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School Social Work Now!
Supporting Innovative Practice, Effective
Leadership & Applied Research
October 2011 - Vol 2, Issue 9 |
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Bookmark These |
Some Free, Some Not
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Greetings! | |
How often have you combined business with pleasure? In late January, 2012, you will have the opportunity both to strengthen your professional knowledge base and skills AND enjoy the offerings of a magical city--New Orleans!!
ACSSW will host a first-ever Louisiana-based school social work conference in exciting New Orleans from January 30-31, 2012! In collaboration with the Louisiana Department of
Education, Tulane University, Louisiana State University,
and school social work leaders, this program is designed to address the needs and interests of school social workers.
Training on action research projects and process, extended workshops on psychotropic medications, trauma and school violence, LGBTQ issues and concerns, PBIS, evidence-based resources, school social work Ethics and Boundaries, and more will all be available to you.
The New Orleans Conference Brochure describing the
Evolving Roles in School Social Work Practice program is downloadable now for your review. School teams of 3 or more will be granted a discount when registrations are submitted together. Talk to your colleagues! Bring your supervisor!! Register online now.
AND think about bringing the family! Spend the weekend before the conference exploring the bayous, Garden District, art, museums, music, food, French Quarter, architecture . . . The list goes on and on. Learn about Free Things to Do in New Orleans.
Room reservations can be made at the Drury Inn & Suites, New Orleans for a low $104/night, single through quad. The conference price is available 3 days before and after Monday, January 30th, so plan to come early. And be sure to check out the amenities and free services at the Drury. To insure availability during the pre-Mardi Gras festivities, secure reservations by January 15th--or sooner! See more details in the brochure.
Judith Kullas Shine
President |
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Professional Development Opportunities |
It's Fall!! And that means it's time to take advantage of one or more of the many professional growth opportunities across the country. This link includes state, national and international professional development opportunities. New events are added several times a month. If you represent an organization with PDOs of interest to school social workers, please contact ACSSW with details. All submissions will be considered for posting based upon relevance, timing, and interest level.
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Recommended Read for November | |
School Social Work: An Evidence-Informed Framework for Practice
by M. Kelly, J. Raines, S. Stone & A. Frey
Reviews at Oxford University Press
"This text will become an instant classic for its scholarship and readability. Each chapter is filled with information for improving school social work practice using the available research evidence at every level of intervention. In this extraordinarily engaging practice book, Kelly and colleagues show practitioners the process for asking important questions about what constitutes effective school social work practice and provide specific strategies for practitioners to use when improving their practices." -Cynthia Franklin, PhD, Professor and Stiernberg/Spencer Family Professor in Mental Health, University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work
"School Social Work is a timely and valuable resource for school social work students and practitioners. The authors of this book draw upon their extensive experience as school social work practitioners, educators, and scholars to provide practitioners and students with a process for bridging the gap between research and practice. Their chapter on iatrogenic effects is notable since this topic is rarely addressed in school social work practice texts." -David R. Dupper, PhD, Associate Professor of Social Work, University of Tennessee
Oxford Univ. Press-SSW/Kelly Better World Books-SSW/Kelly |
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Practice Points | |
The "Action Signs" Project & Toolkit: A Toolkit to Help Parents, Educators and Health Professionals Identify Children at Behavioral and Emotional Risk
Despite well-documented levels of emotional and behavioral problems in the nation's youth, studies have repeatedly shown that 75% of youth with these problems are usually not identified and usually do not receive needed care. Stigma and lack of awareness likely contribute substantially to this problem.
To address these and other related problems, the Surgeon General issued a "call to action" in January 2001, and urged the development of a crisp set of warning signs that when present, warrant additional professional evaluation and possible intervention. Download toolkit here.
