Message from the Executive Director By Jeanette Lewis 1 Developmental Assets and Resilient Outcomes By Cynthia Vincent, Shaye Moffat, Marie-Pierre Paquet, Dr. Robert Flynn and Robyn Marquis

2

2008 Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect By Kate Schumaker and Carolyn Golden

6

PART: Translating Knowledge into Practice By Katharine Dill 7 Involving Children in Family Group Conferences By Jeanette Schmid and Darlene Sykes 

11

Safety and Family Group Conferencing By Jeanette Schmid and Darlene Sykes 13 Keeping the Environment Stable: What to do when Kids Come into Care By Abby Goldstein and Christine Wekerle

14

The Child Welfare Supervisor as Stress Manager By Joe Darocha

19

Book Review By Bernie Gallagher 23 Abandoned By Stephen Gill 24

The Journal is a major source of information for Ontario’s children’s services professionals.

The Journal is published quarterly and distributed to more than 3,000 recipients by the Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies (OACAS).

Requests for subscription information, notice of change of address and undeliverable copies should be sent to:

Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies 75 Front St East, 2nd Floor Toronto, Ontario M5E 1V9

www.oacas.org

OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHORS AND NOT THOSE OF OACAS.

National Library of Canada ISSN 0030-283x

1

Over the past few months, OACAS has taken strong advocacy positions on several issues including funding for member agencies, providing the Ontario Child Benefit to children in care, making public adoption available at no cost to Ontarians and implementing the Transformation Agenda. OACAS has also engaged Ontarians in advocating for the well being, safety, health and education of Ontario’s children, especially our most vulnerable children and youth. The Speak Up campaign in the spring encouraged Ontarians to speak up and work together to give all children the best opportunities to reach their full potential. On June 27, OACAS applauded the Ontario Government's announcement of new funding of $11.5 million in 2008/09, growing to $16.2 million in 20011/12, for children and youth in care to participate in learning and recreational programs to build the skills and confidence they need to achieve their full potential when they leave care. The Government announced funding equivalent to the maximum Ontario Child Benefit payment for each child and youth in care for learning, tutoring, skills building and recreational programs based on their individual needs. In addition, Children’s Aid Societies will be opening savings accounts to accrue amounts up to $3,300 for youth in care aged 15 to 17 to access when they leave care. This initiative will provide needed enrichment opportunities and investment options for youth in care. At the OACAS/CMHO Joint Conference on June 4, the Youth Policy Advisory and Advocacy Group (YPAAG), representing approximately 160 youth at the conference, gave detailed recommendations on how to better prepare and support youth in care for success in life. YPAAG shared their recommendations for financial and educational supports and raising the age of eligibility while emphasizing the need for emotional support. Youth asked, “Who would you call?” to remind child welfare professionals, researchers and foster parents that youth in care rely on their local agency for emotional support. OACAS has a refreshed logo. With a softer edge and an additional shadow, the logo has evolved to symbolize the child, protected by a parent and supported by the community. All publications, including The Journal, are being revised with the new look and will be available in electronic, web-friendly formats. The e-versions of the Journal will be available this summer on www.oacas.org. The summer edition of The Journal features articles about the research and practice of programs and projects to improve and promote the safety, protection and well being of Ontario’s children, including: translating research into practice, studying the incidence of child abuse in Ontario, exploring best practices in web-based education, maintaining stable environments at school for children in care, supervising stress management and providing opportunities for young people living in group care to develop resilience. These articles showcase the research projects and initiatives in practice that improve the lives of all Ontario’s children. Jeanette Lewis Executive Director

JOURNALJOURNAL Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Message from the Executive Director

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Developmental Assets and Resilient Outcomes: Findings from the Ontario Looking After Children (OnLAC) Project By Cynthia Vincent, Shaye Moffat, Marie-Pierre Paquet, Dr. Robert Flynn and Robyn Marquis   

S ince 1958, the Search Institute has been

investigating the best ways to promote positive

development in young people. Their research has

intended to incorporate the best lessons from the

fields of prevention, risk reduction and resilience

(Scales, 1999). The Search Institute has identified 40

Developmental Assets1, or strengths, that contribute

to positive development and outcomes. There are

20 external assets, divided into four categories

(support, empowerment, boundaries and

expectations and constructive use of time), and 20

internal assets, also divided into four categories

(commitment to learning, positive values, social

competencies and positive identity). External assets,

working together with internal assets, promote

protection and resilience.

Asset development is relevant for all young people,

not only those at risk for negative outcomes. The

developmental assets framework supports

relationships, mobilizes formal and informal

community networks, and engages youth in

opportunities for positive development. It is

strengths-based and focuses on nurturing the

resources within the young person and his or her

environment.

Why is asset-building important for children and

youth in care?

Children and youth who have entered the child

welfare system have often experienced significant

adversity in the form of neglect, extreme poverty,

parental substance abuse, domestic violence,

abandonment or emotional, physical or sexual

abuse. These negative experiences increase the

young people’s risk of maladaptive behaviour,

depression, mental health problems and lower

educational performance, dramatically affecting

development and limiting opportunities for future

success. Masten’s (2006) research suggests that

cumulative protection can counteract the effects of

cumulative risk. Protective factors within the

environment and the individual enable positive

adaptation and functioning in the context of risk.

Such protective factors can be found within the

developmental assets framework.

Since young people living in out-of-home care have

already experienced considerable disadvantage in

terms of healthy development, it is especially

important to provide them with as many

opportunities as possible to develop positive

functioning and resilient characteristics. Such

capabilities can assist them in dealing with the day-

to-day aspects of their lives and help them to

develop into healthy adults.

What does the research say about asset-building

and resilient outcomes?

Considerable research exists linking developmental

assets with positive outcomes in children and youth

(Scales, Benson, Leffert and Blyth, 2000). Young

people with greater numbers of developmental

assets are less likely to engage in risk-taking

activities, such as the use of alcohol, tobacco and

other drugs, or early sexual activity. Scales (1999, p.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

118) states that “the more vulnerable youth are, the

more they seem to benefit from the protective

impact of developmental assets.” Having more

assets increases overall positive outcomes in terms

of academic performance, physical and mental

health, increased self-esteem and self-efficacy,

better problem-solving skills and decision-making,

having a sense of purpose, having more hope and

optimism about the future, having better resistance

skills in coping with negative peer influences and

more prosocial behaviour.

Nurturing and providing opportunities for young

people to acquire assets are important in the

development of adolescent mental and physical

heath and overall well being. The neighbourhoods

where children and youth reside should take an

interest in young people, engage them in positive

ways, promote safe ways for them to explore their

talents, interests and values, and provide

opportunities for them to have a positive impact in

their communities.

What was the purpose of this study?

This study explored the relationship between

developmental assets and positive outcomes in at-

risk children and youth involved in the Ontario

Looking After Children (OnLAC) project. We

hypothesized that there would be a positive

relationship between the number of developmental

assets that the young person possessed and his or

her level of prosocial behaviour, academic

performance and mental health.

What is the Ontario Looking After Children

(OnLAC) project?

Utilizing the Second Canadian Adaptation of the

Assessment and Action Record (AAR-C2; Flynn,

Ghazal and Legault, 2006), OnLAC annually reviews

the progress of children and youth in out-of-home

care in seven developmental dimensions: health,

education, identity, family and social relationships,

social presentation, emotional and behavioural

development and self-care skills. The AAR-C2

contains child-focused, age-appropriate interactive

questions, designed to encourage children and

youth to engage in conversations with their

caregivers and child welfare workers. Such

conversations enable child welfare workers and

caregivers to identify individual needs, monitor

development and support positive outcomes.

OnLAC, a component of the Ontario Practice Model,2

is strengths-based, supported by resilience

research, and outcome focused. It seeks to improve

the quality of out-of-home care by incorporating

good parenting and building on children’s

strengths.

Who were our participants?

A sample of 713 participants, aged 10 to 17 years,

was drawn from year five (2005-2006) of the OnLAC

longitudinal project. The participants’ mean age was

14 years. Fifty-six percent were male, 44% female.

