Chabot College
Fall, 2006
Course Outline for Psychology-Counseling 80
OCCUPATIONAL VOLUNTEERISM IN HUMAN SERVICES
Catalog Description:
80 - Occupational Volunteerism in Human Services
2 units
Volunteer work experience (54-80 hours) in a human services setting approved by PSCN faculty as
related to student's Human Services major or classes at Chabot. Cooperative effort between student
and volunteer site supervisor to accomplish agreed upon work objective and broaden experiences
for the term enrolled. Student provides verification of volunteer experience hours during the term.
Student will make arrangements for hours and duties directly with volunteer site supervisor, after
getting volunteer site approved by PSCN faculty. Students will meet with PSCN instructor one hour
per week on campus for input and volunteer experience discussion focused on building working
relationships and providing appropriate services to clients. 1 hour, 3 hours laboratory
Prerequisite Skills:
None
Expected Outcomes for Students:
Upon completion of this course, the student should be able to:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
identify learning objectives established with the volunteer site supervisor;
apply and refine skills learned in the classroom to a human services job where those skills may
be demonstrated;
apply educational ability, level of maturity, personality, behavior, attitudes toward a job, interpersonal relationships, and identify areas where changes may be required;
relate volunteer experience to courses being taken and other courses offered at the college;
discuss importance of continuing human services education as it relates to current employment,
advancement, retraining needs, applied to future human service careers;
develop understanding of career opportunities, job requirements, employer expectations, and
promotional requirements in a human services setting;
assess personal goals, needs, and make a concerted effort towards self-improvement in human
services occupations;
demonstrate enhanced management skills through the establishment and achievement of
learning and performance goals related to human services occupations.
Course Content:
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2.
3.
Volunteerism Objectives
a. Goal setting
b. What is to be done?
c. How it will be done?
d. How well it will be accomplished?
e. Who will evaluate the objective?
f.
How will it be evaluated?
Work with volunteer site supervisor to:
a. Determine activities
b. Determine learning opportunities
c. Determine experiences to broaden knowledge of the job
d. Students may be given a plan of training by the volunteer site supervisor:
1) outlining learning activities/objectives
2) outlining timeframe or sequence of completion.
Feedback to PSCN faculty advisor by end of semester /term enrolled:
a. Verification of volunteer hours completed at the volunteer site
b. Volunteer site supervisor’s evaluation of student’s performance
c. 2-3 page summary of student’s perspective of volunteer experience
d. Student evaluation of volunteer experience
Chabot College
Course Outline for PSCN 80, Page 2
Fall 2006
Methods of Presentation:
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Individual consultation with student
Written evaluation and/or consultation with volunteer site supervisor
Written reports by student to PSCN faculty
Verification of volunteer hours completed
Class meetings with instructor (1 hour per week)
Assignments and Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
Typical Assignments:
1. Write a 1-2 page journal entry describing your volunteer experience this week. Include any
issues you encountered that required you to seek input from other employees or your site
supervisor.
2. Submit a log of volunteer hours completed this week including your site supervisor’s
verification.
3. Select a fruit, type of tree, or other living thing to which you can make an analogy of your
volunteer experience. Expand on the idea of how your experiences at the volunteer site
relate to the piece of fruit, type of tree, or other living thing. Be creative in your critical
thinking but connect the experience to the object selected. (e.g. Peach because it has a pit
and some of the things I was asked to do by the agency were the pits and did not give me
any real experience serving clients. For example, they had me file papers in a file room and
I never interacted with another person. However, the fruit of a peach is sweet and
refreshing. When I was asked or assigned to providing bus training skills and
accompanying clients on the bus, I felt a sense of satisfaction and enjoyed the experience.)
4. Write a summary about your agency including its main services, target population, location,
accessibility to individuals with disabilities, cost of services to the clients, and the benefits
clients receive from this agency.
Methods of Evaluating Student Progress:
a. Volunteer site supervisor's performance evaluation
b. Instructor's appraisal of student's journal and final report about volunteer experiences
c. Verification of volunteer hours completed
Textbook(s) (Typical):
Make a Difference: America’s Guide to Volunteering and Community by Blaustein, Wiley Publishing ,2003.
Best Practices for Volunteer Programs by Vineyard and McCurley, Heritage Arts Publishing, 2001.
The Volunteer Revolution: Unleashing the Power of Everybody by Hybels, Zondervan Publishing, 2004.
Volunteering to Help in Your Neighborhood by Isler, Children’s Press Publishing, 2000.
Special Student Materials:
None
ceh/CEH/7-13-04/8-31-05rev/9-14-05rev/9-27-05rev./10-26-05rev./11-1-05rev.