COSC 512 Structured Groups

This course focuses on group work in a school setting. A variety of small groups are explored as well as the counseling techniques that fit best in the school environment. Standards blending is a key element of focus as it relates to group design and development. This is a competency-based course with an experiential emphasis where students are required to demonstrate their small group counseling skills that align with a variety of theoretical approaches.

Persons involved in both professional counseling and helping ministries find that group work can be an important strategy for conducting their daily work. Therefore, knowledge of group theory and the development of group leadership skills are essential to their becoming more effective practitioners in either setting.

Method of Instruction: This semester-long course is delivered using two synchronous intensive options: 1) Students may select an in-person synchronous intensive option and will attend 36-40 hours of in-person classroom-based instruction at our campus in Lynchburg; or 2) Students may select an online synchronous intensive option and will attend 36-40 hours of video-based instruction. In addition to the one week of in-person or digital synchronous class time, students are expected to complete additional work online both pre and post intensive over the duration of the semester.

Textbook readings and lecture presentations/notes

No details available.

Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions (3)

Discussions are collaborative learning experiences in which both the student and the instructor interact to bring more content and learning to the experience. Therefore, the student will create a Discussion Thread in response to the provided prompt for the assigned Module. The student will post an initial thread of 200-250 words, and post a reply to 1 classmate in 100-150 words based on the provided reply prompt. The thread and reply must incorporate a minimum of 2 scholarly sources each. (CLO: A, B, C, D, E, F, G)

The student will work in a small group to develop one group session that presents a psychoeducational topic. The session must be 30-40 minutes in length and demonstrate the group facilitation counseling skills outlined in the course/rubric. (CLO: A, C, D)

Allender Journal Assignments (5)

During the intensive week, the student will complete the assigned reading and journal questions as per the intensive week schedule. Journals are due each day of the intensive by 8 AM. Because these journals are the basis of class, no exceptions will be made for late submissions. The student must bring a hard copy of his/her journal each day to the intensive. The journal entries should be 1-1.5 pages per question (2-3 pages total per daily entry). (CLO: E, F)

Benchmark Critical Incident Paper Assignment

The student will choose 1 of the 2 ethical scenarios provided in the Benchmark Critical Incident Paper Assignment Instructions, and apply the American Counseling Association’s Code of Ethics to the scenario. The student’s response must be 300 words total. (CLO: G)

Quiz: Emergency Contact Information

In order to participate in the intensive portion of this class, the student must complete this quiz, located in Module: Intensive Week. This quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 2 fill-in-the blank questions, and will have no time limit. (CLO: E)

Quiz: Group Disclosure and Consent

In order to participate in the intensive portion of this class, the student must read the Group Disclosure and Consent Form and complete this quiz, located in Module: Intensive Week, to affirm his/her consent to participate. This quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 5 multiple choice or true/false questions, and will have no time limit. (CLO: E)

Quiz: Group Leader Feedback

During the Intensive, the student will participate in the role of the process observer. This role requires the student to observe and provide verbal and written feedback to the group leader. The student will need to print 12 physical copies of the Group Leader Feedback Form to bring to the intensive. Each day, the student will take a picture of his/her completed form, upload it into this quiz, and hand the completed physical copy to the group leader. This quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 1 file upload question, and will have no time limit. (CLO: A, B, E)

Quiz: Benchmark Intensive Attendance and Participation

In order to pass this class the student must attend the intensive week portion of the class. During the week, the student will be graded on attendance, punctuality, preparation, and participation. Points are lost for being late, missing one or more hours of class, being unprepared and not participating. If a student is not able to attend all days of the intensive, they should switch class sections if one is available. Alternatively, a student may receive a grade of ‘F’ if any portion of the intensive is missed.

The student must participate in direct experience of group, both as a group member and leader for a minimum of 10 clock hours. If a student misses 2 or more weekly class sessions (10 or more minutes late to class constitutes an absence) or fails to meet the minimum 10 clock hours of group experience, the student may be awarded a grade of “F”.

The student will participate in a small (personal growth) group as a group member, group leader, and process observer. Each day of the intensive week, the student will be assigned to the role of a group member, a co-leader, and a process observer. On the first day of the intensive the student will be instructed on the expectations of each of those roles. Participation is graded for these activities. Simply sitting without contributing in any of these roles is not enough to pass the course. For this quiz, the student will provide a self-evaluation on the Quiz: Benchmark Intensive Attendance and Participation Grading Rubric, based on his/her participation during the intensive week. Professors will determine the the student’s final grade for attendance and participation during the intensive week, but will take the student’s self-evaluations into account.

This quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 1 file upload, and will have no time limit. (CLO: E)

Quizzes (18)

Each quiz covers one chapter of the Gladding text and consists of 10 multiple-choice questions. Each quiz will have a time limit of 20 minutes and will be open-book and open-notes. (CLO: A, B, C, D, F, G)

Quiz

This quiz will cover the Learn material for the assigned module. This quiz will be open-book/open-notes, contain 10 multiple-choice and essay questions, and will have a 1-hour time limit.