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School Social Work NOW
Supporting Innovative Practice, Effective Leadership & Applied Research
November 2010 - Vol 1, Issue 7 |
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| Greetings! |
The Holiday Season is nearly upon us. ACSSW encourages you to pace yourself both at work and while preparing for the festivities. While all the hub-bub can be exciting and joyful, it can also be very stressful. Please take care of yourself during the weeks to come -- exercise, good nutrition, plenty of sleep, and recreational activities -- so that you also may enjoy them.
If you find value in the ACSSW newsletter, feel free to forward to friends and colleagues by clicking the orange "Send to a Colleague" button on the lower left. It is usually easier than trying to forward from your email account.
The Charter Membership join time will be ending soon on November 30th, only 12 short days away. If you have been putting off joining, act now for best rates and to be included on the growing list of those who have a fresh vision for the future of school social work! For more information see Activities and Membership Information, below.
Free membership through May 2011 for graduate students in school social work is continuing. If you are a graudate student, teach graduate students, supervise graduate field placements, or otherwise know how to reach students, you are encouraged to forward this email to them so that they may take advantage of this free offer. Students need only go to the website, complete the join form, and click on "submit." Join NOW!
With the Thanksgiving Holiday fast approaching, there will be no newsletter next week. Watch for the next issue on December 2nd. Best wishes for a loving, relaxing Thanksgiving break.
Judith Shine, President
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| Request for Research Assistance |
An Examination of Homophobia and Social Work Practice Among a Sample of School Social Workers
Milka Ramírez, MSW, a member of the American Council for School Social Work and the School Social Work Association of America and a school social worker in Chicago, is conducting her doctoral research and would like you to participate in the 30 minute survey. Please take time to support this important research. Click the following link to participate in this essential work: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/homophobiaandsocialworkpractice2
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| Practice Points | |
Creating Trauma-Sensitive Schools to Improve Learning: A Response to Intervention (RtI) Model
Professional educators know that many students face challenges in their personal lives that adversely affect their learning in school. Unfortunately, many children have been traumatized by directly or vicariously experiencing violence, homelessness, loss (or fear of loss) of loved ones, or other kinds of trauma. . . Many school districts have chosen to utilize a Response to Intervention (RtI) Model to successfully support students with a wide range of behavioral and emotional issues. Schools can build on these efforts by providing universal, selective and targeted strategies that will emphasize children's strengths and address the educational needs of students who have been affected by trauma. For more, click here.
Many Children Not Receiving Needed Mental Health Services
Of nearly 7.4 million children in the United States diagnosed with emotional, behavioral, or developmental conditions, a disproportionate number do not get the mental health services they need because they are underinsured, according to a new report released by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). . . The report, "The Mental and Emotional Well-Being of Children: A Portrait of States and the Nation 2007," identified seven emotional, behavioral, or developmental conditions: depression, anxiety, Attention Deficit Disorder/Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, conduct disorders, autism spectrum disorders, developmental delay and Tourette Syndrome. Children with these conditions can benefit from a variety of therapies including counseling and medication.
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| Leadership News |
A national crisis exists in public education. The root causes include unaccountable teachers, dysfunctional schools, and systemic barriers like lack of political will to drive change. Yet amid these formidable barriers, a set of passionate social entrepreneurs are disrupting the status quo in education with innovative and effective approaches that are producing measurable results. These education entrepreneurs are providing solutions that work. The challenge now is to build the support to scale these solutions. School social work leaders will benefit by reading this discussion. | |
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| Research Highlights | |
Is School-Wide Positive Behavior Support An Evidence-Based Practice?
A major focus for current policy and systems change efforts in education and mental health is the extent to which states are investing in practices and procedures that are supported by rigorous research evidence. Evidence-based practices have been demonstrated in formal research studies to be related to valued outcomes for children and their families.
A reasonable question is if School-wide Positive Behavior Support (SWPBS) is an evidence-based practice. The purpose of this document is to lay out the current evidence assessing SWPBS and the considerations that may be relevant for state, district and national decision-makers. For full article click here.
Personal Paradigm Shifts Among ABA and PBS Experts: Comparisons in Treatment Acceptability
Applied behavior analysis (ABA) experts were surveyed to examine their perceptions of treatment acceptability of commonly used decelerative consequence-based behavioral procedures and the factors that have influenced shifts in these perceptions over time. These results were then compared with the perceptions of positive behavior supports (PBS) experts from an earlier study. Both similarities and disparities in perceptions across groups of experts are reported. Differences were noted in the overall acceptability and frequency of use of various consequence-based decelerative procedures, with ABA experts expressing greater willingness to consider their use than PBS experts. However, there were many similarities across both groups. Read more. |
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| Activities & Membership Information | |
ACSSW is involved in a number of activities that are designed to advance the profession while examining and applying the field of research in relation to school social work. One of these is to develop a document on The Role of the School Social Worker. With the changing role of our profession it is essential to provide an updated description of the profession to those who might be interested or have a "need to know." ACSSW welcomes your help and suggestions.
ACSSW is also in the early stages of establishing a Center for School Social Work Research. This was the task assigned by participants of the June 2010 National School Social Work Research Summit. While other organizations have been invited to collaborate on these tasks, ACSSW believes that members have much to contribute to both projects. If you are interested in participating in either of these, just send an email to me: judie.shine@milwpc.com.
Watch this newsletter and the ACSSW website in the near future for a Call for Proposals for the National School Social Work Research Summit to be held in late June. This is an opportunity to (1) learn about current research as applied to practice, (2) become familiar with research models you can apply in your setting and practice, and (3) showcase your projects to colleagues. Further details are pending.
Your support allows ACSSW to advance and enrich the profession. Persons who join by November 30th will enjoy special annual Charter Membership dues of $95 for each of 3 years with continuous membership. Regular dues are $110. Additionally, those who provide the names and email addresses of 5 colleagues will have a 15 month membership the first year rather than a 12 month membership. Join other school social work visionaries in transforming the culture of school social work. Become a Charter Member!! |
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