Eighty-five percent resided in foster homes

(including kinship care), and 15% lived in group

home care. Eighty-seven percent were Crown Wards

of their local Children’s Aid Societies. Their mean

age when first placed into care was eight years.

What did we do?

Data had been collected on all of the 713

participants using the AAR-C2. All of the measures

utilized were taken from the AAR-C2. These

included: (1) a summary profile of 40 assets

(adapted from the Search Institute’s 40

Developmental Assets), rated by the child welfare

worker; (2) the Prosocial and Total Difficulties

scores from the Strengths and Difficulties

Questionnaire (SDQ; Goodman, 1997) and (3)

academic performance, all rated by the caregiver;

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

(4) self-esteem, (5) relationship with the female

caregiver and (6) placement satisfaction, all rated by

the young person.

The measure of developmental assets was

calculated as follows. For each of the 40 assets, the

child welfare worker was asked to rate the young

person’s possession of the asset in terms of three

response options: “yes”, “uncertain” or “no”. A total

score was computed for the young person by

summing all the “yes” responses.

What were the study findings? 3

The number of assets possessed by the young

people ranged from 5 to 40. One percent had 5 to

10 assets, 18% had 11 to 20, 42% had 21 to 30, and

38% had 31 to 40. 4 The mean assets for the total

sample (N = 713) was 27. Females had a greater

number of assets, on average (29), than did males

(26).

We found statistically significant positive

correlations between the young person’s number of

assets and his or her prosocial behaviour, self-

esteem, relationship with the female caregiver,

placement satisfaction, and academic performance.

That is, the more developmental assets the young

person possessed, the more positive were his or her

outcomes. We also found a statistically significant

negative correlation between developmental assets

and psychological difficulties, such that young

people with a greater number of developmental

assets had fewer psychological difficulties. Overall,

our results suggest that, as in the general

population, the possession of a larger number of

developmental assets is beneficial for young people

in care.

What can be done to promote resilient outcomes

for children and youth in out-of-home care?

Caregivers and professionals in child welfare can

provide many opportunities to promote resilience in

young people in out-of-home care. Masten’s (2006)

research indicates that a positive relationship with a

caring and competent adult is the strongest

protective factor in promoting resilience and

buffering the negative effects of risk, especially for

young children. This relationship can come, ideally,

from a caregiver, but can also be developed with the

child welfare worker, a biological family member, a

teacher, or any other caring, prosocial member of

the community. Professionals working within the

child welfare system can assist young people in

developing supportive social networks to foster

positive and nurturing relationships with adults and

peers, and encourage positive self-esteem and

identity. They can also make available resources to

support academic performance and opportunities

for young people to participate in extracurricular

activities and to volunteer in the community.

Completing the summary profile of assets for young

people in their care, as part of the AAR-C2, is an

excellent opportunity for professionals to examine

which assets the young people already possess and

which ones could be developed during the next

year. The latter could be included as specific targets

in the plan of care.

Conclusion

Despite the adversity faced by the young people in

care, they still had many assets. The study results

have many implications for practice within the child

welfare system. If service interventions can build on

the strengths of young people while also striving to

reduce risks, and incorporate the acquisition of

specific developmental assets into plans of care,

young people in out-of-home care can attain more

positive outcomes in physical and mental health,

academic performance, and overall well being, all

indicators of greater resilience.

...the more developmental assets the young person possessed, the more positive were his or her outcomes. 

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

1 Information on the 40 Developmental Assets is available through the Search Institute website. Available online at: http://www.search-institute.org

2 The Ontario Practice Model includes: Structured Analysis Family Evaluation (SAFE), Parent Resources for Information, Development and Education (PRIDE), and the Ontario Looking After Children (OnLAC) project.

3 Additional information on the study results can be obtained by contacting Cynthia Vincent at cvincent@uottawa.ca.

4 Percentages do not add up to 100% due to rounding

Authors’ Note

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the

Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies and

the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services.

Special thanks are also due to the participants in the

OnLAC project: young people, child welfare

workers, foster parents, group home staff, and local

Children’s Aid Societies.

About the Authors

Cynthia Vincent, Shaye Moffat, Marie-Pierre

Paquet, Dr. Robert Flynn and Robyn Marquis are

members of the Ontario Looking After Children

(OnLAC) Research Team at the Centre for Research

on Educational and Community Services, University

of Ottawa.

References

Flynn, R. J., Ghazal, H., Legault, L. (2006). Looking After Children: Good parenting, good outcomes, Assessment and Action Records. (Second Canadian adaptation, AAR-C2). Ottawa, ON, and London, UK: Centre for Research on Community Services, University of Ottawa and Her Majesty’s Stationary Office (HMSO). Goodman, R. (1997). The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire: A research note. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 38, 581-586.

Masten, A. S. (2006). Promoting resilience in development: A general framework for systems of care. In R. J. Flynn, P. M. Dudding and J. G. Barber (Eds.), Promoting resilience in child welfare (pp. 3-17). Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press. Scales, P. C. (1999). Reducing risks and building developmental assets: Essential actions for promoting adolescent health. Journal of School Health. 69, 113-119. Scales, P. C., Benson, P. L., Leffert, N., and Blyth, D. A. (2000). Contribution of developmental assets to the prediction of thriving among adolescents. Applied Developmental Science. 4, (1), 27-46. Search Institute website. Available online at: http://www.search-institute.org 

The National Chapter of Canada IODE GRANT 

IODE, a Canadian women’s charitable organization, initiated the IODE 100th Anniversary Grant Program to alleviate child abuse and neglect. A $25,000 Grant is available to professional individuals and groups working in the field of child protection within Canada.

CONTACT: THE NATIONAL CHAPTER OF CANADA IODE

40 ORCHARD VIEW BLVD., STE. 254 TORONTO, ON M4R 1B9 TEL: 416-487-4416 FAX: 416-487-4417 E-MAIL: iodecanada@bellnet.ca

APPLICATION DEADLINE: 31 OCTOBER 2008

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Research Update: The 2008 Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect By Kate Schumaker and Carolyn Golden

P reparation for the 2008 Ontario Incidence Study

of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect (OIS-2008)

is currently underway and data collection for the

study will begin this fall. Data for this current cycle

of the study will be gathered from 23 child welfare

agencies/offices across Ontario—19 “mainstream”,

and four designated Aboriginal agencies— and will

employ a similar methodology to the previous cycles

of the study, the OIS-1993, OIS-1998 and OIS-2003,

in order to allow for comparisons to be made.

The initial OIS was conducted in 1993, led by Dr.

Nico Trocmé, and represented the first provincial

study of the incidence of child abuse and neglect

reported to, and investigated by, child welfare

authorities; prior to this, there were no reliable

provincial data on the reported incidence of child

abuse and neglect in Ontario. The OIS was repeated

in 1998 and in 2003 as part of the larger national

study, the Canadian Incidence Study of Reported

Child Abuse and Neglect (CIS), with the primary

purpose of providing reliable estimates of the scope

and characteristics of investigated child abuse and

neglect in Ontario. Data from the OIS-1993 study

comprise the baseline against which all future cycles

of the OIS are compared. The OIS-2008 marks the

fourth cycle of provincial data collection regarding

reported child maltreatment for Ontario.

The OIS-2008 uses a multi-stage sampling design to

select a representative sample of child welfare

service areas across Canada and then sample cases

within these child welfare service areas for a three-

month period (October 1, 2008 to December 31,

2008). The main data collection instrument used for

the OIS-2008 is a three-page standardized form,

called the Maltreatment Assessment Form, which is

completed by the primary investigating child welfare

worker at the end of each child welfare

investigation. Data collected by this form include

information routinely collected by workers during

the course of an investigation.

While the core funding for the larger, national study

(the CIS) is provided by the Public Health Agency of

Canada’s Injury and Child Maltreatment Division,

critical additional funding for the OIS is provided by

the Ontario Ministry of Children and Youth Services,

allowing for an enriched sample in Ontario, and

permitting the research team to generate provincial

estimates of reported child abuse and neglect

specific to Ontario.

