Fall 2026 SOWK 486w Class 06 Weekly Email

MyHeritage Syllabus Presentations Emails

Hope you are all doing well. I’ll see you Wednesday!

Unit Introduction and What You Will Learn

The focus of week six for SOWK 486 is continuing our growth and engagement with communication skills. Last week we went deeper on empathy and authenticity. We also started some focus on empathic responding. I share an article Stepien and Baernstein (2006), that provides an overview of how we can teach empathy to clients. Week six is described as a lab day, because the intention is focusing on activities to help develop skills. The activities we will be doing this week include:

• Check in about learning so far
• Teaching empathy to clients
• Following skills and practice implementing them
• Sharing following skills

Learning Objectives this week

• Reflect on personal experiences with empathic communication
• Develop strategies for teaching empathy to clients in diverse practice settings
• Apply verbal following skills in a dynamic practice exercise
• Deepen your connection with the skills associated with following skills

Unit Assignments

Content

• Read Stepien and Baernstein (2006)
• Watch Core Processes of Restorative Justice Circles

A-01: Class Engagement and Attendance

Attend class.

A-03: Theory and Practice Integrative Paper

Meta: Points 100 pts (25% of final grade); Deadline Monday 10/05/26 at 08:00 AM; Completion via MyHeritage Assignments using Turnitin; Locations Assignment Description and Rubric and Assignment Detail.

Purpose: Students show the integration of theories of practice into their real-world implementation through the assigned Theory and Practice Integrative Paper. Students work with a partner to describe an interprofessional conceptual framework, a fictional client, and the implementation of direct practice with a client using the framework.

Task: Working in groups of two, students will author a paper describing a theory of practice and how a practitioner would implement it, working with an individual client. Students may choose any interprofessional conceptual framework related to social work they want to discuss. Hepworth et al. (2023) provide the orienting frameworks for social work, including ecosystems perspective, strengths perspective, cultural humility, anti-oppressive practices, trauma-informed care, and evidence-based practices. Other notable examples include the feminist perspective, developmental theories, and other theories described in human behavior and the social environment. Students can approach this project with creativity in how they portray the information, but it must be between 1,250 and 1,500 words in length and consist of the following minimum parts:

• APA formatting in strong academic writing (e.g., tone, word choice, writing perspective), paper style (paper sections, headers and footers, page layout, and spacing), and citations (in-text citation and reference list)
• Description of the theory examined using peer-reviewed academic journal articles or high-quality academic sources such as a textbook (must use both in-text citations and a reference list)
• Discussion of a fictional client and their circumstances
• Application of the theory to direct practice actions a clinician would use

Success: Successful papers are evaluated using the Appendix A Theory and Practice Integrative Paper Rubric, which assesses the theory description and its scholarly grounding, the client description, the application of the theory to direct practice, organization and APA formatting, and adherence to the assignment description. Each paper should be between 1,250 and 1,500 words in length. Feedback from the instructor will be completed by mid-term grades, due by the faculty on Wednesday 10/21/26 at 5:00 PM.

Appendix A. Theory and Practice Integrative Paper Rubric

The Theory and Practice Integrative Paper Rubric is used for the assignment of the same name. It evaluates whether students can describe an interprofessional conceptual framework grounded in academic scholarship, portray a fictional client with enough context to work from, and translate the framework into concrete direct practice actions. It also assesses organization, clarity, and APA formatting, and adherence to the assignment description. The following assignment in this course will be graded according to this rubric: A-03 Theory and Practice Integrative Paper.

Description	Initial	Emerging	Developed	Highly Developed
Theory Description and Scholarly Grounding	No framework is identified, or what is described does not match the framework named. No academic sources are used.	A framework is named but described only in general terms. Sources are limited or are not academic, or the description is not clearly tied to them.	The framework is described accurately using peer-reviewed journal articles or other high-quality academic sources, though the description stays close to the surface of the sources.	The framework is described accurately and in depth, drawing on peer-reviewed journal articles or other high-quality academic sources to explain its assumptions and what it directs a practitioner to attend to.
Client Description and Context	No client is described, or the description is too thin to work from.	A client is described, but the circumstances are sparse and leave the reader without the context needed to follow the application.	The client and their circumstances are described clearly, with enough detail to support most of the application that follows.	The client is portrayed with enough depth and specificity, including presenting concerns, strengths, and surrounding context, that the application later in the paper is fully grounded in their situation.
Application of Theory to Direct Practice	No practice actions are described, or the paper restates the theory instead of applying it.	Practice actions are mentioned but are generic and could apply to any client or any framework.	Concrete practice actions are described and are recognizably drawn from the framework, though some are asserted rather than explained.	Specific practitioner actions are described and clearly follow from the framework, with reasoning for why the framework leads to those actions with this client.
Organization, Clarity, and APA Formatting	The paper lacks clear organization and is difficult to follow. There are many problems with APA formatting, including missing or incorrectly formatted citations and reference list, and numerous spelling or grammatical errors.	The paper is generally readable, but themes are not well grouped and transitions are limited. There are several APA formatting problems, citations or the reference list have recurring errors, and there are some spelling or grammatical errors.	The paper is organized in a logical order with mostly smooth transitions. APA formatting is largely correct, with minor errors in the reference list, in-text citations, or page format, and one or two spelling or grammatical errors.	The paper is well organized and clearly written in a formal academic tone. APA formatting is correct throughout, including title page, headings, double spacing, in-text citations, and a properly formatted reference list with hanging indents. Grammar and writing mechanics are properly adhered to.
Following assignment requirements	Does not follow the assignment description, or includes false and or misleading information.	Somewhat follows the assignment description, but significant elements are missing.	Follows the assignment description and requirements with minor errors.	Closely follows the assignment description and requirements (length, deadline, general purpose).

Unit Resources

In our discussion about what we have been learning, we are going to loosely follow a restorative practices format of having discussions in circles. If you are interested in some of what this entails you can watch Core Processes of Restorative Justice Circles. We won’t be implementing every part, but it is a good primer.

We will be talking about teaching empathy to our clients. Stepien and Baernstein (2006) provide a meta-analysis of research which could be helpful. You will be doing a role-play with a partner and observer. I will have copies of the Initial Session Checklist.

The Lecture Videos tab in the MyHeritage course is where you will be able to find class recordings.

Reference

Stepien, K. A., & Baernstein, A. (2006). Educating for empathy. A review. Journal of General Internal Medicine, 21(5), 524-530. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1525-1497.2006.00443.x

To-Do List

• A-01: Class Engagement and Attendance: Attend class
• Consider reading and watching extra/supportive materials