SW120: I Want to Help People
Interim 2009
Valerie Thomas, MSW, LICSW
Holland Hall 213B, e-mail <thomasv>
Office: x3173 Home: 645-1088 (before 9:00 PM)
Hours: Tuesday and Friday 10:30-12:00 (others by appointment)
Boe Chapel 111
Schedule
No class on Mondays
Tuesdays 8:30-10:00
Wednesdays 8:30-10:00, 10:40-12:40, 1:00-3:00
Thursdays 8:30-10:00, 10:40-12:40, 1:00-3:00
(field trips may be all day 8:00-3:00)
Fridays 8:30-10:00
“I don’t know what your destiny will be, but one thing I do know: the only ones among you who will be really happy are those who have sought and found how to serve”
---A. Schweitzer
“Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?'”
--Martin Luther King, Jr.
DESCRIPTION
Students explore service to human beings as a profession, a vocation, a volunteer commitment. Who needs help? Who helps? Where? How? What motivates people to help? Using the liberal arts as a foundation for helping people, students study career opportunities in areas such as health care, social services, ministry, youth work, and the arts. The class includes lectures, discussions, speakers and field visits; additional fee. GRE: WRI.
OBJECTIVES
At the conclusion of this course, the student should be able to:
1. Recognize opportunities for helping others through formal systems and in less
formal ways;
2. Gain a beginning understanding of helping professions and their relationship to the
liberal arts, social sciences, and the social welfare system;
3. Recognize the importance of knowledge and skills in the delivery of effective
helping services;
4. Differentiate how “helping” can be beneficial or harmful;
5. Understand the importance of ethics codes in helping professions;
6. Recognize diversity in individuals, families, groups, organizations, and
communities, and articulate the differences and similarities in their human needs;
7. Explore their own desires to help others and how, where, and whom they might
want to help;
8. Describe a specific helping profession;
9. Discover the relationships between helping others and the creative arts—writing,
art, music;
10. Make satisfactory oral and written presentation of ideas and information related to
the course;
11. Explore the concepts of vocation and calling in the desire to help others;
To meet learning objectives for the WRI general education credit, students should demonstrate:
1. The ability to write effectively in a form appropriate to social work/social welfare;
2. The ability to write as a means for inquiry, learning, thinking, and communicating;
3. The ability to engage in writing as a systematic, iterative process, using flexible strategies for generating drafts, responding to feedback, revising, editing, and proofreading.
READINGS
Books:
Brill, N. & Levine, J. (2002). Working with people: The helping process. Boston: Allyn
and Bacon.
Burger, W. & Youkeles, M. (2000). The helping professions: A careers sourcebook.
Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.
The Inventure Group (2001). Putting purpose to work. The Inventure Group. (provided).
Articles: (additional articles may be assigned)
Eighner, Lars (1999). On Dumpster Diving retrieved on 28 December, 2008 from
http://www1.broward.edu/~nplakcy/docs/dumpster_diving.htm
Illich, I. (April 20, 1968). To Hell with Good Intentions. An address by Monsignor Ivan
Illich to the Conference on InterAmerican Student Projects (CIASP) in
Cuernavaca, Mexico http://www.swaraj.org/illich_hell.htm
First-person account: memoirs, autobiography on being a client or helper in human services (further instructions given in class)
For reference: (available in CEL or Department of Social Work/Family Studies office)
Boldt, L (1996). How to find the work you love. New York: Penguin Putnam, Inc.
Bolles, R. (2000). How to find your mission in life. Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press.
Eberts, M. & Gisler, M. (1998). Careers for good Samaritans and other humanitarian
types. VGM Horizons: Chicago, Illinois.
Everett, M. (1999). Making a living while making a difference: The expanded guide to
creating careers with a conscience. Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers.
Grobman, L. (1999). Days in the lives of social workers: Fifty professionals tell “real
life” stories from social work practice. (2nd ed). Harrisburg, PA: White Hat
Communications.
Szuchman, L. & Thomlinson, B. (2008). Writing with style: APA style for social work.
(3rd edition). Brooks/Cole.
GUIDELINES/EXPECTATIONS
- This course fulfills requirements for a course with writing (WRI). Human service professional responsibilities require that you be good writers and writing can be a useful tool in work with clients and also as a method of self-awareness and self-care. I expect all writing to meet basic requirements for good grammar, spelling, and organization. Please use APA style of reference accessed on the library home page.
- I will schedule one individual conference to discuss your writing strengths and areas of improvement. Appearance of your papers, clarity of expression, spelling, and similar characteristics of good writing are important and are judged along with the content. We will use non-sexist and inclusive language verbally and in writing.
