School: Arts and Humanities

This unit information may be updated and amended immediately prior to semester. To ensure you have the correct outline, please check it again at the beginning of semester.

  • Unit Title

    Child and Adolescent Counselling
  • Unit Code

    COU6509
  • Year

    2024
  • Enrolment Period

    1
  • Version

    2
  • Credit Points

    20
  • Full Year Unit

    N
  • Mode of Delivery

    Online
  • Unit Coordinator

    Mrs Natalie ELPHICK

Description

This unit introduces students to skills, theories and techniques for working with children and adolescents in a counselling setting. Developmental psychology and an ecological systems perspective for assessment and intervention will be examined, including measures to facilitate effective collaboration with children, families, and their social and cultural networks. An emphasis on strengths-based, child safe practices will be presented, highlighting the critical importance of delivering culturally and developmentally appropriate interventions in the best interest of the child. Students will critically review the numerous, unique, legal and ethical concerns relating to counselling children and adolescents, including informed consent, types of confidentiality, sharing information with parents, mandatory reporting, subpoenas and delivery of interventions through digital technologies.

Non Standard Timetable Requirements

Students undertake this unit in an accelerated delivery mode over 6 weeks.

Prerequisite Rule

I90 students must have passed COU6501, COU6502 and COU6503 in order to enrol in this unit.

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit students should be able to:

  1. Critically evaluate evidence-based therapeutic approaches and interventions for commonly encountered issues in child and adolescent counselling.
  2. Examine the unique ethical and legal challenges associated with counselling children and young people in a range of contexts.
  3. Apply developmental psychology and ecological systems theory to assessment and treatment plans for children of varying ages.
  4. Communicate the interpersonal skills and techniques required to establish rapport and create an effective therapeutic alliance with children and adolescents.
  5. Analyse and reflect on personal responses to counselling children and young people; including potential triggers, countertransference and boundaries.

Unit Content

  1. Child and adolescent mental health.
  2. Theories and techniques for assessment of children and adolescents, including; observation; developmental psychology; and ecological systems theory.
  3. Therapeutic theories and approaches for working with children and adolescents, including; play therapy; art therapy; narrative therapy; mindfulness therapy; and bibliotherapy.
  4. Ethical and legal issues in working with children and adolescents, including; confidentiality and the role of parents and others in the therapeutic alliance; informed consent and voluntary participation; maintaining professional boundaries; child safe practice; and responding to risk factors.
  5. Reflective practice, supervision and self-care when working with children and adolescents.

Learning Experience

Students will engage in learning experiences via ECU’s LMS as well as additional ECU learning technologies

Assessment

GS1 GRADING SCHEMA 1 Used for standard coursework units

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

ONLINE
TypeDescriptionValue
ParticipationVirtual Classroom Attendance & Engagement15%
EssayWorking with Children and Adolescents40%
Case StudyChild & Adolescent Counselling45%

Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005)

For the purposes of considering a request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005), inherent requirements for this subject are articulated in the Unit Description, Learning Outcomes and Assessment Requirements of this entry. The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the support for students with disabilities or medical conditions can be found at the Access and Inclusion website.

Assessment

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. Informal vivas may be conducted as part of an assessment task, where staff require further information to confirm the learning outcomes have been met. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

Academic Integrity

Integrity is a core value at Edith Cowan University, and it is expected that ECU students complete their assessment tasks honestly and with acknowledgement of other people's work as well as any generative artificial intelligence tools that may have been used. This means that assessment tasks must be completed individually (unless it is an authorised group assessment task) and any sources used must be referenced.

Breaches of academic integrity can include:

Plagiarism

Copying the words, ideas or creative works of other people or generative artificial intelligence tools, without referencing in accordance with stated University requirements. Students need to seek approval from the Unit Coordinator within the first week of study if they intend to use some of their previous work in an assessment task (self-plagiarism).

Unauthorised collaboration (collusion)

Working with other students and submitting the same or substantially similar work or portions of work when an individual submission was required. This includes students knowingly providing others with copies of their own work to use in the same or similar assessment task(s).

Contract cheating

Organising a friend, a family member, another student or an external person or organisation (e.g. through an online website) to complete or substantially edit or refine part or all of an assessment task(s) on their behalf.

Cheating in an exam

Using or having access to unauthorised materials in an exam or test.

Serious outcomes may be imposed if a student is found to have committed one of these breaches, up to and including expulsion from the University for repeated or serious acts.

ECU's policies and more information about academic integrity can be found on the student academic integrity website.

All commencing ECU students are required to complete the Academic Integrity Module.

Assessment Extension

In some circumstances, Students may apply to their Unit Coordinator to extend the due date of their Assessment Task(s) in accordance with ECU's Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000001386.

Special Consideration

Students may apply for Special Consideration in respect of a final unit grade, where their achievement was affected by Exceptional Circumstances as set out in the Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000003318.

COU6509|2|1

School: Arts and Humanities

This unit information may be updated and amended immediately prior to semester. To ensure you have the correct outline, please check it again at the beginning of semester.

