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Facilitate personal growth groups
level:
6
credit:
12
planned review date:
June 2006
sub-field:
Social Services
purpose:
People credited with this unit standard are able to: facilitate
establishment of the personal growth group; facilitate the
group to identify personal growth concerns, issues, and
needs; facilitate the group to address personal growth
objectives and tasks through group process; and facilitate
closure of the personal growth group.
entry information:
Open.
accreditation option:
Evaluation of documentation and visit by NZQA, industry and
teaching professional in the same field from another
provider.
moderation option:
A centrally established and directed national moderation
system has been set up by Community Support Services ITO
Limited (Careerforce).
special notes:
1
People awarded credit in this unit standard are able to
implement Te Tiriti o Waitangi in the social services
according to the authority and resources available to
them, and are able to demonstrate application of this
competence to the context of assessment for this unit
standard (for further clarification, please refer to Unit
7928, Implement Te Tiriti o Waitangi in the social
services).
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2
Glossary
The characteristics and needs of group members and
the group may be physical, spiritual, or mental.
Characteristics and needs may include but are not
limited to: age and stage of development, coping
strategies, group roles and dynamics, culture, disability,
experience and knowledge, group history, gender,
health status, history of each member of the group,
language, sexual orientation, socio-economic situation;
and needs for physical comfort, safety, and privacy of
group members.
The group environment must reflect the value and
appropriateness of that setting in terms of freedom from
interruption to the group process, and the depth and
sensitivity of the group task and process.
Group and group members are used as generic terms
to denote the people who are involved in personal
growth groups. They may be referred to by various
descriptive terms in the range of social service settings.
Competent practice requires that the concerns, issues,
needs, and dynamics of the group be attended to as
well as the individual personal growth concerns, issues,
and needs of each group member.
3
People awarded credit in this unit standard
demonstrate: self care in groups; positive functioning in
groups; ability to relate to difference; acknowledgement
and respect for difference; acceptance, genuineness,
honesty, humility, patience, and warmth; use of
inclusive language; selection and implementation of
counselling methods and modalities that are
appropriate to the characteristics and needs of group
members; rapport with group members; professional
responses to positive and negative feedback from
group members; clarity about their role and boundaries
in relationships with group members; clarity about the
limits of their competence and when to refer on to
others.
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4
All communications with group members, and within the
group are treated confidentially. The scope and limits
of confidentiality are defined through negotiation and
informed consent of group members and the group, and
criteria established by legislation, ethical practice, and
service provider guidelines. In the context of this unit
standard, sources of criteria established by legislation,
ethical practice, and service provider guidelines include
but are not limited to: Official Information Act 1982,
Privacy Act 1993, service provider codes of conduct,
codes of practice issued by the Privacy Commissioner,
social service codes of ethics, and service provider
guidelines, protocols, staff manuals, strategic plans,
kawa, or tikanga.
5
People awarded credit in this unit standard show that
their actions are guided and supported by valid theory
for social service practice. Evidence is required of
social service theory that is derived from authoritative
sources, which may include but are not limited to: body
of knowledge related to social service work; cultural
theory; practice research.
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Elements and Performance Criteria
element 1
Facilitate establishment of the personal growth group.
performance criteria
1.1
Facilitation establishes an environment for the group that attends to the
characteristics and needs of group members and the group.
1.2
Facilitation clarifies the role, function, and any legal responsibilities of the social
service worker and service provider with the group.
1.3
Facilitation establishes the essential elements of group management.
Range:
1.4
essential elements of group management may include but are not
limited to - membership of and commitment to the group; ground
rules, kawa or protocols for each group session and group
relationships; leadership; methods and procedures for dealing with
conflict in the group.
Evidence is required of four essential elements.
Facilitation engages group members in the group process according to their
characteristics and needs.
element 2
Facilitate the group to identify personal growth concerns, issues, and needs.
performance criteria
2.1
Facilitation identifies the process to be used to identify group and group
member personal growth concerns, issues, or needs.