- Any student with a documented cognitive, physical or social/emotional disability needing academic accommodations is expected to speak with me during the first week of class. All discussions are confidential. Students with a disability who do not have an accommodation letter must also contact Ruth Bolstad (bolstadr@stolaf.edu) or Connie Ford (ford@stolaf.edu) in Student Disability Services in the Academic Support Center (x3288) located in the back of the Modular Village.
- I expect class attendance and participation. Interim is short, and we have lots to cover. One class day is equivalent to about a week during the semester. Students are adults and must establish their own priorities. If illness, emergency, or better educational opportunity prevents your attendance, I appreciate a message on voice mail or e-mail. I do not expect to "give permission," however, and the student is totally responsible for any holes in knowledge or missed materials caused by the absence. Anything that happens when the class is together--video, guest speaker, lecture material, site visits, discussion--may be included in quizzes.
- Strive to meet the time college expectations for interim outlined below. It is not always true that more is better, but to some degree you will get out of this class what you put into it. College guidelines for student work load and class meeting time state: "Students are expected to devote a minimum of 40 hours per week directly related to the Interim course, including class time, outside reading, and other course-related work. In general, faculty/student contact hours for the Interim approximate the contacts hours per course during the regular semester: 35-40 hours for the entire Interim or 8-10 hours per week” (St. Olaf Catalog, 2004-2006, 10)
ASSIGNMENTS/ACTIVITIES
(see handout for specifics on assignments)
1. Journal of activities/reactions/questions for small group discussions
2. Small group discussions
3. Commentaries (2)
4. Leading class
5. Book summary
6. Volunteer exploration and presentation
7. Professional Exploration Paper
8. Statement of Vocational Mission Statement
9. Writing Partners
10. Field visits/guest speakers/retreat
GRADING
Your grade will be based on evidence of your work throughout the month, including quizzes, written assignments, leading class, commentaries and your major paper. Evaluation includes:
- Journal evaluated as minus/check/plus
- Commentaries(2 @ 5 points each) 10
- Class Leadership 5
- Book summary 10
- Volunteer exploration presentation 10
- Professional exploration paper 35
- Statement of vocation evaluated as minus/check/plus
- Quizzes (3 @ 10 pts each) 30
- Written response to group work ungraded
Total: 100 points
Ungraded assignments are required, and will be evaluated using plus, check, minus. These assignments, in addition to my subjective evaluation of your contributions to the course, can tip your grade up or down if you stand in the middle of a grade. If an ungraded assignment is not completed, it will result in my assigning a full grade lower (e.g. A to B or B- to C-). The guide to letter grades is below. Adjustments may be made for unusual circumstances, quality and degree of class participation, attendance, etc. at my discretion.
A= 95% B= 85% C= 75%
SCHEDULE
The instructor reserves the right to change the schedule and assigned readings as new opportunities for learning present themselves
Date |
8:30-10:00 |
10:40-12:40 |
1:00-3:00 |
Special notes |
|
January 5
January 6 |
8:00-9:00 Continue Introductions |
|
|
Meet with writing partner for 30 minutes outside class before January 8 |
|
January 7 |
Human Beings in Need Through History |
Vocation/calling |
1:00-2:30 CEL tours in small groups |
CEL resource Tours meet in Modular Village |
|
January 8 |
Am I Suited? |
Classroom |
Small groups |
Draft of vocational mission statement due |
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January 9 |
Whom to help? |
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|
professional exploration paper choices due |
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January 13 |
Knowledge for helping |
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Indicators #1 & 2 due; |
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January 14 |
Eighner article, Brill and Levine, 6 |
Classroom Quiz #1 |
Small groups |
Written response to small group questions due |
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January 15 |
Brill & Levine, 5 |
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professional exploration paper outline and interview questions due |
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January 16 |
Skills for Helping |
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Commentary #1 due; |
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January 20 |
Vulnerability, dependency, resistance, assets, resiliency, strengths in those we help |
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Draft |
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January 21 |
Working with diversity in a pluralistic society |
Quiz #2 |
Class time and small groups |
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January 22 |
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Indicator #3 due; |
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January 23 |
Working with families and groups |
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Commentary #2 due |
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January 27 |
Quiz #3 |
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Response to group work due; |
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January 28 |
Getting it all together |
Discussions, reflections and lunch |
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January 29 |
Psychology Burger and Youkeles, 6 |
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January 30 |
8:00-10:00 AM Final Exam time |
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Volunteer presentation & PE paper due |
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