Syllabus

Master of Social Work

SSW 565 Administration & Supervision

Credits - 3

Description

Administration & Supervision (SSW 565) is the second in a series of required courses for students in the Organization & Community Practice concentration. Focusing on nonprofit organizations and other complex systems, this course builds upon content form foundation year courses and SSW 564 while introducing new concepts to examine administrative roles within the context of competing organizational values. Drawing upon classic contemporary theories related to all aspects of governance and administration of HHSOs and other complex systems, this course provides students with knowledge and skill needed to assume leadership position at multiple levels of administrative, management and supervisory practice. Students will be prepared to engage in empowering macro-level practice as leaders of sustainable, equitable and diverse programs, organizations and complex systems that promote universal human rights, social and economic justice and health, combat and dismantle barriers to human dignity and equity and promote change in oppressive organizations and community structures.

Materials

Learning Objectives and Outcomes

School of Social Work Program Outcomes:

Graduates of the UNE SSWO will demonstrate knowledge, skills, and leadership in the following:

1. Practice social inclusion to enable people, populations, and communities to fully participate in society, enhance human bonds in the context of cultural diversity and ensure improved quality of life and equitable resource distribution. EPAS Competencies 2 & 3
2. Engage in culturally-informed relationship building, being respectful of the complexity and diversity of contexts and circumstances. EPAS Competencies 3 & 6
3. Utilize theories of human behavior, social systems and social inclusion when offering interventions with people and their environments. EPAS Competency 8
4. Promote ethical reflection, critical consciousness and shared decision-making based in social work values and with consideration of the broader contexts of the world in which we live. EPAS Competency 1
5. Balance the roles of helpers, activists, and advocates through collaboration with communities to build healthy and sustainable resources. EPAS Competencies 2, 5, & 6
6. Engage as critical consumers and producers of research as it relates to assessment, intervention and evaluation of clinical and community practices. EPAS Competencies 4, 7, 8 & 9
7. Practice person-centered and collaborative community partnerships across diverse settings. EPAS Competency 6

Course Objectives

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

1. Possess an enhanced awareness of administrative practice in the context of human service organizations and an understanding of administrative practice roles and essential skills in terms of competing organizational values and needs.
2. Possess an enhanced awareness of classic and contemporary theories of leadership and the variety of administrative practice roles, e.g., management, supervision, consultation, mentoring, etc.
3. Have an expanded understanding of and ability to apply the UN Declaration of Human Rights, social work ethics and other relevant professional standards as leaders of sustainable, equitable and diverse HHSOs and other complex systems.
4. Be able to analyze and evaluate the impact of policies and social contexts on the leadership and administration of nonprofit HHSOs and other complex systems.
5. Have an advanced understanding of the impact of leadership and administration on environmental structures and conditions on the health of people, organizations and communities.
6. Have a thorough understanding of the role social workers can play as leaders of HHSOs in combating barriers to equity, social justice and health as a human right and promoting empowerment.
7. Be sensitive to and understand cultural diversity in leadership and administrative practice in HHSOs.
8. Serve as leaders for the development and implementation of integrated and interdisciplinary practice in HHSOs.
9. Have an expanded knowledge of, skills in and appreciation for the use of research and program and community evaluation as leadership and administration tools.
10. Be able to identify their strengths and limitations to serve as leaders in HHSOs.
11. Develop skills and understanding of the planning function of management and the value and utility of “action plans” used in program implementation, “evaluation planning” that address accountability and “logic models” that clearly describe program mission, goals, activities and outputs and impact.

