HED 4730: Teaching Stress Management and Emotional Health
| Course Home Page | Instructor’s E-mail | Introduction |
| Course Objectives | Textbooks | Course Requirements |
| Grading | Submitting Assignments | Course Mechanics |
| Lessons | A Final Word | |
Introduction
Stress management and emotional health is the study of you! It's an examination of those factors and influences that have an impact on your health. It is also an opportunity to examine barriers and motivational factors that affect the degree of commitment you make to health practices. My role, and your future role, is to serve as an enabler during this process. An enabler recognizes that each person's mental-emotional, physical, social, and spiritual status is unique. As an enabler I often will challenge you to consider the consequences of certain lifestyle choices and the “truth” of your knowledge. An enabler does not have all the answers regarding stress and emotional health. I will need to be a learner at the same time I am instructing you in this course.
Although most universities offer at least one course in personal stress management and/or emotional health, course work in teaching stress management and emotional health is less common and in many cases nonexistent. The current North Carolina Healthful Living Education Curriculum includes stress management, relationships, and self-protection as three of six broad health content areas to be included in the K-12 school health program. This self-paced course provides an opportunity for health educators, teachers, and students to comply with Department of Public Instruction curriculum guidelines as well as providing practical and supportive teaching strategies for stress management and emotional health (which includes violence prevention education).
Course Objectives
This course will explore the factors associated with the development of emotional health and the management of stress as a basis for understanding the healthy personality. Emphasis will be directed towards teaching stress management and emotional health within an educational setting. You will study and apply some very practical aspects of health education and program planning. Throughout the course you will be encouraged to deepen your commitment to effective teaching by applying the principles of self-esteem building, cognitive-behavioral self-management (violence prevention, communication, rational thinking), and accessing appropriate resources.
The course consists of selected readings, projects (journal writing), periodical reviews, written textbook reactions, and stress management skill practice.
Textbooks
We will use one textbook for this course:
Seaward, Brian Luke (2004). Managing Stress: Principles and Strategies for Health and Well-Being, 4th edition, with 2 relaxation CDs.
This well-written and nicely illustrated book will provide you with unique and comprehensive information for teaching emotional health and stress management and will serve as an excellent reference in your teaching career or chosen occupation.
The textbook can be obtained from the Higher Grounds bookstore at the Friday Center either by ordering online or by printing and mailing the book order form.
You may also consult this list of professional journals for additional current readings.
Course Requirements
The structure and administrative policies of the Self-paced Courses program require that I evaluate student progress for the purpose of grading. Please keep in mind while reading these criteria that the primary emphasis of this course is personal involvement. Each lesson will include a written assignment or thought-provoking activity to encourage you to examine your thoughts and feelings about stress and emotional health on a personal and professional level. Evaluation of submitted materials will be based on completeness (sufficient length and content), clarity, creativity, neatness, and evidence of importance to you. This means it is predominantly a subjective evaluation.
School Visitation
You are asked to visit one school during this course to observe and critique a lesson taught on either emotional health or stress management (guidelines for the critique are provided in Lesson 2). An alternative activity is provided in the lesson for individuals who cannot, for medical or other reasons, observe a lesson in person.
Journal Writing
You are asked to keep a journal of your experiences, discoveries, insights, and feelings related to dietary habits, personal behaviors, emotions, and self-concept arising from the course readings and activities. A journal is a place for self-dialogue in the form of words, pictures, and so on. An example of journal format is included in Lesson 3. While everyone’s process is different, at least two entries each week are required for a period of four weeks.
Written Assignments
Written assignments are given to ensure comprehension of the material and to integrate it with the basic tenets of stress management and emotional health. These assignments are included in the course lessons and support basic material covered in the textbooks and readings. Written assignments are open book. Proofread your assignments carefully for punctuation, spelling, grammar, and so on before e-mailing them to your instructor. Use the submit button in each lesson to submit your assignment to your instructor and Student Services at the Friday Center. All assignments must be Microsoft Word documents.
Assignment Length Philosophy Statement
You must, in almost every case, exceed the minimum required page length in order to comprehensively answer the questions and obtain the best grade. (Single space your name/heading and do not insert blank lines at the top of the first page so that I may easily measure actual content when counting pages.)
Answer all questions to the best of your ability.
I will briefly use my professional experiences here to convince you that more is better. Years ago, as a doctoral student, I completed a take-home exam in an advanced nutrition class. Ruth, my neighbor and friend (and very busy mother of four children) was also enrolled in the course and asked to see my exam prior to turning it in.
