Helen E Petracchi
Biographic Data
| ID | 4100740 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Helen E Petracchi |
| GIVEN NAMES | Helen E |
| FAMILY NAME | Petracchi |
| SIGNATURE | PETRACCHI H E |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Pittsburgh |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 15 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 36 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 15 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1999 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Teaching Note—Preparing Social Work Students to Work With Public Interest Technology: An Interdisciplinary Effort
Social work has long engaged with technology but has primarily done so as a consumer, missing opportunities for deeper interdisciplinary collaboration with technologists. This teaching note introduces public interest technology (PIT), an emerging interdisciplinary field dedicated to designing, deploying, and governing technology to serve the public interest and enhance people’s well-being. The teaching note advocates for integrating PIT into soci…
Social Work Faculty Perceptions on the Need for Inclusive LGBTQIA + Policies in Schools of Social Work
Do wage increases help? Wage increases and material hardships among low-wage hospital workers
This study examines whether and how wage increases are associated with hardships experienced by low-wage workers and their strategies to manage these hardships. Data are drawn from a survey of 166 hospital service, clerical, and technical workers at a large hospital in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Following an initial wage increase, workers experienced fewer hardships and used fewer strategies to make ends meet, such as financial support from famil…
“It Is Truly a Struggle to Survive”: The Hardships of Living on Low Wages
Many low-wage workers struggle to make ends meet despite working full-time. Surveys find that they confront material, financial, and medical hardships. This article presents hospital workers’ descriptions of living on low wages, giving voice to their fears and challenges. These workers ( N = 156) testified to a city council-created Wage Review Committee, which posted the testimonies online. We qualitatively content-analyzed the testimonies to ide…
The effects of college savings on college enrollment and the mediating role of parental expectations and discussions about college among students from low-income households
Integrating Video Documentary Into the Classroom: A Community Assessment Assignment
Community assessment is a strategy commonly taught to social work students to identify a community’s strengths and challenges. This article describes the value of using video documentary as part of a community assessment assignment. We identify the advantages of using video documentary in the assessment process and the reporting of findings. We discuss the preproduction, production, and postproduction steps necessary to produce a video documentar…
Benefits and Challenges of Service-Learning in Baccalaureate Social Work Programs
Service-learning is a pedagogical approach that integrates students’ classroom instruction with community experience. This article discusses qualitative results from a national survey examining service-learning in Council on Social Work Education–accredited baccalaureate programs. Almost 80% of the 202 program respondents required service-learning. They reported that benefits of incorporating service-learning in the BSW curriculum include assisti…
Suggestions for Utilizing the 2008 Epas in CSWE-Accredited Baccalaureate and Masters Curriculums—Reflections from the Field, Part 1: The Explicit Curriculum
In April 2008, the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) issued new guidelines for Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS). The 2008 EPAS shift the focus of assessment from the evaluation of program objectives to assessment of educational outcomes and student achievement of practice competencies. Major accreditation challenges for social work programs derive from the 2008 EPAS involving sequencing the assessment tasks, and develop…
Suggestions for Utilizing the 2008 Epas in CSWE-Accredited Baccalaureate and Masters Curriculums—Reflections from the Field, Part 2: The Implicit Curriculum
This article is Part 2 in a 2-part series discussing the new guidelines for Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) issued in April 2008 by the Council on Social Work Education. The 2008 EPAS shifted the focus of assessment for accreditation or reaffirmation from the evaluation of program objectives to assessment of educational outcomes and student achievement of practice competencies. Because major accreditation challenges for soci…
An Assessment of Service Learning in a University Living-Learning Community: Implications for Community Engagement
This article describes a civic engagement and service learning living-learning community on a dedicated floor in a university residence hall. Students volunteered to live with one another while concurrently enrolled in social work service-learning courses. Student assessment of the combined affect service learning and residence hall living-learning experience on community engagement is presented for three cohorts of participants
