Course Catalog

CAS382E - Family Communication (3 credits) 9571

COURSE DESCRIPTION
The study of messages and meanings in contemporary family relationships, including family diversity, spousal relationships, custodial and autonomous child-parent relationships, rules and roles, family stories and rituals, and the religious, legal, and media messages about families.

LEARNING RESULTS
The learner will be able to:
• Identify and describe various definitions of the family and apply them to the novel Ellen Foster.
• Apply theoretical perspectives of family conflict and stress management to situations within his/her own life.
• Understand theoretical principles of power and decision-making and apply them to his/her own family or a family close to him/her.
• Recognize personal family stories and rituals that communicate meanings about his/her family, and analyze them by applying course content.
• Examine personal beliefs about the role faith plays in his/her family relationships.
• Apply knowledge of family diversity to the role he/she assumes and will assume in his/her daily life.
• Apply critical thinking skills while researching and writing a family problems research paper.

REQUIRED TEXTS AND MATERIALS
• Family Communication: Cohesion and Change , 6th ed. by Kathleen M. Galvin and Bernard J. Brommel, Addison-Wesley-Longman, New York, 2004.
• Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons, Vintage Books, New York, 1990.

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INTEGRATION OF FAITH AND LEARNING
The integration of faith and learning in this course occurs in several ways. Learning assignments 3, 5 and 7 specifically address the role of faith in family communication. All other learning assignments provide opportunities to share and evaluate personal experiences where the role of faith may be examined.

LEARNING DOCUMENTATION
To determine if the Course Learning Results have been attained, students document their learning by submitting the following items:
• A posted response in Blackboard from your reading of the text.
• Paper identifying and discussing family definitions in the novel Ellen
Foster.
• Paper discussing the results of a family interview on a particular aspect
of family communication.
• Reflection paper regarding the role of power and decision-making in the
student's family.
• Written analysis/evaluation of a family ritual OR an existing or new personal
family story that communicates family meaning in a selected category, along
with a brief paper identifying the messages in the story.
• Paper recalling a stressor event of the family and examining the process
the family went through in dealing with it.
• Outside readings from a course bibliography and reflection paper that focuses
on personal application of the content.
• Analysis of a topic concerning a family problem including the causes and
effects of the problem and a potential solution.
There are 8 lessons and 0 examinations for this course.

LEARNING EVALUATION
Evaluation is on a point system:
Assignment #1 0 points
Assignment #2 100 points
Assignment #3 50 points
Assignment #4 50 points
Assignment #5 50 points
Assignment #6 50 points
Assignment #7 50 points
Assignment #8 150 points
Total Points 500 points