Bulletin--Social Work Discipline

SOCIAL WORK


College of Health and Human Services
(See Social Work in the Academic Programs section for information on degrees)

Undergraduate Courses

All undergraduate social work courses, except SW 350 and SW 301, are restricted to junior and senior majors during touch tone registration. Registration is opened to non-majors during the first two weeks of classes, during which time students may enroll with consent of instructor and on a space available basis.

300 U.S. Social Welfare: Past, Present, and Future (3)

Prerequisites: junior standing; successful completion of introductory courses in human biology, economics, psychology, sociology, or consent of instructor. The welfare institution viewed as societal responses to certain social needs. Examination of needs and responses within a time-change perspective. Analysis of the social work profession and its involvement in the delivery of welfare services.

301 U.S. Social Welfare II: Problems, Policies, and Programs (3) [GE]

Prerequisite: S W 300 or consent of instructor. Certain social problems are selected for intensive study in relation to policies and programs that determine available services. Attention is given to the adequacy of such policies and programs and the input of government, voluntary associations and consumer groups.

302 Introduction to Social Service Organizations (2)

Prerequisites: junior standing; successful completion of introductory courses in human biology, economics, psychology, sociology, or consent of instructor. Provides students who are interested in majoring in social welfare with an overview of the function, structure, and activities of social service organizations in a multi-racial, multi-ethnic urban environment. Includes regular visits to social agencies and a weekly seminar.

350 Child Welfare (3) [GE]

Prerequisite: upper division standing. Social Work majors should enroll in senior year. Child welfare as a specialized field of social welfare. Services to children—in their own homes as well as outside—are explored. Critical attention given to the service delivery systems and to the child welfare worker's job.

352 Gender, Sexism, and Social Welfare (3)

Prerequisite: upper division standing. Critical examination of sex role stereotyping in the policies, practices, and organization of selected social welfare institutions and organizations and in the practice of social workers and related human service professions.

400 Social Work Practice I (3)

Prerequisite: junior standing. Corequisite: S W 300. A unitary model of social work practice is presented. Seminar in the value dimensions of practice, the systems with which the practitioner must deal and the changing nature of the practitioner's relationships with each of these systems.

401 Social Work Practice II (3)

Prerequisite: completion of S W 400. Continued examination of factors influencing professional practice with special attention to such tasks as forming, maintaining and coordinating action systems, differential ways of influencing action systems in various phases of the change process and terminating change efforts. Seminar.

402 Interviewing Skills in Social Work (3)

Prerequisite: S W 400. The various types of interviewing skills required of a social worker. These skills include intake interviews, informational interviews, assessment interviews, and interviews with families or groups.

410 Human Development and the Social Services (3)

Prerequisite: junior standing. Relation of the basic principles of human development and behavior from conception through old age to the functions of social service agencies in dealing with life crises.

450 Introduction to Research in Social Work (3)

Prerequisites: S W 301 or 401 or consent of instructor. The scientific method and its application to social work, the practitioner as consumer and contributor to social research; an overview of research methodology. Selected research studies are analyzed for methodology and contributions to social work knowledge.

456 Urban Community Organizing and Citizen Action (3)

Prerequisites: S W 400, 401, and 402, or consent of instructor. History and current developments in community organization in the city. Principles and strategies of developing citizen action organizations. Role of community organizing and citizen participation in urban social programs. (Also offered as URBS 456.)

470 Social Differences and Social Work Practice (3)

Prerequisites: S W 300 and 400. Differences of class, ethnicity, age, culture, religion, and disability, and their relationship to social work practice. The development of practice skills to work with people from populations different from oneself.

502 Seminar on Field Experience I (2)

Prerequisite: all junior year Social Work courses. Corequisite: S W 503. Evaluative seminar to enable students to analyze their field experiences utilizing social work theory and behavioral science concepts. CR/NC grading only.

503 Field Experience in the Social Services I (2)

Prerequisites: all junior year Social Work courses. Corequisite: S W 502. Field experience in a community social agency to apply knowledge learned in social welfare and behavioral science courses. May be repeated twice for credit. CR/NC grading only.

504 Seminar on Field Experience II (2)

Prerequisites: all junior year Social Work courses, satisfactory completion of S W 502 and 503. Corequisite: S W 505. Evaluative seminar to enable students to analyze their field experiences utilizing behavioral concepts. CR/NC grading only.

505 Field Experience in the Social Services II (2)

Prerequisites: all junior year Social Work courses, satisfactory completion of S W 502 and 503. Corequisite: S W 504. Field experience in a community social agency to apply knowledge learned in social welfare and behavioral science courses. CR/NC grading only.

