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This course assists the undergraduate social work student in building a foundation for understanding human behavior and development in diverse contexts across the life course. The course emphasizes the interdependence of dynamic interactions between a person and that individual's environment, and thus introduces students to implications for human development through a person-in-environment lens. S221 Human Growth and Development in the Social Environment explores influences of the biological, social, cultural, psychological and spiritual dimensions on individual human development and behavior. Students examine how the diverse contexts in which individuals live impact the range of human development and behavior in themselves and others. Understanding human behavior and development from a multidimensional perspective builds a strong foundation for development of skills later in the curriculum. Specifically, foundational concepts presented in this course help students apply critical thinking to an understanding of the diversity of human functioning and implications for the processes of social work assessment, evaluation and intervention. The Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), the accrediting body for School's of Social Work, requires Social Work Programs to demonstrate how each course in the curriculum helps students develop competencies expected of all who seek entry into the profession. Programs must document a match between course content and CSWE competencies defined in Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS). This course, required in the BSW curriculum, draws upon basic knowledge and understanding of our diverse society. Course content contributes to building knowledge and skills for students to demonstrate EP 2.1.2 (apply social work ethical principles to guide professional practice); EP 2.1.4 (engage difference and diversity in practice); and, EP 2.1.7 (apply knowledge of human behavior and the social environment. S221 Human Growth and Development in the Social Environment serves as the first of three courses in the Human Behavior in the Social Environment sequence within the curriculum. The courses should be taken in sequence or concurrently.
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