University of Arkansas, College of Education and Health Professions
Department of Rehabilitation, Human Resources and Communications Disorders
I.
Program Affiliation:
Vocational Education
Course Number and Title:
VOED 4403—Nutrition Education and Counseling
Catalog Description: Nutrition education and counseling methods for dietitians and
other health professionals.
Prerequisite:
Nutrition course, junior standing or consent
Professor:
Cecelia Thompson, Ph.D.
University of Arkansas
100 Graduate Education Building
Fayetteville, AR 72701
Phone: 479-575-2581
E-mail: cthomps@uark.edu
II.
Relationship to Knowledge Base: Pedagogical Knowledge and Skills
This basic level course helps students in dietetics and other health areas understand
methods of education and counseling clients.
III.
Goals:
The students in this course will examine educational and counseling methods for clients
who need to change their lifestyle to treat health-related conditions such as obesity,
diabetes, injuries or elevated cholesterol.
IV.
Competencies:
Upon completion of this course, the students should be able to:
A.
Recognize learning and teaching styles and develop methods to enhance personal
style. (SP 3,4)
B.
Select and develop resource materials for different learners and learning
situations. (SP 3)
C.
Describe the basic principles of counseling. (Sp 1,2,5)
D.
Demonstrate methods of teaching nutrition or health information to groups and
individual clients. (SP 1,2,5)
V. Content:
A. Principles of learning
B. Learning and teaching style
C. Teaching adults and children
D. Planning and evaluating learning
E.
F.
G.
H.
Group dynamics
Communicating with clients
Counseling
Motivation
VI.
Evaluation:
Grades for each student will be based on the following:
A.
Questions from the text: Write two higher-level questions from each chapter of
the text.
B.
Journal of observations: Keep a brief journal with 10 observations of
educational sessions. Each entry should list the time and place of the observation
as well as a description of the parts of the lesson. Evaluate the effectiveness of
the instructor’s teaching techniques, resources and media.
C.
Demonstration lesson: Plan and present a demonstration related to wellness or
nutrition. The lesson should include the use of visual aids and actively involve
the audience in the lesson.
D.
Inquiry lesson: Plan and present a lesson related to wellness or nutrition that
requires the audience members to examine issues, solve problems and make
personal decisions.
E.
Final Exam: Questions on the exam will come from the text and information
covered in class.
F.
Attendance: Perfect attendance = no final exam.
G.
Class Participation
VII.
Syllabus Change
The Instructor reserves the right to make changes as necessary to this syllabus. If changes
are made, advance notification will be given to the class.
VIII.
Grading Scale:
Grades will be assigned using the attached rubric. There are five levels of performance
that apply to each evaluation criteria.
A = High Quality
B = Quality
C = Proficient
D = Basic
F = Unsatisfactory
IX.
Academic Honesty:
The application of the University of Arkansas Academic Honesty Policy, as stated in the
Student Handbook will be fully adhered to in this course. Grades and degrees earned by
dishonest means devalue those earned by all students; therefore, it is important that
students are aware of the University of Arkansas Academic Honesty Policy. Academic
dishonest involves acts which may subvert or compromise the integrity of the educational
process.
Remember to give proper citation when using the works of other authors. It is accepted
to use ideas and information from other sources. It is improper to use it without giving
credit to the author of the material.
X.
Accommodations
Students with disabilities requesting reasonable accommodations must first register with
the Center for Students with Disabilities. The CSD is located in the Arkansas Union,
room 104 and on the web at: http://www.uark.edu/ua/csd/applications.htm. The CSD
provides documentation to students with disabilities who must then provide this
documentation to their course instructors. Students with disabilities should notify their
course instructors of their need for reasonable accommodations in a timely manner to
ensure sufficient time to arrange reasonable accommodation implementation and
effectiveness. A typical time frame for arranging reasonable accommodations for
students who are registered with the CSD is approximately one to two weeks.
XI.
Classroom Behavior
Appropriate classroom behavior is expected of the instructor and all students.
Inappropriate and disruptive classroom behavior (inappropriate language and gestures,
class disruptions, disrespect to other students or instructor, and other behavior as
determined by the instructor) will not be tolerated and will result in possible removal
from the class and /or disciplinary action as per the student handbook.
Inclement Weather
Class will not meet if the University is closed for inclement weather. University closing
announcements are also made on KAUF Radio, 91.3 as well as local radio and television
stations. The University’s inclement weather site is updated frequently on both
UARKINFO and University Online at http://pigtrail.uark.edu/info/weather.nclk.
XII.
Course Resources: University library, class handouts, guest speaker, Internet
XIII.
Research Base:
Text
Holli, B. & Calabrese, R. (2003). Communication and education skills for dietetic
professionals. Baltimore: Williams and Wilkins.
Non-text References
Bacon, T.R. (1996). Effective people skills. Durango, CO: International Learning
Works.
Britten, P. (1997). The nutrition idea book. Morgantown, WV: West Virginia
University Press.
Curry, K.R. and Jaffe, A. (1998). Nutrition counseling and communication skills.
Philadelphia: W.B. Saunders Co.
Hitch, E.J. & Pierce-Youatt, J. (1995). Communicating family and consumer sciences:
A guidebook for professionals. South Holland, IL: Goodheart-Wilcox Company, Inc.
Snetselaar, L.G. (1997). Nutrition counseling skills: assessment, treatment, and
evaluation. Rockville, MD: Aspen Publishers, Inc.