Utilizing Actors to Simulate Clients in Social Work Student Role Plays: Does This Approach Have a Place in Social Work Education
The social work education literature contains limited discussion of the use of role play in the classroom. This article discusses the logistics of recruiting and utilizing professionally-trained actors to simulate clients in social work role plays. Promising results from assessments of BSW and MSW students with actor-simulated clients are presented. Students described their experiences with the actor-simulated clients in very positive terms. Thes…
Student Performance in Three Classroom Settings: An Evaluation of Distance Education
This study evaluated the effectiveness of interactive television in teaching an MSW foundation research methods course. Specifically, the performance of distant students who received instruction via interactive television was compared with the performance of their peers who received simultaneous face-to-face instruction in an interactive television classroom on-campus and with students who took the course in a traditional classroom. This retrospe…
A Comparison of Live Instruction and Interactive Televised Teaching: A 2-Year Assessment of Teaching an MSW Research Methods Course
Objective: This study evaluated the performance and experiences of distance learning students enrolled in a graduate-level foundation social work research methods course. Method: Students who received face-to-face instruction in a media-readied classroom on the main campus of the university were compared with their remote classmates who simultaneously received course instruction at a regional campus via interactive television (ITV). Students’ per…
Distance Education: What Do Our Students Tell Us
Objective Given the rapid growth of distance education in social work, there is need to evaluate contemporary efforts in schools of social work, including multisite assessments of distance learning. This article reports multisite data addressing the question of how students enrolled in distance learning courses at two urban campuses (one using Interactive TV [ITV] and the other videotape) perceive their learning experiences. Method 142 students’ …
Using Professionally Trained Actors in Social Work Role-Play Simulations
The literature available to social work educators contains limited discussion of the use of role play simulation in the classroom. This paper presents the experiences of first-year MSW students in a foundation generalist practice class who were evaluated using role play for their final examination. In a unique arrangement, clients in these simulations were role-played by firstyear acting students from the university's theater arts department. The…
Utilizing Actors to Simulate Clients in Social Work Student Role Plays: Does This Approach Have a Place in Social Work Education
The social work education literature contains limited discussion of the use of role play in the classroom. This article discusses the logistics of recruiting and utilizing professionally-trained actors to simulate clients in social work role plays. Promising results from assessments of BSW and MSW students with actor-simulated clients are presented. Students described their experiences with the actor-simulated clients in very positive terms. Thes…
Suggestions for Utilizing the 2008 Epas in CSWE-Accredited Baccalaureate and Masters Curriculums—Reflections from the Field, Part 1: The Explicit Curriculum
In April 2008, the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) issued new guidelines for Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS). The 2008 EPAS shift the focus of assessment from the evaluation of program objectives to assessment of educational outcomes and student achievement of practice competencies. Major accreditation challenges for social work programs derive from the 2008 EPAS involving sequencing the assessment tasks, and develop…
Distance Education: What Do Our Students Tell Us
Objective Given the rapid growth of distance education in social work, there is need to evaluate contemporary efforts in schools of social work, including multisite assessments of distance learning. This article reports multisite data addressing the question of how students enrolled in distance learning courses at two urban campuses (one using Interactive TV [ITV] and the other videotape) perceive their learning experiences. Method 142 students’ …
Suggestions for Utilizing the 2008 Epas in CSWE-Accredited Baccalaureate and Masters Curriculums—Reflections from the Field, Part 2: The Implicit Curriculum
This article is Part 2 in a 2-part series discussing the new guidelines for Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) issued in April 2008 by the Council on Social Work Education. The 2008 EPAS shifted the focus of assessment for accreditation or reaffirmation from the evaluation of program objectives to assessment of educational outcomes and student achievement of practice competencies. Because major accreditation challenges for soci…
A Comparison of Live Instruction and Interactive Televised Teaching: A 2-Year Assessment of Teaching an MSW Research Methods Course
