SOWK 732: Foundation Practice with Organizations and Communities

Course Syllabus

I. Purpose/Rationale of the Course

In order to practice effectively, social workers must be able to intervene within and across multiple levels of social systems using a variety of professional skills to enhance person-environment transactions.  These levels of social systems include macro systems of organization, communities, and the larger society as well as micro systems of individuals, families, and small groups.

II. Content of the Course

This course will focus on social work methods relevant for practice with macro systems.  We will investigate theory and learn and practice skills and techniques that help to effect change, solve problems, and enhance social functioning.  The course includes content on the contexts in which macro practice occurs, i.e. communities and neighborhoods, organizations, and the legislative arena; and the components of an effective change process, i.e. building power, planning, mobilizing human resources, securing financial resources, marketing and public relations, developing organizations, taking action, and evaluating change.

III. Course Objectives:

Students who successfully complete this course will be able to:

1. Describe the contexts in which generalist social workers practice with organizations and communities to effect change, typical goals and tasks of social workers in such settings, and components of effective change processes with large systems.
2. Assess the systems, strengths, and needs of a community, and plan generalist interventions which meet identified community needs.
3. Facilitate action by and on behalf of populations at risk (e.g., women, people of color, lesbian/gay/bisexual people, people living in poverty, people living in rural areas) to assure the availability of basic resources and to further social and economic justice.
4. Utilize research literature and other information systems, including computer data bases, to analyze social problems and identify possible solutions.
5. Identify and analyze value and ethical concerns which may face the generalist social worker in practice with organization and communities, reflect on their personal responses to such issues, and suggest responses which are consistent with the NASW Code of Ethics.

IV. Linkages to Other Courses:

This foundation year course builds upon knowledge of human behavior and larger social systems acquired in undergraduate liberal arts courses, and further developed through the concurrent foundation year course on human behavior and the social environment (712). It provides students with an introduction to practice theories and skills appropriate for generalist social work practice with organizations and communities, and establishes a foundation for the advanced year concentration in social work practice with organizations and communities. It is taught concurrently with 722, which focuses on generalist practice with individuals and families, and is followed in the next semester by 710, which introduces generalist practice with treatment and task groups. It is taught concurrently with 741, and both builds on and supports students’ understanding of social welfare policies, the programs which carry out those policies, and their impact on communities.

V. Methods of Instruction

Lecture-discussion will be the primary instructional method used in this course.  Other methods to facilitate learning will be used at the discretion of the instructor and may include class exercises, role-plays, guest lecturers, videotapes, and student presentations.

Any student who because of a disability may need special arrangements or accommodations to meet the requirements of this course should consult with the instructor as soon as possible.  The office of Disability Services provides an array of services to meet the needs of students with disabilities, according to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. See information and guidelines provided in The Carolina Community: Student Handbook and Policy Guide.