  • Unit Title

    Child and Adolescent Counselling
  • Unit Code

    COU6509
  • Year

    2024
  • Enrolment Period

    2
  • Version

    2
  • Credit Points

    20
  • Full Year Unit

    N
  • Mode of Delivery

    Online
  • Unit Coordinator

    Mrs Natalie ELPHICK

Description

This unit introduces students to skills, theories and techniques for working with children and adolescents in a counselling setting. Developmental psychology and an ecological systems perspective for assessment and intervention will be examined, including measures to facilitate effective collaboration with children, families, and their social and cultural networks. An emphasis on strengths-based, child safe practices will be presented, highlighting the critical importance of delivering culturally and developmentally appropriate interventions in the best interest of the child. Students will critically review the numerous, unique, legal and ethical concerns relating to counselling children and adolescents, including informed consent, types of confidentiality, sharing information with parents, mandatory reporting, subpoenas and delivery of interventions through digital technologies.

Non Standard Timetable Requirements

For accelerated online, enrolment is classified as part-time, as students are studying one unit per study period with 6 accelerated study periods per year, each 7 weeks in length.

Prerequisite Rule

I90 students must have passed COU6501, COU6502 and COU6503 in order to enrol in this unit.

Learning Outcomes

On completion of this unit students should be able to:

  1. Critically evaluate evidence-based therapeutic approaches and interventions for commonly encountered issues in child and adolescent counselling.
  2. Examine the unique ethical and legal challenges associated with counselling children and young people in a range of contexts.
  3. Apply developmental psychology and ecological systems theory to assessment and treatment plans for children of varying ages.
  4. Communicate the interpersonal skills and techniques required to establish rapport and create an effective therapeutic alliance with children and adolescents.
  5. Analyse and reflect on personal responses to counselling children and young people; including potential triggers, countertransference and boundaries.

Unit Content

  1. Child and adolescent mental health.
  2. Theories and techniques for assessment of children and adolescents, including; observation; developmental psychology; and ecological systems theory.
  3. Therapeutic theories and approaches for working with children and adolescents, including; play therapy; art therapy; narrative therapy; mindfulness therapy; and bibliotherapy.
  4. Ethical and legal issues in working with children and adolescents, including; confidentiality and the role of parents and others in the therapeutic alliance; informed consent and voluntary participation; maintaining professional boundaries; child safe practice; and responding to risk factors.
  5. Reflective practice, supervision and self-care when working with children and adolescents.

Learning Experience

Students will engage in learning experiences via ECU’s LMS as well as additional ECU learning technologies

Assessment

GS1 GRADING SCHEMA 1 Used for standard coursework units

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

ONLINE
TypeDescriptionValue
Participation ^Virtual Classroom Attendance & Engagement15%
EssayWorking with Children and Adolescents40%
Case StudyChild & Adolescent Counselling45%

^ Mandatory to Pass


Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005)

For the purposes of considering a request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Commonwealth 2005), inherent requirements for this subject are articulated in the Unit Description, Learning Outcomes and Assessment Requirements of this entry. The University is dedicated to provide support to those with special requirements. Further details on the support for students with disabilities or medical conditions can be found at the Access and Inclusion website.

Assessment

Students please note: The marks and grades received by students on assessments may be subject to further moderation. Informal vivas may be conducted as part of an assessment task, where staff require further information to confirm the learning outcomes have been met. All marks and grades are to be considered provisional until endorsed by the relevant School Progression Panel.

Academic Integrity

Integrity is a core value at Edith Cowan University, and it is expected that ECU students complete their assessment tasks honestly and with acknowledgement of other people's work as well as any generative artificial intelligence tools that may have been used. This means that assessment tasks must be completed individually (unless it is an authorised group assessment task) and any sources used must be referenced.

Breaches of academic integrity can include:

Plagiarism

Copying the words, ideas or creative works of other people or generative artificial intelligence tools, without referencing in accordance with stated University requirements. Students need to seek approval from the Unit Coordinator within the first week of study if they intend to use some of their previous work in an assessment task (self-plagiarism).

Unauthorised collaboration (collusion)

Working with other students and submitting the same or substantially similar work or portions of work when an individual submission was required. This includes students knowingly providing others with copies of their own work to use in the same or similar assessment task(s).

Contract cheating

Organising a friend, a family member, another student or an external person or organisation (e.g. through an online website) to complete or substantially edit or refine part or all of an assessment task(s) on their behalf.

Cheating in an exam

Using or having access to unauthorised materials in an exam or test.

Serious outcomes may be imposed if a student is found to have committed one of these breaches, up to and including expulsion from the University for repeated or serious acts.

ECU's policies and more information about academic integrity can be found on the student academic integrity website.

All commencing ECU students are required to complete the Academic Integrity Module.

Assessment Extension

In some circumstances, Students may apply to their Unit Coordinator to extend the due date of their Assessment Task(s) in accordance with ECU's Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000001386.

Special Consideration

Students may apply for Special Consideration in respect of a final unit grade, where their achievement was affected by Exceptional Circumstances as set out in the Assessment, Examination and Moderation Procedures - for more information visit https://askus2.ecu.edu.au/s/article/000003318.

COU6509|2|2