660 The Roles of Nonprofit Organizations in Urban Life (3)

Prerequisite: senior standing. Analysis of this "third way" to serve urban society in: social services, the arts, housing, environmental and community advocacy. Management topics: the board, the law, consumers and donors, government relations, income, grants, volunteers, decision-making, innovation, and role change. (Also offered as PLSI/URBS 660.)

699 Special Study (1-3)

Prerequisites: consent of instructor, major adviser, and department chair. Supervised study of a particular problem selected by the student in consultation with the adviser.

Graduate Courses

700 History and Philosophy of Social Welfare (3)

History of social welfare policies and services in the United States. Historical developments are analyzed in terms of attitudes, values, beliefs, philosophies, assumptions, and ideologies. Implications for growth and development of the social work profession and social service delivery systems are pinpointed. Political, economic, social, legal, historical, and cultural contexts of social policy are analyzed in terms of past, current, and future implications. Applications to and implications for diversity are emphasized.

701 Social Policy Analysis (3)

Prerequisite: S W 700. Covers a range of policy analytical models and frameworks that can be used to analyze social policy. The purposes, functions, and applications of policy models and analytical frameworks are addressed. Different types of policies (with diverse objectives, assumptions, and impacts) are pinpointed, and policy models and analytical frameworks are applied to each. Frameworks for analysis are discussed in terms of their applications to and implications for all areas of practice. Strengths and weaknesses of the models and frameworks are identified, particularly in light of population diversity. New policy/program directions are explored, and action plans are developed.

710 Human Behavior and the Social Environment (3)

A social systems conceptual framework for the study of human development and social services through the life cycle. Current social services, exemplary programs and unserved needs identified at each stage of life with an emphasis upon oppressed groups.

711 The Life Cycle (3)

Prerequisite: S W 710. Study of the phases and processes of human development in a life-span model. Examination of the interrelated physical cognitive, emotional and social-cultural elements shaping differential patterns of adaptive goal-oriented behavior.

720 Research Methods in Social Work (3)

Prerequisites: S W 450 or equivalent and completion of first semester of graduate social work program. The role of research in the development of social work theory and practice. Methods of data collection, processing and analysis. Field methods of data collection; problems of statistical analysis and inference.

721 Seminar: Evaluative Research in Social Work (2)

Prerequisite: S W 720. Intensive exploration of the design, execution, and analysis of the efficacy of evaluative research designs, methods, and strategies in social welfare. Emphasis upon measuring efficiency of service delivery, and applied evaluative research methods relevant to innovative programs.

730 Social Work Practice Methods (3)

Seminar representing the central concepts and processes of urban generalist practice. Major emphasis is given to the development of practice skills relevant to the needs and aspirations of oppressed individuals, groups, and communities.

740 Field Work Instruction (2-5)

Corequisite: S W 741. Application of the urban generalist model to a variety of practice settings serving oppressed groups. Integration of course work through practice under the supervision of a faculty member. May be repeated for a maximum of ten units.

741 Graduate Field Work Seminar (1)

Corequisite: S W 740. Evaluative seminar to enable graduate students to analyze their field experiences. Conducted by faculty field liaison and with agency field supervisor input. May be repeated for a total of four units.

760 Seminar: Social Work and the Law (2)

Social change through the judicial, legislative and executive processes, courts, evidence, human reproduction, marriage, divorce, adoption, children's rights, legal problems of the aged, racism, sexism, poverty, consumer protection, housing, education, mental health, licensing, and malpractice.

770 Ethnic and Cultural Concept and Principles I (3)

Basic conceptual framework for the understanding of ethnic/cultural variables that intervene in social work practice with ethnic minority clients and communities (in particular, Asian, Black, Chicano–Latino, and Native American).

771 Ethnic and Cultural Concepts and Principles II (3)

Prerequisites: S W 730 and 770 or consent of instructor. Involves analysis and evaluation of traditional social work intervention methods as they relate to service delivery for Third World people. From such evaluative perspectives, the course explores new and relevant methods for intervening in the problems of Third World clients and communities. It attempts to evaluate traditional methods and the applicability to Third World realities.

800 Planning and Program Development (3)

Prerequisite: S W 700 or consent of instructor. Planning and program development of human service organizations. Theories, types, levels, applications, and issues of planning are studied. These knowledge and skill bases are used to plan and develop human services programs. Focus is on needs assessing, analyzing, management planning and programming, marketing, fund raising, and grant writing. Attention given to making program development relevant to the needs of diverse populations and communities. Required for all Administration and Planning and Social Development students.

801 Change Strategies and Professional Values (3)

Prerequisite: S W 700. Seminar on the role of social work as a profession in relation to social change; the effect these changes have on present and future relationships. Review of salient professional issues.

