Learning Journal and Summary of Learning Journal
Diego Zam
ano He
era Counselling Practice 1
Diego Zam
ano He
era Counselling Practice 2
Learning Journal and Summary of Learning Journal
Diego Zam
ano He
era
COUN5131 Counselling Practice
Kathryn Harvey
Australian College of Applied Psychology
Sunday, November 17, 2019
Learning Journal and Summary of Learning Journal
The following is a week by week analysis of the different topics seen in the class of counselling practice. My reflection of the learning journal exposes my views and insights into the skills and steps needed for me to become a successful counsellor. This has taken me in a journey of self-discovery that challenges my pre-conceptualised beliefs of how therapy was delivered in practice and the impact it has on my self-development as a future counsellor.
Week 2: Self-awareness in Counselling
In counselling, psychotherapy scholars have consistently argued that self-awareness is a critical component of being a skilled therapist´s (Jennings & Skovholt, 1999, 46, 3-11), as this is strictly important when successfully dealing with countertransference (Gelso & Hayes, XXXXXXXXXXGelso and Hayes defined countertransference as ¨The therapist's internal or external reactions that are shaped by the therapist's past or present emotional conflicts and vulnerabilities” (2007, p. 25). I have been exposed to several negative events in life and thanks to my journey in therapy I know I am at risk to a subjective appraisal of my client´s situation during therapy due to an expression, a situation, clients’ demeanour, etc. and have me confronted once again to a memory from my past. In this situation, I have learned I must separate myself from the client and asses if I must discuss this with the client or a supervisor according to what will benefit better-said client. This can turn it into a positive opportunity where I can share my experiences and mistakes to the advantage of the client so this can be used positively. Zur, O. in 2009 named it ¨deliberate self-disclosure¨; this is a voluntary personal reveal of information from the therapist to their clients to give an example of how a situation was dealt at the time and how the therapist coped with the events XXXXXXXXXX), this can be used as a positive tool giving the client the sense of being listened and understood.
Week 3: Attitudes and Values
[To update the table of contents (TOC), apply the appropriate heading style to just the heading text at the start of a paragraph and it will appear in your TOC. To do this, select the text for your heading. Then apply the style you need.]
Week 4: The Therapeutic Dialogue
[Include a full stop at the end of a run-in heading. Note that you can include consecutive paragraphs with their own headings, where appropriate.]
Week 5: The Counselling Process.
[When using headings, don’t skip levels. If you need a heading 3, 4 or 5 with no text following it before the next heading, just add a full stop at the end of the heading, then start a new paragraph for the subheading and its text.] (Surname, Year)
Week 6: The First Counselling Session
. [Like all sections of your paper, references start on their own page, as shown on the page that follows. The body of the References section uses the Bibliography style. For more detailed information on formatting references, see the APA Style Manual, 6th Edition. (Surname, Year)
Week 7: Listening, Silence and Holding
. [Like all sections of your paper, references start on their own page, as shown on the page that follows. The body of the References section uses the Bibliography style. For more detailed information on formatting references, see the APA Style Manual, 6th Edition. (Surname, Year)
Week 8: Accurate Empathy and Responding
. [Like all sections of your paper, references start on their own page, as shown on the page that follows. The body of the References section uses the Bibliography style. For more detailed information on formatting references, see the APA Style Manual, 6th Edition. (Surname, Year)
Summary
What was the most interesting thing I have read for this topic?
What did I previously think was true, but now know to be wrong?
What have I changed my mind about as a result of this topic?
What is one thing I learned in this topic that I may be able to use in the future?
What am I still unsure about?
What would I like to learn more about?
What issues(s) interested me that I would like to study in more detail?
References
Jennings, L., & Skovholt, T. M XXXXXXXXXXThe cognitive, emotional, and relational characteristics of master therapists. Journal of Counselling Psychology, 46, 3–11. doi:10.1037/ XXXXXXXXXX
Gelso, C. J., & Hayes, J. A XXXXXXXXXXCountertransference and the Therapist's Inner Experience: Perils and Possibilities, 4-22. New York: Routledge. doi: XXXXXXXXXX/ XXXXXXXXXX
Jennings, L., & Skovholt, T. M XXXXXXXXXXThe cognitive, emotional, and relational characteristics of master therapists. Journal of Counselling Psychology, 46, 3–11. doi:10.1037/ XXXXXXXXXX
Zur, O. (n.d.). Self-Disclosure. Boundaries in Psychotherapy: Ethical and Clinical Explorations., 149–165. doi:10.1037/ XXXXXXXXXX
Footnotes
1[Add footnotes, if any, on their own page following the references. For APA formatting requirements, it’s easy to just type your own footnote references and notes. To format a footnote reference, select the number, then apply the Footnote Reference. The body of a footnote, such as this example, uses the Normal text style. (Note: If you delete this sample footnote, don’t forget to delete its in-text reference as well.)]
