University of the West of England

MODULE SPECIFICATION

(Revised November 2002)

Code: USPJKA-30-M Title: Advanced Independent Development in Counselling Psychology

Version: 5

Level: UWE credit rating: ECTS credit rating:

Module type: Standard

Owning Faculty: Health and Life Sciences Field:

Valid from: September 2008 Discontinued from:

Pre-requisites: None

Co-requisites: None

Excluded combinations: None

Learning outcomes:

This module provides an opportunity for trainees to engage actively with the definition of their own continuing personal and professional development and to reflect critically on their overall and continuing development as a counselling psychologist.

    At the end of the module, trainees will be able to:

      • demonstrate the ability to monitor and evaluate their own therapeutic practice;

      • demonstrate the ability to reflect on their experience of being a researcher;

      • demonstrate a commitment to maintaining their fitness to practise and their continuing professional development;

      • hold themselves accountable to the public and the profession for their personal integrity;

      • articulate a personal philosophy to include responsibility and accountability in relation to their counselling psychology practice;

      • demonstrate responsibility for their continuing professional development by the development of greater powers of awareness, and the courage to pursue deeper personal knowledge and understanding relevant to working well;

      • demonstrate a personal, coherent and ethical way of working with clients;

      • operate safely and professionally in a range of modalities, contexts and time-frames of therapeutic practice;

      • demonstrate the ability to reflect critically on their practice and consider alternative ways of working;

      • demonstrate the ability to respond to the complex demands of clients; and

      • articulate the development of their professional identity as a counselling psychologist.

Syllabus outline:

At the beginning of the module, students will meet with personal tutors to establish a set of learning goals and activities designed to ensure that they have successfully completed all requirements for eligibility for Chartership in Counselling Psychology as currently defined by the BPS Training Committee in Counselling Psychology. Students will be introduced to the six generic key roles for national occupational standards and to the use of these in the BPS Continuing Professional Development requirements as a framework within which to define their own development needs and plans. The module requires each student to provide a portfolio of evidence of successful completion of module learning outcomes, to provide a presentation to their peers and tutors of their learning from specific activities and to submit a reflective essay on the development of their identity as a counselling psychologist.

    The content of the module will vary for different students. Students will negotiate and agree specific advanced independent development goals and training activities which reflect their diverse interests and opportunities within counselling psychology. Individual learning goals and plans must be approved by personal tutor and by the module leader as consistent with the leraning outcomes listed above.

    On the basis of their AID plan, students must compile a portfolio of evidence of achievement of learning outcomes.

    Appropriate evidence might include successful completion of:

    1. relevant modules at UWE or other training institutions;

    2. CPD training events under the Opening Doors programme or equivalent programmes within UWE or other training institutions;

    3. continuing personal therapy and/or personal development activities;

    4. postgraduate seminars and training events;

    5. attendance at relevant professional body conferences and training events;

    6. poster and paper presentations at professional body and academic conferences;

    7. appropriate supervised professional practice;

    8. engagement in professional body activities and committees.

Teaching and learning:

Individual and group tutorials to coordinate and monitor learning plans. Each student will provide a presentation to peers and tutors of learning from specific AID activities. Plans may include a diverse range of teaching and learning methods.

Reading Strategy

All students will be encouraged to make full use of the print and electronic resources available to them through membership of the University. These include a range of electronic journals and a wide variety of resources available through web sites and information gateways. The University Library’s web pages provide access to subject relevant resources and services, and to the library catalogue. Many resources can be accessed remotely. Students will be presented with opportunities within the curriculum to develop their information retrieval and evaluation skills in order to identify such resources effectively.

This guidance will be available either in the module handbook, via the module information on Blackboard or through any other vehicle deemed appropriate by the module/programme leaders.

    As this module draws on all previous modules and extends student learning in directions that are specific to individual learning plans, it is not possible to give specific indicative reading for the content of the module. Reading indicated for other modules may apply. Specific reading lists will form part of the individual learning plans and will be approved by tutors and the module leader.

Assessment

Weighting between components A and B (standard modules only) A: 50 % B: 50%

ATTEMPT 1

First Assessment Opportunity

Component A Element weighting

OP1

Oral Presentation on Reflective Learning from specific AID activities with Written Report (2000 words)

1

PORT

AID plan and portfolio of AID evidence

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Component B

Description of each element Element weighting

CW1

Reflective essay of 3,000 words on personal and professional development as a counselling psychologist

1

     
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Second Assessment Opportunity (further attendance at taught classes )

Component A

Description of each element Element weighting

OP1

Oral Presentation on Reflective Learning from specific AID activities with Written Report (2000 words)

1

PORT

AID plan and portfolio of AID evidence

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Component B

Description of each element Element weighting

     
     

CW1

Reflective essay of 3,000 words on personal; and professional development as a counselling psychologist

1

 

 

 

 

 

 

SECOND (OR SUBSEQUENT) ATTEMPT Attendance at taught classes is not required.

Specification confirmed by …………………………………………………Date ……………………………

(Associate Dean/Programme Director)

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