Solution-Focused Brief Counseling in Schools: Theoretical Perspectives and Case Application to an Elementary School Student
Solution-focused brief counseling (SFBC) is a postmodern therapeutic system which focuses on helping clients create solutions in a straight-forward manner within a limited amount of time. It is based on the assumptions that clients have the necessary strengths and resources to change and that counseling is most effective when focusing on constructing solutions unique to each client (de Shazer, 1988). Solution-focused brief counseling differs from other modes of counseling in that it shifts the focus from problem solving to creating present and future solutions. Because of its positive, solution-focus, SFBC can be used in a wide range of settings (Webb, 1999). Since termination is the ultimate goal in counseling SFBC is extensively used in agency and school settings because of its "efficient, effective and positive" use of time (De Jong & Berg, 2008). Once the therapeutic techniques have been introduced in counseling, they can be utilized by the client anywhere without the counselor's assistance. Prior to termination, counselors assist clients in identifying strategies that can be used to maintain progress towards their goals. In agency settings, solution-focused brief counseling is valued because of the demands of managed health care and their limits on the number of sessions. The use of SFBC is valuable in school settings as well since school counselors are responsible for large caseloads of students and rarely see students for long term counseling (Sklare, 2005). This article will provide an overview of the historical development of solution-focused brief counseling and discuss it main principles and techniques. A fictitious case study detailing the use of SFBC with an elementary school student will then be presented to illustrate its main tenants, use of questions, and its focus on the client's strengths and resources. Access complete article.
Danielson's Framework for Teaching & Implications for School Social Work
". . . What cannot be found in Danielson's (2007) Framework forTeaching is its application to school social work. With the increase in funding to assess teacher effectiveness, it is inevitable that models such as the Danielson framework will be applied to student support services. School social workers should be aware that efforts to establish comprehensive reform in evaluating the effectiveness of teachers will eventually affect them. By learning about the model being proposed in state Race to the Top grants or grants submitted to foundations targeting this area, school social workers can be proactive in addressing the application of such models to the field. As school social workers, we would do well to remember that we are working in a host environment, the field of education."
This article suggests several considerations in applying teacher-effectiveness models to school social work. Learn more. |
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Leadership News | |
Keeping organizations afloat during a difficult economic climate is a
challenge for leaders. Today, organizations- large and small-are constantly
struggling for sustainability. Research shows that 30 percent of nonprofits see
themselves as "challenged" when it comes to sustainability (York, n.d.). As a result, some organizations have been forced to merge with others, close their doors or significantly reduce their capacity to provide services. These decisions ultimately affect the lives of numerous children, youth and families. Social work leaders can take critical steps to plan for the
sustainability of their organizations. Quality, innovative programs, services or initiatives that are producing positive outcomes cannot be lost. Learn about key components.
Developing Leadership in Social Work: An Opinion Piece
'I don't know what leadership is. You can't touch it. You can't feel it. It's not tangible. But I do know this: you recognize it when you see it.' So said US politician Bob Ehrlich, and I think he has it about right. Precisely what leadership - specifically good leadership - is - what the dynamics and mechanics of it actually are - has been challenging theoreticians and commentators for many a year.
Fortunately, some definitional assistance is afforded simply via the passage of time: history, as ever, grants us a perspective not available in the present. Who was a good leader seems considerably easier to identify than who is or who will be. Read, offer your opinion. |
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Research Highlights | |
Key findings of this study include:
Racial disparities in households with young children are dramatic
**In 2007, 32% of white households with young children were income-poor and 14.2% had no assets. In sharp contrast, 69% of Latino and 71% of blacks were income-poor, and 40% had no assets.
Racial disparities in child outcomes start early and grow over time
**At nine months, all children start out with fairly similar scores on a standard child development test, but by two years of age, racial disparities emerge.
The wealth gap widened for households with children
**Between 1994 and 2007, the wealth gap between white and black households with children increased by $22,000 -almost doubling from $25,000 to $47,000.
