Sociocultural Differences in Perspectives on Aging

Western cultures think of time in linear terms while other cultures perceive the passage of time in cyclical terms (Helman, 2005). Helman states, “The clock, the watch and the calendar are among the main cultural symbols of Western industrial society” (para. 3). How might a culture’s perception of time influence views of individuals in later adulthood? What other cultural differences might impact a people’s view of aging? This week, you explore different cultures’ perspectives on aging and consider how these differences might impact social work.

 

To prepare for this Discussion, research two cultures different from your own and compare their perspectives on aging to that of your own culture.

 

·      Post a Discussion that compares your culture’s perspective on aging to the perspectives of the two cultures you researched.

 ·      Explain why you think these differences exist. Also, explain how different perspectives on aging might impact social work practice.

 

Be sure to support your posts with specific references to the resources. If you are using additional articles, be sure to provide full APA-formatted citations for your references.

References

 

 

Zastrow, C. H., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2016). Understanding human behavior and the social environment (10th ed.). Boston, MA:  Cengage Learning.

 

 

 

 

 

Discussion 2: Social Policy: Child Abuse and Neglect

Protecting children from abuse and neglect is a cornerstone of the social work profession. Social work professionals strive to ensure that children grow into healthy, well-developed adults. They also develop, implement, and evaluate policy initiatives regarding child welfare. Such initiatives should aim to not only reduce child abuse and neglect, but also provide support for children’s development and resources that will enhance their well-being. As a social worker, to what extent do you understand the existing policies addressing child abuse and neglect? In addition, how prepared are you to propose new policy initiatives in this regard?

 

For this Discussion, review the resources, including the NASW’s policy statement on child abuse and neglect on the NASW website. Pick one of the NASW positions and consider a policy initiative you would introduce to further that initiative. Be sure to think about the policies that already exist in your state and how this initiative might alter existing policies.

 

·      Post a brief description of the position you selected from the NASW policy statement on child abuse and neglect.
 
·      Then, describe a policy initiative you might introduce to further that position.
 
·      Finally, describe the policies that already exist in your state and explain how your initiative might alter these existing policies.
 

Support your post with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.

 

References

 

NASW. (2009). Social work speaks. Washington, DC: NASW Press.

Child Abuse and Neglect (pp. 42–48)

 

Casey Family Programs. (2010). State child welfare policy database. Retrieved from http://www.childwelfarepolicy.org

 

The Annie E. Casey Foundation. (2013). Kids count data center. Retrieved from http://www.datacenter.kidscount.org

ADDITIONAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE CLASS

Discussion Questions (DQ)

• Initial responses to the DQ should address all components of the questions asked, including a minimum of one scholarly source, and be at least 250 words.
• Successful responses are substantive (i.e., add something new to the discussion, engage others in the discussion, well-developed idea) and include at least one scholarly source.
• One or two-sentence responses, simple statements of agreement, or “good post,” and responses that are off-topic will not count as substantive. Substantive responses should be at least 150 words.
• I encourage you to incorporate the readings from the week (as applicable) into your responses.

Weekly Participation

• Your initial responses to the mandatory DQ do not count toward participation and are graded separately.
• In addition to the DQ responses, you must post at least one reply to peers (or me) on three separate days, for a total of three replies.
• Participation posts do not require a scholarly source/citation (unless you cite someone else’s work).
• Part of your weekly participation includes viewing the weekly announcement and attesting to watching it in the comments. These announcements are made to ensure you understand everything that is due during the week.

APA Format and Writing Quality

• Familiarize yourself with APA format and practice using it correctly. It is used for most writing assignments for your degree. Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for APA paper templates, citation examples, tips, etc. Points will be deducted for poor use of APA format or absence of APA format (if required).
• Cite all sources of information! When in doubt, cite the source. Paraphrasing also requires a citation.
• I highly recommend using the APA Publication Manual, 6th edition.

Use of Direct Quotes

• I discourage overutilization of direct quotes in DQs and assignments at the Masters’s level and deduct points accordingly.
• As Masters’s level students, it is important that you be able to critically analyze and interpret information from journal articles and other resources. Simply restating someone else’s words does not demonstrate an understanding of the content or critical analysis of the content.
• It is best to paraphrase content and cite your source.

 

LopesWrite Policy

• For assignments that need to be submitted to LopesWrite, please be sure you have received your report and Similarity Index (SI) percentage BEFORE you do a “final submit” to me.
• Once you have received your report, please review it. This report will show you grammatical, punctuation, and spelling errors that can easily be fixed. Take the extra few minutes to review instead of getting counted off for these mistakes.
• Review your similarities. Did you forget to cite something? Did you not paraphrase well enough? Is your paper made up of someone else’s thoughts more than your own?
• Visit the Writing Center in the Student Success Center, under the Resources tab in LoudCloud for tips on improving your paper and SI score.

Late Policy

• The university’s policy on late assignments is 10% penalty PER DAY LATE. This also applies to late DQ replies.
• Please communicate with me if you anticipate having to submit an assignment late. I am happy to be flexible, with advance notice. We may be able to work out an extension based on extenuating circumstances.
• If you do not communicate with me before submitting an assignment late, the GCU late policy will be in effect.
• I do not accept assignments that are two or more weeks late unless we have worked out an extension.
• As per policy, no assignments are accepted after the last day of class. Any assignment submitted after midnight on the last day of class will not be accepted for grading.

Communication

• Communication is so very important. There are multiple ways to communicate with me: 
  • Questions to Instructor Forum: This is a great place to ask course content or assignment questions. If you have a question, there is a good chance one of your peers does as well. This is a public forum for the class.
  • Individual Forum: This is a private forum to ask me questions or send me messages. This will be checked at least once every 24 hours.