In addition to documenting overall changes in rates

of reported and investigated physical abuse, sexual

abuse, neglect, and emotional maltreatment, the OIS

monitors short-term investigation outcomes,

including: substantiated maltreatment rates,

placement of children in care, use of child welfare

court and criminal prosecution. A comparison of the

OIS-1998 and OIS-2003 data showed that the rate of

maltreatment investigations had almost doubled in

Ontario, largely driven by a 149% increase in

substantiated maltreatment. The comparison also

revealed important trends in the type of

maltreatment reported including a 319% increase in

substantiated exposure to domestic violence, and a

359% increase in substantiated emotional

maltreatment. Data from the OIS has been used to

guide research, child welfare service provision and

policy. The recent introduction of a differential

response model for Ontario was partly based on the

findings from the OIS-2003, specifically the

documented increases in exposure to domestic

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

violence and emotional maltreatment rather than

physical and sexual abuse, and the low rates of

physical harm.

While the national study (CIS-2008) is directed by a

team of researchers from the McGill University,

University of Toronto and the University of Calgary,

primary responsibility for the OIS portion of the

study rests with the University of Toronto team, led

by Dr. Barbara Fallon, and co-managed by Tara

Black, Kate Schumaker and Caroline Felstiner. The

study design, including enlistment strategies,

instruments and report formats, was developed in

consultation with a National Steering Committee,

provincial and territorial Directors of Child Welfare,

and the Public Health Agency of Canada staff.

The results of OIS-2008 are expected to be available

in the fall of 2010 and the report will be widely

disseminated, as well as made available on the

Centre of Excellence for Child Welfare’s website.

About the Authors

Kate Schumaker is the Co-Manager of the Canadian

Incidence Study (CIS), and a PhD student at the

Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto.

Carolyn Golden is completing her MSW practicum

with the CIS; she is a family services worker at the

Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto.

PART: Practice and Research Together Translating Knowledge into Practice By Katharine Dill

Those who are enamoured with practice without

science are like a captain who goes into a ship without

a rudder or compass and never has any certainty

where he (or she) is going. -Leonardo da Vinci 1

Introduction

C hild welfare practitioners’ conceptualization

and development of research and practice in

their field have evolved over time. The da Vinci

quote points to the need for child welfare

practitioners to engage in evidence-informed

practice in ways that will give rise to the following

outcomes: (a) better situations for children and

families (b) improved accountability mechanisms in

work with children and families, (c) increased

competence for child welfare practitioners, (d)

future research and policy directions for the field.

A team of executive directors from the Eastern Zone

developed a vision with respect to the future

direction of child welfare practice in Ontario. The

directors foresaw the need to infuse evidence

informed practice into their agency’s daily work of

protecting children and strengthening families. The

team highlighted the need to integrate research into

practice in the following strategic areas:

• Accountability to the mandate protecting

children and youth

• Practitioners’ knowledge

• Integration into the current training agenda

• Policy development

• Organizational change initiatives

After setting these priorities, the team began to

collaborate with the Research in Practice (RiP) team

in England. Analysis of the consultation that was

1 M.Chaffin, B. Friedrich, Evidence-based treatments in child abuse and neglect, Children and Youth Services Review, 26 (2004) 1097-1113.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

done with the RiP team made it clear that there were

significant opportunities in the Ontario child welfare

field for use and integration of key elements of the

UK model.

This process set in motion for the development of

the provincial project entitled Practice and Research

Together (PART). The project received full

endorsement from all provincial executive directors

at the September 24, 2007 conference. It is

supported in part by the OACAS.

What is Practice and Research Together (PART)?

The goal of PART is to integrate research knowledge

and translate this information into user-friendly

materials, training opportunities, organizational

change projects and networking with colleagues and

researchers from across the country and around the

world. Through PART, the concept of evidence-

informed practice comes alive.

What PART is not…

The intent of the project is not to conduct research

but rather to provide member agencies with

information and knowledge translation that will

assist them in using evidence-informed practice to

improve clients’ outcomes. PART creates

organizational and systemic change by bridging the

gap that currently exists between child welfare

practitioners and researchers. The project is not

simply a website, but rather a structure that

provides member agencies with hands-on support

and tools that assist with the integration and

utilization of evidence-informed practice.

What is Evidence-Informed Practice?

Evidence-Informed Practice utilizes a combination of

the best research evidence and clinical knowledge

that has been developed to date. A practitioner

whose work is grounded in evidence uses research

to guide his or her daily decisions, documentation,

and engagement with clients. The distillation of key

research findings to practitioners will support the

evolution of evidence-informed practice in Ontario.

Why is Evidence-Informed Practice important?

Evidence-informed practice provides practitioners

with a decision-making framework that may be

useful in dealing with problems and issues that

affect individual children and families. These issues

could include the following: choices about when or

how to apprehend children, supervision of clients

with addiction issues, and management of adoption

breakdowns. The framework may also help

practitioners to resolve macro level issues such as

organizational change and the development of tools

for supervision in the context of the Differential

Response Model of practice. The overall intent of

the project is to provide ready access to the most

up-to-date empirical knowledge. In turn, this

knowledge base has the potential to: 1) inform

practitioners on how to effectively formulate case

decisions and 2) generate policy that is informed by

research.

PART Member Agencies to date include:

1. Algoma Children’s Aid Society

2. Brant Children’s Aid Society

3. Chatham-Kent Children’s Services

4. Durham Children’s Aid Society

The goal of PART is to integrate research knowledge and translate this information into user-friendly materials, training opportunities, organizational change projects and networking with colleagues and researchers from across the country and around the world.  

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

5. City of Kingston and County of Frontenac

Children’s Aid Society

6. Children’s Aid Society of Owen Sound and the

County of Grey

7. Haldimand and Norfolk Children’s Aid Society

8. Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton

9. Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton

10. Hastings Children’s Aid Society

11. Kawartha-Haliburton Children’s Aid Society

12. Children’s Aid Society of County of Lanark and

the Town of Smith Falls

13. Family and Children’s Services of Leeds and

Grenville

14. London-Middlesex Children’s Aid Society | La

Société d’aide à l’enfance de London et du

Middlesex

15. Niagara Family and Children’s Services

16. Northumberland Children’s Aid Society

17. The Children’s Aid Society of Ottawa | La Société

d’aide à l’enfance d’Ottawa

18. Peel Children’s Aid Society

19. Services aux enfants et adultes de Prescott-

Russell Services to Children and Adults

20. Renfrew Family and Children’s Services

21. Stormont Dundas and Glengarry Children’s Aid

Society | La Société d’aide à l’enfance des

comptés unis de Stormont Dundas et Glengarry

22. Sudbury-Manitoulin Children’s Aid Society | La

Société d’aide à l’enfance des district de

Sudbury et du Manitoulin

23. Catholic Children’s Aid Society of Toronto | La

Société catholique de l’aide à l’enfance ville de

Toronto

24. Family and Children’s Services of Guelph and

Wellington County

25. Windsor-Essex Children’s Aid Society | La

Société d’aide à l’enfance de Windsor-Essex

26. York Region Children’s Aid Society

PART Elements

1. Learning Events:

These are regularly scheduled evidence-informed

conferences that support the integration of research

into practice. This first learning event on Kinship

Practice was held April 29 and 30, 2008. Presenters

included:

• Dr. Mark Testa, School of Social Work, University

of Illinois

• Rob Geen, Child Trends, Washington

• Dr. Esme Fuller-Thomson, Factor-Inwentash

School of Social Work, University of Toronto

• Professor Joan Hunt, University of Oxford,

England

• Betty Cornelius, Director of Cangrands

• Regina Whelan, Manager, Children’s Aid Society

of London and Middlesex

• Ruth Tansony, Supervisor of Kinship Program,

Toronto Catholic Children’s Aid Society

• Laurel Choate, Art Therapist

What people had to say about this first Learning

Event:

“Great opportunity to network and to listen to

struggles and similarities”

“Great work….left conference with more ideas and

food for thought”

”Thank you for recognizing the great need and

helping to make this event happen…wow!”

