Course
Discontinued
No
Course code
CYCC 2320
Descriptive
Working with Others in Groups
Department
Child and Youth Care
Faculty
Applied Community Studies
Credits
3.00
Start date
End term
Not Specified
PLAR
No
Semester length
15 Weeks
Max class size
35
Course designation
None
Industry designation
None
Contact hours
Lecture: 4 hours/week
Method(s) of instruction
Lecture
Learning activities
- Lecture
- Skill practice and demonstration
- Group work
- Student presentations
- Guest speakers
- Audio-visual presentations
- Discussions
- Case studies
Course description
Students will have the opportunity to explore and apply the skills of group participation, design, and facilitation. Models that promote empowerment, mutual aid, and self-awareness will be presented for examination and application to practice with groups.
Course content
- Self-awareness of one's personal leadership style, past experiences, values, identities, and impact on others is essential for ethical group practice. This includes understanding one's social location, privilege, and how personal biases may affect group dynamics, group progress, and marginalized participants.
- Understanding group dynamics—including how power, privilege, and oppression operate within groups—allows practitioners to create more equitable and effective group experiences for all participants.
- Effective communication must be adapted for group contexts while actively honouring diverse ways of being and communicating. Group leaders must be concerned for individuals in the group as well as the group as a whole.
- Competent practitioners understand not only how and when to use specific skills, but also the ethical implications of their interventions, particularly regarding power dynamics and potential harm to vulnerable participants.
- Effective groups balance task accomplishment with working relationally, and traditional Western assumptions about productivity or work will be challenged.
- Groups evolve through developmental phases (planning, beginning, working, ending) that involve common as well as unique tasks and worker skills, and success at one phase is dependent in part on success at previous phases.
Learning outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Analyze the effectiveness of groups in Child and Youth Care settings from anti-oppressive frameworks including the design of inclusive, culturally responsive group experiences that reflect participants' identities and lived experiences;
- Explain key concepts of group dynamics, stages of development, and power relations, including how structural imbalances impact the healthy functioning of groups and the experiences of individual members;
- Demonstrate effective communication skills, including anti-racist and trauma-informed practices that address discriminatory language or behaviour, support conflict resolution, and extend relational practice from individual to group contexts;
- Evaluate approaches to group leadership, including one's own leadership style, and assess their impact on participation, voice, and equitable engagement within Child and Youth Care group settings;
- Identify and critically examine barriers to effective group functioning, including systemic and structural factors that limit participation or obscure the strengths, contributions, and knowledge of group members.
Means of assessment
This course will conform to Douglas College Evaluation Policy regarding the number and weighting of evaluations.
Typical evaluations can include:
- Written assignments
- Skill demonstration
- Testing
- Individual and group projects
- Small and large group discussions
- Field research
- Case study analysis
- Group presentations
This is a letter-graded course.
Instructors may use a student’s record of attendance and/or level of active participation in a course as part of the student’s graded performance. Where this occurs, expectations and grade calculations regarding class attendance and participation must be clearly defined in the Instructor's Course Outline.
Textbook materials
Textbooks and materials are to be purchased by students. A list of required textbooks and materials is provided for students at the beginning of the semester.
Prerequisites
Corequisites
None