Spring 2025 - EDUC 878 G031

Group Counselling (5)

Class Number: 4579

Delivery Method: In Person

Overview

  • Course Times + Location:

    Jan 6 – Apr 9, 2025: Tue, 4:30–9:20 p.m.
    Surrey

  • Prerequisites:

    EDUC 874.

Description

CALENDAR DESCRIPTION:

An examination of contemporary approaches to group counselling. Students with credit for EDUC 720 may not take this course for further credit.

COURSE DETAILS:

This course provides students with a background in basic group theory and counselling skills that can be applied to different types of groups (psychoeducational, process oriented), in a variety of settings (educational, healthcare, community).  

The course engages students in five related content domains: 1) examination of the research and theory related to group counselling 2) an overview of group dynamics and group process 3) an introduction to group counselling skill and intervention competencies 4) an introduction to group design process 5) consideration of ethical and equity principles in group practice   

In preparation for professional counselling practice, participants in this course will critique and discuss the theory and research on therapeutic factors in group counselling. i.e. What makes groups therapeutic? What makes therapeutic groups effective? Through reading and experiential learning, they will practice and develop skills for leading and facilitating therapeutic groups. They will learn principles and practices for designing and developing groups including conducting community stakeholder engagement and needs analysis, pre-group orientation, eliciting feedback from participants, and impact assessment. Through reading, discussion and practice, they will consider how to uphold principles of professional ethics and equity in group practice.  They will curate a set of resources to support your on-going development and wellbeing as a group counsellor.  

COURSE-LEVEL EDUCATIONAL GOALS:

  • Become familiar with the group counselling theories and current research
  • Explore types of groups counsellors lead and their purposes 
  • Understand purpose and principles of designing structured, semi-structured and unstructured groups
  • Identify common group relationship dynamics 
  • Recognize developmental phases of groups in application
  • Through experiential learning, develop an understanding of roles of members in groups, relationship dynamics in groups, and common group processes
  • Through practice, demonstrate leadership strategies appropriate to novice counsellors
  • Demonstrate self-awareness and reflexivity about their own participation in groups and leadership capacity
  • Understand ethical issues related to groups and ethical responsibilities of group leaders
  • Recognize social factors that impact group relationship dynamics and participation, including impacts of power inequities and socialization into stigma and cultural narratives.
  • Become familiar with strategies for enhancing the safety, equity and inclusiveness of groups
  • Receive and reflect on feedback about leadership skills in a constructive manner
  • Offer discerning, constructive feedback to peers
  • By conducting a group design project, learn the process of group design and development
  • Become familiar with principles and strategies for gathering feedback and conducting impact assessment

Grading

  • Participation in class & process group lab 20%
  • Co-lead a group intervention (in pairs) 20%
  • Reflection log 15%
  • Future self-as-leader development toolkit 20%
  • Group design project (solo or group) 25%

NOTES:

Enrollment in EDUC 878 is limited to students currently enrolled in the Master's in Counselling at SFU

Materials

REQUIRED READING:

Chen, M. W., & Rybak, C. (2018). Group leadership skills: Interpersonal process in group counseling and therapy. SAGE Publications. (available on vitalsource as ebook)
ISBN: 978-1-5063-4930-5

RECOMMENDED READING:

Yalom, I.D. & Leszcz, M. (2020). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy. (6th ed.) Hachette Book Group.

Library copy will be on reserve and a second hand 2008 5th edition will also work
ISBN: 9781541617568

Corey, M.S., Corey, G., & Corey, C. (2017). Groups: Process and Practice (10th ed.). Brooks/Cole
ISBN: 9781305865709

Additional readings will be assigned through Canvas and available through SFU library

REQUIRED READING NOTES:

Your personalized Course Material list, including digital and physical textbooks, are available through the SFU Bookstore website by simply entering your Computing ID at: shop.sfu.ca/course-materials/my-personalized-course-materials.

Graduate Studies Notes:

Important dates and deadlines for graduate students are found here: http://www.sfu.ca/dean-gradstudies/current/important_dates/guidelines.html. The deadline to drop a course with a 100% refund is the end of week 2. The deadline to drop with no notation on your transcript is the end of week 3.

Registrar Notes:

ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: YOUR WORK, YOUR SUCCESS

SFU’s Academic Integrity website http://www.sfu.ca/students/academicintegrity.html is filled with information on what is meant by academic dishonesty, where you can find resources to help with your studies and the consequences of cheating. Check out the site for more information and videos that help explain the issues in plain English.

Each student is responsible for his or her conduct as it affects the university community. Academic dishonesty, in whatever form, is ultimately destructive of the values of the university. Furthermore, it is unfair and discouraging to the majority of students who pursue their studies honestly. Scholarly integrity is required of all members of the university. http://www.sfu.ca/policies/gazette/student/s10-01.html

RELIGIOUS ACCOMMODATION

Students with a faith background who may need accommodations during the term are encouraged to assess their needs as soon as possible and review the Multifaith religious accommodations website. The page outlines ways they begin working toward an accommodation and ensure solutions can be reached in a timely fashion.