Child Welfare
HSE 325 Final Paper Guidelines and Rubric Overview There are two final projects for this course: a final paper and a final presentation. The first final project due for this course is the creation of a child welfare issue paper. As a human services practitioner, adhering to legal and ethical guidelines is critical. Not only do the practitioners need to have a solid understanding of these guidelines and how they relate to complex child welfare issues, but they also need to be aware of best practices and the most effective service delivery models to act within these guidelines when working with children and families. Practitioners can also help families who are receiving services to negotiate the legal and ethical guidelines that affect them through education and recommending resources. In addition to providing service for immediate crisis, it is important for the practitioner to empower families through education. You will incorporate scholarly research into both final projects. Scholarly research includes journal articles, government websites, and books. As you research, examine the sources you choose for validity, thoroughness, and bias. Use sources from reliable authors. The paper will be a broad examination of a child welfare issue in which you will identify the most effective service delivery models and how best practices assist practitioners in adhering to legal and ethical guidelines. For more information about the second final project, the presentation, refer to the Final Presentation Guidelines and Rubric document. The first final project is divided into three milestones and a final submission. The milestones will be submitted at various points throughout the course to ensure you have the information and knowledge needed to submit a quality final paper. These milestones will be submitted in Modules Two, Three, and Four. The final paper submission is due in Module Six. In this assignment, you will demonstrate your mastery of the following course outcomes: Recommend Department of Health and Human Services and community resources for assisting families and children from birth to adolescence in navigating legal and child welfare guidelines Apply state and federal laws, regulations, and ethical principles of the child welfare program to real-life situations Analyze the impact of best practices for adhering to legal and ethical guidelines in working with children Evaluate service delivery models for their effectiveness in meeting specific child welfare needs Prompt I In the first part of your final paper, you will first examine the roles of both the federal and state Departments of Health and Human Services in relation to a self- selected and specific child welfare issue. Next, you will evaluate service delivery models for the extent to which they meet the needs of the specific issue based on research of commonly used models in the field. After determining the most appropriate delivery models, you will research the laws around the specific issue of which the practitioner would need to adhere. This will directly lead into how best practices assist in adhering to these standards. You will use what you learn in this paper to inform your presentation. Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed: I. Introduction: Using your reading and discussion from Module One, identify a specific child welfare issue to study and explain how the missions of the state and federal Departments of Health and Human Services relate to this specific issue. How do the missions impact how the department serves the population of the child welfare issue? II. Delivery Models: Now that you have identified the issue of focus and the general role of the Department of Health and Human Services, you will look specifically at how well the services are delivered. Delivery models are addressed in the readings for Modules One and Two. A. Explain the service delivery models usually associated with this specific issue. Which models apply and how? Which models do not apply and how do they not? B. Evaluate how the service delivery models associated with the specific issue meet the needs of the client. Using the models that apply to this issue, how do these models meet the needs of clients? How are they designed to meet case-specific needs? How do the models not meet the needs of the client? C. Based on these delivery models, determine which model would be most effective in meeting the general needs of the issue, justifying your decision. How would the model contribute to meeting the needs of the individuals involved? How would the model contribute to meeting the needs of the family as a whole? III. Guidelines: After determining the most effective service models, the next step is to determine what legal and ethical guidelines must be followed when addressing the child welfare needs of the issue. Refer to the readings and resources in Modules Three and Four to learn more about legal and ethical guidelines. A. Explain the state and federal laws around the issue and how these protect children and families. What are the laws around the issue and what are the repercussions for breaking these laws? How do these laws protect children in the issue? What legal rights do the children have? What legal rights does the family have as a whole? B. Discuss the ethical principles around