Spring 2016/Fuller Online
MD556
Scott
MD556: ORPHAN CARE APPROACHES: A SPECTRUM OF RESPONSES FOR CHILDREN OUTSIDE OF PARENTAL CARE (4 Units: 160 hours). Dave H. Scott.
DESCRIPTION: In response to children separated from parental care, Christians frequently become involved with children’s homes and adoption. Virtually every church in the United States supports an orphanage or children's home somewhere, and adoption ministries are growing. The limitations of orphanages as a child welfare model and difficulties with transnational, transracial adoption have been clearly demonstrated. This class offers a safe yet intellectually rigorous environment for Christians to engage with diverse experiences and perspectives about responses to children outside of parental care. Students will examine theoretical and cultural approaches, as well as biblical understandings related to care for separated children. Through readings, assignments, and online interactions, students will learn about various models on the spectrum of care to include: prevention, reunification, kin care, foster care, community based care, forms of adoption, and residential care.
LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon successful completion of this course, students will have demonstrated the ability to: (1) critically articulate the potential strengths and difficulties of different models of care for children who have been separated from their primary caregivers, either temporarily or permanently; (2) critically articulate challenges associated with race and childhood as dimensions of social power that impact approaches to working with children and families; (3) describe the relationship between responsibility toward children outside of parental care and roles of the church; and (4) engage in tactful, constructive critique of current initiatives working with children separated from their primary caregivers that engenders the development of professional relationships.
COURSE FORMAT: This course will be conducted online on a ten-week schedule aligned with Fuller’s academic calendar, which is outlined below in the assignment and assessment section. Students are required to interact with the material, with each other, and with the instructor regularly through online discussions, reading, and other assignments that promote active learning.
REQUIRED READING: 1,100 total number of pages required.
Course Reader [270 pp.]
Bowie, Fiona, Ed. Cross-Cultural Approaches to Adoption. Routledge, 2004. ISBN: 978-0415303514, Pub. Price $48.95 [150 pp. assigned].
Couture, Pamela D. Child Poverty: Love, Justice, and Social Responsibility. Chalice Press, 2007. ISBN: 978-0827205093, Pub. Price $23.99 [250 pp. assigned].
Goodyer, Annabel. Child-Centered Foster Care: A Rights-Based Model for Practice. Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2011. ISBN: 978-1849051743, Pub. Price $32.95 [110 pp. assigned]. Available as ebook from Fuller library.
Tolfree, David. Roofs and Roots: The Care of Separated Children in the Developing World. Ashgate Publishing Limited, 1995. ISBN: 978-1857422771, Pub. Price $0.00 [320 pp. assigned]. Accessed November 12, 2013. Available at: http://www.childtrafficking.com/Docs/tolfree_1995_roofs_and_root.pdf.
ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:
Instruction hours to include: slide presentations, short audio or video lectures, guided activities, illustrative online videos, and other instructional materials [20 hours].
250-word weekly forum posts (10%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1, 2, 4]. [10 hours].
250-word weekly forum responses (10%). [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1, 2, 4]. [10 hours].
1,100 pp. of required reading [This assignment is related to learning outcome #1-3]. [70 hours].
Four 1,000 word research based responses. Students choose from a provided list to include case studies and theoretical, biblical, practical, and critical issues related to the course material (20% each). [These assignments are related to learning outcomes #1-4]. [50 hours].
PREREQUISITES: Auditors of this course are asked to complete the readings in order to participate in class discussions.
RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: Optional course for the Children at Risk Emphasis and meets Contextualizing Requirement C5 - Engaging Human Diversity.
FINAL EXAMINATION: None.