COUN 190: Making a Difference with Mentoring

Citrus College Course Outline of Record

Citrus College Course Outline of Record
Heading Value
Effective Term: Fall 2023
Credits: 2
Total Contact Hours: 36
Lecture Hours : 36
Lab Hours: 0
Hours Arranged: 0
Outside of Class Hours: 72
Transferable to CSU: Yes
Transferable to UC: No
Grading Method: Standard Letter, Pass/No Pass

Catalog Course Description

This is an experiential course where students explore the altruistic principles and techniques of transformative mentoring. Emphasis is placed on objective problem solving and the development of effective attending skills. Students evaluate mentoring, first year experience, and student development theories with the goal of promoting the academic and psycho-social factors that contribute to college and life success. Campus and community resources will be discussed and explored. 36 lecture hours.

Course Objectives

  • Identify and evaluate the components of successful communication\\nskills: sender, receiver, filters, elimination of internal and external\\nbarriers.
  • Identify personal, psychosocial and physiological factors that\\nnegatively affect success (such as boundaries, causes/symptoms/management of stress, locus of control, nutrition, social and family\\npressures); propose options and solutions; and develop an integrated\\nlife and stress management action plan.
  • Demonstrate a comprehensive understanding of student and human\\ndevelopment theories and leadership principles.
  • Present a theoretical concept in relation to the first year\\nexperience, provide a solution, describe the outcome, and analyze the\\neffectiveness of the solution through the service learning process.
  • Evaluate internal and external determinants impacting college/life\\nsuccess. \\n
  • Analyze the first year student's acculturation needs/barriers and\\nidentify/provide on-campus and community resources for academic and\\nsocial adjustment.
  • Demonstrate an understanding of person/career identity and relate/\\nplan/evaluate components of one's own educational path accordingly\\n(personality/career assessments, academic resources)
  • Formulate and present ideas regularly in both oral and written form,\\nassessing appropriateness of solutions to overcoming obstacles that\\nhinder success. \\n
  • Identify campus/community resources and demonstrate problem-solving\\ncompetence in relation to student/mentee success. \\n

Major Course Content

  1. Phase I - Evaluate mentoring and altruistic principles in relation to​self/student development for success in college and the adult life span
    1. Introduction to mentoring principles
      1. Definition, purpose, and nature of mentoring
        1. Altruism
        2. Roles of Mentor and Mentee in adult learning and development
      2. Experiential learning process of mentoring relationships across a lifetime
        1. Formal vs. informal mentoring
        2. Types of mentoring programs
        3. Campus Service Learning
        4. Career/professional development
        5. Community involvement
      3. Overview of mentoring
        1. History of mentoring
        2. Mentoring theories - Hobbs, Kram, Cohen
        3. Stages of mentoring relationship
    2. Student and Adult Development
      1. Psychosocial Developmental Stages (young adult and beyond) - Erikson
      2. First Year Experience theory - Gardner
      3. Student Development - Chickering
      4. Retention and Persistence - Adelman
      5. Theory of Involvement - Astin
      6. Adult Transition theory - Schlossberg
    3. Overview of effective mentoring (service learning)
      1. Interpersonal communication
      2. Communication fundamentals and styles
      3. Active listening and effective attending
      4. Goal setting
      5. Responsibilities
      6. Confidentiality
      7. Learning goal
      8. Mentor/Mentee agreement
      9. Contact planning and reflection
    4. Pre-mentoring preparation - self-exploration
      1. Emotional and social intelligence
      2. Attending for physical and psychological presence
      3. Listening assessment for improving communication
    5. Identifying Phase I challenges in the mentoring relationship
  2. Phase II - Develop mentoring skills in relation to the adult life-span.
    1. Psychosocial mentoring relationships across life span - Kram
      1. Developing friendship
      2. Demonstrating respect
      3. Building trust
      4. Being authentic/genuine self
      5. Developing self-confidence/esteem
      6. Providing affirmation and support
      7. Employing nonjudgmental and active listening skills
      8. Understanding body language
      9. Allowing for autonomy
      10. Responding and questioning techniques
        1. Non-threatening communication
        2. Self-disclosure appropriateness
      11. Providing constructive feedback
    2. Behavioral functions of the Mentor - Cohen
      1. Relationship building
      2. Information sharing
      3. Facilitative focus
      4. Confrontive focus
      5. Modeling
      6. Enlarging vision
    3. Empathy vs. sympathy
    4. Understanding personality types
    5. Exploring learning styles
    6. Locus of Control - Rotter
    7. Ethics and ethical decision making
      1. Making responsible choices
      2. Objective problem solving
      3. Understanding personal bias
      4. Identifying core values
      5. Establishing boundaries
      6. Understanding multicultural mentoring and diversity
        1. Disability etiquette
        2. Cultural differences
        3. Contrasting assumptions and values
    8. Identifying Phase II challenges in mentoring relationship - 18 hours
  3. Phase III: Develop mentor leadership skills and resource exploration.
    1. Servant leadership defined
    2. Leadership skills to promote Mentee development
      1. Cognitive, psychosocial, emotional
      2. Responsibility to change for more effective living
      3. Exploring alternatives and supporting behavior for change
      4. Exploring motivation
      5. Principles of closure
    3. Ethical behavior - Kirchener
    4. Identifying role-models
    5. Understanding character development for lifelong social and mental wellness
      1. Trustworthiness, honesty, integrity, reliability, loyalty
      2. Respect, civility, courtesy, decency, dignity, autonomy, tolerance, acceptance
      3. Responsibility, accountability, self-restraint, diligence, perseverance, improvement
      4. Fairness, process, impartiality, equity
      5. Caring, welfare of others, "no harm" philosophy
      6. Citizenship, civic virtues, volunteerism, informed, commitment to society
    6. Physical wellness and lifelong holistic view for health
      1. Wellness and lifestyle defined
      2. Healthy nutrition, diet, and exercise
      3. Eating disorders
      4. Physiological and psychological effects of chronic illness
    7. Stressors and stress management techniques for life
      1. Physiological effects of stress, drugs and alcohol, depression
      2. Procrastination, anxiety, test taking, and project deadlines
      3. Death and dying
      4. Time and finance management
      5. Stress and relaxation response cycle
      6. Stress reduction techniques
    8. Risk and resiliency
    9. Campus community resources
    10. Crisis intervention and referral
      1. Suicide or harming others
      2. Crisis intervention model
      3. Psychological services and making referrals
    11. Identifying Phase III challenges in mentoring relationship and pulling it all together

Examples of Required Writing Assignments

Students are required to complete weekly reading assignments of the textbook. Other required readings include journal articles and literature about First Year Experience theory, Learning Style theory, Personality theory, and cultural/gender awareness.
Students maintain a journal throughout the semester to explore their mentor and leadership development, to demonstrate their ability to synthesize topics discussed or read, and to apply that knowledge to mentoring situations.

Examples of Outside Assignments

Students develop questions that they use to interview campus role models, create a written report comparing and contrasting the interviewees to themselves, and present their findings as a final project. Students utilize written resources provided by the instructor(Confidentiality Agreement, Mentor/Mentee Agreement, Learning Contract, Goal Setting Action Plan) for self development and/or to help effectively mentor the Mentees.

Instruction Type(s)

Lecture, Online Education Lecture