Course Description
This course provides students with a first formal opportunity to engage in practice as a youth justice worker under the supervision of a field mentor with support from college faculty. Integration of professionalism, educational experience, and feedback will be expected and facilitated through guided self-reflection to promote personal and professional development.
Course Content
The following global ideas guide the design and delivery of this course:
- Practicum settings give students opportunities to synthesize personal and classroom experience with a diverse population.
- Youth justice workers are self-reflective practitioners who enhance their skills and approach relationships from a strengths-based perspective.
- Youth justice workers are intentional and demonstrate critical thinking in assessing and making sound, ethical decisions.
- Ethical and professional practice requires a strength based, trauma-informed, culturally sensitive approach to working with youth.
- Youth justice workers recognize the relational nature of their work and actively work on developing interpersonal skills, including communication, problem solving, conflict resolution, and feedback skills.
- Students engage with youth to enhance/encourage their healthy development through appropriate activities.
- Due to the relational nature of the work, self-awareness and personal wellness are integral in maintaining healthy and productive relationships.
Means of Assessment
Evaluation of this practicum is two-staged and designed to produce a letter grade in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy.
Stage I: An evaluation of the student’s ability to meet basic work expectations and youth justice practicum competencies in practice. The mastery level for this stage is 80%.
Stage II: Providing the conditions are successfully met in Stage I, the student’s final grade will be arrived at by adding the mark achieved in Stage I to the mark received for the written practicum assignments.
Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- With assistance and support, illustrate professional and ethical principles of youth justice practice as required through YJ practicum competencies and the policies of the practicum sites.
- Demonstrate relational work and appropriate activities with youth, with ongoing support and consultation with their site and faculty supervisors.
- Reflectively examine their own and others' field based experiences to enhance their skills.
- Demonstrate a trauma-informed perspective, cultural awareness and sensitivity, and strength-based professional practice while on practicum.
- Assess and develop personal and professional goals to pursue improved practice.