Objective: This study evaluated the performance and experiences of distance learning students enrolled in a graduate-level foundation social work research methods course. Method: Students who received face-to-face instruction in a media-readied classroom on the main campus of the university were compared with their remote classmates who simultaneously received course instruction at a regional campus via interactive television (ITV). Students’ per…
Benefits and Challenges of Service-Learning in Baccalaureate Social Work Programs
Service-learning is a pedagogical approach that integrates students’ classroom instruction with community experience. This article discusses qualitative results from a national survey examining service-learning in Council on Social Work Education–accredited baccalaureate programs. Almost 80% of the 202 program respondents required service-learning. They reported that benefits of incorporating service-learning in the BSW curriculum include assisti…
An Assessment of Service Learning in a University Living-Learning Community: Implications for Community Engagement
This article describes a civic engagement and service learning living-learning community on a dedicated floor in a university residence hall. Students volunteered to live with one another while concurrently enrolled in social work service-learning courses. Student assessment of the combined affect service learning and residence hall living-learning experience on community engagement is presented for three cohorts of participants
Student Performance in Three Classroom Settings: An Evaluation of Distance Education
This study evaluated the effectiveness of interactive television in teaching an MSW foundation research methods course. Specifically, the performance of distant students who received instruction via interactive television was compared with the performance of their peers who received simultaneous face-to-face instruction in an interactive television classroom on-campus and with students who took the course in a traditional classroom. This retrospe…
The effects of college savings on college enrollment and the mediating role of parental expectations and discussions about college among students from low-income households
Using Professionally Trained Actors in Social Work Role-Play Simulations
The literature available to social work educators contains limited discussion of the use of role play simulation in the classroom. This paper presents the experiences of first-year MSW students in a foundation generalist practice class who were evaluated using role play for their final examination. In a unique arrangement, clients in these simulations were role-played by firstyear acting students from the university's theater arts department. The…
Using Professionally Trained Actors in Social Work Role-Play Simulations
The literature available to social work educators contains limited discussion of the use of role play simulation in the classroom. This paper presents the experiences of first-year MSW students in a foundation generalist practice class who were evaluated using role play for their final examination. In a unique arrangement, clients in these simulations were role-played by firstyear acting students from the university's theater arts department. The…
Distance Education: What Do Our Students Tell Us
Objective Given the rapid growth of distance education in social work, there is need to evaluate contemporary efforts in schools of social work, including multisite assessments of distance learning. This article reports multisite data addressing the question of how students enrolled in distance learning courses at two urban campuses (one using Interactive TV [ITV] and the other videotape) perceive their learning experiences. Method 142 students’ …
Student Performance in Three Classroom Settings: An Evaluation of Distance Education
This study evaluated the effectiveness of interactive television in teaching an MSW foundation research methods course. Specifically, the performance of distant students who received instruction via interactive television was compared with the performance of their peers who received simultaneous face-to-face instruction in an interactive television classroom on-campus and with students who took the course in a traditional classroom. This retrospe…
A Comparison of Live Instruction and Interactive Televised Teaching: A 2-Year Assessment of Teaching an MSW Research Methods Course
Objective: This study evaluated the performance and experiences of distance learning students enrolled in a graduate-level foundation social work research methods course. Method: Students who received face-to-face instruction in a media-readied classroom on the main campus of the university were compared with their remote classmates who simultaneously received course instruction at a regional campus via interactive television (ITV). Students’ per…
Utilizing Actors to Simulate Clients in Social Work Student Role Plays: Does This Approach Have a Place in Social Work Education
The social work education literature contains limited discussion of the use of role play in the classroom. This article discusses the logistics of recruiting and utilizing professionally-trained actors to simulate clients in social work role plays. Promising results from assessments of BSW and MSW students with actor-simulated clients are presented. Students described their experiences with the actor-simulated clients in very positive terms. Thes…