**In 2007, black households with children held only 4% of the wealth of white households.
**From 2005 to 2007, black households living with zero or negative net worth (debt) grew from 35% to 39% while it stayed constant at 15% for white households.
Maternal education matters, but alone cannot eliminate racial wealth disparities
**For every dollar of wealth owned by a white mother with a bachelor's degree or higher in 1994 a black mother owned 64 cents. By 2007, it had fallen to 13 cents.
**The wealth gap between white and black mothers with a bachelor's degree or higher grew five times larger between 1994 and 2007 to an astonishing $128,000. Learn more from the full study. |
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In the News | |
Kids Behaving Badly? Blame It on Mom
All little kids can be aggressive, but those who remain explosive by the time they enter kindergarten have their mothers to blame, according to new research published Wednesday in the journal Child Development. Some children are clearly more temperamental than others. Researchers have wondered whether it was nature at work, or nurture. Or a combination? Scientists at the University of Minnesota delved into the puzzle, scrutinizing 267 mother-child pairs, or dyads, recruited from a local public-health clinic. Mom will be none too pleased with the conclusion: a hostile relationship between mothers and their little ones gives rise to persistent defiant behavior... "Kids at the top of the pile who are real hellions in kindergarten or first grade have a pronounced risk of staying that way," says lead author Michael Lorber, a research scientist in the Family Translational Research Group at New York University who was formerly at the University of Minnesota. The biggest predictor of sustained hostility? Negative parenting at three and six months. "Nothing about the child's behavior in infancy predicted anything," says Lorber. "But we did find that negative parenting in infancy was really important." Read more.
Corporal Punishment Leads to Lying
Corporal punishment, or harsh discipline, results in children who are more effective liars to hide their misbehavior, researchers in Canada said. Professor Victoria Talwar of McGill University and Professor Kang Lee of the University of Toronto compared two groups of children -- one group of 3- and 4-year-olds was enrolled in a private school that used a traditional authoritarian discipline, beating with a stick, slapping of the head and pinching administered publicly for offenses ranging from forgetting a pencil to being disruptive in class. The second group, also enrolled in a private school, were disciplined with time-outs, scolding and a trip to the principal's office. Children were seen individually and asked to play a guessing game with an researcher and then the children were told not to peek at a toy when left alone in a room. Most children peeked at the toy, the researchers said. When the experimenter asked if they had peeked, nearly all the peekers from the punitive school lied, while about half of those from the non-punitive school lied, the researchers said. In addition, the study, published in the journal Child Development, found after the initial lie, those who told lies from the punitive school were better able to maintain their deception when answering follow-up questions about the identity of the toy -- by deliberately giving an incorrect answer or feigning ignorance. "One possibility is that the harsh punitive environment heightens children's motivation to come up with any strategies that will help them survive in that environment," Lee said in a statement. Click here.
Pot Can Mimic Brain Changes Seen in Schizophrenia
Marijuana causes disruptions in concentration and memory similar to those that occur in people with schizophrenia, according to a new study. U.K. researchers measured the electrical activity from hundreds of neurons in the brains of rats given a drug that mimics the effects of cannabis, the psychoactive ingredient of marijuana. The effects of the drug on individual brain regions were subtle but the drug completely disrupted the coordinated brain waves across the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex. Both of these brain structures are essential for memory and decision-making and play a key role in schizophrenia. Due to the "decoupling" of the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, the rats were unable to make accurate decisions while attempting to find their way through a maze, the University of Bristol researchers said. The study appears Oct. 25 in the Journal of Neuroscience. Learn more.
