PYN007 Approaches to Clinical Supervision

Unit Outline: Semester 2 2025, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Overview

This unit provides an experiential introduction to the process of clinical supervision, drawing upon student’s real-world experiences as a practitioner.  Face to face and digital practices and technologies will be used as mediums for supervision. Supervision processes, roles, legal and ethical responsibilities, approaches, and theories are reviewed.

This unit aims to help you to gain an in-depth and practical understanding of the impact of supervision from a variety of perspectives to ensure Interdisciplinary and interprofessional learning and employability while contributing to sustainable futures within organisations, industries within local and global communities.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

1. Apply effective professional supervision skills from a range of perspectives;
2. Identify and articulate the relevant supervision techniques including the professional and ethical frameworks associated with the supervision approach;
3. Articulate and report on a personal practice framework for guiding supervision drawing on career development and employability;
4. Synthesise and critique the research and theory on counselling supervision and associated professional and ethical issues.

Content

Learning Approaches

The teaching program consists of face-to-face lectures and tutorials on weekends and evenings along with online self-paced lectures. The classes consist of a combination of lectures, small group discussions, supervision demonstrations and debriefing.  The classes will also engage you through peer-to-peer case-based learning. You are expected to be active participants in weekly readings, journaling, small group discussions, debriefing and take on the role of the supervisee and supervisor within a collaborative constructionist supervision context and as a supervisee in one of four contrasting models offered by specialists in the field.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

You will receive continual formative feedback during classes, structured exercises and reflections. Summative feedback will occur through the two formal assessment items.

Assessment

Overview

The assessment items in this unit integrate research, journaling, practice and reflective practice. You will experientially explore what supervision is and how it enhances your practice. You will also be asked to provide written reflections and critiques of your experiences of the different approaches to supervision.

Threshold assessment conditions

Due to the experiential nature of the unit, you must complete all pieces of assessment. Summative assessment items will be criterion-referenced on a satisfactory/unsatisfactory basis. Each of the summative assessment items must be satisfactorily completed to pass this unit and ALL criteria within each assessment must be deemed satisfactory.  Therefore any students not reaching a satisfactory grade for any of the individual criteria will be asked to resubmit that particular criteria.  Only one resubmission will be afforded and If any criteria is not deemed satisfactory the student will receive an overall unsatisfactory grade.

The final result for this unit will not contribute to your overall course GPA.

Unit Grading Scheme

S (Satisfactory) / U (Unsatisfactory)

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Demonstration & Critique

You will take on the role of Clinical Supervisor, in addition to experiencing the role of supervisee in the context of a collaborative/constructionist framework of practice. Following this demonstration, you will submit a paper offering a critical review of your experience and the relevant literature on the theoretical and philosophical underpinnings, techniques, and ethical frameworks of a collaborative/constructionist approach to supervision using examples from your own experience of the process. 

Grading on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis

Only the submission of documentation (written critique) is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

Threshold Assessment:

Because of the experiential nature of the unit, you must complete all pieces of assessment. Resubmissions of unsatisfactory assignments may be negotiated with the unit coordinator.

Assessment: Essay

You will observe a supervision session hosted by a specialist supervisor that has significant experience in the field. The specialist supervisor will offer a contrasting supervision model that differs from a collaborative constructionist approach. You will submit a reflective analysis of your experience, incorporating a critical review of the literature on the contrasting supervision model including any ethical considerations, and compare this to a collaborative/constructionist approach.

Taking all approaches that you have experienced and observed throughout the semester into account you will then consider your current work environment (or desired work environment) in counselling or supervision and articulate how the experience of observing multiple models of supervision this semester will affect the way you understand and conduct supervision in the future.

Graded on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory basis

This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.

Threshold Assessment:

Because of the experiential nature of the unit, you must complete all pieces of assessment.  Resubmissions of unsatisfactory assignments may be negotiated with the unit coordinator.

Academic Integrity

Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.

The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Resources

Resource Materials

Prescribed text(s)

Carroll, M. (2014). Effective Supervision for the Helping Professions (2nd ed.). London: Sage

Risk Assessment Statement

There are no out of the ordinary risks associated with this unit.

Course Learning Outcomes

PY12 Master of Counselling

1. Critique and employ coherent therapeutic, practical and contextually relevant counselling knowledge, skills and values that embody a collaborative professional discourse that honours multiple perspectives across culturally diverse lifespans.
   Relates to: Demonstration & Critique, Essay
2. Critically evaluate and apply intentional practice processes, engaging advanced critical thinking and decision-making skills, underpinned by ethical and professional values and critical reflexivity to ensure culturally safe collaborative counselling.
   Relates to: Demonstration & Critique, Essay
3. Critically evaluate and apply theoretical and philosophical underpinnings of counselling research and practice, drawing upon digital capabilities and the qualities of ethical conduct, social inclusivity, reflexivity and reflection in sustainable ways.
   Relates to: Essay
4. Scrutinise counselling research literature, reflected in autoethnographic professional practice experience, to develop new knowledge integral to the standards of professional counselling practice and practice innovation.
   Relates to: Essay
5. Promote and practice effective written, oral and digital communication processes including advanced listening and dialogue skills, congruent with a collaborative counselling approach, in a range of contexts.
   Relates to: Demonstration & Critique, Essay