Flexibility and accessibility are two of the reasons students choose to pursue education in the online environment. Meeting course requirements asynchronously (not at a set time) appeals to many students as well. Shift work hours that mean you do not get to your laptop until 3 am? No problem with the asynchronous learning environment. Traffic concerns that hinder commuting to a campus? No problem again in the online learning environment. Life in a rural area without a campus around for miles? No problem. Jump online and into the learning management system, and you are a member of the online campus.
But what about learning alongside others? And what about learning what works in a variety of communities and with a variety of people? This is where community and cultural competence in counseling and the online environment come into play. Let’s look at some examples.
Multicultural competence in counseling is built upon learning the dispositions, knowledge and skills needed for the profession. Grand Canyon University focuses on each of these through the design of courses that presents the content required and allows students to practice skills both individually and in a community of learners.
Discussion forums present counseling scenarios in which students add their ideas while learning from others’ insights in their class. Community is built in discussion forums through the skilled posing of questions that allows students to explore their beliefs, values and attitudes — all critical in the development of counseling dispositions and cultural competence.
For students to understand and appreciate the diverse cultural perspectives their future clients bring to counseling, counselors in training must reflect on their own values and beliefs, practicing the skill of bracketing ideas instead of imposing them on clients. With the emotional demands of counseling being high, professors incorporate the Christian worldview into discussions and offer students the opportunity to share inspirational messages via Prayer Forums and other online forums. Although these discussion communities are never required, students report that the community they encounter through the faith they share with fellow learners at GCU helps solidify the community they feel with one another.
But counseling is all about talking to people, you may add. How do I do that in an online program? As students move along in their program of study, courses include requirements to move beyond the community found in discussion forums and asynchronous learning environments. Students begin practicing the skills needed for individual and group counseling and do so through the recording of videos. Shared in communities with their classmates, students receive feedback on their abilities, so they can improve and grow as counselors.
Scenarios for practicing counseling skills are often created with multicultural considerations such as race, gender, sexual orientation, SES and instances of privilege and oppression, so that students learn to respond with cultural sensitivity and awareness. Additionally, students are required to participate in small group experiences to simulate the community and cultural awareness in counseling that is needed in the groups they will lead as counselors.