“I very much appreciated the wealth and range of

knowledge...”

The topic for the next learning event is Sibling

Connections in Care (kinship and foster placements)

scheduled to take place on November 11 and 12 in

Ottawa, Ontario. Other learning event topics

include:

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

• Adoption related research

• Aboriginal perspectives in child welfare

• Outcomes for children in care

• Research related to supervised access programs

• Research related to substance misusing clients

2. Link PARTners

Link PARTners are integral to making PART a

successful program. One person per member

agency is assigned as the agency’s link to the PART

project. This person is the conduit between the

agency and the PART team. On May 27 and 28,

2008, PART hosted a Link PARTners retreat to assist

child welfare member agencies consider how to

integrate research into practice. The goal of PART is

to build on the inherent strengths of Link PARTners

and member agencies to make research an

absolutely vital part of everyday work for all child

welfare professionals.

3. Evidence Informed Practice (EIP) Toolkits:

EIP Toolkits involve the development of helpful

materials that integrate wisdom that emerges from

research, policy and practice. These projects are

collaborative endeavours between child welfare

practitioners and PART staff members. Examples

of possible EIP Toolkits include:

• Leading Evidence Informed Practice in the

Context of Clinical Supervision

• Integrating Research in Child Welfare Court

4. Website Development

The evolving PART website will be more than one

more place to ‘click’. Rather, the website will be the

portal to all of the knowledge translation,

documentation and e-learning platforms available

through PART. The site will be a user-friendly

resource that is easily accessible by busy child

welfare practitioners and organizations.

While the PART website is under construction, we

have managed to purchase access to the Research

in Practice website from the UK. Through 11 years

of experience, the RiP team has assembled an

excellent array of evidence informed practice

materials related to children and families. All

member agencies benefit from access to the

Research in Practice website.

5. PARTicles:

PARTicles are three page literature reviews on

various topics. We are currently working

on the development of six PARTicles topics on the

following subjects:

• What is strengths-based practice?

• Sibling connections in care (kinship and foster

care)

• Utilizing stakeholder feedback to inform service

delivery

• Differential Response

• Substance misusing parents and effective child

welfare interventions

• Outcomes related to long-term foster care

versus adoption

If you are interested in joining PART please contact

Katharine Dill at kdill@partontario.org or by phone

at 905-433-1551 ext. 2473.

About the Author

Katharine Dill is the director of PART and a PhD

Candidate, Faculty of Social Work, University of

Toronto.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

C hild welfare workers often become anxious

about children being invited into the Family

Group Conferencing process, fearing that the

children will become re-victimized. Research by

Holland and O’Neill (2006) suggests that while there

is the possibility that children may become

vulnerable, they can participate safely and

comfortably with proper preparation.

There are a number of reasons why children should

have a voice in the FGC process:

• The conference is about the child, and the child

thus should be able to have input into the

decision making

• The child needs to witness the circle of adults

developing a plan and committing to ensuring

the child’s safety and well being

• The adults are more able to put conflicts aside

when the child is there, as the child’s presence

helps them focus on the issues that have

brought them to the conference

• Many family members may not have had the

opportunity to meet the child (in the case of an

infant apprehended at birth) or to reconnect

with the child.

The coordinators, in preparing all participants for

the conference, are cognizant of and open to

hearing from service providers and family members

about any concerns they may have about the child’s

safety in the meeting. The coordinator will alert

family members to any concerns service providers

have raised, allowing the family circle to decide on

an appropriate safety plan.

For any verbal child, preparing the child face-to-face

is a critical part of the coordinator’s role. This is

done in an age/stage-appropriate manner using

various aids such as drawings or dollhouse chairs to

engage the child. The coordinator will:

• Make a clinical judgment as to whether to meet

the child alone, or with another service provider

(such as the Children’s Lawyer, the children’s

worker or foster parent), relative or siblings

• Share information regarding the purpose of the

meeting, how the conferencing process works,

and who is likely to attend. This means that the

child needs to have heard the reasons for child

welfare involvement explicitly from the child

welfare team ahead of meeting with the

coordinator. Any ‘secrets’ need to come out

into the open. For example, the child welfare

team needs to be clear that the father who was

thought to be ‘picking oranges in Florida’ is

actually in prison or that time is running out and

the family will be talking about permanency

planning or adoption

• Explain that the child can inform the adults of

what they should consider when developing the

plan. Typically, the Children’s Lawyer will help

the child write up a statement so that the child’s

voice is heard at the meeting

• Invite the child to identify a support person

within his/her family group. This individual in

turn will be coached by the coordinator to

ensure that s/he is able to support the child

through the conference and where appropriate

represent the child. The child may request that

this person read his/her statement to the family

group

• Identify any anxieties or safety concerns with the

child so an appropriate safety plan can be

developed for the day or leading up to the

meeting day

Involving Children in Family Group Conferences By Jeanette Schmid and Darlene Sykes 

Family Group Conferencing: Practice Notes

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

• Inform the child of the safety plan that his/her

family group has developed for the conference.

The coordinator will never pressure a child to

attend a conference! • Ask the child whether s/he would like the

beginning of the conference celebrated in any

particular way. Children have written poems,

prepared a poster, danced, picked a symbolic

song or sang a song to welcome relatives and

friends to the conference. Some children have

also drawn up invitations for the conference.

The coordinator further relies on others involved

with the child to support him/her through the

process. Foster parents and caregivers are

requested to be particularly sensitive to the

emotions evoked both before and after a

conference. They can help the child anticipate the

day. Counsellors and children’s service workers

often discuss the child’s fears and expectations with

them. Trusted family members, particularly the

support person, may have conversations with the

child ahead of the conference to ensure that what is

important to the child is heard at the conference.

While involvement in the conference is strongly

encouraged, the child does not have to be at the

conference or in the conference room. The child

may choose someone from the family network to

speak on his/her behalf if it does not seem that the

environment will be emotionally and physically safe.

Children may also choose to remain in the playroom

for much of the conference, entering the meeting at

points that feel comfortable to them. Service

providers need to allow the family members to take

care of the child throughout the conference day.

Childcare staff are also on hand to provide practical

supervision and activities when children are in the

play room.

Children are key in the preparation process as they,

like their adult counterparts, carry information

about the family. For example, one child was able to

facilitate the coordinator’s access to the

grandmother, who was the family matriarch and

who in turn ensured that a wide circle attended the

conference.

Children enjoy attending conferences. They are

excited about having cousins and young friends

present and reconnecting with the adults in their

lives. They typically want to be involved in the

planning and have their voice heard in decision

making and to share the outcomes with others.

Adults need to take care to incorporate the

children’s views in their decision-making and to

share the outcome with the children before the

conference is finally concluded.

Below are some quotes from children and youth who

have attended conferences:

“No matter how far away my mom and dad are,

they are always on my mind and in my heart”.

“The people here are all the people that love me -

and this is not even half of them!”

“This plan is about me, and so I will tell you (child

welfare team) what we have decided.”

“If feel very sad about things right now but I am

happy we are together today.”

“We got to sit together as a family and talk about

things without CAS being there.”

“The family meeting today allowed me to think

about my future.”

Reference

Holland, S., and O’Neill, S. (2006). “We had to be there to make sure it was what we wanted- Enabling children’s participation in family decision-making through the family group conference”, Childhood, 13(1), pp. 91-111.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Safety and Family Group Conferencing

By Jeanette Schmid and Darlene Sykes

A concern regarding safety is often what comes

to mind if a child protection worker is told that

one plans to bring together the child’s immediate

family with relatives and family friends. This anxiety

is deepened if there has been any history of violence

within the family. Yet, Family Group Conferencing is

built on the notion of inclusion and on the idea of

widening the circle to ensure that as many voices

within the family network as possible are

represented and heard. A primary task of the

coordinator is therefore to ensure that the

conferencing process is physically and emotionally

safe for all participants.

Developing safety plans

becomes one of the foci of

the preparation phase. The

coordinator elicits from all

prospective participants —

both family members and

service providers —whether or not they will feel safe

enough to be involved in the process. It is the child

protection worker’s responsibility to articulate any

concerns s/he may have for his/her own or others’

safety during the initial briefing session or during

the preparatory phase; the coordinator must also be

vigilant about safety issues.

