Course Coordinator: Dr Greg Smith
Phone: +61 8313 6273
Email: gsmith@adelaide.edu.au
Location: Level 11, 178 North Terrace

Course Coordinator: Alexandra Bloch-Atefi
Phone: +61 8313 6228
Email: alexandra.bloch-atefi@adelaide.edu.au
Location: Level 11, 178 North Terrace

Learning and Teaching Team
Phone: +61 8313 0148
Email: postgrad_enq@adelaide.edu.au
Location: Level 7, 178 North Terrace

1	Demonstrate an understanding of Carkhuff's Three Phase Model of Counselling;
2	Acquire knowledge of, and competence in, the pre-helping skills;
3	Produce a series of accurate empathetic responses to client statements;
4	Discriminate and rate the different levels of effective and ineffective responses accurately, and discern unhelpful/inappropriate counselling behaviours;
5	Manage a genuine client issue and provide a series of effective responses (in accordance with the criteria to be detailed in class);
6	Demonstrate the ability to critique and rate one’s own counselling responses and set goals for improvement.

Nelson-Jones, R. (2013) Introduction to Counselling Skills: Text and Activities 4th edition Sage Publications, London

A list of current recommended resources can be found on the MyUni website for this course.

3.3.1 MyUni
All students enrolled in a postgraduate coursework program have access to a Postgraduate Coursework Student Centre on MyUni. This course is available on MyUni at www.adelaide.edu.au/myuni/.
Please check the website regularly as it may contain announcements that are relevant to your study in the course. If you would like the opportunity to network with other students, you can use the Communication features in the site:
Discussion Board – Users can post discussion items and reply to other posts. Note: If you would like to have a specific Discussion Board Forum created, please send your request to mark.pearson@adelaide.edu.au
Send Email – This feature enables users to send email to fellow students.
Group Pages – Groups enable Users to collaborate with each other. Groups usually consist of a smaller group of Users in a course or organisation, such as study groups or project groups. From a Group Page, users may send email, exchange files, enter discussion forums or enter collaboration sessions.
Note: Only members of a particular Group can access the Group communication features (discussion forums, email, etc.). If you would like to have a specific Group Page created, please send your request to mark.pearson@adelaide.edu.au. For example, Group Pages can be created to include students living in the same geographical area or students working for the same organisation.
Please note that you also have access to individual MyUni sites for EACH course you are enrolled in. Please check the sites regularly as they may contain important announcements that are relevant to your study in the course.

3.3.2 Access Adelaide
Access Adelaide is the name of the online service that allows you to access and, in some cases, amend your records. It can be found at: https://access.adelaide.edu.au/sa/login.asp.
You can log into Access Adelaide to view:
your enrolment details for any term
your academic results
your unofficial academic transcript
your personal details
the fees, charges and payments on your University account
your exam schedule
your graduation eligibility details.
As a student you can:
change your address and telephone details (please inform the Discipline as well) change your password
set a password clue to help you remember your password. 

 
3.3.3 Student email
It is important that you set up your student email and check it regularly. Information from your course coordinator and student administration will be sent to you at your University of Adelaide email address. It is your responsibility to check your email. You will need your student number located on your student card to log in. http://webmail.adelaide.edu.au/

3.3.4 Computers
Where can I use a computer in the University?
Computing facilities are provided to students by the University, and there are several suites of computers available, including at the Barr Smith Library and in Hub Central. The University web site has a list of computer labs at:
https://www.adelaide.edu.au/technology/yourservices/learning-teaching/student-suites/

The aim of this course is to enable students to develop an understanding of the core counselling process, and to acquire the fundamental counselling skills that are essential for any counselling or psychotherapy practice.

We encourage you to see practice sessions as an ‘experimental laboratory’ where you can try out new behaviours, be relieved of the ‘pressure to be perfect’, be supported by staff and peers, and to offer support to fellow students in learning. In the practice sessions, students are asked to work in practice groups to apply the material covered in lectures.

Practice activities
There are two kinds of possible practice activities in this course. These are:
counselling interviews with three other students—using real material,—where each member takes on a specific role (for detail see ‘roles and tasks’ below);
pencil and paper activities that are usually conducted in small groups.
For details of how to undertake both kinds of practice activities, see sections below.

Counselling interviews
The skills you will be taught will be practised in the sequence outlined in the counselling process: attending, observing, listening and responding.
There are three roles that you will undertake as you learn these skills. These are the roles of ‘student-counsellor’, ‘student-client’, and ‘observer’, which you will receive detailed information about at the commencement of the course.

The teaching methods in this course will employ a range of techniques to allow the integration and understanding of the content presented. Counselling practice sessions and workshop activities will be employed in addition to the traditional methods of communicating information. Further, it is expected that by creating an environment that promotes the practice of individual responsibility as essential for students in managing their own and others learning, it will also complement the expectations that current counselling agencies adopt.

Counselling Skills One will be run as a series of 10 three hour seminars/workshops. There will be a strong emphasis on participation and experiential learning, and as such it is essential that you meet the 100% attendance requirement of this course.

