Course explores evaluation methods in social work to improve practice, policy, and service delivery. Students will learn quantitative, qualitative, and program design approaches, emphasizing diversity, ethics, and culturally responsive practice. They will apply evidence-based, anti-racist approaches to evaluate interventions and enhance social work effectiveness.
Athena Title
Eval of Professional Practice
Equivalent Courses
Not open to students with credit in SOWK 7226E
Pre or Corequisite
[(SOWK 7115 or SOWK 7115E) and (SOWK 7125 or SOWK 7125E) and (SOWK 7126 or SOWK 7126E)] or permission of school
Semester Course Offered
Offered spring
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Student learning Outcomes
Students will be able to assess characteristics of diverse clients/communities, including gaps in service, to inform intervention and evaluation methods used when working with that group.
Students will be able to select appropriate study design and appropriate, valid, and reliable measures to implement a culturally responsive social work intervention or evaluation.
Students will be able to design a systematic, scientifically sound, and culturally responsive proposal to evaluate outcomes of a social work intervention.
Students will be able to critique intervention choice and evaluation methods to determine their use of culturally responsive, anti-oppressive, or anti-racist evaluation techniques.
Students will be able to analyze outcomes and apply evaluation findings to improve practice effectiveness with diverse individuals, families, groups, organizations, and communities.
Topical Outline
Planning and conceptualizing evaluations and interventions
Ethical issues and responsible conduct of social work research
Needs assessments
Measurement issues in evaluation and intervention research
Sampling in evaluation and intervention research
Formative, process, and outcome approaches to evaluation and intervention research
Program monitoring in evaluation research
Racial and cultural considerations in evaluation and intervention research
Cost effectiveness, cost analysis, and impact in evaluation and intervention research
Data collection and quantitative/qualitative analyses in evaluation and intervention research
Institutional Competencies Learning Outcomes
Analytical Thinking
The ability to reason, interpret, analyze, and solve problems from a wide array of authentic contexts.