Ultimately it is the family group that will craft the

safety plan. This is crucial for two reasons: firstly,

service providers are not present during the

conference’s family private time, and thus the family

members need to be able to maintain a sufficiently

predictable and secure environment during that part

of the conference; and secondly, the family network

will need to be able to function safely post-

conference without the ongoing intervention of

service providers.

The coordinator utilizes a range of strategies to

address safety. The coordinator asks service

providers to identify whether they see any threats to

family safety or their own safety and checks with the

family group to see how safe they believe the

process will be for various family members. The

coordinator communicates safety concerns raised by

any service providers or other family members to

the family. Relatives may not assess the risk to be

as serious as the service providers. This does not

necessarily mean that threats are being minimized,

but points to family members knowing each other

and the potential for disruption or violence that

each brings. For

example, the family

group may have a

different tolerance for

loudness or profanity

than the child welfare

team and often talk

about other family gatherings where they have dealt

with the same issues successfully. Child protection

workers need to trust the coordinator’s and family’s

assessment of risk.

Participants may feel safer if a large number of

people attend the conference; if a particular person

they can rely on to manage emotions is present; or

if they are able to bring a support person to enable

them to control their feelings and have a say in the

process. Some invitees ask for the coordinator to

coach them regarding the manner in which sensitive

issues can be raised, while others will caucus ahead

of the conference with like-minded family members.

In certain situations, it may be appropriate to have

certain parties in a close, but separate venue.

Sometimes it is necessary to prevent particular

individuals from attending the conference, while

nevertheless ensuring that they have input into the

A primary task of the coordinator is therefore to ensure that the conferencing process is physically and emotionally safe for all participants. 

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Keeping the Environment Stable: What to do when Kids come into Care

By Abby Goldstein and Christine Wekerle

Problems Associated with School Mobility

T he issue of whether to change a child’s school

when he moves residentially requires an

analysis of an individual child’s “attachment” to

school as a familiar place, as well as peers and

adults who are positively connected and prepared to

be involved with the child. On a case-by-case basis,

a change in residence may be an opportunity for a

child with an unsupportive school environment,

bullying problems, few extra-curricular options, and

low learning resources to have a “fresh start” at

another school, where preparatory work with school

officials, the teacher, and the parent’s group

(potentially) may set the stage for an individual

child’s success. It is also a matter of degree; three

or more school changes may be over-challenging to

a child with issues regarding friendship

maintenance, positive peer selection, and skills in

developing close relationships. Important

opportunities for teacher and coach mentors may be

diminished with many school changes.

From a systems perspective, transporting children

to their old school following a change of placement,

is not only a cost issue, but also an access issue in

terms of closeness to friends and the quality of the

bus ride experience, which is often a site for

bullying behaviours.

There is limited research on this issue from the

child outcomes or system services perspectives.

Research with randomly selected teens from the

decision-making (e.g., by letter or teleconference).

At the conference, the safety plan is explicitly

reviewed during the early part of the meeting as a

means of setting common ground rules. The various

support people are identified and their role in the

conference is stated. In this way, all the participants

know what to expect from each other.

Where violence is part of the concerns identified by

service providers as impacting the child’s safety and

well being, the family group is required to build a

future safety plan into their recommendations.

Family Group Conferencing takes a long- rather than

a short-term view of safety in the family.

Because of the thorough preparation involved,

conferencing processes are typically safe for all

participants and have been used successfully in

domestic violence or other conflictual scenarios

(e.g., custody situations). FGC

About the Authors

Jeanette Schmid was the program coordinator at

the Toronto Family Group Conferencing Project for

six years and is a consultant and a member of the

provincial training team.

Darlene Sykes worked as a private contractor for

Brant CAS as their FGCM project coordinator for

three years, has been the FGCM coordinator for

Simcoe CAS for three years. She is also an agency

and provincial trainer and mentor.

Both authors were involved from the early stages of

the respective projects.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Maltreatment and Adolescent Pathways (MAP)

project suggests that this type of maltreatment may

be important: male teens who had reported

childhood neglect and high system turbulence

(number of moves, number of workers) reported

poorer mental health outcomes. The school

environment is mandated to be a safe environment

and maltreated children would seem to benefit from

a secure relationship to the key adults and places

they spend much of their daily living time.

Several lines of evidence point to the negative

impact of school mobility. Among the most

documented effects of school mobility is its

negative impact on academic performance, greater

absenteeism, and increased rates of dropout. School

mobility is particularly likely among low-income

families, who are often relocating due to difficulties

finding affordable housing.

There are certain points in schooling where

consistent quality instruction is perhaps more

salient. For example, while some children can

achieve reading fluency as they exit kindergarten,

children who are not fluent readers by Grade 3

would be referred for assessment; however, most

children will achieve reading by end of Grade one. In

a similar way, Grades 7 and 8 are important

preparatory years for high school across all subject

areas, and especially in science and mathematics.

Poor absorption of content in Grade 8 can

substantially limit a youth’s ability to succeed in

high school academic courses required for

admission into university. A premature placement

into to an applied-level course can alter a youth’s

trajectory in high school and post secondary

education. Although researchers in the United States

have identified school mobility as an area of

concern, there has been little research on school

mobility in Canada (Wasserman, 2004).

One of the primary concerns around school mobility

is the lack of continuity in schooling that these

students face. Zeitlin, Weinberg and Luderer (2004)

discuss the problem of school mobility for youth in

the foster care system. They note that frequent

mobility results in foster care youth falling behind

academically, losing credits, and having incomplete

academic records. Youth who are forced to start

school without their school records often find

themselves repeating classes and losing credits. In

addition, the lack of school records can delay the

implementation of an individualized evaluation

program (IEP), resulting in students falling further

behind due to inadequate classroom supports and

resources. Finally, highly mobile students might be

unlikely to get an IEP because they have not been in

the school district long enough to have an

educational assessment, due to waiting lists. Even

when school records are accessible, they often

contain partial information. Stronge, Popp, and

Grant (2007) have several recommendations for

teachers on how to best manage highly mobile

students including creating a supportive

environment for new students, taking the time to

get to know new students and providing early

assessments of academic ability to ensure students

are accurately placed (for a full review see http://

www.serve.org/nche).

School Mobility: Does Age Matter?

School Mobility and Adolescents: The Impact of

Peer Networks

One group of researchers has proposed that school

mobility has its greatest impact via its effects on

peer relationships and that this is most problematic

for adolescents, who have difficulty becoming fully

integrated into new peer networks. Haynie,

Poor absorption of content in Grade 8 can substantially limit a youth’s ability to succeed in high school academic courses required for admission into university.  

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

South and Bose (2006) have examined the impact of

mobility on the development of friendship networks

among youth. According to their model, there are

important differences between mobile and non-

mobile students in their peer role models for

academic outcomes. Due to frequent school leaving

and re-entering, highly mobile youth are less likely

to integrate with prosocial peer groups and more

likely to socialize with peers who place little value

on educational achievement. They suggest that

mobility is particularly difficult for youth given the

increased emphasis on peer influences in

adolescence. In addition, they proposed that

integration into peer networks would be most

difficult for older adolescents, where more time in

school is associated with firmer connections among

peers within peer networks.

South, Haynie and Bose (2007) examined the peer

networks of mobile students and found that they

had smaller networks of friends and occupied less

central positions within their peer groups. In

addition, their peer groups had lower grade point

averages and were involved in fewer extra-curricular

activities, indicating less school engagement among

peers of mobile students. Although they found no

evidence for age-related differences in peer group

affiliation and mobility, their sample primarily

consisted of young to middle adolescents (ages 14-

20, mean age 15.56, SD = 1.27). In an earlier study,

they found similar results. Students who were more

mobile had greater difficulty affiliating with high

achieving and prosocial peers and were more likely

to join underperforming and more deviant peer

groups. Again, they found no difference in these

peer affiliation patterns among older and younger

mobile adolescents and found that the impact of

mobility on friendship networks persisted for

several years, likely reflecting continuity in peer

networks. That is, when entering a new school,

more mobile students initially attach to friendship

networks consisting of low performing peers and

tend to stay involved with these friendships.

