Western Washington University � Woodring College of Education
Miller Hall 324 � WWU � Bellingham, WA 98225-9087 � (360) 650-7759
Student Self-Assessment Form
Name: Julie Seholm
Course Number / Title: Professional Internship: HS 490 Spring 2003
Core Site: Cyber
1. List your Internship Learning Objectives and corresponding activities.
Learning Objective 1: Assist in the design and set-up of the Can Do! Summer Tutoring Program.
Learning Activities:
*Set-up and attend meeting with coordinator, assistant superintendent, and other school personnel that provide direction for the program.
*Create a list of kids who have low test scores (ITBS, WASL) as well as a list of students that attended previously that were Title I.
*Assist in the creation of the registration process for school personnel referred students and open registration students.
*Request donations from local businesses to use as program incentives.
*Create needed paperwork (invitations, employment requests, registration letter and form, etc...) and mail.
*Arrange and attend interviewing of potential tutors for the program as well as call for applicant's references.
*Record registration and payment on Excel document.
*Create posters, fun facts, and decorations for the program.
*Contact "Farm Friends" leader for information regarding projects and lessons related to farming for Can Do!
*Assist in training and explaining process to fellow intern.
*Continue promoting a running relationship with elementary and middle school teachers.
Learning Objective 2: Implement the "Take Charge" Program for 4-6 female students at Lynden High School under the supervision of Robin Latham (School Psychologist) and Sue Cade (Special Education).
Learning Activities:
*Meet with Robin and Sue to set up plans for implemenation.
*Read through material and watch movie to decide which topics will be taught.
*Create a basic timeline of chapters to be completed and presented to Robin and Sue.
*Read through "Take Charge" material and create lesson plans based on the previous meeting's accomplishments as well as current student needs.
*Create expectations list as well as a confidentiality procedure to ensure students feel safe.
*Meet on Monday and Wednesday's for seven weeks with students for 40 minutes.
2. Describe how you have met your learning objectives. If your objectives were not completed this quarter, consider what barriers occurred that impeded our progress toward accomplishing our original mission. This does not mean that learning did not occur, merely that our mission was unable to be completed. In this instance, unanticipated learning may have occurred. Discuss what you have learned because of this experience.
I learned so much this quarter and most definately feel as though this is my most productive quarter. The best experience was facilitating this "Take Charge" group. I got to meet 5 really great girls that have so much to offer. It was amazing to see the trust that was built up. This especially was true with one girl in particular. She was dealing with a court case involving her and she came to me to discuss what was going on. I helped her write a letter to the judge by asking her questions about how the situation made her feel and the such. She then wanted me to come with her to court. It was an amazing experience that definately went above and beyond what I had expected to learn this quarter.
I also learned a lot about my ability to facilitate small groups. I was able to pull in what I had learned last year in core and it definately showed to be productive. The girls inquired about continuing the program next year which was exciting. I didn't find the facilitation process to be as difficult as I was imagining it to be. I was also excited because both Robin and Sue began the classes with me and about a week and a half into it I was doing them all by myself.
I was excited to be able to learn the "Take Charge" material and had to do it at a quick pace. It was a last minute group that was thrown together so I had about a week to get things already. I feel as though this would be great material to take with me through out my professional journey knowledge wise. It definately gave me different ways to think about thinks and the material relates to our everyday lives and setting goals for ourselves.
If there were anything I could change about this experience it would be having a longer time to prepare the program as well as a longer time to do the program as it is normall an 18 week program. Besides that I loved the experience and it got me even more excited to work with this population.
In reference to Assisting in the design in set-up of the summer program, I learned a lot. This year was very different than the set-up last year as the teachers in charge of the program felt that their needed to be programatic changes. However, these changes weren't made until after we had already sent out the registration forms. Needless to say this was almost disasterous. The changes couldn't be made overnight and directly affected us at Family~Community Services. The ironic part is that it didn't add any work to the teachers but added a lot to ours. If I could have done anything differently I would have given the teachers a lot more responsibility to help with the changes and the extras they were adding to our already busy schedule. Unfortunately I wasn't at this meeting and could not voice my opinion.
I assisted in each of my learning activities and fulfilled the responsibilities I had for meeting the needs of our program. The one area that I did not assist in as much was creating posters, fun facts, and decorations for the hallways. I did however locate free posters and had them sent to our office. This was definately an interesting quarter and I learned how to more efficiently accomplish things that are changed at the last minute.
3. Describe what you have learned about your ability to learn experientially.
Once again this quarter I am impressed with how much I learned experientially. I would definately have to give credit to Carole, my internship instructor, for pushing me harder and supporting me throughout the past five quarters. Because of this I feel as though I could accomplish anything I set out to do my last quarter. From my experiential experiences I have become a more self-sufficient individual that can tackle any obstacle placed in front of me.
This hands-on experience has given me some skills that other students from other majors may not have. I have had the opportunity to work with kids one-on-one and in small groups. I have also had the opportunity to work with parents to assist them in meeting their students and/or families needs which will be an extremely important skill to have when I graduate this June.
I am consistently amazed at the amount I have learned by being placed directly into real-life situations. I know that I will be a great human services professional because these experiences have gave me insight and skills to work with individuals from all walks of life.
4. Describe any special projects and/or research beyond your learning objectives that you engaged during your field experience this quarter.
I think the most enlightening or educational experience was the one I stated previously of working with one of the students in my "Take Charge" group and court. I had never been through the court process so it was amazing. I went to the first court date with her and her mom only to find out that it got cancelled. At that point we talked with the District Attorney about what would happen and what to expect. We then went and sat in on actual court and saw the process. I was absolutely amazed at what went on and it was not what I had envisioned all of this time. It was a great experience as I got to see what happened prior to and then in court. I felt that it meant a lot that I went with them through this process as it was only the student and her mother as their family all lived out of town. There were only three of us there supporting them, Carole, a counselor, and me during the actual court day. It was such a valuable experience that will definately assist me in dealing with youth throughout my professional career.
This is the only real significant piece of learning that went beyond my learning objectives this quarter as this quarter I stayed very busy with these two learning objectives.
5. Identify areas in which you need further development/instruction and what new areas that you would like to explore.
The one are that I would really like to concentrate more on after graduation is looking for and utilizing the resources within our community. In the last few weeks I was able to work with Blue Skies for Children and get a system that we can refer the kids that come through my actual job facility to Blue Skies for clothing. I wish I would have looked for more ways for collaboration at internship to assist in meeting the needs of our families.
I feel as though the last five quarters have very well prepared me to become a successful professional in the world of human services. The learning has absolutely amazed me and I am excited to enter the workforce to empower others with what I have learned.