Fall 2026 SOWK 486w Class 08 Weekly Email

Unit Introduction and What You Will Learn

Weeks eight and nine focus on how social workers conduct assessments. Before we can build relationships with our clients and find ways to support them, we must first understand the real problem. Week eight is asynchronous, with no in-person class. We will be examining our assessment process through chapters eight and nine of Hepworth et al. (2023). In the forums, you will discuss the chapters, reflect on implicit bias using the IMPLICIT model, explore screening tools such as the PHQ-9 and GAD-7, and test how observant you are with a short video. This week your teach back group should be working on their video (it is due Monday 10/19/26 at 5 PM), which you will share in the Week 09 forums. The agenda for my lecture video will be updated after it is posted.

Learning objectives this week include:

• Identify ethical and professional considerations when using diagnostic tools and clinical terminology as BSW-level practitioners.
• Apply strengths-based and person-in-environment frameworks to assessment practices.
• Evaluate common screening tools for their relevance and utility in social work practice.
• Reflect on how implicit bias and attention shape what we notice during an assessment.

Unit Assignments

Content

• Read Hepworth et al. (2023) Chapter(s) 08 and 09
• Consider engaging with additional content offered in resources
• Wach my lecture video (later this week or next week)

W-08 A-01: Class Engagement and Participation

The expectation is that each of your replies will be substantive and provide meaningful perspectives, contributing to the forum’s conversation and scholarship. They can be related to the prompts or build on conversations shared by peers. There are four forums for this week, and you are expected to make at least 3 replies across any of the forums and read all of your peers’ replies. These forums include the following:

• The Chapter Eight and Nine Content Discussion forum offers prompts from the textbook on diagnostic labels, culturally competent assessment, observation and self-monitoring as sources of information, mental status exams, spirituality, and suicide risk.
• After taking an Implicit Association Test, students reflect on how unconscious bias could shape their assessments and use the IMPLICIT model to counter it in Exploring and Reflection on our Implicit Bias.
• Screening Tools and Assessment Instruments invites students to explore published screeners such as the PHQ-9, GAD-7, and GAIN-SS, or to take the Perceived Stress Scale themselves and reflect on how useful a screener is for the worker and the client.
• Watch a short video before reading anything else in How Observant Are You?, then share what you noticed and what it suggests about observation in assessment.

A-02: Reading Quiz

Complete W-08 A-02 Hepworth et al. (2023) Chapter(s) 08 and 09, due Monday (10/19) at 8:00 AM via MyHeritage.

Unit Resources

You can listen to a podcast episode for this week’s reading Deep Dive on Chapters 8 and 9: Social Work Assessment Beyond Medical Diagnosis, or see the entire series Deep Dive: Hepworth et al. (2023).

I really appreciate feedback about teaching and my courses. There is an opportunity to provide mid-term feedback. I read the feedback and find it helpful. You can access the survey by going to SOWK 486W Survey

This week you should be working on your Teach Back activity. You can find your Groups for Week 09 Teach Back Activity and the Teach Back Activity Handout. The forums are made and I have a description of the work for next week. I’ll update the rest of the parts next week.

In looking at assessment, it might be helpful to think about how assessment connects with intervention. Wolraich et al. (2011) provides information about the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of Attention-Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). I created a video talking about ADHD Information for Practitioners, Parents, and Schools that might be useful.

Dr. Beverly Ford describes the assessment process that gives some insight into why assessment in the video the Assessment Process by Oregon DHS.

The Lecture Videos tab in the MyHeritage course is where you will be able to find class recordings. My lecture video for this week may not be posted until Friday (10/16). There will not be a lecture video in week nine, since everyone will be watching the teach back videos. So you can watch it this week or next.

To-Do List

• A-01: Class Participation and Engagement make at least three replies in this week’s forums
• Be ready to share your teach back video, due Monday (10/19) at 5 PM in the Week 09 forums
• Consider reviewing additional videos in the resource section
• W-08 A-02 Hepworth et al. (2023) Chapter(s) 08 and 09 is due Monday (10/19) at 8 AM via My Heritage
• SOWK 486W Survey Mid-term Review