Peer Mobility and Children (K-7): The Impact of

Early Transitions

Although early studies found evidence for school

mobility negatively affecting academic achievement,

as Mantzicopoulos and Knutson (2000) point out,

the relationship between school mobility and

achievement is a complex one. In particular, many

of the factors that impact school mobility (e.g., low

SES, academic performance, social relationships) are

likely to impact academic skills as well. Whereas

Haynie, South and Bose suggest that mobility is

more detrimental for youth, Mantzicopoulos and

Knuston propose that school mobility is most

crucial in young children. This is specifically

because the early transition to school is a critical

point in a child’s development, it has an important

impact on later academic successes and failures. In

their study of mobility and achievement,

Mantzicopoulos and Knuston (2000) examined

children from Kindergarten to Grade 2 and found

that greater mobility was associated with lower

scores on reading and mathematics achievement

tests and lower ratings of academic competence

from teachers. Even when very early achievement

was included in the model, the relationship between

increased mobility and poorer academic

achievement persisted. Thus, even for very young

children, greater mobility is linked with poorer

academic outcomes. In addition, the authors found

negative effects of mobility on achievement, even

for students who remained in schools within the

same district. They suggest that students should be

allowed to remain in their school and that school

transportation systems should be organized to

facilitate school stability.

Temple and Reynolds (1999) conducted a

longitudinal study examining school mobility effects

for inner city minority children. They first assessed

children in kindergarten and then re-assessed them

in Grade 7. They found that many children changed

schools at least once, but one-fifth changed schools

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

three or more times. They also found that an

increased number of school moves between

kindergarten and Grade 7 was associated with lower

levels of achievement in math and reading.

Although effects of a single move were small, there

was a significant effect on achievement for those

who moved two or more times.

Buckner et al (2001) found that among school-age

children school mobility was significantly associated

with academic achievement over and above

residential moves and housing status (i.e., homeless

versus housed families). They also suggested that

the elementary school years were most important

because this is the time that basic skills in reading

and mathematics are in their early development.

Since regularity and stability of the school

environment is important for promoting positive

development, the consequences of mobility should

be greatest during these formative years.

School Engagement: A Proxy for School Mobility

Compared to school mobility, more research

attention has been paid to school connectedness

and school engagement. Both of these may serve as

proxies for school mobility; children and youth who

frequently move from school to school will be less

likely to feel connected to any one school. In

addition, school engagement is likely to be

disrupted by frequent changes in peer relationships

and the availability of extracurricular programs.

Thus, we can borrow from the research on school

connectedness to examine the impact of school

mobility on outcomes.

Several definitions of school connectedness have

been offered, but most include a behavioural and an

affective component. For example, Whitlock (2006)

defines school engagement as consisting of a sense

of belonging at school, liking school, supportive

relationships with teachers, presence of a peer

network, and involvement in extra curricular

activities. Goodenow (1993) defined school

connectedness or engagement as “the extent to

which students feel personally accepted, respected,

included, and supported by others in the school

social environment” (p.80). Goodenow developed an

assessment of school connectedness, the

Psychological Sense of School Membership Scale

(PSSM), which assesses three aspects of school

engagement: sense of belonging at school (“I feel

like a real part of [name of school]”), encouragement

(“people here know I can do good work”) and

acceptance and inclusion (“I am included in lots of

activities at [name of school]”). Based on these

definitions, it seems likely that high rates of

mobility would make it difficult to achieve a sense

of connectedness or engagement to school.

Much of the work on school engagement is based

on Bronfenbrenner’s ecological framework for

understanding the impact of various contexts on

development (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

Urie_Bronfenbrenner). Bronfenbrenner characterized

the child’s environment as consisting of multiple

interrelated systems. One of these systems, the

mesosystem, represents the connections between

the most proximal systems (i.e., microsystems) in

the child’s life: school, family, friends and work.

When the child’s mesosystem provides support and

connects learning at school to other systems in the

child’s life, school engagement should be high.

Again, school mobility is likely to have a significant

impact on the connections between the child’s

school and other aspects of his/her life. When

children change schools repeatedly, it will become

increasingly difficult to establish these connections,

resulting in an unsupportive mesosystem.

School Engagement and Age

Overall, there is increasing evidence that school

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

engagement is an important determination of

school success (www.hrsdc.gc.ca/en/cs/sp/hrsd/

prc/publications/research/2001-000175/SP-483-01-

02E.pdf). In terms of age-related differences in

school engagement, there appears to be a decrease

in school engagement as grade level increases

(Marks, 2000; Woolley and Bowen, 2007). For

example, classroom support appears to be greatest

among elementary school students and lower

among middle and high school students. Across all

students, however, more successful students are

more engaged whereas more alienated students are

less engaged (Marks, 2000). In addition, Finn (1993)

notes that engagement in school may be fostered

during the earliest years of school and perpetuated

throughout schooling. When students are

disengaged early on, this leads to increased risk up

to adolescence. Finn’s model suggests a reciprocal

relationship between early school engagement,

school success, and later academic achievement.

Accordingly, disengagement in the early years leads

to lack of success at school, which leads to

increased withdrawal and decreased identification

with school, which leads to even poorer academic

outcomes.

Other authors (Fredricks, Blumenfeld and Paris,

2004) point out that school engagement may take

different forms across developmental stages. For

example, true investment in school may not take

place until students have the capacity for self-

regulation and intentional learning, which does not

occur until further along developmentally.

Unfortunately, there has been little research on the

longitudinal effects of school engagement across

developmental stages. Overall, however, the weight

of the evidence supports consistency in school

environment, especially for younger children in

elementary school who are changing placement.

Lack of consistency in school emerge as a risk

factor for learning and social outcomes. Children in

foster care need an individualized assessment of the

quality of the school environment in supporting the

child, as well as the other factors involved (e.g.,

food programs, sports and childcare programs, level

of parental involvement in school, transportation

experience). Considered as a group, researchers

support consistency in school and the nurturance of

positive peer and adult relationships, in order to

achieve good outcomes for children in care.

Website: http://www2.oacas.org/modules/article/

view.article.php?c8/53/p0

About the Authors

Dr. Abby L. Goldstein, PhD., is a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Psychology at York University where she has been involved with the Collegiate Health Study, an examination of the impact of child maltreatment on health outcomes for first year college students. Christine Werkerle, PhD., is a senior scientist in the Faculty of Education at the University of Western Ontario. References

Finn, J. D. (1993). School Engagement and Students at Risk. National Center for Education Statistics research and Development Reports. Washington, DC. http://nces.ed.gov/Pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=93470 Fredricks, J. A., Blumenfeld, P. C., and Paris, A. (2004). School engagement: Potential of the concept, state of the evidence. Review of Educational Research, 74, 59-109. Goodenow, C. (1993). The psychological sense of school membership among adolescents: Scale development and educational correlates. Psychology in the Schools, 30, 79-90. Haynie, D. L., South, S. J., and Bose, S. (2006). The company you keep: Adolescent mobility and peer behavior. Sociological Inquiry, 76, 397-426. Mantzicopoulos, P., Knuston, D. J. (2000). Head Start children: School mobility and achivement in the early grades. The Journal of Educational Research, 93, 305-311.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Mehana, M., and Reynolds, A. J. (2004). School mobility and achievement: A meta-analysis. Children and Youth Services Review, 26, 93-119. Popp, P. A. (2004). Tips for Supporting Mobile Students. Project Hope Virginia Information Brief No. 4. Virginia Department of Education. Shochet, I. M., Dadds, M. R., Ham, D., and Montague, R. (2006). School connectedness is an underemphasized parameter in adolescent mental health: Results of a community prediction study. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 35, 170-179. South, S. J., Haynie, D. L., and Bose, S. (2007). Student mobility and school dropout. Social Science Research, 36, 68-94.