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Research Survey Request for Assistance | |
Bibliotherapy & School Social Workers
I am a doctoral student at Dominican University's Graduate School of Library and Information Science, River Forest, Illinois. I am seeking school social workers to complete an online survey about bibliotherapy for use towards research for a doctoral dissertation. For the purposes of this research bibliotherapy is defined as the use of books or other reading materials (poetry, magazines, comic books, etc) to assist with the counseling process. Participation is voluntary, confidential and anonymous. Completion of the survey should take approximately 30 minutes and can be done from any computer with internet access. If you are an interested social worker, or know of a school social worker who would be interested, the survey link is below. For more information, contact: Elizabeth Garcia, Doctoral Student, Graduate School of Library and Information Science, Dominican University. Thank you in advance for your participation. Bibliotherapy Survey Link
Survey on Substance Abuse Prevention and Collaboration Seeks Participants
The Partnership at Drugfree.org is conducting a survey to increase understanding of the best way to develop collaborations between law enforcement, substance abuse prevention agencies, and educators to prevent teens and young adults from engaging in substance abuse. Results will inform the development of a substance abuse collaboration training manual that will be free and available to participants and interested communities. The survey is funded by the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services. It takes 10 to 15 minutes to complete. Take the survey online. |
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Grants & Funding | | ING Unsung Heroes Award
ING Unsung Heroes began in 1995as a way for ING to demonstrate its commitment to the education community. Grants are given to K-12 educators utilizing new teaching methods and techniques that improve learning. Each year, educators submit applications for an ING Unsung Heroes grant by describing projects they have initiated or would like to pursue. Each project is judged on its:
innovative method, creativity, and ability to positively influence the students. All K-12 education professionals, whether or not they are clients of ING, are eligible. Specifically, these individuals must be: (1) Employed by an accredited K-12 public or private school located in the United States, or (2) Full-time educators, teachers, principals, paraprofessionals, orclassified staff with effective projects that improve student learning. Deadline: April 30, 2012. Details here.
Jack Kent Cooke Foundation Invites Applications for Dissertation Fellowships in Education
The fellowships are intended to support doctoral students for work done after the successful defense of their dissertations. Although applicants must be candidates for a doctoral degree at a graduate school in the United States, they need not be U.S. citizens. Applications are encouraged from a variety of disciplines, including but not limited to education, sociology, economics, psychology, statistics, and psychometrics.
The fellowship is a one-time award of up to $25,000, which may be used for a period of not less than nine months and up to eighteen months. Four fellowships will be awarded. Complete program information and the application form are available at the Cooke Foundation Web site. Deadline: February 3, 2012. Link to complete RFP.
Libri Foundation: Books for Children
TheLibri Foundation Books for Children Grants donate new, quality, hardcover children's books for small, rural, public libraries across the country. Maximum award: varies. Eligibility: Libraries should be in a rural area, have a limited operating budget, and an active children's department. The average total operating budget of a Books for Children grant recipient must be less than $40,000. Deadline: January 23, 2012. Application Guidelines.
NEA Myra Sadker Student and Teacher Awards
The Myra Sadker Foundation supports educational equity efforts for students and teachers to advance social justice. Myra Sadker was a pioneer in creating fair classrooms for all students. These awards build upon her work. Teacher Awards fund a lesson, unit, or project that promotes fairness and human dignity. Student Awards fund projects or activities proposed by students of any age that promote the goals of the Myra Sadker Foundation. Dissertation Awards are designed to financially support doctoral level dissertations that explore or promote educational equity. Deadline: December 1, 2011. More. Sadker Foundation Website. |
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ACSSW Activities | |
ACSSW's present activities include:
- increasing research projects and their application within the school environment;
- developing a national school social work role paper;
- establishing a National Center for School Social Work Practice, Leadership and Research, a long-term goal,
- hosting the first Louisiana State-wide School Social Work Conference, January 30-31, 2012, in New Orleans, LA, and
- developing the 3rd National School Social Work Research Summit to be held June 24-26, 2012, in Bloomingdale, IL (a Chicago suburb) at the Hilton Chicago/Indian Lakes Resort.
If you have interest in participating in any of these activities, contact Judie Shine. ACSSW strives to be inclusive and transparent in all of its activities and welcomes, whether lengthy or short, the participation of its members. |
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