Book Review: Decision Cases for Advanced Social Work Practice

Decision Cases for Advanced Social Work Practice is a collection of decision cases designed to promote discussion and critical thinking among social work students and new social work graduates. The book begins with brief notes to instructors and students. For instructors, the author offers a website with teaching notes that are designed to help in selecting cases for class use and leading class discussions. For students, the authors offer some explanation on the purpose and design of the cases. The authors then provide an “Introduction to the Cases” through which they differentiate decision cases from other types of cases used for educational purposes, describe the learning outcomes that can be expected from the use of the cases with social work students, and provide a helpful chart that allows the reader to cross-reference each case with a particular setting, client system, population at risk, ethical issue, and technical knowledge

Collection Development Update

What is the purpose of Collection Development Services? Quite a few people do not understand its purpose or that such a process even exists. Collection development is basically defined as the planned purchase of library materials in a variety of formats that support and match the instructional and research needs of the institution. In addition, the collection development process must operate within certain fiscal constraints

An Investigation into the Transition from the High School to the College Setting for Students Who Speak Lumbee Vernacular English

There is a belief that some English dialects are superior to others, and regional dialects that differ from the standard are often seen as corrupt forms of language. In the educational system, educators’ lack of knowledge regarding linguistic diversity often results in language oppression. The purpose of this research is to inform educators about linguistic diversity in an attempt to end language oppression. The research sought to answer how students who spoke Lumbee English Vernacular navigated the transition from the high school setting to the college setting. To answer the major research question, the research also explored how educators handled linguistic diversity in classrooms and the implications of language diversity in the educational setting. To answer these questions, the researcher conducted interviews with four participants, 2 males and 2 females, who were undergraduate students at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke and had attended Robeson County Schools. These interviews highlighted the differences between participants being aware of a dialect that deviated from standard English prior to attending college and participants who became cognizant of their dialects once they arrived on campus. The analysis of the interviews confirmed that students who had knowledge of their dialects prior to attending college had an easier time acclimating to the university environment and expectations because they adapted code-switching prior to arriving on campus; however, the participants who were not aware of their dialect prior to attending college had a difficult time in the transition to the university setting because they had to learn to code-switch while learning about the expectations of the new environment

Electronic Resources Update

The Mary Livermore Library is constantly looking for, examining, and testing resources for possible addition to the Library’s collection of electronic resources. With that in mind, there have been some changes since last fall. These updates include the addition of electronic databases and many new e-book collections

Visiting Teachers and Students with Developmental Disabilities

The profession of school social work began in 1906 but was not recognized in federal legislation for students with disabilities until nearly 70 years later. However, since 1906, school social workers have worked with students considered at-risk for academic failure, including students with disabilities. This article highlights the beginning of the visiting teacher movement, from 1906 through 1920, with a particular emphasis on the role of the visiting teacher within the context of working with students with developmental disabilities. Implications for school social work practitioners are discussed

What Is Instructional Services?

“Instructional Services” is one of those phrases in the library business that seems to throw quite a few people off. It may also be referred to as “bibliographic instruction,” “library instruction,” or even the current buzzwords of “information literacy instruction.” No matter what it is called, the primary goal of Instructional Services is to help patrons develop the skills to find information quickly and efficiently. Not only do we try to give patrons, usually students, the technical skills and tools to access information, but we also try to instill in them the ability to analyze, evaluate, and interpret their results. Quite simply, it is our job to increase the level of “information literacy” or the ability to find all of the information they need

Financial Reporting And Tax Issues At JC Construction Corporation: An Instructional Case

J C Construction Corporation (JCCC) is a privately held corporation with 10 shareholders, who are all members of the Carpenter family. The company was founded by Joe Carpenter in the late 1990s. Thecompany’s projects involve mostly comparatively small commercial building construction, such asrestaurants and smaller-scale stores. JCCC specializes in renovation and restoration projects rather than new construction, but does occasionally take on some new construction projects. The company does not build or renovate single family homes. JCCC is located in Minnesota, near the Minneapolis/St. Paul area where remodeling contractors are in high demand

Children with Disabilities in Foster Care: The Role of the School Social Worker in the Context of Special Education.

The article discusses the role of the school social worker in the education of children with disabilities in foster care. It notes that most children in foster care have been traumatized by physical abuse or neglect and have often encountered unhealthy social and familial conditions. It cites studies which found low levels of knowledge and high levels of frustration regarding educational resources, procedures and regulations among child welfare workers

Simple Guidelines for Job Seekers

This articles provides helpful hints and tips for those seeking employment in a library setting

Authoritarianism: Validation of the Balanced F scale through Observer Ratings

In conducting this study, our purpose was to further our understanding of the relationship between authoritarian attitudes and behavior. The specific purpose of the present study was to investigate the use of observer ratings in validating personality characteristics of authoritarians. Our study focused upon defining personality dimensions of the authoritarian personality. Observer and self-ratings of the subject on a newly constructed personality measure was used in an attempt to clarify traits of the authoritarian. The self-ratings provided the personal perception of the authoritarian while observer ratings provided insight into personality dimensions which the authoritarian represses or distorts. Also, the personality measure used provides more accurate self and observer ratings than have been achieved on past personality measures