Students will identify the theoretical underpinnings as well as practical applications of social work practice with groups and families. Students will also explore how groups and families function and develop skills and techniques to apply when working with these systems. Students will role-play family and group facilitation to practice engagement, assessment, planning, intervention, and termination with and on behalf of diverse individuals. Students will explore how to collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to improve service provision.
Prerequisite(s): SOCWK 5000 History and Philosophy of Social Work in the United States, SOCWK 5010 Human Behavior In Social Environment.
SOCWK 5000 History and Philosophy of Social Work in the United States (3 hours)
In this course, students will develop an understanding of the social work profession by learning diverse perspectives around the values, ethics, and goals that the profession entails along with the National Association of Social Worker’s Code of Ethics. Students will also learn about the history of social work as a profession, including the important people who have shaped the practices that social workers have used over time. Students will also identify the ways that the social and political environments bear on the problems faced by individuals and families, and communities in the United States and influence the environment has on social work practice. Finally, students will actively consider how the historical context of the social work profession and the values that the profession has adopted relate to their own personal and professional values and goals.
SOCWK 5010 Human Behavior In Social Environment (3 hours)
In this generalist course, students with synthesize and examine the body of knowledge concerning how the individual, group, family, and community systems interrelate with each other and the larger social context from the lifespan stages from birth through adolescence, adulthood, aging, and death. Content will be drawn from the biological, psychological, sociological, eco-political, and cultural environmental systems. The importance of professional ethics in the assessment process is also examined.