810 Health, Illness, and Disordered Behavior (3)

Prerequisite: S W 710. Seminar examining health, illness, disability, stress reactions, and psychopathology. These states are examined from a developmental perspective and with a focus on implications for social work practice.

811 Seminar: Organizations, Institutions, and Communities (3)

Prerequisite: S W 710. Examines a range of organizational theories that relate to the dynamics of complex organizations. Attention is given to social service bureaucracies in public and private sectors. Stability and change are addressed in terms of life cycles, theories, strategies, and tactics that impinge on change processes. Techniques for empowerment of community groups and historically oppressed populations are explored. Required for all Administration and Planning and Social Development students.

820 Seminar: Advanced Research Methodology in Social Work (2)

Prerequisite: S W 720. Theory and method of research applied to the design of research projects with a developmental enhancement, program operations, or social development focus.

830 Seminar: Social Casework (3)

Prerequisite: S W 730. Methods of helping individuals cope with personal and social problems. Consideration of various approaches in the development of casework skills. Enhancement of social functioning examined through case studies and video tapes detailing social work interventions on behalf of individuals.

831 Seminar: Advanced Social Casework (3)

Prerequisite: S W 830. Seminar in the use of relationships and the formulations of psycho-social diagnosis; adaptation of the casework process to traditional and nontraditional social casework; social therapeutic considerations in complicated personal and social pathology.

832 Seminar: Social Group Work (3)

Prerequisite: S W 730. Seminar in small group behavior and the social work interventions required for improving social relationships within groups.

833 Seminar: Advanced Social Group Work (3)

Prerequisite: S W 832. Seminar in analyses by students of social and psychological problems in their client groups. Analysis of current theories of change and their utilization in the social group work process.

835 Seminar: Social Development Methods I (3)

Prerequisite: S W 730. The nature of communities, community change dynamics, patterns of decision-making and community power analysis. Special attention given to social planning and to social change strategies in working with disenfranchised and oppressed communities.

836 Seminar: Social Development Methods II (3)

Prerequisite: S W 835. Examination of selected social change strategies including citizen action organizing. Client participation and program development in social agencies, community development corporations.

837 Family Social Work (3)

The urban family from both theoretical and practice orientations. The structure and internal operations of: various types of families; life cycle of the family; assessment of dysfunction; intervention strategies; and social worker's role in the change process.

850 Human Services Administration I (3)

Prerequisite: S W 730 or consent of instructor. Analysis of the decision-making process in regard to the major features that shape social work; policy organization, management, coordination, interpretation and financing; supervision as an administrative-teaching process and managerial function. Use of the conference method, evaluation and group processes in supervision.

855 Seminar: Current Issues in Social Work (1-4)

Topic to be specified in Class Schedule. Examination of current issues in social work practice and in the profession. Exploration of selected issues in depth and utilization of other course and field work in the creative analysis of issues and in development of a personal stance toward them. May be repeated for a total of six units when topics vary.

862 Child Welfare (3)

Analysis of major issues in providing public and publicly funded child welfare services. Examination of preventive, supportive, and substitute programs for children and families; discussion of changing urban family roles, cultural-racial-class factors, affective development, and children's rights.

864 Human Services Administration II (3)

Prerequisite: S W 850. Modern management theory as applied to public human service agencies. An emphasis on the analysis of the processes of administration designed to produce efficient and effective social service programs.

880 Computer Technology and Human Services (2)

Prerequisite: completion of or concurrent enrollment in S W 850. Computer technology as it applies to contemporary management of social service agencies. Emphasis is on exposure to a range of concepts, skills, and tools that can be utilized to manage information systems in contemporary social service agencies. Classwork, one unit; laboratory, one unit.

895 Research Projects in Social Work (3)

Prerequisite: advancement to candidacy. The execution of an individual or group research project reflecting student's interests and needs in working with oppressed communities. Graduate Approved Program and Proposal for Culminating Experience Requirement forms must be approved by the Graduate Division before registration.

898 Master's Thesis (3)

Prerequisite: advancement to candidacy. At the discretion of the staff and on application of the student, consent may be given for the student to write an individual thesis. The thesis topic falls within the social welfare field. Otherwise, the thesis can be a group project. Graduate Approved Program and Proposal for Culminating Experience Requirement forms must be approved by the Graduate Division before registration.

899 Special Study (1-3)

An intensive study of a particular problem in social work under direction of a member of the social work faculty. Open only to students who have demonstrated ability to do independent work. Enrollment by petition.


Course Disciplines Listing, Bulletin 1994-96 Table of Contents, SFSU Home Page

last modified July 19, 1995