Part 1: Initial Post
You are a social worker responsible for choosing the ideal foster home to place a child.
You are deciding between ten homes. The homes are described in the table following these instructions. Everything in the homes is the same (including family income, type of home, neighborhood safety, etc.), except for the characteristics described in the table.
Rank the homes from 1-10 based on what you believe is the ideal overall environment for the child (1 is your first choice, 2 is your second choice, etc.). Please keep in mind:
Each home must have its own ranking.
No two homes can have the same ranking.
You may use any criteria to rank the homes. I suggest you consider the following when making your decisions:
The information discussed in the “Introduction to Criminology; The Sociology of Criminality” lecture notes.
Experiences you remember from your upbringing.
Lessons learned in other classes.
Any other personal experiences.
You will include the following in your initial post:
A copy of the table below filled out with your selections based on the instructions above. You can do so by following these steps:
Fill out the table with your rankings.
Highlight the table, copy, and paste into the Reply box.
Responses that address the following:
Part 1:
How did you select your #1 choice, compared to at least one of the other homes on the list? That is, why did you choose that home over another? What factors went into your decision?
Explain at least one of those factors, using specific examples to support your statements.
Part 2:
How did you select your #10 choice, compared to at least one of the other homes on the list? That is, why did you choose that home over another? What factors went into your decision?
Explain at least two of those factors, using specific examples to support your statements.
Part 2: Peer Responses (100-150 words each)
Read your classmates’ posts and respond to at least two different classmates by addressing the following:
Do you agree with your classmate’s choices? Explain why, using examples from your initial post for support.
VERY IMPORTANT:
Your responses should respectfully and thoughtfully respond to the questions and/or comments from your classmates’ posts and must comply with our course’s Netiquette Rules.
Fill out, highlight, copy, and paste the table below into your Initial Post:
Potential Foster Homes & Rankings
______
This family has replaced their normal toilets with composting toilets. Their toilets are filled with sawdust, and after use, they remove the feces and place it in a compost bin in the back yard. Later, they use that compost on their plants.
______
This family shares a bed with all of their children, infants through teenagers.
______
This family is Native American and practices a weekly ceremony which involves being in an extremely hot sweat lodge for about three hours at a time. They plan to include their new child in this practice.
______
This family practices social nudity. They live in a “nudist colony” and do not wear clothing in their community.
______
This family includes a transsexual adult. This parent was born as a woman and now lives as a man and will be the child’s father.
______
This family believes in opening their home to all. At any given time, they have various friends sleeping over, renting spaces, or otherwise living in their home. They also have about 15 animals (cats and dogs).
______
This family adheres to extremely traditional gender roles. The wife does not speak unless spoken to, does not have access to family money, and prepares a separate meal for her husband which he eats without her.
______
This family is Christian Scientists. As part of their religion, they do not believe in using any medicine, including in the case of emergencies.
______
This family is openly racist and part of a group trying to exclude African-Americans and other groups of color from employment in the United States.
______
This family involves married parents who date and have sex with other people. They believe that they are in a stable marriage and that dating other people strengthens their relationship.
