesis
One statement accurately reflecting the purpose of the study based on the problem statement with only minor revisions needed.
One statement accurately reflecting the purpose of the study based on the problem statement with no revisions needed.
Research Question/Hypothesis (10 pts)
Does not provide a research question/hypothesis or there is a lack of links to problem statement and purpose statement
Accurately reflects problem statement, purpose statements and are manner feasible to research inquiry, with only minor revisions needed.
Accurately reflects problem statement, purpose statements and are manner feasible to research inquiry, with no revisions needed.
Methods Section (30 pts)
Missing methods section or does not provide required details to carry out a research study
Articulates sample characteristics of prospective participants and recruitment methods.
Incorporates appropriate measures/instruments to gather data to answer research question or test hypothesis with only minor revisions needed
Clearly articulates sample characteristics of prospective participants and recruitment methods.
Incorporates appropriate measures/instruments to gather data to answer research question or test hypothesis

part 1
reflect on chapter 1: the social work profession
Purpose: The purpose of the reflections is to demonstrate that you have read over the chapter and understand its key points.
Skills: The reflections will provide an opportunity for students to practice the following:
Reading and synthesizing information from the textbook, identifying the key points and takeaways
Utilizing content and resources provided in each chapter to supplement learning and complete assignments
Develop critical thinking by relating the information from the textbook to the daily world you live in
Knowledge: The reflections will help you keep up with the weekly textbook reading assignments, which provide the foundation content for the course. The textbook sets the stage for the other activities and assignments you will participate in during the semester.
Tasks: The Textbook Chapter Reflections will occur in the following sequence:
The Reflection Assignment will be linked to the Canvas module for that week.
Each Chapter Reflection should contain three short paragraphs that answer the following three questions:
What was your biggest takeaway that was new to you that you learned in this chapter?
What would you like to know more about or what questions do you still have?
What can you point to that shows a connection between what you read about and what is going on around you in real life?

Final
Essay Prompts
D
You will write a 4-5 page term paper on one (1)
of the following prompts:
1.      Compare
and contrast the US Constitution with two (2) other national or state
constitutions throughout the world. Focus on 3 main components of your selected
constitutions, e.g. federalism, religion, states’ rights, civil liberties/civil
rights, etc. to base your analysis on. Is there anything from the other two
constitutions that should be included in the US Constitution? Anything from the
US Constitution that should be included in any of theirs?
2.      Should
the US reform, abolish, or maintain prisons/jails at the federal, state and
local level? If reform or abolition, what would that look like and how would it
be accomplished? If maintaining, why should they be kept the way they are?
3.      Should
the US abolish the Electoral College in electing our Presidents? Discuss the
functions of the Electoral College, its original purpose, as discussed by the
Founders, (Cf. Federalist Papers), and, if it should be
abolished, detail how Presidents should be elected instead, and what the
implications of this could be (if it should not be abolished, consider one
alternative to replace it and why it is not preferable to the Electoral
College). 
Requirements:
Your
paper must be: 4-5 pages (text of essay itself must reach
bottom of 4th page at least), 12pt. Times New Roman font,
double spaced, Word Document or PDF format only, with a Bibliography/Works
Cited. You can use any citation style you like, e.g. MLA,
APA, Chicago, etc. but it must be consistently used throughout your paper.
If you are unsure of how to use citations or styles, please email me or
drop by office hours. 
You
must use between 5-10 outside sources, such as news articles, books,
journal articles, op-eds, class discussions, etc. in your paper. (Though,
you may use more, but you must use at least 5).
For
your essay include an introductory paragraph in which you
introduce the topic, articulate the question you are answering, and
conclude it with your thesis statement. Following your introductory
paragraph will be your body paragraphs, which articulate your
arguments and possible counterarguments, and your conclusion,
which summarizes your question and arguments, and may include other
possible smaller considerations and questions that way on your arguments.
Finally, include a bibliography, or works cited, citing
the sources you use.
Adhere
to the Rubric on the Assignment posting. 

