Social & Cultural Diversity -Cultural Complexity

This module taught you about the complex nature of cultural identity. It also introduced the multicultural counseling competencies developed by the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD) and informed you about the need for competence in the counseling profession.

As you reflect on the weekly readings and digital resources, think about your multicultural awareness, knowledge, and skills. In addition, think about how you identify culturally. Has your cultural identity changed over time or due to experiences? Do you belong to cultures in which others might not identify with your outward appearance? Could others place you in a cultural group with which you do not identify? With these questions in mind, identify three cultural groups to which you belong and how the complex nature of these cultural memberships has impacted your development. In addition, define the purpose of the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD) multicultural competencies and how your level of competence may impact your work as an ethical counselor.

Reminder this week: Focus on your role in developing competence and self-awareness and the characteristics of and concerns for diverse groups.

Tasks:

Post to the Discussion Area your responses to the following:

• Take the multicultural awareness, knowledge, and skills survey (MAKSS) and write a brief reflection on your score. You are not required to share your score but rather a reflection on what you learned from taking the assessment.
• Identify three cultural groups (e.g., gender, ethnic, religious/spiritual, etc.) to which you belong and how the complex nature of these cultural memberships has impacted your development.
• Identify at least two groups for which you seek additional awareness, knowledge, and skills.
• Define the purpose of multicultural competencies.
• Identify how your level of competence may impact your work as an ethical counselor.

Be sure to read all of your fellow classmates' original posts and respond to more than two (for maximum points) of your classmates' posts. Your responses should be substantive, meaning they should encourage further dialogue and discussion, encourage your classmates to think about other aspects of the topic, compare your response to your classmates' responses, or ask a meaningful question to better your understanding. Responses such as "I like/I agree" or "I don't like/I don't agree" are not complete enough.

Your discussion posts and all written assignments should reflect graduate-level writing skills and appropriate use of APA style, including in-text citations and references.

Please consider your posts to be more than a mere required assignment. Especially for the weekend format, your online engagement is an opportunity to thoroughly engage with your classmates and instructors in an online format. It is expected that posts/responses will be respectful and substantive.  

Submission Details:

• By the due date assigned, post your responses to this Discussion Area.
• Through the end of the module, respond to more than two of your classmates' posts that differ from your opinion. While responding, comment on how the specific dilemmas identified in their responses address the cultural influences or differences between the human services workers and clients.

Grading CriteriaMaximum PointsQuality of initial posting, including fulfillment of assignment instructions16Quality of responses to classmates12Frequency of responses to classmates4Reference to supporting readings and other materials4Language and grammar