Educational Outcomes

Through the completion of their assignments, students will demonstrate their ability to:

1. Utilize concepts from foundation and advanced-year curricula to enhance their awareness and understanding of classic and contemporary theories of leadership and administrative practice.
2. Understand and apply principles found in the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights, social work ethics and other relevant professional standards in the leadership of sustainable, equitable and diverse HHSOs and other complex systems.
3. Analyze and evaluate the impact of policies and social contexts on the leadership and administration of nonprofit HHSOs and other complex systems.
4. Understand the impact of leadership and administration on environmental structures and conditions on the health of people, organizations and communities.
5. Understand the role social workers can play as leaders of HHSOs in combating barriers to equity, social justice and health as a human right and promoting empowerment.
6. Explore cultural diversity in relation to leadership and administrative practice in HHSOs.
7. Recognize the need for and utilize integrated and interdisciplinary models of HHSOs.
8. Utilize knowledge of administrative practice roles and essential skills in the context of program and community evaluation.
9. Identify their own leadership skills and decision making styles and have an awareness of their strengths and challenges to serve as leaders in HHSOs.
10. Develop an understanding of the political, economic and service environments that form the external context of agency functioning and the administrative roles and skills needed to be effective in these external environments.
11. Develop an understanding of organizational “life-cycles” and the types of administrative practice roles appropriate at each stage of development.
12. Possess an understanding of the basic functions of the management, leadership, supervisory and other roles in administrative practice, i.e. planning, monitoring, controlling and organizing.
13. Possess an understanding of the practice theories that inform administrative practice, e.g., McGregor’s “Theory X”, Bandura’s cognitive learning or social learning theory, Maslow’s theory of motivation, political-economic exchange theories, systems theory, change theory.
14. Develop an understanding of collaborative models of agency practice, coalition building, advocacy, community and program development, service system coordination and management.
15. Demonstrate an understanding and skill using different types of decision making and an awareness of one’s own decision making style.
16. Demonstrate an understanding of the various types of leadership and leadership skills needed in administrative practice, e.g., transactional leadership, transformational leadership.
17. Demonstrate an awareness of group dynamics and team building in the context of macro practice, e.g., management teams, committees, task-forces, coalitions, service teams.
18. Demonstrate an understanding and awareness of one’s own behavior and effectiveness as a team member.

Assignments

Learning Activities

A variety of learning activities are designed to support the course objectives, facilitate different learning styles, and build a community of learners. Learning activities for each module include the following:

Readings:

The primary reading material that will be used in this course will be a review of the professional literature on administrative roles in social work practice. Articles to accompany the topical assignments are assigned each week and are grouped using an organizing framework that discusses administrative practice roles in the context of competing and at times conflicting organizational values and needs.

All of the assigned reading material is intended to expose students to current knowledge in macro- social work practice as well as challenge assumptions and encourage critical analysis and discussion of topical material.

Discussions:

Student and instructor discussions will occur through the multiple discussion boards and small group discussion boards. The discussions should be concise, coherent, and reflect a reasoned debate of the content and topical issues. Neither change nor learning occurs without a thoughtful and thorough discussion of the issues.

Grading and Feedback Method: Discussions are vital components of education. In this course, the key element of all assignments is the demonstration of critical thinking and application of content to social work practice. Graduate social work education provides students with the opportunity to create new knowledge and understanding in each domain of social work practice, e.g. micro, mezzo and macro practice. The instructor will look for demonstration of critical thinking and application of content and respond to students individually and as a class to help refine, enhance and correct discussion content.

Writing Assignments, Projects and Assessments:

Description: SSW 565 is a reading-intensive course. In an effort to reduce the volume of readings, students are asked in each module to select from a group of assigned readings and complete a synopsis of the article that is then shared with other students for discussion. In this way a far larger number of articles can be introduced into the course. Students are assigned to a “reading group” and the group then develops an initial “action plan” to divide the reading workload each week. Each week, group members share their synopsis and discuss the readings in their small group discussion. Journal and on-line articles and reports are the primary source of readings in SSW 565. The assigned readings should also be used to frame written assignments where appropriate and also in discussion with classmates and with the course instructor.