Assessment Description
Write a 700-1,050-word personal reflection paper summarizing the following: I put answers in bold to give you direction on each question  
o    Most significant things you learned about group counseling in this course-I LEARNED THAT YOU NEED TO KEEP THE GROUP FOCUSED THE BEST YOU CAN
o    Most significant things you learned about yourself as a potential group leader-I LEARNED WHEN I COME TO THE GROUP PREPARED, THERE’S A LOT BETTER
o    Specific skills and experiences that you believe you need to develop in order to be a competent group counselor, based on your current strengths, weaknesses, and prior experience-I NEED TO WORK ON TRANSFERENCE AND COUNTER TRANSFERENCE IN GROUPS. I ALSO NEED TO NOT SHARE MY FEELINGS AS OFTEN.
o    Your areas of greatest confidence and areas of opportunity when you think about leading counseling groups-Definitely my experience as a recovering addict, living the life the clients did, And knowing how to relate to them and make them comfortable
o    Which theoretical basis you are most drawn to and why – Cognitive and Behavior. Because I have used and witnessed those for the last few years and have had great success. 
o    Types of groups you might enjoy leading in your future career as a counselor-I want to lead substance-abuse and addiction, counseling groups, both CBT and experiential.
o    Two-three scholarly sources that include in-text citations and a reference list in APA format.
Prepare this assignment according to the guidelines found in the APA Style Guide, located in the Student Success Center.

( First discussion response with one resource. Please keep seprated.) 
Karissa Tongue
Today at 10:34 AM CDT
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Hello!
One of the concepts for human behavior that I have been focused on this term at my internship site has been through focus groups and making sure that I am following best practices in order to get the information that is needed to move forward. I utilized these skills during my process recording interview. I am not working with clients, so I had to be creative in what I was going to do during this time.
One best practice for focus groups is that they need to be given some information prior to the interview. I made sure that I did this with my process recording as well. The more information that I gave them on my project, the better prepared they would be to giving me feedback. I also made sure to reassure them that their information would be kept private so that they would feel more comfortable sharing any harsher feedback that they had. Mandatory child abuse reporting is a hot topic, especially in communities that have historical traumas from their experiences with the child welfare system.
Before the interview, I was actually nervous. I did not want to mis-represent the agency and cause issues there, but I also wanted to make sure the person I was interviewing had their opinions heard. The more relaxed I got in to the interview, the better it went. I was able to listen and understand what they were saying. Sometimes I struggled with listening to respond instead of listening to understand and that is a place I could use more practice in the future.
( second discussion response with one resource. Please keep seprated.) 
Faleka Singleton
Yesterday at 10:12 PM CDT
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What professional social work strengths can you identify in yourself? What are areas you might work on?
As a professional social worker, some of my strengths include building rapport with clients, empathy, advocacy, cultural competence, and active listening skills. Having these strengths helps show the client that I’m offering support and willing to provide the necessary intervention tailored to their needs. Showing empathy and active listening skills helps build trust with the client. Being relatable and transparent with the clients, with professional boundaries, shows the client that you are human as well without judgment. Cultural competence has always been one of my biggest strengths. I always enjoy other artistic ways of life and compare and contrast the different upbringings. Being sensitive to your client’s diverse background shows the client that you respect their way of life and traditions even when you disagree with them. As a social worker, doing your research is essential to tailor the client’s intervention to meet their needs and implement best practices for the client. In addition to advocacy, I’ve always kept the clients’ well-being in mind and helped them engage in services to help them better themselves. Ensure that they have access to resources and communicate with the client frequently to enhance positive outcomes for the clients I serve. Interpersonal skills courses often begin with the observation and articulation of feelings and encourage students to progressively critique their interpersonal performance (including things like the observation of micro-skills such as physicality and the articulation of feelings associated with client issues) until they make deeper connections between their own beliefs and experiences and their professional practice. (Blakemore & Agllias, 2019)
Recognizing and using these skills helped me during the recording process and effectively document interventions that will contribute to a positive outcome for the client’s treatment services.
While I’ve identified several strengths, I’m also aware of areas where I can improve. One such area is organizational skills. I’m committed to enhancing this aspect of my professional practice, further enhancing my ability to serve clients effectively. 
Findings from this study suggest that behavioral exercises, critical observation, and reflection activities directly promoting or pertaining to self-awareness can be useful even in the beginning years of social work education. This research shows that students identified their personal ideas, beliefs, and behaviors and made important connections between theory and professional interpersonal practice. (Blakemore & Agllias, 2019)
Reference:
Blakemore, T., & Agllias, K. (2019). Student reflections on vulnerability and self-awareness in a social work skills course. Australian Social Work, 72(1), 21–33.
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Angel, you provided a well written and clinically sound summary of the case of Riley this week. Additionally, you convey a strong ability to apply behavioral conceptual frameworks theory directly to practice. Issues with paragraphing and organization and I would’ve like to see you take a deeper dive with regard to biopsychosocial factors here.
This is what she said about your last paper 
I will add the last paper that you did thanks