SOWK 506: Fall1 2017
Quiz 2
(100 points; 20% of Course Grade)
Relates to student learning outcomes: 1, 2, 4, 7
This assignment is a take home, short answer essay quiz. It is intended to be an assessment of your
understanding of the content in Units 7 through 9 (Development in school-aged children, Learning
theories) through critical application of theoretical concepts to a case vignette.
Please use the attached case to answer any 5 questions of your choosing from the list below. Be
sure to clearly indicate which questions you are answering. You may “fill in” details about the case
that are not directly stated. If you do this, please be sure to state your assumptions so that the
instructor can follow the logic of your argument.
Provide responses that are thoughtful and directly relevant to the question, supporting your answers
with specific examples from the case and scholarly source material. In your responses, you must go
beyond simply identifying, listing and/or defining concepts, terms, or ideas. Demonstrate your
knowledge of these theories and how they can be applied to understand the behavior of the child in
the vignette.
FORMAT
This is a short answer essay quiz, not an academic paper. As such, simply indicate the number of the
question you are answering and then write your response. Please use complete sentences, not bullet
points or outlines. The completed quiz should be 5-7 pages in length (approximately 1 page per
question; page limit does not include title page and reference list), double-spaced, with 12-point font
and 1-inch margins. Provide scholarly references in each response to support your arguments.
You are required to cite in APA style a minimum of 4 academic and/or professional works from the
syllabus and a minimum of 2 outside references in the quiz overall. Please note: The Robbins et al
(2011) textbook will count as 1 reference source, regardless of the number of chapters you cite.
Please do not cite the asynchronous material, lecture notes, etc., and minimize the use of direct
quotes from source material. The title page should be formatted as follows:
SOWK 506 – Fall1 2017
Quiz 2
Student Name
Date
Course Instructor
GRADING
The evaluation of the quiz will be based on whether you addressed all aspects of the assignment, the
appropriate use of theoretical concepts, the strength of your analysis, correct APA referencing format, and
graduate level writing quality. A grade sheet will be posted so that you know exactly how the points are
distributed.
Abide by the academic integrity guidelines. It is expected that students will work independently on the
quiz and submit their own work. Please note: Turnitin automatically scans all papers upon submission to the
platform. Students found to be in violation of the academic integrity guidelines may be referred for judicial
review. The University’s guidelines on academic integrity for graduate students can be found at the following
URL: http://www.usc.edu/student-affairs/student-conduct/grad_ai.htm
Submit the quiz on time. As this assignment is administered under take-home testing conditions,
late submission will be heavily penalized. Students will lose 10 points for each day the quiz is
late.
********************************************************************************************************************
QUIZ 2 QUESTIONS
Directions: Please read the attached case vignette and follow the directions in bold below. You
should answer a total of 5 questions.
Part A: Answer any 4 of the following questions:
1) Examine how Piaget’s theory of cognitive development and adaptation can help to explain the
child’s behavior.
2) Identify 3 behaviors the child learned through operant conditioning. Be specific about the
operant principles involved in the child’s process of learning each new behavior.
3) What is your assessment of the child’s level of self –efficacy? Explain your answer using
Bandura’s theory about the specific factors that contribute to self-efficacy development.
4) Relate the child’s behavior to bio-psycho-social milestones of middle childhood. In your
response, consider how gender-specific “behavioral styles” and “social-cognitive styles” in
peer relationships (Rose & Rudolf, 2006 — see Unit 7) are useful for understanding the child’s
behavior.
5) Examine how the child’s moral development, according to Kohlberg, can help to explain his
behavior.
Part B: Answer the following question:
Which theory from Units 7-9 do you find the most helpful for assessing this child’s case and which
theory do you find the least helpful? Please explain your answer.
Quiz 2: Case Vignette
Presenting Issues
Victor Sanchez is a 12 year-old 7th grade student at Carter Middle School. Carter is located in a
working class area of a major urban center and serves nearly 800 students in grades 5-8, the majority
of whom are African American or Latino. When Victor entered Carter as a 10 year old, his English
fluency was assessed. He was designated an “English Learner” and placed in the English Language
Development (ELD) program. Two periods of the school day Victor works on his English language
skills and the other periods of the day he is in a regular classroom. Since enrolling as a 5th grader,
Victor’s regular classroom teachers have placed him in workgroups with the students performing
below grade level. All of Victor’s ELD classmates are in this workgroup. Victor does very well in math,
physical education, and music, but his grades in language arts, social studies, and earth science are
poor. This year, Victor has received several warnings for disruptive behavior in the classroom —
talking, laughing, distracting others, not remaining on task. Although his classmates laugh at his jokes
and the funny faces he makes at the teacher, his behavior has resulted in many visits to the
principal’s office. Recently, Victor was suspended for being involved in a fight that broke out among a
group of students during lunch. Before Victor can return to school, he and his parents are required to
meet with the school social worker.
