Catherine J. Tompkins

GUEST EDITORIAL: AN ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL WORK TEXTBOOKS FOR AGING CONTENT: HOW WELL DO SOCIAL WORK FOUNDATION TEXTS PREPARE STUDENTS FOR OUR AGING SOCIETY?

In an effort to strengthen the basic aging competency of social work students, the authors assessed the general quantity and quality of aging content in a sample of foundation social work textbooks. Of nearly 10,000 pages reviewed, only about 3% (309 pages) included aging content. A foundation cultural diversity text included the most aging content (6%), with only 5% aging-related content identified in HBSE texts, 2% across practice books reviewed, 4% within policy texts, 2% in research texts, and less than 1 page in the 1 field education text. A textbook analysis framework and a review of findings are provided.

Distance Learning in Gerontological Education

Abstract This article reports data collected from a national survey of the Association for Gerontology in Higher Educations (AGHE) member institutions conducted in 1998. The purpose was to explore current usage of distance learning in gerontological education. The findings suggest that distance learning is being implemented within various programs throughout the country with many others showing an interest. The strengths and limitations of using distance learning in gerontological education are discussed.

Infusing Aging Content into a Research Course: A National Organization and University Partnership.

ABSTRACT Gerontology and research are two areas that are often resisted by undergraduate social-work students: “Why do you need to know how to do research as a social-work practitioner?” “Why would anyone want to work with older, sick and frail individuals when it is impossible to make a difference in their situation or in their lives?” These statements are not uncommon to undergraduate social-work faculty or field placement staff. From 1998 to 2004, to strengthen the capacity of the social-work profession to meet the needs of a growing aging population, the Council on Social Work Educations Strengthening Aging and Gerontology in Social Work project (SAGE-SW) worked on a national initiative to infuse aging content throughout the social-work curriculum. This was to be done both at the undergraduate and graduate levels, which include developing resources for faculty that will infuse gerontology throughout the curriculum (funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation of New York). This paper adds a curriculum resource by providing an example of infusing gerontology into a research course via a service-learning project, as well as infusing research into a gerontology field placement. In addition, the project exposed the social-work research students to the field of gerontology and the operations of a national organization. It also gave students the opportunity to attend a national gerontology conference.

Increasing aging and advocacy competency: the intergenerational advocacy pilot project.

Summary The Council on Social Work Educations (CSWE) Strengthening Aging and Gerontology Education for Social Work (SAGE-SW) project, funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation partnered with the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare (NCPSSM) to develop an Intergenerational Policy and Advocacy Project (IAP). This curriculum pilot project, based on a community organization model, was conducted with 13 baccalaureate social work (BSW) and masters social work (MSW) programs across the country and 122 students. The project was one method to pursue CSWE SAGE-SWs efforts to infuse aging content into social work foundation curricula, to support intergenerational teaching, to strengthen social work advocacy skills, and to provide social work students with positive experiences working with older adults. Pilot sites were asked to carry out the project as part of an existing course foundation or field practicum course. Project activities included collaboration with a variety of community agencies, holding issues or ‘town hair forums in order to educate community members about critical policy issues affecting older adults; making contacts and establishing relationships with local, state and/or federal legislators; and conducting assessments of the service needs of older adults in the students’ communities. Questionnaires, feedback, pre-post evaluations as well as brief accounts of each project are presented. Participants considered the IAP to be a successful project in terms of the objectives of increasing awareness and competency among social work students of aging issues and of promoting intergenerational linkages between older people and social work students.

“Maintaining Connections but Wanting More”: The Continuity of Familial Relationships Among Assisted-Living Residents

Social support is a key component of well-being for older adults, particularly for those who have moved from independent living to assisted living involving a transformation of roles, relationships, and responsibilities. Twenty-nine assisted-living facility residents were interviewed to understand the perceived continuity of relationships with family and friends. An inductive approach to thematic analysis revealed 1 main theme and 3 subthemes. The main theme that emerged was: maintaining connections but wanting more. Residents appreciated maintaining connections with family and friends, but often expressed feelings of discontentment with the continuity of former relationships. The subthemes included: appreciating family and friends, waiting for more, and losing control. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Developing visibility for aging in social work: the first NGSWC.

Summary In March 2001, the Council on Social Work Educations (CSWE) Strengthening Aging and Gerontology Education for Social Work (SAGE-SW) project published an action agenda for social work and aging (CSWE/SAGE-SW, 2001). CSWE SAGE-SW, funded by the John A. Hartford Foundation from 1998 to 2004, had several charges in the first phase of funding, including the gathering of data through a thorough review of literature, focus groups, surveys and a variety of activities to gamer expert input. This agenda, often referred to as the Blueprint, identified a number of serious issues regarding the lack of attention, preparation, leadership and interest in aging within the social work profession. It also provided some recommended actions to address these issues and help set the stage for the creation of the National Gerontological Social Work Conference. What were the issues at hand and why might a National Gerontological Social Work Conference (NGSWC) address some of these issues?

Culture and Familism: An Exploratory Case Study of a Grandparent-Headed Household

Increasingly, grandparents provide primary care for their grandchildren, but minimal research exists focusing on Asian and Pacific American grandparent caregivers. Using the conceptual framework of familism, this case study explores the context of a Korean American, interracial, two-grandparent household (age 72 and 73) raising their 12-year-old grandson. The interview of this family was analyzed using coding, memoing, and comparative analysis techniques often used in case study analysis. Three themes related to familism emerged: staying connected, maintaining cultures, and clashing cultures. Inclusion of these concepts may be appropriate for service providers in assessing grandparent-headed families and identifying cultural strengths and appropriate interventions.

Grandchildren Caring for Grandparents: Modeling the Complexity of Family Caregiving

ABSTRACT This study focuses on grandchildren (Generation 3 or G3) caring for grandparents (Generation 1 or G1) and uses agent-based modeling to conceptualize and test a model of two factors—capability and motivation—that may affect a G3s decision to provide care for a G1. We tested our conceptual model and found that the simulated proportion of G3 caregivers has concurrent validity with existing empirical data. In experiments conducted with the validated model, we investigated universal- and targeted-policy changes (tax credit for caregivers) and found that although the universal-policy change increased G3 caregiving overall, a policy change targeting low- and middle-income caregivers was even more successful.

Learning Objects and Gerontology

Virtual AGE (vAGE) is an asynchronous educational environment that utilizes learning objects focused on gerontology and a learning anytime/anywhere philosophy. This paper discusses the benefits of asynchronous instruction and the process of creating learning objects. Learning objects are “small, reusable chunks of instructional media” Wiley (2000). They are stand-alone instructional devices that are limited only by the creativity of the person designing them but are not to be construed with a way to present lecture notes. Using examples of learning objects from the vAGE library, the motivation behind constructing learning objects and the variety of purposes to which they can be put is presented. Creating a learning object is like developing a treasure map for your students to explore.

A Case Study of Professional Change: The Impact of the National Gerontological Social Work Competencies Survey

Our society is aging, and this demographic change necessitates that all social workers have basic competency in gerontology. This article describes the results of a competency survey conducted in 2000, and how these results helped transform basic social work curricula and enhance gerontology-related resources. Results were used to encourage and assist social work faculty to infuse gerontological content into social work curriculum, which helped practitioners to gain the necessary knowledge and skills to meet the needs of a growing aging population. This social work education framework can be replicated in an effort to infuse gerontology content throughout other disciplines.