Program Design & Implementation Syllabus
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SESP 303, Fall 2014, Cohen & Ross 1 PROGRAM DESIGN & IMPLEMENTATION SYLLABUS COURSE DESCRIPTION: How can we encourage and inspire meaningful social change? How can we design and implement effective programs that address social problems and social needs? We will attempt to answer these questions by exploring specific steps of the design and implementation process. By examining characteristics of youth and community programs in the fields of education, social welfare, human development, health promotion, human rights, and civic engagement – at the local, national, and international levels – we will seek to identify commonalities and understand differences among them. A major goal of this course is to acquire an intellectual and applied understanding of the principles of program design and development, which include a sustained consideration of issues affecting the quality of program implementation. Considerable attention will be devoted to specific steps within the design and implementation process, as well as case studies of actual programs. We will examine a range of topics, including: finding inspiration; identification, recruitment, and retention of target audiences; staff selection; setting global and incremental goals; and evaluating success. We must also acknowledge that what counts as a social need or social problem is subjective and complex and that programs can therefore be controversial and difficult to manage. In light of this, we will touch on the organizational, ethical, and political contexts of implementation. We will also see that, in many instances, social policies ultimately translate at the local level into programs and how well these are implemented and sustained goes a long way in determining the success of a given policy. While much of the design and implementation process can certainly be seen as fairly intuitive, you are encouraged – through class discussion, your writing, and your designs – to actively challenge your assumptions about creating community programming, as well as critique the programs that we learn about and the design techniques that we practice. WHEN AND WHERE: Tuesdays & Thursdays, 12:30pm - 1:50pm (feel free to bring your lunch – but no smelly food!) Room G01, Annenberg Hall, 2120 Campus Drive, Evanston OFFICE HOURS: By appointment. We encourage you to speak to us over email, over Skype, or face-to-face about your work, especially about your Design Project. COURSE DOCUMENTS, TEXTS, AND DISCUSSION BOARDS: https://canvas.northwestern.edu/ School of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University SESP 303, Fall 2014, Cohen & Ross 2 INSTRUCTOR: Danny M. Cohen Danny M. Cohen, Ph. D. is a learning scientist, writer and educator, with a background in youth work, organizational management, informal education, and youth leadership. An assistant professor of instruction in the School of Education & Social Policy at Northwestern University, he specializes in education design and how collective understandings of Holocaust history impact pedagogy. A 2013 faculty fellow of the Auschwitz Jewish Center, Danny sits on the editorial advisory board of the British journal The Holocaust in History & Memory. He is a Governor-appointed member of the Illinois Holocaust & Genocide Commission, which oversees Holocaust and genocide education and commemoration throughout the state. His doctoral dissertation, ‘Historical Narratives in Tension: Holocaust Educators’ Perceptions of Victimhood’ (Northwestern University 2011), focused on how Holocaust educators perceive the Jewish and non-Jewish victims of Nazism. Concurrently, he designed and facilitated the pedagogical track of the docent training program at the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center. In addition to authoring academic articles on Holocaust and human rights education, Danny is a human rights fiction writer and the founder and creative director of The Unsilence Project, a series of educational experiences addressing marginalized narratives of atrocity and human rights. Originally from London, Danny now lives in Chicago with his husband and their daughter. Fun fact: Danny sings in a Chicago-based band. Email: [email protected]; Skype: dannymauricecohen TEACHING ASSISTANT: Emily C. Ross Emily C. Ross is a third-year doctoral student in the Human Development and Social Policy (HDSP) program in the School of Education & Social Policy at Northwestern University. She is interested in exploring how parents' own characteristics—called “human capital” (e.g. education, health, economic resources, social supports)— influence the quality of the home environment and, ultimately, young children's development in a low- income context. Emily’s research also examines how programs and policy can improve early environments within which low-income children develop. Prior to attending graduate school, Emily worked at the non-profit Reading In Motion in Chicago as an after-school instructor to provide an “extra dosage” of literacy instruction for low-income first grade students who were falling behind their classmates in reading. Following her position at the non-profit, Emily has worked with Prof. Lindsay Chase-Lansdale for the past 4 years, first as her Research Coordinator and now as a graduate student, on evaluating the CareerAdvance® program in Tulsa, OK. In the program, low- income parents attend an adult workforce development program attached to the high-quality preschool their child attends, with the goal of simultaneously supporting both parents and their young children in their development. Emily has gone to Tulsa multiple times to with work directly with the program, and she finds that working with on-the-ground staff to continually build the program while also meeting the goals of the research study is challenging, yet the most motivating and fun part about research! Emily received her BSc in Psychology at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Originally from Florida, Emily lives in Chicago with her fiancé and her sister’s lovely cat, Lucy. When not studying, Emily loves to browse farmers’ markets, eat Ramen noodles (the real kind) and every other type of food, discover new music, and travel to visit good friends. Fun fact: Emily hiked from the north to the south rim of the Grand Canyon this summer! Email: [email protected]; Skype: ecr925 ASSESSMENT: Class Participation: 25% Online Participation and Final Individual Reflection: 25% Design Project (group work): 50% Preparatory Assignments: 20% Expo Presentation and Final Proposal: 30% School of Education and Social Policy, Northwestern University SESP 303, Fall 2014, Cohen & Ross 3 ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Students are required to comply with the polices found in the booklet, “Academic Integrity at Northwestern University: A Basic Guide.” All papers submitted for credit in this course must be submitted electronically unless otherwise instructed by the professor. Your written work may be electronically tested for plagiarized content. For details regarding academic integrity at Northwestern or to download the guide, visit: http://www.northwestern.edu/provost/policies/academic-integrity/index.html. LATE ASSIGNMENTS & LATE PASS: Late assignments will be docked one half-grade (for example, from a B+ to a B) for each 24-hour period delay in submission. Assignments submitted after five days beyond the stated deadline will receive a fail grade. Each student is entitled to ONE “24 hour late pass” for an individual reflection paper. No advanced permission needed. ACCOMMODATIONS FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES: Any student with a disability requesting accommodations must register with Services for Students with Disabilities ([email protected]; 847-467-5530) and request an SSD accommodation notification for his/her professor, preferably within the first two weeks of class. All information will remain confidential. SUPPORT: Throughout this course, we will study a number of programs and social issues that may raise personal issues for you or your classmates. Please be aware that what you say and write can affect others. Please always try to be respectful and kind. Also, please know that NU’s Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) can provide you support and guidance with personal issues you might have. Visit: http://www.northwestern.edu/counseling/ NU’s Center for Awareness, Response, and Education (CARE) is a great resource, too. CARE provides “information, advice, crisis counseling, support, advocacy, referrals and education about sexual violence (including sexual assault, rape, intimate partner violence and stalking) as well as consent, healthy relationships and healthy sexuality to the Northwestern University community.” Visit: http://www.northwestern.edu/care/ Please note that, if we read anything within a written assignment – or hear anything during class – of concern, we may need to follow up appropriately. ATTENDANCE AND MAKE UP ASSIGNMENTS: You must attend ALL classes. Your punctuality and attendance will be factored into your class participation grade. If you know that you will be late or absent for a class, email both Danny and Emily. All absences must be supported by a valid reason and supporting documents, if available. If you miss a class, you must complete a make up assignment. It is your responsibility to obtain class notes from another student and, within one week of the missed class, to email both Danny and Emily a 300 to 400 word essay (posted in the body of the email, not as an attachment) on the related class texts. A missing or poorly written make up