Assignment 2: Learning Journal and Summary of Journal
Assignment Type
Learning Journal and Summary of Journal
Purpose:
Weighting
40%
Word Count
2000 words in total including 500 word summary
Due Date
Week 9
The purpose of the learning journal assessment is to provide students with an opportunity to document their activities, reflect on their learning journey through the first part of this unit, and deepen their learning by developing new understandings and insights. Students will document their responses to unit content, readings, self-awareness activities and counselling skill development in triad practice groups in their journal.
Learning journals are widely used in higher education as they foster integration of theory and practice, assist students to reflect on their values and beliefs in the light of new knowledge, and develop critical thinking and self-reflective capacities.
Process:
Keep a learning journal throughout the term in which you document and reflect on your progress in learning, through completion of self-awareness activities and applying the counselling skills covered in this unit in a range of circumstances and contexts.
A learning journal is separate to any personal journal that you keep where you can express yourself freely (i.e. stream of consciousness/uncensored).
Some categories of reflection for learning journals proposed by Bell, Kelton, McDonagh, Mladenovic and Mo
ison (2011), and which you must include in this assessment, are:
· reflection on content - weekly cu
iculum and readings (note: this does not mean simply describing the weekly cu
iculum and readings, rather discussing personal reactions and responses to this information, and supporting your critical reflections with academic literature)
· reflection on self-applying concepts introspectively to analyse personal beliefs, values, feelings and thoughts, and supporting your critical reflections with academic literature
· reflection on process – applying theory in discussions and skills in counselling triad practice, and supporting your critical reflections with academic literature
· reflection on premises – critical thinking about theories, paradigms, ethical dilemmas and meaning, and supporting your critical reflections with academic literature.
The learning journal does not simply describe activities and material. Rather you are asked to critically reflect on your learning journey, supported by academic literature. You
Unit Outline: COUN5131 – Counselling Practice 1 Last updated: Trimester 3 2019
also need to include evidence of the following areas of critical reflection identified by Clarkeburn and Kettula (2012):
· existential: what kind of professional do I aspire to be?
· relational: how do I relate to others?
· praxis: using critical questioning to identify ethical actions.
The learning journal should be 1500 words, and include an entry for seven sections of learning up until Week 9 (i.e. seven sections selected from Sections 1 to 8 in the first nine weeks of learning). The summary should reflect the major understandings and points of learning developed through undertaking this unit and this assignment.
Your learning journal is to demonstrate:
Here is
evidence of reflections on content, self, process and premises, as described above, over the term;
identification of changes in your application of counselling theories and skills over the term;
eference to relevant counselling literature, linking your reflection to theories and concepts discussed in the unit;
evidence of the ability to support your critical reflection with academic sources (essential);
an overarching summary of the learning journal that identifies key learnings and understandings developed through undertaking this assignment (500 words).
· What was the most interesting thing I have read for this topic?
· What did I previously think was true, but now know to be wrong?
· What have I changed my mind about as a result of this topic?
· What is one thing I learned in this topic that I may be able to use in the future?
· What am I still unsure about?
· What would I like to learn more about?
· What issues(s) interested me that I would like to study in more detail?
a sample excerpt from a Learning Journal provided by Student Learning Support:
Week 5: The counselling process
Reading Hackney & Cormier’s XXXXXXXXXXfive step counselling process led me to reflect on the impact of the termination process in relation to my personal experience of being discharged from hospital after eight months. While excited about being well enough to leave, once home I was extremely sad. Over my stay I had formed close bonds with the staff and I felt secure in their care. I was surprised by the grief I experienced. However, I found follow-up visits helpful. Similarly, when termination occurs as a consequence of successful counselling sessions, this too is often met with a sense of both accomplishment and regret, due to the loss of a significant relationship (Hackney & Cormier, XXXXXXXXXXTherefore, counsellors need to talk openly with clients about the feelings of grief and loss they may experience, and a follow-up appointment may be necessary to minimise the pain experienced (Geldard & Geldard, XXXXXXXXXXHence, as a counsellor, I hope to sensitively integrate discussions regarding termination into the end stages of the counselling process, and, if