Finally, it is assumed that all students are of a mature age, professionally educated and motivated to adopt the responsibilities  associated with post-graduate study. Therefore, a level of intellectual effort (including private study time outside of formal class time  per week), and a level of commitment and participation in class activities, is expected.

Topic	Lecture
Overview of Course	Course learning outcomes; assessment; Establishing norms. Clarifying Roles of Student-Counsellor; Student-Client & Observer.
Theoretical Orientation	3 Phase Model of Helping:Exploration and Responding; Self Understanding & Personalising; Initiate & Action.
Pre-helping Skills	Creating a Suitable Counselling Environment. Optimal Attending & Observing Skills.
Listening and Responding	Understanding & Demonstrating Empathy. Formulating Empathic Responses.
Listening and Responding	Responding to Meaning: Externalised Responses.
Discriminating between Effective and Ineffective Responses	How to Rate Counsellor Responses.
Developing Counselling Skills	Skills Practice in Groups of Four.
Developing Counselling Skills	Skills Practice in Groups of Four: Group Practice: Self Reflective Exercise; Review Assignment 1.
Developing Counselling Skills	Advanced Empathy; Skills Practice; Review Assignment 2.
Developing Counselling Skills	Person-centred Therapy: Current Applications in Counselling Agencies Skills Practice
Developing Counselling Skills	Bringing it All Together. Assessment 1 Feedback & Assessment 2. Where To From Here: Counselling Skills 2. Closure.

None.

N/A

Assessment Task	Assessment Type	Weighting	Learning Outcome(s) being addressed
Class Participation	Summative	10%	1-6
Written Assignment	Summative	30%	1-4
Skills Application	Summative	60%	1, 3, 4, 5, 6

The course is assessed by non-graded pass. This is because it is primarily focused on the attainment of skills and is very practically  based. Core competencies are required to be demonstrated, showing emotional awareness, sensitivity and interactive skill as well as academic understanding. Non-graded pass supports the creation of a supportive atmosphere in which students can safely  experiment with the various exercises and counselling practice which is done in the class.

N/A

Class Participation

In accordance with both university policy and the group norms identified in class.

Written Assignment

Completion of a take home assignment booklet, which will cover all the work presented in the Intensive Workshop. Booklet to be distributed in class.

Skills Application

Completion of a video/digital recording session in which student counsellors will deliver a series of responses (in accordance with the criteria set in the assignment) to a student-client presenting a genuine counselling issue. A critique of the counselling session is also required.

Submission of Assignments

Assignments will be submitted via MyUni.

Extensions
All extensions for assignments must be requested, at the latest, by the last working day before the due date of submission.   Extensions will generally be granted only on medical or genuine compassionate grounds.  Supporting documentation must be  provided at the time a student requests an extension.  Without documentation, extensions will not be granted.  Late requests for  extension will neither be accepted nor acknowledged.

Only the Course Co-ordinator(s) may grant extensions.

Supporting documentation will be required when requesting an extension. Examples of documents that are acceptable include: a  medical certificate that specifies dates of incapacity, a police report (in the case of lost computers, car & household theft etc.), a  letter from a Student Counsellor, Education and Welfare Officer (EWO) or Disability Liaison Officer that provides an assessment of  compassionate circumstances, or a letter from an independent external counsellor or appropriate professional able to verify the  student’s situation.  The length of any extension granted will take into account the period and severity of any incapacity or impact  on the student.  Extensions of more than 10 days will not be granted except in exceptional circumstances.

Late submission
Marks will be deducted when assignments for which no extension has been granted are handed in late.

All assignments, including those handed in late, will be assessed on their merits.  In the case of late assignments where no  extension has been granted, 5 percentage points of the total marks possible per day will be deducted.  If an assignment that is 2  days late is awarded 65% on its merits, the mark will then be reduced by 10% (5% per day for 2 days) to 55%.  If that same  assignment is 4 days late, the mark will be reduced by 20% (5% per day for 4 days) to 45%, and so on.
 
The School of Public Health reserves the right to refuse to accept an assignment that is more than 7 days late.

Assignments submitted after the due date may not be graded in time to be returned on the listed return dates.

Students submitting examinable written work who request (and receive) an extension that takes them beyond the examination  period are advised that there is no guarantee that their grades will be processed in time to meet usual University deadlines.
 
Resubmission
If a student is dissatisfied with an assessment grade they should follow the Student Grievance Resolution Process  <https://www.adelaide.edu.au/student/grievance/process/>.  Students who are not satisfied with a particular assessment result should raise their concerns with Course Co-ordinator(s) in the first instance.  This must be done within 10 business days of the date of notification of the result.  Resubmission of any assignment is subject to the agreement of the Course Co-ordinator(s) and  will only be permitted for the most compelling of reasons. 

Important
Please note that Counselling Skills 1 is assessed according to the GS8 Grading Scheme. Please see the relevant assessment  grading categories, below.