this issue and how these principles inform the human services practitioner’s interactions with the family. IV. Best Practices: Finally, the practitioner will need to be aware of best practices that assist in navigating these legal and ethical guidelines as well as how these practices relate to the specific issue. Review the readings in Modules Three and Four, as well as Final Paper Milestone Two for assistance in applying legal and ethical best practices. A. Discuss human service best practices that relate to this specific issue. What are these practices? What makes these best practices when working with this specific issue? How may some of these best practices not work for the specific issue? B. Analyze how best practices assist practitioners in adhering to legal and ethical guidelines. How do the previously identified best practices relating to this issue align with legal and ethical guidelines? How would you use these best practices to adhere to legal guidelines? Why is this important to do? C. Discuss how having best practices is ethical. How are the previously discussed best practices ethical? How is the use of best practices ethical? How would the absence of best practices impact ethics? Milestones Milestone One: Identify an Issue (Introduction) In Module Two, you will submit a 1–2 paragraph introduction, in which you identify a specific child welfare issue to study for this paper. Your introduction must address critical element section I above. Include at least two APA references in your submission that will be helpful to your chosen topic. Include your Introduction section in one complete Word document. This milestone is graded with the Final Paper Milestone One Rubric. Milestone Two: Examine Delivery Models In Module Three, you will submit a 1–2 page draft of your Delivery Models section, addressing all questions included in the critical elements as listed in section II above. Please include your Delivery Models section in one complete Word document as an attachment in your initial post. You will review peers’ Milestone Two submissions in the following module and provide feedback with recommendations for improvement. This milestone is graded with the Final Paper Milestone Two Rubric. Milestone Three: Draft of Guidelines and Best Practices In Module Four, you will submit a 3–4 page draft, which will include the Guidelines and Best Practices sections, as they relate to your chosen issue. Be sure to address all critical elements from sections III and IV above. Your draft should include the legal and ethical guidelines that must be followed in relation to the specific issue. This milestone is graded with the Final Paper Milestone Three Rubric. Final Submission: Child Welfare Issue Paper In Module Six, you will submit your child welfare issue paper. It should be a complete, polished artifact containing all of the critical elements of the final product. It should reflect the incorporation of feedback gained throughout the course. This milestone will be graded using the Final Paper Rubric. Deliverables Milestone Deliverable Module Due Grading One Identify an Issue (Introduction) Two Graded separately; Final Paper Milestone One Rubric Two Examine Delivery Models Three Graded separately; Final Paper Milestone Two Rubric Three Draft of Guidelines and Best Practices Four Graded separately; Final Paper Milestone Three Rubric Final Submission: Child Welfare Issue Paper Six Graded separately; Final Paper Rubric Final Paper Rubric Guidelines for Submission: Your child welfare issue paper must be 4–6 pages in length (plus a cover page and references) and must be written in APA format. Use double spacing, 12-point Times New Roman font, and one-inch margins. Include at least three references cited in APA format. Critical Elements Exemplary (100%) Proficient (85%) Needs Improvement (55%) Not Evident (0%) Value Introduction Meets “Proficient” criteria and provides concrete examples to substantiate claims Discusses the state and federal missions, their impact on the chosen issue, and the way they provide service Discusses the state and federal missions, their impact on the chosen issue, and the way they provide service, but is inaccurate or lacks detail Does not discuss the state and federal missions and their impact on the issue and service 6 Delivery Models: Explain Meets “Proficient” criteria and provides concrete examples to substantiate claims Accurately identifies and explains which service delivery models do and do not apply to this issue and how they do and do not apply to the issue Identifies and explains which service delivery models do and do not apply to this issue and how they apply, but explanation is inaccurate or lacks detail Does not explain the service delivery models usually associated with the issue or how they apply or which service delivery models do not apply to the issue 11 Delivery Models: Meet Needs Meets “Proficient” criteria and uses scholarly resources to support assertions Accurately evaluates how service models meet needs of the client Evaluates how service models meet needs of the client, but is inaccurate or lacks detail Does not evaluate how service models meet needs of the client 11 Delivery Models: Most Effective Meets “Proficient” criteria and uses scholarly resources to support assertions Determines the most effective models for