HD/WSt 320-01, Resource Management & Problem Solving

Spring 2008

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Instructor Information:

Teresa Ashford
Education/Human Development Building, Room 227
Phone: 360-546-9718
Fax: 360-546-9076
Office Hours: M, W, 12:00-1:00 p.m., or by appointment (546-9721)
Email: ashford@vancouver.wsu.edu
Home page: http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/adjunct/ashford/ashford.html

Course Information:

Schedule:

Monday, Wednesday , 10:35 - 11:50 a.m.

Location:

Multi-media Classroom Building , Room 16

Description:

This is a three-credit upper-division course focusing on understanding how families manage their financial, material, human, and environmental resources. The course is intended to help students gain new perspectives on how individuals and families make decisions about what they like, need, want, and how they might go about getting what they want and need. Theory about decision making in a family context will be used to help students when they work with families (and individuals) in social service and employment settings.

Course Objectives:

Students participating in this course will:

  • Identify different approaches/theories of management.
  • Assess the range of resources available to individuals and families.
  • Identify and analyze different types of problems and a variety of approaches to problem solving.
  • Identify and analyze personal and professional management problems, decisions, and actions, and offer potential methods of problem solving.

Prerequisites and Other Notes:

Six hours of social science.

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Required Texts and Other Materials:

Required Text:

Goldsmith, E.B. (2005). Resource management for individuals and families. (3rd ed.), Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.

Important Web Links:

APA:

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Classroom Requirements:

Reasonable Accommodation:

Accommodations may be available if you need them in order to fully participate in this class because of a disability. Accommodations may take some time to implement so it is critical that you contact Disability Services as soon as possible. All accommodations must be approved through Disability Services, located in the Student Resource Center on the Lower Level of VSSC. (360) 546-9138.

Inclement Weather and Other Class Cancellations:

When students have questions about classes being held during inclement weather, please contact the faculty support for the department.  Faculty support will have information regarding class closures and will post that information on their voice mail messages.  In Human Development, contact: Lynda Dezellem, 360/546-9721.

Student Conduct and Academic Dishonesty:

Per the WSU Vancouver Student Handbook, students are, "Expected to show due respect for ... the rights of others". Students should be familiar with the Washington State University standards of conduct. The following web site for the WSU Vancouver Student Handbook provides information on student conduct and the academic integrity process:http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/ss/handbook/handbook.html.

Academic Integrity:

Academic integrity is the cornerstone of the university and will be strongly enforced in this course. Any student caught cheating on any assignment will be given an "F" for the course and will be referred to the Office of Student Conduct.

Academic Calendar:

The WSU academic calendar for the current semester is located at the following web site:http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/ss/calendars.htm. Please refer to this document for important campus dates and deadlines throughout the semester.

Electronic Mail:

All students are expected to have and use email to further communication between students and instructor. Students at WSU Vancouver have access to free email by going to the following web site: http://www.vancouver.wsu.edu/vis/vit/accounts.htm. A home email account is also acceptable.

Procedure for Submitting and Retrieving Papers and Assignments:

The Human Development Department maintains a student drop box for students submitting assignments to Human Development faculty. Students use the student drop box on the second floor of the EHD building. Directions are located on the top of the box. The box is checked several times daily and the contents distributed according to the faculty name you have placed on the envelope. DO NOT submit assignments by putting them in the file cabinet. The file cabinet is used only for returning graded assignments to students and for students to pick up copies of non-graded class materials such as class notes, etc. All graded material will be returned in an envelope with each student’s name and the course number on the outside and placed in alphabetical files by LAST name. IT IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED THAT A COPY OF ALL ASSIGNMENTS TURNED IN BE SAVED ELECTRONICALLY AND THAT YOU ALSO KEEP A PAPER (HARD) COPY. All student papers will be maintained in the HD file cabinet for six weeks following the posting of grades at the end of each semester. At the end of six weeks, all papers, tests, etc. will be shredded.

Late Assignments:

All assignments will be considered LATE (a loss of 10% of the overall earned score per day late) if they are not received by the START OF CLASS on the date specified on the syllabus. All assignments may be faxed. Please put the instructor’s name on your fax cover page.

A Note About Plagiarism and Cheating (Adapted from University of Iowa) :

Plagiarism and Cheating are serious offenses that may be penalized severely. You are plagiarizing or cheating if you:
- present someone else's words or ideas as your own, in writing or in speaking
- present ideas without citing the source
- paraphrase without crediting the source
- use direct quotes with no quotation marks
- use direct quotes without footnotes or other textual citation of the source
- present work in a group project that is not your own or the work of the group
- submit the same paper for credit in more than one course without discussing this option with the instructors involved
- submit material written by someone else as your own (this includes purchasing a term or research paper)
- submit a paper or assignment for which you have received so much help that it is no longer your own work
- do not do an equal part of the work on a group project
- copy someone else's exam or graded homework
- purposefully allow another student to copy your work or submit work you have written as his/her own

Missing Exams:

Students who are (or plan on being) absent when an exam is given will ONLY be permitted to make up the exam if contact is made IN ADVANCE of the absence. It is then expected that we will work together to make a plan regarding the timely completion of said exam. I am MUCH more likely to be flexible and understanding when advance notice is given outside of class, via an office visit, a phone call, or email.

Extra Credit:

It is not to be assumed that extra credit will be offered within this course. We will see how the semester plays out, and I will make a decision based upon group performance and overall need. Don't hold your breath.

Required Assignments:

Exams

Two exams will be given in class; one midterm and one final exam. Exams will be worth 100 points each. Exams will be comprised of multiple-choice questions and short responses. A study guide will be provided generally one week in advance of the exam.

