Week 11: Ethical and Legal Considerations in Working With Children and Families

Week 11: Ethical and Legal Considerations in Working With Children and Families. Unique legal and ethical considerations can be found with any population. Working with children is no different. Social workers providing services to children may face questions about who their client is, what the limits of confidentiality are, and how informed consent is given, among others.

In this week, you explore some of the unique ethical and legal issues that may confront you when providing social work services to children and their families.

Students will:

• Apply understanding of the unique legal and ethical challenges related to social work services for children and families

Learning Resources

Note: To access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

Required Readings

National Association of Social Workers. (2017). Code of ethics of the National Association of Social Workers. Retrieved from https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English

Document: Working With Children and Families: The Case of Hamza (PDF)

Document: Working With Children and Families: The Case of the Patterson Family (PDF)

Document: Working With Children and Families: The Case of the Rodao Family (PDF)

Document: Working With Children and Families: The Case of Elle (PDF)

Discussion: Ethical and Legal Challenges in Working With Children and Families

All social workers have a responsibility to be familiar with the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics. Applying those obligations when providing services to children and families can be complicated by the age and capacities of your client.

In this Discussion, you analyze potential ethical and legal challenges social workers could face when serving children and families. Using one of the cases presented in the Learning Resources, offer suggestions about how you might respond to the ethical and legal challenges identified.

Week 11: Ethical and Legal Considerations in Working With Children and Families

By Day 3

Post:

• Describe the ways services for children and families face unique ethical and legal challenges.
• Using one of the case studies presented in this course (see the Learning Resources), identify one legal and one ethical challenge that could arise and explain how you would respond to each.

Week 11: Ethical and Legal Considerations in Working With Children and Families

By Day 5

Respond to at least two of your colleagues’ posts who chose different case studies from you.

• Provide an alternative response to the legal and ethical challenges he or she identified.

Submission and Grading Information

Week 11: Ethical and Legal Considerations in Working With Children and Families

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 11 Discussion Rubric

Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 5

To participate in this Discussion:

Week 11 Discussion

Week in Review

In this final week you applied your understanding of the unique legal and ethical challenges related to social work services for children and families.

After you have completed the assignments for the week, you have finished the course. Congratulations! Please complete the Course Evaluation and submit by Day 7.