Human Development & Human Service: HSP 315
Instructor: John Korsmo
Course Description {for more info}:
An interdisciplinary examination of human development across the lifespan, with an emphasis on issues that are relevant to providing effective human services delivery. Topics examine theories related to physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development, normative and non-normative developmental processes, and the relationship between public policy, human services, and human development.
Course Description {for more info}:
An interdisciplinary examination of human development across the lifespan, with an emphasis on issues that are relevant to providing effective human services delivery. Topics examine theories related to physical, cognitive, social, and emotional development, normative and non-normative developmental processes, and the relationship between public policy, human services, and human development.
Learning Outcomes
* Demonstrate knowledge of specific periods of development across the lifespan.
* Apply normative and non-normative developmental principles and theories to issues in human services.
* Identify the significance of diverse socio-cultural and contextual experiences including the role of families, communities, and institutions, as they relate to typical human adaptation and growth.
* Reflect on future career goals in relation to interests in specific areas of the lifespan.
* Apply normative and non-normative developmental principles and theories to issues in human services.
* Identify the significance of diverse socio-cultural and contextual experiences including the role of families, communities, and institutions, as they relate to typical human adaptation and growth.
* Reflect on future career goals in relation to interests in specific areas of the lifespan.
Assignments
Attendance & Participation
Participation is crucial – and you are expected to be in class each week (in its entirety), actively engaged in discussions and activities, and prepared to discuss topics from the readings and other assignments.
Making Ends Meet: Barton Family Case Study
This four-part case study will inform you about a year in the life of a family living in Whatcom County (or whichever county you currently live in). You will receive four separate readings (modules) about the family throughout the quarter. Each module will provide some information about the family at different times over the course of a calendar year; Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer. You will focus on a different generalized stage of lifespan development for each module of the case - either infancy & childhood (0 to 10 years old); early, middle, and late adolescence (10 to 20 years old); early & middle adulthood (20 to 50 years old) or; later adulthood (50 + years old).
Life Book Assignment
You will engage in a service-learning project (with one to two partners from class) that includes creating a ‘Life Book’ for a child who is in the process of being adopted through the Washington State Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS) {for more info}. You will work at the Bellingham DCFS office periodically throughout the quarter to review the child’s case files – and literally create the Life Book, which will be presented to the child and his or her adoptive family at the end of the quarter. This assignment includes reviewing the child’s case history (at DCFS), and may include such investigative work as interviews with family members, case workers, teachers or others who know the child; observations of child-family interactions; or other involvement with the families. You and your partner will jointly create the Life Book {for more info}, and you will individually write a reaction paper that assesses and describes your learning throughout the project. Papers should include discussion of your child’s development, how it has been influenced by previous experiences in life, and how you foresee the potential for future development being influenced by current and past experiences (linking your opinions to the text and in-class discussions).
Quizzes
Due to the content-rich nature of this course, there are three quizzes throughout the quarter. You will receive additional information regarding what to prepare for prior to each quiz, however the questions are drawn directly from the reading.
Participation is crucial – and you are expected to be in class each week (in its entirety), actively engaged in discussions and activities, and prepared to discuss topics from the readings and other assignments.
Making Ends Meet: Barton Family Case Study
This four-part case study will inform you about a year in the life of a family living in Whatcom County (or whichever county you currently live in). You will receive four separate readings (modules) about the family throughout the quarter. Each module will provide some information about the family at different times over the course of a calendar year; Fall, Winter, Spring, and Summer. You will focus on a different generalized stage of lifespan development for each module of the case - either infancy & childhood (0 to 10 years old); early, middle, and late adolescence (10 to 20 years old); early & middle adulthood (20 to 50 years old) or; later adulthood (50 + years old).
Life Book Assignment
You will engage in a service-learning project (with one to two partners from class) that includes creating a ‘Life Book’ for a child who is in the process of being adopted through the Washington State Department of Child and Family Services (DCFS) {for more info}. You will work at the Bellingham DCFS office periodically throughout the quarter to review the child’s case files – and literally create the Life Book, which will be presented to the child and his or her adoptive family at the end of the quarter. This assignment includes reviewing the child’s case history (at DCFS), and may include such investigative work as interviews with family members, case workers, teachers or others who know the child; observations of child-family interactions; or other involvement with the families. You and your partner will jointly create the Life Book {for more info}, and you will individually write a reaction paper that assesses and describes your learning throughout the project. Papers should include discussion of your child’s development, how it has been influenced by previous experiences in life, and how you foresee the potential for future development being influenced by current and past experiences (linking your opinions to the text and in-class discussions).
Quizzes
Due to the content-rich nature of this course, there are three quizzes throughout the quarter. You will receive additional information regarding what to prepare for prior to each quiz, however the questions are drawn directly from the reading.
Course Alignment with CSHSE National Standards
The standards below are taken from the National Standards of the Council for Standards in Human Service Education {for more info}. Standards are met in more than one course, but specifications may be met in only one course. Below are the specifications that have been designated for inclusion in this course.
#12 - The curriculum shall include knowledge and theory of human systems, including individual, interpersonal, group, family, organizational, community, and societal and their interactions.
#13 - The curriculum shall address the conditions that promote or limit human functioning.
#20 - Provide experiences and support to enable students to develop awareness of their own values, personalities, reaction patterns, interpersonal styles, and limitations.
#12 - The curriculum shall include knowledge and theory of human systems, including individual, interpersonal, group, family, organizational, community, and societal and their interactions.
#13 - The curriculum shall address the conditions that promote or limit human functioning.
#20 - Provide experiences and support to enable students to develop awareness of their own values, personalities, reaction patterns, interpersonal styles, and limitations.