| CODE | IAL1006 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Basic Inter- and Intra-Personal Skills in the Classroom: A Positive Psychology Approach | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 01 - Year 1 in Modular Undergraduate Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 5 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 4 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Inclusion and Access to Learning | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Students following this study-unit need to understand their belief system and at the same time challenge it in order to be able to engage in effective emancipatory research/work with persons with disability and persons with mental health problems. The study unit is divided into two parts, which build on each other. The first part of this study-unit facilitates the students' discovery of their ethical and value system towards inclusion, disability, and mental health issues in relation to self-determination, collaboration, teamwork and quality of life. This will be done in relation to recent concepts of positive psychology like: adaptability, the future, courage, hope, happiness, gratitude, resilience etc. The first part will also be grounded in the work of Emmanuel Levinas; i.e., the thought process of engaging with the Other and acknowledging the differences and relationality between us and them as the basis of ethics. In the second part students will engage in experiential learning and the topics covered will include: Decision making, problem solving, creative thinking, critical thinking, effective communication, interpersonal relationship skills, self-awareness, empathy, coping with emotions, coping with stress. The experiential learning will be grounded within a strengths-based and positive psychology approach. Study-unit Aims: The study-unit aims to assist the students in developing an understanding of their value system and its effect on their work and achieving an understanding of themselves, at least to the extent that they know that they will be able to work towards the development of self determination of their clients; Identify the way they experience the concepts discussed in positive psychology and achieve a high level of knowledge and understanding of professional ethics with good foundation principles and theoretical concepts; mastering life skills techniques. The study-unit also aims at presenting students with moral and ethical dilemmas and learn how to openly discuss them with their clients and working team to facilitate a solution or plan of action using problem solving techniques. The study-unit also aims at facilitating understanding and implementing the characteristics of emancipatory research and emphasizing that this type of research is an integral part of their work. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Define how the value systems effect the design of services and how he/she as individual works in such services; - Establish whether the value system allows one to work toward a service which gives users the possibility of developing self-determination and quality of life; - Describe their personal positive psychology profile and analyse their strengths and needs for improvement; - Recall the characteristics of emancipatory behaviour; - Explain the ethical implications of emancipatory research. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Analyse ethical and moral issues; - Demonstrate respectful boundaries when working in transdisciplinary teams; - Explore unconditionally and without prejudice moral and ethical issues and behaviour; - Identify and analyse values underpinning a service provider; - Consolidate the development of values in themselves and others that are consistent with inclusive practices; - Apply the principles of professional practice; - Debate critically ethical dilemmas and follow decisions taken; - Implement non judgmental support to clients; - Implement helping skills techniques; - Employ boundaries and take action when boundaries are thought to be violated; - Implement procedures for referral to other experts and professionals when needed; - Implement emancipatory research in their own research; - Identify and explore ethical problems and issues related to social research; - Analyse research papers in the field of disability and mental health problems vis a vis the involvement of the participants themselves. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: - Bullough R.V. Jr. Hope, Happiness, Teaching, and Learning in C. Day, J. C.-K. Lee (eds.) (2011) , New Understandings of Teacher’ s Work, Professional Learning and Development in Schools and Higher Education 6, DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-0545-6_2, © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2011. - Goodley, D. (2000) Self Advocacy in the Lives of People with Learning Difficulties: The Politics of Resilience. Open University Press. - Lawrence-Brown D. & Sapon-Shevin M. (2014) . Condition Critical. Key principles for equitable and inclusive education. Teachers College Press, New York. Supplementary texts: - Goodley, D., O'Toole, Moore, (2004) Researching Life Stories. Routledge Falmer. - Goodley, D., Lawthom R, (2005) Disability and psychology: Critical Introductions and Reflections. - Soresi et al . Career development and career thoughts in The Oxford Handbook of Positive Psychology and Disability. Wehmeyer M. (ed) (2013). - Veck, W. (2014). Inclusive pedagogy: ideas from the ethical philosophy of Emmanuel Levinas. Cambridge Journal of Education, 44(4), 451–464. https://doi.org/10.1080/0305764x.2014.955083B, - Martine. (2021) On facing one's students: The relevance of Emmanuel Levinas on teaching in times of Covid-19. Journal of Philosophy of Education, 55: 649– 664. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9752.12576 |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Louis John Camilleri Francois Mifsud |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2023/4. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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