In-class Assignments

There will be 100 points of in-class work that will NOT be announced. These may include small group exercises, pop quizzes, in-class writing, and/or short essays. You will be given time to complete these assignments in class. In-class assignments MAY NOT be made up, however, your lowest earned in-class assignment score will be dropped at the end of the semester and replaced with a perfect score.

Take-home Assignments

There will be five take-home assignments worth 20 points each, accounting for 100 points worth of take-home work within the context of this course. These exercises will be announced in advance in class (and also through email). After the assignment is announced, you will have at least one week for completion and submission.

Media Analysis

The purpose of this assignment is to make students more aware of how the media (more specifically, advertising) influences individual and family resource management and problem solving.  This assignment is worth 100 points total.

Requirements:

- Media advertisements of a category or overall topic of resource management and problem solving for individuals and families will be monitored. You should focus on newspaper and magazine coverage. You are to start collecting, from the beginning of the semester, newspaper and magazine advertisements that pertain to any aspect of this course.

- Televised or Internet media (ex., You Tube video clips) will also be accepted with instructor permission. It is ideal that your instructor would be able to access the piece of media you are analyzing.

- Examples in the text:
(p. 77 – 78) Good Housekeeping advertisement
(p. 98) “Wise competitors and service providers use advertising to show what they can provide and how they can make life easier.”
(p. 167) Editors of Real Simple magazine shared, “We love multitasking (when it makes sense), innovation (when it has a purpose), and a clean home (especially when it can be done quickly).”
(p. 246 – 247) Whirlpool advertisement

- When analyzing print media advertisements, you must cite the following information before your review:
- Brand type advertisement. Title of magazine or newspaper, Month, Year.
If the article was retrieved from the Internet, it would be cited as follows:
- Brand type advertisement, www.xxxx.xxx
- Attach the advertisement (or copies) to your final submitted assignment.
- Your paper must be word-processed, with a standard 12-point font size, double-spaced, with one-inch margins all around.
- As part of your project materials you will need a cover sheet listing the following information: (a) name, (b) course number, (c) assignment title, and (d) date of submission.
- This assignment may be submitted as one continuous document.

PART I:
You should then choose the best 3 advertisements to analyze according to the following:
1. (5 points x 3) What affect does this advertisement have on the viewer
- What emotions are evoked?
- How does the ad make you feel? How would you envision the ad makes its target audience feel?
- What does the ad make you think about?
2. (5 points x 3) Who is the advertisement targeting? Why?
- Look at the publication the ad is placed within; think about demographic characteristics of the target audience.
3. (5 points x 3) What are the implied values contained within this advertisement?
- You should utilize the value concepts outlined in the Goldsmith text when responding to this question.
4. (5 points x 3) Does the advertisement appeal to the viewer to adopt a specific view? What are the solutions offered by the advertisement (beyond simply buying their product)?
PART II:
- You will then write a 2 – 3 FULL page conclusion that answers the following question:
1. (35 points) What effect do the media’s advertisements have on how individuals and families manage resources and engage in problem solving? The text and/or class discussion MUST be referenced and cited when responding to this question.
COMPLETED PROJECT:
(5 POINTS) COMPLETION OF REQUIRED COMPONENTS
- cover sheet, page length, proper spelling and grammar, etc.
- Proper APA citations and references
- Can I easily read it?

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Grading:

Requirement Summary :

Assignment Points Total Points Grade Percentage
Exams
2 @ 100
200
40%
Media Analysis
1 @ 100
100
20%
Take-home Assignments
5 @ 20
100
20%
In-class Assignments
Total of 100
100
20%

Grading Scale:

The standard Human Development grading scale is as follows:

Grade Percent
A 100-94
A- 93-90
B+ 89-87
B 86-83
B- 82-80
C+ 79-77
C 76-73
C- 72-70
D+ 69-67
D 66-60
F 59 or below

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Schedule:

Tentative Course Outline

Week Date Readings/Assignments
1 Jan 7 Introduction
  Jan 9 Management Today
Chapter 1

2

 Jan 14 Management History & Theories
Chapter 2
  Jan 16 Management History & Theories (continued)

3

 Jan 21 Holiday, No Class
  Jan 23 Values, Attitudes, Goals, and Motivation
Chapter 3

4

 Jan 28 Values, Attitudes, Goals, and Motivation (continued)
  Jan 30 Resources
Chapter 4

5

 Feb 4 Resources (continued)
  Feb 6 Decision Making and Problem Solving
Chapter 5
6 Feb 11 Decision Making and Problem Solving (continued)
  Feb 13 Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating
Chapter 6
7 Feb 18 Holiday, No Class
  Feb 20 Planning, Implementing, and Evaluating (continued)
8 Feb 25 Communication
Chapter 7
  Feb 27 Communication (continued)
9 Mar 3 MIDTERM #1
  Mar 5 Managing Environmental Resources
Chapter 12
  Mar 10-14 Spring Break, No Class
10 Mar 17 Managing Environmental Resources (continued)
  Mar 19 Managing Time
Chapter 9
11 Mar 24 Managing Human Resources
Chapter 8
  Mar 26 Managing Human Resources (continued)
12 Mar 31 Managing Time, Work, and Family
Chapters 9 and 10
  Apr 2 Managing Time, Work, and Family (continued)
13 Apr 7 Managing Stress and Fatigue
Chapter 11
  Apr 9 Managing Stress and Fatigue (continued)
14 Apr 14 Managing Stress and Fatigue (continued)
Media Analysis Due
  Apr 16 Managing Finances
Chapter 13
15 Apr 21 Managing Finances and Looking Ahead
Chapter 13 and 14
  Apr 23 Managing Finances and Looking Ahead (continued)
  Finals Week
April 28-
May 2 		Final Exam Date: TBA

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Useful Links:

You may find some useful information at web sites listed on the department resources page.