Since this is the last advance-year OCP concentration course, students are also expected to expand their knowledge and seek out literature that more specifically addresses their practice theories. For assistance in your literature search, seek guidance from your UNE advisor, your instructor or fellow students. Students will use the expanded-knowledge literature to respond to assignments throughout the course, and especially in completion of the final assignments where students are expected to clearly state what the administrative practice roles, practice theories that inform them and the skills needed to be effective.

The strategies used by the reading group to organize the workload and prepare their synopsis will be determined by consensus among group members. The strategy and “ground-rules” should be summarized briefly in the initial “action plan” developed through a consensus on task, time-lines and roles. The synopsis format will be determined by the reading group, however, all synopses should include a critical analysis of the reading content and its applicability to leadership and administrative practice. Synopsis should be no longer than one, single-sided, double-spaced page with one-inch margins in Times New Roman 12-point Font.

Description: Written assignments in this course are designed to help students develop their professional writing skills as well as express the understanding of course content. Social workers at every level of practice work in multiple, complex and challenging environments. It is therefore important for practitioners to be able to explain social work concepts in coherent and concise written statements. Course projects are intended to build upon each other. That is, the student’s first submitted assignment should be the foundation upon which all other assignments are built. Students should be able to see the development of their understanding and learning through the completion and grading of peer responses to each assignment. Writing in this course also should be used as an opportunity to submit your ideas and questions to peer consultants for comments and critiques. This course provides you with an opportunity for consultation from a large number of people who are studying and dealing with the same practice issues.

All of the assignments are intended to provide students with a supportive building process that will lead to a finished ideal program or initiative. Multiple domains of learning, understanding and expression are incorporated so that the finished product is not just a task to check off, but reflects the best thinking students have to dismantle barriers to human dignity and health. To be effective in administrative practice, one needs to have an understanding and competency in multiple roles and possess multiple skills appropriate for a variety of organizational contexts.

The written assignments ask students to focus on being concise and critical. Students are encouraged to engage in ample reflection before they start their writing assignments. Most assignments provide students with the opportunity to reflect upon and express their practice theories and to receive feedback from their faculty member and their classmates.

Grading and Feedback Method: Assignments that are graded will be reviewed by the instructor and comments will be noted on the assignment. The key element of all assignments is the student’s demonstration of critical thinking and application of content to social work practice. Graduate social work education provides students with the opportunity to expand their understanding and create new knowledge to inform and advance social work practice. Mere completion of a course assignment should not be the goal of one’s participation and advancing their knowledge of administrative roles and developing a greater sense of their capacities and skills should be the aim of everyone in the course. Feedback from fellow faculty and classmates should be based on curiosity and critical analysis, focused on moving understanding to broader and deeper levels. Most of all, feedback and critiques should be respectful and concise.

Due Dates: Due dates for all learning activities are provided in the “Course Schedule.”

Grading Policy

The School of Social Work uses the following grading system for all courses with the exception of field education courses. Students are expected to maintain a “B” (3.0) average over the course of their study. Students with less than a GPA of 3.0 will be placed on academic probation. Students must have an overall GPA of 3.0 in order to receive their Master’s Degree.

Your grade in this course will be determined by the following criteria:

Grade Breakdown

Assignment	Point Value	Percentage of total grade
Discussion Participation	400 points (50 points x 8 weeks)	40%
Reading Analysis Summaries – All Weeks Combined	100 points	10%
Ottawa Charter Draft and Feedback	10 points for draft and 40 points for feedback	1% and 4% respectively
Final Ottawa Charter Assignment	50 points	5%
Module Five Preferred Administrative Practice Assignment	100 points	10%
Module Eight Final Paper	300 points	30%
Total	1,000 points	100%

Grade Scale

Grade	Points Grade	Point Average (GPA)
A	94 – 100%	4.00
A-	90 – 93%	3.75
B+	87 – 89%	3.50
B	84 – 86%	3.00
B-	80 – 83%	2.75
C+	77 – 79%	2.50
C	74 – 76%	2.00
C-	70 – 73%	1.75
D	64 – 69%	1.00
F	00 – 63%	0.00