MSW program. In addition, this assignment aims to prepare students to address practice concerns that are linked to social problems and policies in a knowledgeable, professional, and systematic manner.
To complete this assignment, each student will select a client system/case from field or work experience. This final paper is expected to demonstrate the students accumulation of foundation year MSW material (including policy, practice, theory, and research) and exhibit readiness for the second year of study.
Papers are to be a maximum of 10 double-spaced typed pages, with 12-inch font and 1-inch margins. Page guidelines are given below for each section. Papers should be free of mechanical flaws, including errors in grammar, punctuation, and spelling. Citations in the text and a reference page must conform to the most current APA style. This assignment is worth 40% of your course grade.
Select a case/client system on a micro, mezzo, or macro level in which you have been directly or indirectly involved and for which you can thoroughly answer all of the questions below. Using APA style headers, label each of the four sections below with an appropriate header.
1. Client System (6 points) – 1 page
a. Briefly describe the client system (e.g., individual, family, community, organization) including relevant details about their immediate environment.
b. Discuss the etiology of the presenting problem, issue, or condition.
c. Discuss the social history of the client system (e.g. family, relationships, educational, employment, medical) and other relevant historical factors that have a potential impact on the presenting issue, problem, or concern.
i. Include how culture, ethnicity, and racism, may have impacted the client or client system with specific examples
ii. Include relevant data on the physical environment and neighborhood.
2. Critical reflection (10 points) 1-2 pages
a. Values and ethics: Describe any value, ethical, systemic, or cultural issue that impacted your work with this client system.
b. Cultural competency: Describe how you were mindful of culturally competent practice and/or human rights issues in your work with this client. Give specific examples.
c. Anti-racist practice -Describe how you explicitely explored your own biases and approached the client or client system through an antiracist lens.
d. Strength perspective: Describe how you applied the strengths perspective when working with this client.
e. CSWE competencies: Identify and describe how you integrated the following CSWE competencies (see: Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards) during your work with this client:
Competency 2: Engage Diversity and Difference in Practice
Competency 3: Advance Human Rights and Social, Economic, Racial, and
Environmental Justice
f. Educational reflection: Considering your first year of social work education, identify and describe the knowledge, values, and skills acquired throughout your education that proved helpful in working with this client. Use specific examples or references.
3. Research and evidence-based practice (6 points) 1-2 pages
a. Locate at least 5 peer-reviewed research articles to identify evidence-based or evidence-informed practice interventions relevant to your case.
b. From these articles, critically assess 2 interventions.
c. Discuss the underlying theory of the selected interventions.
d. Discuss the compatibility between social work values and ethics and the selected interventions.
e. Discuss the relevance of the evidence for each intervention for your particular client or client system (has the research been conducted on groups relevant to your client; is the intervention culturally relevant to your client or client system?)
4. Policy and practice with regard to the social problem, issue, or condition (6 points) 1 page
a. What federal, state, and local legislation or policies have been enacted or created to address or change this social problem, issue, or condition?
b. What practice theories and intervention strategies are currently used to treat individuals, families, or groups experiencing this problem or condition?
c. What research evidence is available that supports the effectiveness of the current policies and practices used to ameliorate this problem, issue, or condition?
d. What policies or practices have specifically excluded certain populations from receiving treatment? What policies or practices have caused harm (intended or unintended) to particular groups and how may this impact your client or client system?
5. Ideal world reflection (6 points) 1-2 pages
a. Consider a policy and practice change that would address or ameliorate the problem, issue, or condition.
b. Identify how your policy or practice change advances human rights and social, economic, racial, and/or environmental justice.
c. Discuss how this proposed policy and practice change would be implemented. Include in your discussion the resources needed and how you would acquire such resources.
d. Describe what you have learned from this assignment and discuss how you will apply this learning in your future practice.
6. Mechanics and professional communication (6 points)
a. Included APA style in-text citations and a References page
b. Application of critical thinking and thoughtful self-reflection
c. Grammar, organization, flow, use of subject headers
d. Included 12-inch standard font, APA style format
My Topic is Gang Violence with children
To think about
are there any shared issues among the kids? What has been the effect on the community? Are there any organizational policies that are good or could be improved? Do you get to know the families and how has this program impacted them? Do you know if the program has boosted graduation rates? How is the program evaluated?
