Dr. Oleksandr (Sasha) Kondrashov

Course Description

The central theme of this course is the integration of theory and practice, recognizing that theory guides practice and practice informs theory. The first term consists of the theoretical foundations of social work, understanding their relation to social work practice from a social, political, economic and historical position. The second term offers an in-depth examination of the theoretical foundations of a variety of critical perspectives. Case applications are explored from a variety of practice situations and problem definitions.

Course Learning Objectives

To complete this course students shall:

1. Articulate the purposes and contexts of theories for social work practice

2. Explain the processes and assumptions of theory building

3. Know the multiple epistemological, theoretical and conceptual bases of social work knowledge and practice

4. Exhibit a solid grasp of the theory and concepts of critical social work practice

5. Utilize the concepts of critical social work to analyze a variety of practice issues

6. Begin an ongoing process of intentional and ongoing theory development

Evaluation	Percentage	Due Dates
Online Tests	20 %
Knowledge Sharing and Caring Quest	40 %
Theory to Practice Application: Movie Character Group Wiki Project	15%
Theory to Practice Application: Movie Character Individual Project Portfolio	25%
Total	100%

Required textbook

Payne, M. (2013). Modern social work theory (4^th ed). Chicago: Lyceum Books, Inc.

Required readings

Burdge, B. J. (2007). Bending gender, ending gender: Theoretical foundations for social work practice with the transgender community. Social work, 52(3), 243-250.

Burnham, J. (2012). Are you sitting too comfortably? Using the praxis of positioning to move between the activities of therapy-supervision and the identities of therapist-supervisor. Clinical child psychology and psychiatry, 17(2), 171-180.

Dumbrill, G. C., & Green, J. (2008). Indigenous knowledge in the social work academy. Social Work Education, 27(5), 489-503.

Meekosha, H., & Dowse, L. (2007). Integrating critical disability studies into social work education and practice: An Australian perspective. Practice, 19(3), 169-183.

Schiele, J. H. (2017). The Afrocentric paradigm in social work: A historical perspective and future outlook. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 27(1-2), 15-26.

Suggested textbooks

Connolly, M., & Harms, L. (2015). Social work: From theory to practice. Cambridge University Press.

Robbins, S., Chatterjee, P., & Canda, E. (Eds.) (2011). Contemporary human behavior theory: A critical perspective for social work (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn & Bacon

Suggested readings

Gilson, S. F., & DePoy, E. (2002). Theoretical approaches to disability content in social work education. Journal of Social Work Education, 38(1), 153-165.

Mathebane, M. S., & Sekudu, J. (2017). A contrapuntal epistemology for social work: An Afrocentric perspective. International Social Work. Retrieved from http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0020872817702704

McPhail, B. A. (2004). Questioning gender and sexuality binaries: What queer theorists, transgendered individuals, and sex researchers can teach social work. Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services, 17(1), 3-21.

Wenger-Nabigon, A. (2010). The Cree medicine wheel as an organizing paradigm of theories of human development. Retrieved from https://zone.biblio.laurentian.ca/bitstream/10219/387/1/NSWJ-V7-art6-p139-161.pdf

Fall term

Module	Required Readings	Alternative Textbook Chapters.	Assignments
Module 1: Thinking about Social Work Theory	Connolly and Harms Prelude.  Burnham (2012) Payne Chapter 1	Connolly and Harms Chapter 1  Robbins et.al. Chapter 1	Web Conference 1
Module 1: Thinking about Social Work Theory	Payne Chapter 2 Payne Chapter 3	Connolly and Harms Chapter 2
Module 2: Problem-Solving Theories	Payne Chapter 4	Robbins et.al. Chapter 7 Connolly and Harms Chapter 4	Test 1 Week
Module 2: Problem-Solving Theories	Payne Chapter 5 Payne Chapter 6	Connolly and Harms Chapter 5  Robbins et.al. Chapter 12	Group Character Selection is due
Module 2: Problem-Solving Theories	Payne Chapter 7	Connolly and Harms Chapter 3 Robbins et.al. Chapter 2	Web Conference 2
Module 3: Empowerment Theories	Payne Chapter 8	Robbins et.al. Chapter 10	Test 2 Week
Module 3: Empowerment Theories	Payne Chapter 9 Payne Chapter 10	Connolly and Harms Chapter 6 Robbins et.al. Chapter 11, 13
Module 3: Empowerment Theories	Payne Chapter 11	Robbins et.al. Chapter 4	Web Conference 3
Module 4: Social Change Theories	Payne Chapter 12	Robbins et.al. Chapter 3	Test 3 Week
Module 4: Social Change Theories	Payne Chapter 13	Robbins et.al. Chapter 5	Individual Movie and Character Selection is due
Fall Break
Module 4: Social Change Theories	Payne Chapter 14	Connolly and Harms Chapter 7  Robbins et.al. Chapter 6	Web Conference 4
Module 5: Personal Theory for Social Work Practice	Robbins Chapter 14	Connolly and Harms Chapter 8	Test 4 Week

Winter Term

Module	Required Reading	Alternative Reading.	Assignments
Module 6: Selected Critical Theories: Indigenous Perspectives	Dumbrill, G. C., & Green, J. (2008).	Wenger-Nabigon, A. (2010).
Module 6: Selected Critical Theories: Afrocentric Perspectives	Schiele, J. H. (2017).	Mathebane, M. S., & Sekudu, J. (2017).	Web Conference 5
Module 6: Selected Critical Theories: (Dis)Ability Perspectives	Meekosha, H., & Dowse, L. (2007).	Gilson, S. F., & DePoy, E. (2002).	Movie Character Group, Wiki Project Portfolio, is due
Module 6: Selected Critical Theories: Queer Perspectives	Burdge, B. J. (2007).	McPhail, B. A. (2004).
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 1 Choice	Group 1 suggests the reading	Group 1 suggests the reading	Web Conference 6
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 2 Choice	Group 2 suggests the reading	Group 2 suggests the reading	Movie Review for an individual project is due
Winter Break
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 3 Choice	Group 3 suggests the reading	Group 3 suggests the reading	Web Conference 7
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 4 Choice	Group 4 suggests the reading	Group 4 suggests the reading	Movie Character, Individual Project Portfolio, is due
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 5 Choice	Group 5 suggests the reading	Group 5 suggests the reading
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 6 Choice	Group 6 suggests the reading	Group 6 suggests the reading	Web Conference 8
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 7 Choice	Group 7 suggests the reading	Group 7 suggests the reading
Module 7: Selected Practice Theories: Group 8 Choice	Group 8 suggests the reading	Group 8 suggests the reading	Knowledge Sharing and Caring Report Part 2 is due