Wasserman, D. (2001, April). Moving Targets: Student Mobility and School and Student Achievement. Presented at American Educational Research Association 2001 Annual Conference. Seattle, WA. Whitlock, J. L. (2006). Youth perceptions of life at school: Contextual correlates of school connectedness in adolescence. Applied Developmental Science, 10, 13-29. Zeitlin, A.,, Weinberg, L., and Wade Luderer, J. (2004). Problems and solutions to improving education services for children in foster care. Prevention School Failure, 48, 31-36.

The Child Welfare Supervisor as Stress Manager By Joe Darocha

Introduction

W ith an increasing interest in stress

management within child welfare and with the

advent of the OACAS New Hires Training Module

“Wellness and Self-Care,” there is a need to

emphasize and train CAS supervisors as to their role

in managing and reducing worker stress.

The question of “do we need stress management in

child welfare?” is no longer valid. It has been

answered through research1, agency statistics on

“stress” leaves, stress related worker retention

issues and known cases of worker burn out.

It is also commonly accepted that there is a direct

link between individual health and work

performance. Simply put, the exhausted worker is a

poor performer.

To its credit the field has been moving forward

toward a more necessary and realistic view of stress

management. There is a greater awareness and

interest in making the stress of child protection

work more manageable and providing staff with

opportunities (organizational and individual) to

validate and decrease their own work related stress.

As part of the new hires curriculum, the OACAS has

included a training module (OCPTP New Hires –

Module 9: Wellness and Self-Care) which allows new

hires to gain early exposure to the issue of stress in

their child welfare careers. As commendable as this

training, it will not be successful if the messages

and values behind the content of the module are not

endorsed, promoted and incorporated into practice

by the child welfare supervisor.

The child welfare supervisor’s role in managing the

stress of a protection team is highly underrated.

The supervisor is in a key and central position to

not only educate, guide and mentor workers but

also to emphasize the importance and benefit of

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

effective stress management; moving the team

towards a model of stress management based

practice.

Stress management based practice is the philosophy

and belief that the optimum service to families and

children can only be provided by the “best” workers.

In essence, those workers who have achieved a work

life balance, maintained self-care, engage in

professional development, exercise insight/self

awareness and are well supported by their leaders

will be able to provide the most efficient service and

produce the most effective work.

To achieve stress management based practice the

Supervisor must undertake three key roles:

1. Stress Management Role Model

2. Stress Management Advocate

3. Stress Management Facilitator

Stress Management Role Model

One recognized method of achieving behavioural

change is to model the desired outcome in one’s

own behaviour. In this regard, the supervisor must

consistently demonstrate to the team what effective

stress management is. One method of doing so is to

be professionally non reactive. Some professionals

may react based on an inability to consider the full

scope of the current circumstance for example

focussing on “what if’s” and not the facts of the

situation. Their “reaction” causes panic and a lack of

focus. In these situations there is little room for

calm, reflective assessment and critical thinking. An

experienced child welfare professional knows that

even in the most critical situation there is still a

measure of time for reflective assessment.

Therefore, to be professionally non reactive is to

demonstrate the importance of reflective

assessment and to model to others a professional

response to a “crisis”.

The supervisor as a stress management role model

exhibits:

Work - Life Balance

The supervisor ensures the proper self-management

of overtime and vacation. She demonstrates

boundaries and harmony between the life of “work”

and life outside work.

Self-care

The Supervisor sets clear professional boundaries,

promotes health and professional growth

Professional Development

The supervisor promotes training, skill

enhancement, skill development and learning.

Exercises insight/self awareness

The supervisor is comfortable with and encourages

constructive criticism, is open to being challenged,

recognizes deficits and values solutions over ego.

Well Supported

The supervisor seeks support, establishes

collaborative relationships, has or seeks the

required resources and tools to enhance team and

Worker functioning.

Therefore, the supervisor as a stress management

role model, exhibits the behaviour she wants her

team to emulate, putting forward extra effort when

required and slowing the pace when not. If

successful, the supervisor achieves two vital goals.

The first is the promotion and nurturing of balance

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

within each worker; secondly the probability that

each worker will model the same behaviours in the

presence of clients, thereby diminishing a need to

rely on authority and more on mutuality.

Stress Management Advocate

The supervisor as a stress management advocate,

advocates both “to” the worker and “for” the worker.

When advocating “to” the worker, the supervisor is

focussed on influencing the worker to become more

aware and empowered to pursue stress

management based practice. In part, the supervisor

gives the worker permission to engage in greater

balance. The supervisor “puts things into

perspective” and allows the worker to learn to

express their professional needs. The supervisor

does not, however, lose sight of the importance of

the work nor does she ignore priorities but rather

brings a realistic view to what is achievable at the

time and the need to balance priorities. The worker

who is frantic and overworked needs to be

reminded and encouraged to return to a balanced

state of functioning.

In situations where critical incidents have occurred,

the supervisor promotes learning and proactive

prevention. Oftentimes, the supervisor may be

advocating for the worker against the worker’s own

distorted “wants”. The worker may “want” to follow a

non-productive work pattern and therefore will need

to be challenged to seek more effective ways of

managing the workload.

Opposite to advocating “to” the worker, the

supervisor advocates “for” the worker. Here the

supervisor is engaged in the traditional form of

advocacy where, on the worker’s behalf,the

Supervisor seeks resources and supports to assist

the worker in fulfilling their service role. In this way,

the supervisor supports worker effort in maintaining

quality service. This ranges from the common

requests for material supports to other areas.

Often times there are stressors that impact on a

worker’s ability to function that are not related to

the work itself. These personal stressors, whatever

they may be, need to be addressed when it is

identified that the worker’s ability to provide quality

service has been compromised.

The supervisor then provides support in an effort to

(within the supervisory role) assist the worker with

the management of the external stressor. Here the

Supervisor extends permission and provides safety

for the worker to comfortably express any issues

which may be affecting work performance. The

supervisor should not inquire as to the details of

personal issues but only seek to empower the

worker to find resolution and/or external supports.

Stress Management Facilitator

The supervisor as a facilitator seeks the elimination,

reduction or management of stressors hampering

the worker’s ability to function. In this role the

supervisor allows the worker greater autonomy in

identifying their own stress management strategies

and desired outcomes. Emphasis is placed on the

Worker’s own ability to generate individual stress

management mechanisms to cope with work

stressors.

The essential question to the worker here is “What

would help you manage (this stressor) so that you

can continue to provide good service?”. The worker

then generates their own solutions as to what would

be useful.

As a stress management facilitator the supervisor

assists the worker in identifying the parameters of

what can be achieved while allowing the worker

continued control of the process.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

In essence, the supervisor helps the worker in

assessing the boundaries of stress resolution. Is this

a stressor that can be realistically eliminated? Is this

a stressor that will need to be reduced or managed?

By providing guidelines, the worker is than able to

generate a realistic and individualized stress

management plan.

Individualized stress management plans are much

more successful than generic or imposed strategies.

The person undergoing the stressor has a better

notion of the individual effects of stress as well as

the preferred course that could alleviate the issue.

Therefore, the Supervisor attempts to facilitate

identified strategies towards implementation.

Supervisory Style as an Obstacle to Supervisory

Stress Management

Adopting a stress management based approach to

coaching and mentoring child protection staff

involves obstacles. One is an overly controlling

supervisory style. To be successful in being a stress

management role model, advocate and facilitator a

certain amount of control must be abandoned in

supervision.

Child protection supervisors, known in the business

lexicon as “micro managers”, may not be

successfully able to adopt the roles necessary to

promote stress management based practice. Such a

supervisory style does not lend itself to the

promotion of growth, independence and

professional development required to motivate

workers to take ownership of and collaborate in a

work style that views efficiency and professionalism

in balance.

The “micro manager” is invested in exercising and

maintaining control and therefore promotes stress

as opposed to working jointly with the worker to

relieve it.

