Syllabus

Master of Social Work

SSWO 552 Advanced Clinical Social Work Practice I (Spring 2021)

Credits - 3

Description

This is the first of two Advanced Clinical Social Work Practice courses, both courses follow a similar format offering students an intense experiential learning experience in some of today’s most popular and effective clinical interventions with children, adults, and families. This course emphasizes the application of strengths-based and person-centered interventions with a focus on the specific skills and behaviors associated with relational clinical social work. The importance of the therapeutic alliance and the critical role of client feedback are emphasized and reinforced throughout the course.

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 Outcomes

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

CO1: CSWE Competency 6a: use empathy, reflection, and interpersonal skills to effectively engage diverse clients and constituencies. 

CO2: CSWE Competency 7c: develop mutually agreed-on intervention goals and objectives based on the critical assessment of strengths, needs, and challenges within clients and constituencies

CO3: CSWE Competency 8a: critically choose and implement interventions to achieve practice goals and enhance capacities of clients and constituencies

Assignments

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:

Whole-Class Discussions

Description: An important learning method in this course is student participation and interaction in the discussion threads within each module. The discussion threads provide one method for students to integrate reading materials and multimedia into the course discussion and demonstrate their knowledge about the discussion prompt. Students are expected to participate actively and in a respectful manner.

Brief Practice Client Description

In this 1-page informal essay-style assignment you will develop and present a mock client for use in the small group practice exercises in this course. Your mock client can be based on someone you know or have worked with in the past or even a bit of “you” mixed in as long as it isn’t something traumatic or unresolved in your life.

Small-Group Practice Exercises (Discussions)

Description: You will have an opportunity to role-play and practice therapy sessions in this small group discussion space. Discussions will build on each other from week to week.

Reflective Essays

For each modality, you will write a 4 to 5-page (not counting title and reference pages) APA-style reflective essay. You will express your reaction to each therapeutic approach and how you plan or don’t plan to use it in your future clinical practice as well as your evaluation of your current comfort and skill level in using each modality with future clients.

Grading and Feedback Method

Grading and feedback methods are listed with each assignment. Please refer to the “Assignment Details and Rubrics” and individual Learning Modules of the course for more information. The course facilitator will return assignments and other grading items (discussion boards, participation, etc.) to students within three days of the assignment due date. The course facilitator will provide weekly feedback about participation and performance no later than four days after the learning module closes. 

Due Dates

Due dates for all learning activities are provided in the “Course Schedule” and under My Grades in the Blackboard course.

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

Assignments	Points	Percent of Grade
Whole Class Discussions	280 points @ 35 each	28%
Small Group Practice Discussions	240 points @ 40 each	24%
Week 1 Brief Practice Client Description	80 points	8%
Reflection Papers	400 points (200 points X 2 assignments)	40%
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