Course Syllabus
Instructor Contact Information
Lead Faculty Information
This course was designed by Dr. Ann Riley to provide students with the theoretical basis, practice skills, and evaluation tools for effective social work practice with families and groups. A variety of learning modalities are included to enhance student engagement, including guest faculty lectures and simulated family therapy sessions. I hope you will benefit from this opportunity to access the expertise of various faculty members at the OU School of Social Work. I appreciate my colleagues for their permission and willingness to share in support of your preparation for social work practice! Any anecdotes within presentations are relevant to them and not necessarily your instructor. All course instructors are well-versed in the study of the generalist social work practice model with a focus on higher-level systems and will guide you through this course.
Course Details
For a list of course activities, scroll to the bottom of this page.
Course Prerequisites
Graduate Standing in Social Work
Course Materials
- Families textbook: Goldenberg, I., Stanton, M., & Goldenberg, H. (2017). Family therapy: An overview (9th ed.) Boston: Cengage Learning
- Groups textbook: Toseland, R. W., & Rivas, R. F. (2018). An introduction to group work practice (8th ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon
- The most recent APA manual is required in every Social Work course. The current manual (7th edition, 2019) ISBN-13: 978-143383217
- National Association of Social Workers (2021) Code of Ethics for Social Workers
- Additional readings will be pulled from multiple sources and linked in the "Resources" section of each course module.
Grades
Breakdown
| Division | Description | Percentage | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Family Assignments
|
1 - Family of Origin Assessment |
|
37.5% |
|
2 - Family Case Assessment |
|
||
|
Group Project Assignments
|
3a - Group - Concept Proposal |
|
37.5% |
|
3b - Group - Curriculum Binder |
|
||
|
3c - Group - Role Play Facilitation |
|
||
|
3d - Group - Team Evaluation/Participation |
|
||
|
Participation
|
Reflection Activities (11) - 12 pts each |
|
25% |
|
Discussion Boards (6) - 12 pts |
|
||
|
Attendance - 7 pts
|
|
||
| Total | 100% |
Scale
| Percentage | Letter Grade |
|---|---|
| 90–100% | A |
| 80–89% | B |
| 70–79% | C |
| 60–69% | D |
| Below 60% | F |
Course Components
Family Assignments
-
Family of Origin Assessment - The intent of this assignment is to prepare you to assess families qualitatively and quantitatively by exploring your own family of origin history, to develop and use a genogram and ecomap for assessment purposes, and to reflect on how your family of origin or parentage has influenced you personally and professionally. In this assignment, students focus on their childhood/adolescent years to construct an assessment of their family of origin (or family of parentage) plus an evaluation using: 1) a three-generation family genogram, 2) a socio-environmental ecomap, and 3) a portion of the FACES IV – Family Satisfaction & Family Communication Scales.
**If you have concerns about completing this assignment (possible triggers, lack of family history information, or family disconnection), please advise your instructor so you can discuss together how to proceed and obtain assignment support given your situation. Please note all information in this assignment is confidential between you and the instructor.**
- Family Case Assessment - This assignment is the culmination of the family social work practice content. Students will apply family theory knowledge by conducting a qualitative family case assessment with a corresponding discussion using a quantitative assessment tool. Based on a true memoir, this engaging family account (titled The Glass Castle) depicts dysfunctional family dynamics, as well as, the family's strengths for coping with and surviving abject poverty.
Group Assignments
Group Project - This assignment is intended to help students engage in evidence-based practices related to client systems of interest to them and to increase their abilities to synthesize and present a plan for a group intervention.
Student groups will develop a fixed-time 10-session treatment group for a population of interest & create specific plans for implementation. This assignment has four components submitted at different intervals over the duration of the group content half of the course.
- Concept Proposal - completed form (2 pages) describing the purpose, type, agency, client population, and team task plan agreement.
- Curriculum Binder - a substantial written document with multiple required components (outlined on the assignment page).
- Facilitation Role Play - 30-minute treatment group facilitation role play from the group project curriculum binder.
- Team Evaluation - Individually completed form on the functional process and participation of the team.
Participation
These assignments are intended to give students an opportunity to make connections with the content, as well as to engage with peer colleagues.
- Reflection Exercises - Written reflective responses allowing for deeper engagement with the week's content module materials.
- Discussion Boards - Question prompts require a substantial post with support citations, followed by two replies with peers that further the conversation.