Family History
Two years ago, Victor immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico with his mother and 3 younger sisters.
Victor’s father was unable to find steady work that paid enough to adequately support his family, so he
moved to the U.S. the year before to find employment. Once he got settled with a job in an
automotive repair shop and saved enough to send for them, he moved the rest of his family. Victor’s
father works long hours at the shop and his mother stays home.
Victor’s mother, Julia, had a normal pregnancy, delivering Victor full-term and in excellent health.
Victor was an active, curious, happy baby who was well-loved by his parents. His mother played with
him, walked with him, read to him, and took him wherever she went. He was surrounded by extended
family and grew up with many cousins, aunts, and uncles. His parents struggled financially, but the
support from extended family meant Victor never wanted for anything. His parents were careful not to
discuss money issues in front of Victor or to show the worry on their faces.
Victor was a very good student in school. He was excited about all of the things we was learning and
would talk continually about his school day when he came home. His teachers often remarked that he
was one of their favorite and most well-behaved students. He enjoyed playing soccer with his friends
and was well-liked. He loved to make paper airplanes with his older cousin, Enrique, who dreamed of
being a pilot. Enrique would talk with Victor about airplanes, show him books on flying, and he even
enlisted Victor’s help in building a model airplane. Victor developed an interest in space flight and
decided he wanted to be an astronaut.
When Victor’s father announced that he would be moving to the U.S. so he could find a new job,
Victor didn’t understand why he had to leave. His parents looked happy and his father already had a
job. Was his father mad at him? When his father returned for his family, Victor questioned why they
had to go to the US instead of his father’s coming back home. What would his new house look like?
Where would he go to school? Would the boys there like flying paper airplanes and playing soccer?
When would he see Enrique?
Current Situation
When Victor started school in the US, he was very shy. Carter was ethnically diverse and much
larger than his previous schools, and everything, except his ELD class, was in English. Victor
dreaded going to school because he felt so out of place. One day in gym class, however, Victor’s
soccer skills impressed the other boys and a group of them invited him to sit with them at lunch.
Victor was really excited especially since the boys seemed quite popular. Victor sat down at a table in
the cafeteria to wait for his new friends. A group of African American students were eating there and
Victor smiled at them. The African American students looked at him strangely. One of his friends,
Carlos, quickly came up to him and whispered, somewhat angrily, “Man, you don’t want to sit over
here.” Victor followed Carlos over to a table on the other side of the cafeteria, sensing he had done
something wrong. This made Victor feel badly because he didn’t want to upset his new friends. The
other boys at the table echoed Carlos’ sentiment, some using racial epithets to refer to the African
American students.
Victor began to hang out regularly with Carlos and his friends. After school they would go play at a
local park where Victor heard lots of cursing and name-calling as older youth played intense games of
basketball. Carlos and his friends thought the older kids were cool. Sometimes, the boys went over to
Carlos’ house to play combat-related video games, like “Call of Duty”, on the X-Box. Carlos and his
friends would swear whenever they made mistakes in the game. One day, Carlos opened a beer from
the refrigerator, took a drink, and passed it around to his friends. When it got to Victor, he hesitated.
“Won’t your mother get mad?” Carlos said his mother didn’t care and if she said anything, he’d lie and
say his older brother drank it. “She always falls for that one!” Victor still hesitated and the other boys
teased him. He took a quick sip. They all cheered and patted him on the back. Victor smiled.
Now in his third year at Carter, Victor’s behavior has changed both at school and at home. At the
meeting with the school social worker, Victor’s mother says that he now regularly talks back to her
and swears when he doesn’t get his way. He has gotten into the habit of going out without asking
permission, has been caught in a few lies, and has even come home occasionally smelling of beer.
She is so astonished at this behavior that she doesn’t know what to do. She has threatened to send
him back to Mexico to live with his relatives. He typically responds, “Good! I didn’t want to come here
in the first place!” His father reprimands him and threatens to punish him, but never does. When
asked about the fight at school, Victor says, “Some stupid Black kid threw his milk carton at us.”
