Marriage and Family Therapy Within Counselor Education

Although the caseloads of mental health professionals usually reflect a high percentage of marital and family problems, few professional counselors have had any formal marriage and family therapy training. Departments of counselor education could expand to provide this training, and thus meet a need and an expressed interest of counseling students. This article describes one counselor education department's response to the need for comprehensive doctoral training in marriage and family therapy.     

A Problem-based Learning Approach to Civil Engineering Drawing

Civil engineering drawing courses need to relate to the students expectations, and discipline and maintain their interest. The main objectives of the drawing course in the Department of Civil Engineering at Monash University are: to teach students the main drawing techniques; to enable students to read and transmit the details on these drawings into understandable information and instructions; to develop the visualization skills of students; and to teach them to present their ideas using drawings. These aims are not uncommon, the main innovation in teaching this material was the introduction of a problem-based learning approach in the progressive assessment. A problem was set and the students asked to solve it progressively. The course was built around a particular civil engineering structure; a house. This allowed many of the students to relate the drawing to their experience and expectations. The house was used as a basis for the development of ideas and the presentation of these ideas using a large number of drawing types. Students' reaction to the course was positive. Statements like “This course is real engineering” were common. Areas for further improvement in the approach are highlighted.