Study Guide

Objective

Students learn to organise psychosocial group activities aimed at change and to start group activities to meet the needs of client groups. Students are able to promote group processes to ensure members' participation and to solve potential conficts constructively. Students are familiar with group dynamics. They know what factors affect starting, maintaining and ending a group process. Students recognise clients' needs for group activity. They know how psychosocial group activity and peer support can be used to support client groups' welfare, functional capacity, management of daily activities and empowerment through shared experience. Students are familiar with social encouragement and with the principles and practices of sociocultural work. They take into consideration clients' needs to have support for functional capacity and promote the clients' participation options.

Content

- group work as a social work method
- group dynamics, the group process
- conducting goal-oriented group sessions
- the psychosocial approach to group activity
- sociocultural methods, social encouragement
- peer group activity and experiential elements
- peer support groups, group activities for residential care units, sharing experiences and learning from them

Materials

- Heikkinen, A. ym. (2007). Näe minut - kuule minua. Kokemuksia ryhmistä.
- Jansson, A. (2012). Psykososiaalinen ryhmätoiminta yksinäisyyden lievittäjänä.
- Kopakkala, A. (2005). Ryhmä, jengi, tiimi: ryhmädynamiikka ja siihen vaikuttaminen.
- Kurki, L. (2000). Sosiokulttuurinen innostaminen.
- Ståhlberg, L. (2019). Pienryhmäohjaajan opas.
- teacher's material

Teaching methods

- Independent study and study in groups: contact teaching, case examplses, learning assignments and an essay on a book concerning group facilitating.
-Facilitating Psychosocial Group with the collaboration of the workfield.

Employer connections

-One part of the course involves group facilitating practise with the collaboration of the workfield.

Student workload

-108 hours.

Further information

Students choose between this and the following course:
- Facilitating Pedagogical Groups
- Facilitating Activity-Based Groups

Evaluation scale

1-5

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

The students
- are able to name regularities of group dynamics and to recognize factors, which influence in beginning, maintaining and closing a group process
- are able to name different needs for psychosocial group activities
- can create a psychosocial entity of actions and are able to give reasons to the goals and to the methods
- have capacities to describe their individual actions and actions of the group in group supervising situations
- know how to describe the factors which strengthen learning and participation in group situations

Assessment criteria, good (3)

The students
- are able to review regularities of group dynamics and to give reasons to factors, which influence in beginning, maintaining and closing a group process
- are able to review and give reasons to different needs for psychosocial group activities
- can create a psychosocial entity of actions and are able to evaluate to the goals and to the methods
- have capacities to reflect their individual actions and actions of the group in group supervising situations
- know how to reflect the factors which strengthen learning and participation in group situations.

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

The students
- are able to review regularities of group dynamics multi-dimensionally.
- are able to evaluate the factors, which influence in beginning, maintaining and closing a group process
- are able to differentiate needs for psychosocial group activities
- can create a psychosocial entity of actions and are able to analyze the goals and the methods
- have capacities to reflect their individual actions and actions of the group in group supervising situations
- know how to evaluate the factors which strengthen learning and participation in group situations.

Assessment methods and criteria

An essay on a book concerning group facilitating.
Valuatingscale: 1-5.

Assessment criteria, satisfactory (1)

Performance does not reach level 1.

Assessment criteria, good (3)

The students
- are able to name regularities of group dynamics and to recognize factors, which influence in beginning, maintaining and closing a group process
- are able to name different needs for psychosocial group activities
- can create a psychosocial entity of actions and are able to give reasons to the goals and to the methods
- have capacities to describe their individual actions and actions of the group in group supervising situations
- know how to describe the factors which strengthen learning and participation in group situations

Assessment criteria, excellent (5)

The students
- are able to review regularities of group dynamics and to give reasons to factors, which influence in beginning, maintaining and closing a group process
- are able to review and give reasons to different needs for psychosocial group activities
- can create a psychosocial entity of actions and are able to evaluate to the goals and to the methods
- have capacities to reflect their individual actions and actions of the group in group supervising situations
- know how to reflect the factors which strengthen learning and participation in group situations.

Assessment criteria, approved/failed

The students
- are able to review regularities of group dynamics multi-dimensionally.
- are able to evaluate the factors, which influence in beginning, maintaining and closing a group process
- are able to differentiate needs for psychosocial group activities
- can create a psychosocial entity of actions and are able to analyze the goals and the methods
- have capacities to reflect their individual actions and actions of the group in group supervising situations
- know how to evaluate the factors which strengthen learning and participation in group situations.

Qualifications

most part of the module Knowledge Base in Social Work

Further information

Students choose between this and the following course:
- Facilitating Pedagogical Groups
- Facilitating Activity-Based Groups