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2.2
Information sought is relevant to identification of each group member's and the
group's characteristics and personal growth concerns, issues, or needs.
2.3
Interpersonal skills are used which respond to verbal and non-verbal
communications and identify personal growth concerns, issues, or needs.
Range:
2.4
interpersonal skills include - attending, clarifying, encouraging,
following, listening, questioning, paraphrasing, reflection of feeling
and content, summarising.
Group work skills are used that identify and facilitate the task, maintenance, and
individual needs of the group; facilitate group process; and identify personal
growth concerns, issues, or needs.
Range:
group work skills include - identification and maintenance of group
values; maintenance of ground rules; leadership; conflict
resolution; facilitation of decision making processes; facilitation of
group building and development; identification of and contributions
to group dynamics; negotiation; brain storming; action methods.
2.5
Facilitation enables the group to identify connections between identified
personal growth concerns, issues, or needs and their social and cultural
context.
2.6
Facilitation enables the group to identify achievable objectives and tasks that
are consistent with identified personal growth concerns, issues, or needs; and
consistent with the coping abilities, knowledge, resources, skills, and values of
the group.
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element 3
Facilitate the group to address personal growth objectives and tasks through group
process.
performance criteria
3.1
Facilitation methods enable the group to select the process to be used to
address objectives and tasks.
Range:
facilitation methods include - co-creating and exploring
alternatives, challenging, coaching, confrontation, exploring
patterns and beliefs, feedback, focusing, making connections,
providing information, reframing.
3.2
Facilitation enables the group to develop a group plan that is consistent with
objectives and tasks, and consistent with the group's coping abilities,
knowledge, resources, skills, and values.
3.3
The plan identifies resources that are available to achieve objectives and tasks,
a time frame, the social service worker's role in the plan, and methods of
evaluating progress.
3.4
Facilitation of the group plan is in accordance with the social service worker's
role in the plan.
Range:
facilitation methods include - co-creating and exploring
alternatives, challenging, coaching, confrontation, facilitation of
group task and process, facilitation of group maintenance needs,
facilitation of individual needs, exploring patterns and beliefs,
facilitation of individual plans of members of the group, feedback,
focusing, making connections, providing information, referral to
other services, reframing.
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3.5
Facilitation methods encourage self determination by the group and discourage
dependency on the social service worker or service provider.
3.6
Facilitation assists the group to evaluate progress towards achieving objectives
and tasks.
3.7
Where necessary, facilitation assists the group to amend the plan according to
the outcomes of the evaluation of progress.
element 4
Facilitate closure of the personal growth group.
performance criteria
4.1
Facilitation of closure of each group session is according to the established
kawa or protocol.
4.2
Facilitation of closure of the personal growth group is according to completion of
planned involvement of the social service worker and service provider.
4.3
Facilitation of closure of the personal growth group identifies relevant issues
arising from the group.
Range:
relevant issues include - identification of achieved objectives,
tasks and personal growth; transfer of learning to dealing with
other personal growth concerns, issues, or needs; identification of
objectives and tasks that have not yet been achieved;
identification of future objectives and tasks; identification of
options to achieve future objectives and tasks; ongoing self
management plans.
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4.4
Facilitation of closure of the personal growth group identifies relevant issues for
future involvement in personal growth groups.
Range:
4.5
relevant issues include - factors that may lead to resumption of
contact; future roles, functions, and services available from the
social service worker and service provider; means of reestablishing contact with the social service worker and service
provider; other sources of referral; other methods for facilitating
personal growth.
Facilitation of closure of the personal growth group is according to the
established kawa or protocol.
Comments to:
Careerforce
PO Box 2637
Wellington 6140
Please Note:
Providers must be accredited by the Qualifications Authority
before they can offer programmes of education and training
assessed against unit standards.
Accredited providers assessing against unit standards must
engage with the moderation system that applies to those unit
standards. [Please refer to relevant Plan ref: 0222]
 New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2016