Christina Maslach and Michael Leiter in their book

“The Truth About Burnout”2 identified a “lack of

control” over one’s work as one of the leading

causes of work related stress. This was again

emphasized in research within seven countries

conducted by the European Foundation for the

Improvement of Living and Working Conditions.3

A lack of reasonable work autonomy breeds

uncertainty and lack of professional growth. The

“micro manager” for whatever reason is opposed to

worker self reliance and therefore stifles

development. Such a supervisory style not only has

implications for the child protection team but for

the agency as a whole who must periodically cope

with the negative effects (e.g. union grievances, low

morale, work avoidance, poor leadership) of such a

confining supervisory style.

In this regard individuals who see merit in moving

towards a stress management based supervisory

style must first take note of any tendencies or

preference to “micro manage” and legitimately

examine the need to abandon such a restrictive

practice.

1 Cheryl Regher, Bruce Leslie, Philip Howe and Shirley Chau. Stressors in Child Welfare Practice. OACAS

Journal. Vol. 44. No. 4. December 2000

2 Christina Maslach and Michael P. Leiter. The Truth About Burnout. Jossey Bass California. 1997. p. 42-44. 3 European Foundation for the Improvement if Living and Working Conditions. Work Related Stress. Research Paper. Dublin. 2005. p. 3.

About the Author

Joe DaRocha, MSW, is a Children’s Services

Supervisor at Niagara Family and Children Services.

He runs a Seminar on “Stress Management in Child

Welfare” and also teaches the OACAS New Hires

Module “Wellness and Self-care”.

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Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Web-Based Education In The Human Services: Models, Methods and Best Practices By Bernie Gallagher

I f you are contemplating

being a participant, or an

instructor in a web-based

course or just want to know

what is happening with

technology and social work,

Web-Based Education In The

Human Services: Models,

Methods and Best Practices is

a stimulating read. The book

covers the expected areas of technology aided

learning such as the strengths and weaknesses of

web-based environments. What is intriguing about

the book is the coverage of topics that will catch

you off guard such as creating emotion in web

based learning (McFadden), challenging the role of

ethics in on-line learning (Biggerstaff), and

designing delivery platforms that include learners

with functional impairments (Steyaert).

When I ordered the book I thought I would be

getting a How to Guide to create an e-learning

environment, instead I stumbled upon a wonderful

volume of academic work on the topic of web-based

learning. The book is a collection of academic

studies, articles and position papers on the topic of

web-based instruction and was simultaneously

published as a single volume of the Journal of

Technology in Human Services, volume 23 (1, 2, 3,

4) in 2005.

The advantage of the book being a compilation of

studies is the reader is not forced to read

sequentially from front to back. Instead, you can

select any starting point in the book. In keeping

with principles of adult education the reader

chooses the article that is most relevant to their

learning need at the moment. There are three

central themes that weave the independent articles

together: each paper is written through a social

work lens; each contributor places emphasis on the

context of learning rather than content; and, the

writing styles encourage critical thinking.

Web-Based Education In The Human Services:

Models, Methods and Best Practices is edited by

Robert MacFadden, Brenda Moore, Marilyn Herie and

Dick Schoech who are all social work educators.

The book is truly a reflection of social workers

staking a claim in the higher education arena.

Robert MacFadden and Brenda Moore bring a

References

Duxbury, Linda (Ph.D.), Clive Higgins (Ph.D.) Where to Work in Canada? An Examination of Regional Differences in Work Life Practices. Carleton University. Ottawa, 2003. European Foundation for the Improvement if Living and Working Conditions. Work Related Stress. Research Paper. Dublin. 2005. Hersey, Paul. (Ph. D.), The Situational Leader. Center for Leadership Studies. Escondido, California. 1992.

Maslach, Christina. and Michael P. Leiter. The Truth About Burnout. Jossey-Bass. California. 1997. MFL Occupational Health Centre. The Hazards of Poor Work Organization. Winnipeg, 1999. Regher, Cheryl., Leslie, Bruce., Howe, Phillip., Chau, Shirley. Stressors in Child Welfare Practice. OACAS Journal. Vol. 44. No. 4. December 2000

Book Review

24

Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Canadian perspective to the work along with

contributors Sandra Collins, Paul Jerry, Jacquie Rice-

Green, Gary Dumbrill, Patricia MacKenzie and Dora

Leigh Bjornson. In fact out of 18 articles a third

reflect Canadian social work practice.

As human services considers web-based learning,

the role of the educator shifts from “sage on the

stage to guide on the side.” This book definitely

helps shifts our cultural thinking about using

technology in social work education and is well

worth the read.

About Author

Bernie Gallagher is the Director of Education

Services at OACAS and a PhD Candidate, Memorial

University, Newfoundland.

Reference

Robert MacFadden, Brenda Moore, Marilyn Herie and Dick Schoech. (2003) Web-Based Education In The Human

Services: Models, Methods and Best Practices. Haworth Press.

Poem

ABANDONED By Stephen Gill

This is not the first time

when we had to put out

fire in his room.

His windows are often

shattered,

the mattress slashed,

and the floor is littered

with the Kleenex and other

objects.

The walls present

a portrait of crude wasteland

outlined with profanities.

He uses

the dagger of taunts

to wound his opponents.

From his assaults

not even his teachers

and playmates are exempt.

He carries

a lake of incredible rage.

Verbal abuse is his

constant tool.

He is hardly ten

but through the skylight of his

eyes

one can perceive more.

His appearance is a blend of

pleasure

no worries

no hope

and several deep despairs.

He comes from a home

where

neglect and desertion

were common.

The social workers

had to remove him.

What was this boy exposed to

and what triggers his outbursts?

No one will ever know

beyond

the tip of the iceberg.

©Stephen Gill

About the Author

Stephen Gill is an acclaimed national/

international poet and author and a

director on the Board of the Children’s

Aid Society of the United Counties of

Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry.

Region 1 Charron Sippola Kenora-Patricia C&FS, Rainy River F&CS Region 2 Vacant Dilico Anishinabek FC, Payukotayno James & Hudson Bay FS Region 3 Frank Gillis Algoma CAS, Sudbury-Manitoulin CAS Region 4 Dennis Draves Jeanne Sauvé FS, C&FS of Timmins & District, Timiskaming C&FS Region 5 Nancy Ringham Thunder Bay CAS, Tikinagan North C&FS Region 6 John Stopper FY&CS of Muskoka, Nipissing & Parry Sound CAS Region 7 Bill Wellman Northumberland CAS, Kawartha-Haliburton CAS Region 8 Al Law Hastings CAS, Lennox-Addington F&CS, Prince Edward CAS Region 9 Keith Sparling Frontenac CAS, Renfrew F&CS Region 10 David Huether Leeds-Grenville F&CS, Lanark CAS Region 11 Barbara MacKinnon Ottawa CAS Region 12 Ray Barnes Prescott-Russell CAS, Stormont, Dundas & Glengarry CAS Region 13 Tim Maloney York Region CAS, Durham CAS

Region 14 Tiffany Woodfine Simcoe CAS, Dufferin C&FS Region 15 Paul Zarnke Peel CAS, Jewish F&CS, Native C&FS of Toronto Region 16 Sue Makin CAS Toronto Region 17 Marilyn Dumaresq Toronto CCAS Region 18 Jan Lord Halton CAS, Wellington F&CS Region 19 Gary Harron Grey CAS, Bruce CAS Region 20 Tom Knight Huron- Perth CAS Region 21 Harry Emmott Waterloo F&CS, Brant CAS Region 22 Ron Sharegan Hamilton CAS, Hamilton-Wentworth CCAS Region 23 Jane Anderson Niagara FACS, Haldimand-Norfolk CAS Region 24 Jane Fitzgerald London-Middlesex CAS, Oxford CAS Region 25 Jerry Collins Chatham-Kent CS, Elgin F&CS Region 26 Richard Newton-Smith Windsor-Essex CAS, Sarnia-Lambton CAS

25

OACAS JOURNAL Summer 2008 Volume 52 Number 2

Board of Directors 2008/09

President: Donna Denny First Vice President: Jane Anderson Second Vice President: Keith Sparling Secretary/Treasurer: Al Law Past President: Dennis Nolan Member-at-Large: David Huether Member-at-Large: Tom Knight