MTSU Social Work Department

SW 4480: Social Work with Groups
Spring 2010 

Class Topics

Each class will have a topic about which students may write a paragraph of 100 to 150 words.  These topics will be discussed in class if any student(s) has questions or comments about them.  The paragraphs must be typewritten and turned in at the beginning of class or by email to jsanborn@mtsu.edu ahead of time.  Points for class topics will be awarded as follows:  completion of paragraph = 2 points; average completion = 3 points; above average completion = 4 points; exceptional completion = 5 points.  A total of 200 points is possible this way, but it would be very unusual for any student to receive 5 points on every class topic.  The topics for each class follow:

1.   Discuss your expectations of the way in which you will be involved with groups in your first field placement.  If you have already completed Field I, discuss the groups with which you were involved.  Due Wednesday, January 20. 

2.  Discuss the properties of a group of your experience. Due Friday, January 22. 

3.   What type of group do you feel most competent in leading at this point in your professional development?  Explain.  Due Monday, January 25.
 
4.   What historical influence do you think is most important in affecting social work with groups today?   Due Wednesday, January 27.
 
5.   Which theory that has influenced group work is most consistent with your own view of the world?  Explain.  Due Friday, January 29. Quiz 1.  
 
6.   Discuss the concept of cohesion as you have observed it in a group.  Due Monday, February 1.  

7.   How has the issue of acceptance been managed in a group of your experience?  Due Wednesday, February 3. 

8.  Which model of group development makes the most sense to you? Explain. Due Friday, February 5.  
 
9.   Describe the way in which a member of your family has demonstrated a change in role over time.  Due Monday, February 8.  

10.  Select one of the “Power Bases” covered in the textbook and discuss how you have observed its use in a group.  Due Wednesday, February 10. 

11.  Describe what you perceive to be your major strength and weakness as a leader.  Due Friday, February 12. 
 
12.  Is there a “culture of disability?”  Due Monday, February 15. 
 
13.  How will you deal with the feelings about homosexuality generated by your religious training or other developmental influences in working with a group including openly gay and/or lesbian members?  Due Wednesday, February 17. 
 
14.  Describe a group experience you had that resulted in the empowerment of members who had been victims of oppression.  Due Friday, February 19. Quiz 2. 
 
15.  How would you go about recruiting members for a group where you expect to practice after graduation?  Due Monday, February 22.
 
16.  What do you expect will be the influence of technology on group work practice over your career as a social worker?  Due Wednesday, February 24.
 
17.  What is the optimal size for a social work class; for a recreation group?  Explain your answers.  Due Friday, February 26. 
 
18.  What is the most effective icebreaking exercise of your experience?  Due Monday, March 1.
 
19.  Discuss the development of goals of a group of which you have been a member.  Due Wednesday, March 3. 
 
20.  Discuss the relationship between the assessment of individuals within a group and the assessment of the group as a whole.  Due Friday, March 5.  Quiz 3.
 
Spring Break:  March 8 -13  

21.  Briefly assess the community environment of a group of your experience. Due Monday, March 15.

22. Describe the degree of structure that would be most appropriate with a treatment group that you may work with in the future.  Due Wednesday, March 17.

23.  Discuss your opinion of the "Treatment Plan Intervention Roles" on page 272 (6th edition).  Due Friday, March 19. 

24.  Which of the techniques for changing thoughts, beliefs, and feeling states or interpersonal interventions (Text, pp. 283-295) do you think would be most helpful?  Due Monday, March 22. 

25.  Discuss “Environmental Interventions” for treatment groups.  Due Wednesday, March 24. 

26.  Discuss your opinion of the most important aspect of either of the class presentations on self-help groups.  Due Friday, March 26. Quiz 4. 

27.  Briefly discuss examples of each of the three types of task groups mentioned in the text.  Due Monday, March 29. 

28.  How does the concept of empowerment apply to task groups? Due Wednesday, March 31. 

29.  Discuss the way in which a social worker has facilitated sharing information within a task group of your experience. Due Friday, April 2. 

30. Discuss problem solving in task groups.  Due Monday, April 5. 

31. Discuss your opinion of the role of groups in community organization.  Due Wednesday, April 7. 

32.  What is your opinion of the role of focus groups in a research process?  Due Friday, April 9. Quiz 5.  

33.  Discuss the nominal group technique. Due Monday, April 12. 

34.  Discuss the role of aesthetics in social work with groups.  Due Wednesday, April 14.  Group observations and creative projects due. 

35.  Discuss the importance of an effective termination process. Due Friday, April 16. 

36. What is your idea about the best way to prevent premature termination of a group member? Due Monday, April 19. 

37. Discuss evaluations for determining effectiveness and eficiency.  Due Wednesday, April 21. 

38. Discuss the use of a single systems design in evaluating a group. Due Friday, April 23. Quiz 6.

39. Discuss any of the case examples in Chapter 15. Due Monday, April 26.  

40. Discuss the most important thing you learned in this course. Due Wednesday, April 28. Last day of class. 

Final exams due Friday, April 30, at 9:30 am!