- Attendance - Attendance and engagement in three Live Sessions and two Live Check-Ins, along with timely submission of all assignments, including discussion board initial posts & replies are all expected for quality course participation.
Course Policies
Attendance
Graduate students are adult learners, indicating a willingness to attend all classes and actively participate. Students should have read the assigned material prior to class and be prepared to discuss it and apply it to issues related to the practice of social work. Students are expected to attend all Live Sessions and complete all required online assignments.
Communication
Students should use their OU e-mail or canvas to communicate with the instructor. They can expect a response usually within 48 hours Monday-Friday. For any reason communication will be delayed beyond that, it will be communicated to the students in advance. Professional communication is an expectation.
Feedback
Students can expect instructive feedback on most assignments but perhaps not all. Comments will be provided for any point reductions. Because I believe in a student's right to clear instructions and expectations, grading rubrics are applied for all major assignments and students have access to these as their guide. Please email me if you have any questions.
Late Policy
Assignments are to be turned in on or before the due date and time. The weekly structure for this course is from Monday@ 12:00amCST to Sunday @ 11:59pmCST. Students are responsible for converting the time zone relative to Central Standard Time. Assignments that are turned in late will receive a 10% reduction in overall points for each late day up to three days maximum. Assignments are not accepted after the third full day, unless prior arrangements are made with me.
Please reach out early by email if you're facing challenges, so we can work together. I understand how illness or major life circumstances may impact your educational efforts.
Plagiarism
The NASW Code of Ethics states: “Social workers should not participate in, condone, or be associated with dishonesty, fraud or deception.” One of the values on which the Code of Ethics is based is that of integrity and one of the ethical principles derived from this value is “Social workers behave in a trustworthy manner.”
Plagiarism is the most common form of academic misconduct at OU. There is basically no college-level assignment that can be satisfactorily completed by copying. OU's basic assumption about writing is that all written assignments show the student's own understanding in the student's own words. That means all writing assignments, in class or out, are assumed to be composed entirely of words generated (not simply found) by the student, except where words written by someone else are specifically marked as such with proper citation. Including other people's words in your paper is helpful when you do it honestly and correctly. When you don't, it's plagiarism.
For more information about plagiarism, watch this video and then take this short course offered by University Libraries.
Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act Statement (HIPAA)
In line with the new HIPPA regulations concerning protected health information, it is important that you understand that any client information that you share, either verbally or written, will need to be de-identified. This means that any information that would allow another to identify the person needs to be changed or eliminated. This includes obvious things like names and birth dates but may also contain other information that is so unique to the person that it could allow for identification, including, but not limited to diagnosis, race/ethnicity, or gender. If diagnosis, race/ethnicity, or gender is directly related to the case presentation, it can be included if it will not allow for identification.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) Use in the MSW Program
Unless otherwise specified by a professor for a course or assignment, the following AI policy applies across the program:
Positive Uses (not considered academic misconduct):
AI should be a “cleat” to enhance effort, not a “crutch” to replace effort.
- Prioritize original thought; use AI as a learning tool: The core objective of graduate education is to develop analytical thinking and communication skills. AI tools should supplement, not replace, your intellectual effort. For example, consider using AI as a “devil’s advocate,” “critical advisor,” or “red team” to identify potential weaknesses in your writing or arguments so that those weaknesses can be remedied through original work.
- Prepare for real-world AI integration: Graduate-level work often involves complex problem-solving and generating novel insights. Consider experimenting with AI use effectively and ethically, which may benefit your current and future career. For example, using AI to edit the clarity and flow of your original work draft is (usually) acceptable.
Prohibited Uses (considered academic misconduct):
Results in sanctions, including dismissal from the program.
- Fake references. You may not submit fabricated sources. All submitted references will be checked by professors who are deeply familiar with the leadership and behavioral sciences literature. The submission of any fabricated source or reference (so-called AI “hallucinations”) is academic misconduct and will result in sanctions.
- Plagiarism. You may not submit AI-generated content as your own original work. This prohibition includes summaries, discussion posts, essays, reports, or any other assignment where the primary intellectual effort is expected from the student. Students must give credit to large language models whenever they are used, even if only to generate ideas rather than usable text. For disclosure guidance on the use of AI, please refer to APA Journals Policy on Generative AI
- Cheating on quizzes and exams. You may not use AI tools to generate answers for quizzes, exams, or other assessments where independent thought and direct knowledge recall are expected.
University Academic Policies and Student Support
Access the University Academic Policies Document.
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|