Suggestions for Utilizing the 2008 Epas in CSWE-Accredited Baccalaureate and Masters Curriculums—Reflections from the Field, Part 1: The Explicit Curriculum
In April 2008, the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) issued new guidelines for Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS). The 2008 EPAS shift the focus of assessment from the evaluation of program objectives to assessment of educational outcomes and student achievement of practice competencies. Major accreditation challenges for social work programs derive from the 2008 EPAS involving sequencing the assessment tasks, and develop…
Suggestions for Utilizing the 2008 Epas in CSWE-Accredited Baccalaureate and Masters Curriculums—Reflections from the Field, Part 2: The Implicit Curriculum
This article is Part 2 in a 2-part series discussing the new guidelines for Educational Policy and Accreditation Standards (EPAS) issued in April 2008 by the Council on Social Work Education. The 2008 EPAS shifted the focus of assessment for accreditation or reaffirmation from the evaluation of program objectives to assessment of educational outcomes and student achievement of practice competencies. Because major accreditation challenges for soci…
An Assessment of Service Learning in a University Living-Learning Community: Implications for Community Engagement
This article describes a civic engagement and service learning living-learning community on a dedicated floor in a university residence hall. Students volunteered to live with one another while concurrently enrolled in social work service-learning courses. Student assessment of the combined affect service learning and residence hall living-learning experience on community engagement is presented for three cohorts of participants
Benefits and Challenges of Service-Learning in Baccalaureate Social Work Programs
Service-learning is a pedagogical approach that integrates students’ classroom instruction with community experience. This article discusses qualitative results from a national survey examining service-learning in Council on Social Work Education–accredited baccalaureate programs. Almost 80% of the 202 program respondents required service-learning. They reported that benefits of incorporating service-learning in the BSW curriculum include assisti…
Integrating Video Documentary Into the Classroom: A Community Assessment Assignment
Community assessment is a strategy commonly taught to social work students to identify a community’s strengths and challenges. This article describes the value of using video documentary as part of a community assessment assignment. We identify the advantages of using video documentary in the assessment process and the reporting of findings. We discuss the preproduction, production, and postproduction steps necessary to produce a video documentar…
“It Is Truly a Struggle to Survive”: The Hardships of Living on Low Wages
Many low-wage workers struggle to make ends meet despite working full-time. Surveys find that they confront material, financial, and medical hardships. This article presents hospital workers’ descriptions of living on low wages, giving voice to their fears and challenges. These workers ( N = 156) testified to a city council-created Wage Review Committee, which posted the testimonies online. We qualitatively content-analyzed the testimonies to ide…
The effects of college savings on college enrollment and the mediating role of parental expectations and discussions about college among students from low-income households
Do wage increases help? Wage increases and material hardships among low-wage hospital workers
This study examines whether and how wage increases are associated with hardships experienced by low-wage workers and their strategies to manage these hardships. Data are drawn from a survey of 166 hospital service, clerical, and technical workers at a large hospital in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Following an initial wage increase, workers experienced fewer hardships and used fewer strategies to make ends meet, such as financial support from famil…
Social Work Faculty Perceptions on the Need for Inclusive LGBTQIA + Policies in Schools of Social Work
Teaching Note—Preparing Social Work Students to Work With Public Interest Technology: An Interdisciplinary Effort
Social work has long engaged with technology but has primarily done so as a consumer, missing opportunities for deeper interdisciplinary collaboration with technologists. This teaching note introduces public interest technology (PIT), an emerging interdisciplinary field dedicated to designing, deploying, and governing technology to serve the public interest and enhance people’s well-being. The teaching note advocates for integrating PIT into soci…
Psychology (11 works) · Political science (10 works) · Social Work (10 works) · Social Work Education and Practice (9 works) · Engineering (8 works) · Medical education (8 works) · Medicine (8 works) · Pedagogy (8 works) · Work (physics (7 works) · Sociology (6 works)