After looking through my twenty-page plus exam, Ruth exclaimed, “My God, John, why did you write so much?” A bit confused, I asked why she made the comment, and her reply was “I only wrote three pages.” My answer to her was that I wanted to remove all doubt in the professor’s mind what grade I wanted—an “A.”
Be assured here that my intent in writing this is not an exercise in ego gratification. Having followed this philosophy for the past sixteen years at Appalachian State University I have been promoted to full professor (coming up the ranks from assistant to full professor is kind of like earning a black belt in karate).
Professionally, I have also been given the Board of Governors Teaching Award, the Reich College of Education’s Outstanding Teaching Award, and the Reich College of Education’s Scholarship Award. In addition, each year I have received merit pay for publishing, exceptional teaching, community service, and other professional endeavors.
Many of you have attained success in academic and cultural endeavors and in competitive sports so you know what I mean when I say that hard work pays off.
The moral of this story is, always try to hit a home run on the first pitch, and if you don’t succeed, try again.
You may submit each written assignment only one time (no revisions). Therefore, it is important that you give each assignment your best college try, paying attention to length, content, grammar, spelling, APA references, and so on.
Grading
The grade you earn in this course will be based on the total number of points achieved. These points will be based on evaluations of the assignments you submit. Most written assignments are worth 20 points. The school visitation and paper assignment in Lesson 2 is worth 50 points.
Submitting Assignments
Assignment Format
- Write the assignment using Microsoft Word and save/send the document using the older 2004 version, as I will be opening these documents using a Mac computer, which does not currently support the newer PC Microsoft Word 2007 version. Name the file yourlastname-lesson#.doc.
- Include your full name, date, course title, and a heading at the top of the first page. For example:
Peggy Greene
June 9, 2008
HED 4730 Teaching Stress Management
Lesson # - Meet or exceed the required number of pages. Use a standard 12-point font such as Times New Roman. Double-space the text.
- Use the following margins: 1.0" margins for top, bottom, and right side; 1.25" margins for left side.
- Use Microsoft Word's Spelling and Grammar tool to correct any errors.
- As a final step, read and use the proper E-mail Etiquette as articulated in this course’s home page. Please note: I will not grade assignments or respond to e-mails sent without professional/formal and polite communication as explained in the E-mail Etiquette section.
Save Your Work
It is extremely important for you to save copies of any work you send via e-mail. If I don't receive your message, you must have a copy of the e-mail with the attached file, indicating the date sent, to prove that you submitted the assignment. It is your responsibility to maintain copies of your sent e-mails as well as the attached files, as there is no way to guarantee that any e-mail message will be delivered.
Please check your e-mail software to see how it manages sent and saved messages. Some software automatically deletes messages one month after they have been sent; others only save messages if they are filed in folders; others save messages received but not those sent. You may need to send yourself a copy of your e-mailed assignment at the same time you send it to me, or you may need to print a copy of the e-mail message and any attachments to keep in your paper files. No matter how your system works, make sure you know how to save a copy of all work that you submit and that you save the copy for several months beyond the end of the course.
Submit One at a Time
As your instructor, I would prefer that you submit no more than one assignment at a time and wait to receive that assignment back from me before submitting the next one. In addition, please do not attempt to complete too many assignments at the end of your enrollment period, as I may not be available or able to return grades to you in a timely manner.
Also, at certain times of the year, I may experience time constraints due to other courses that I teach at Appalachian State University, a holiday, or other professional obligations (such as presenting at a conference, and so on). If you wish to attempt completion of this course outside of my preferred outline above, you may discuss this with me. However, please note that the Friday Center for Continuing Education is interested in your success in the course, and the submission restrictions are in place for your benefit. To succeed in this course, you should take your time to get feedback from me along the way, and be patient with the delivery method that we use.
Course Mechanics
The primary method of communication in Self-paced Study Online is electronic. You will communicate with me and submit your assignments via e-mail. It is essential to inform me and Student Services of any change in your e-mail address.
Contact me with questions regarding the content of the course and your progress. There is an e-mail link to me at the top of every lesson page.
Contact the Instructional Designer at the Friday Center with problems with this Web site, including bad links.
If you have any nontechnical logistical questions as you work through the course (credits, transfers, withdrawal, extensions, and so on), contact Student Services at the Friday Center, telephone 919-962-1134 or 800-862-5669.
Note on E-mail Etiquette
When you e-mail friends, you can be as informal as you wish. However, when you write to your employer, professor, or supervisor you should use proper and polite language. Why? You can communicate more effectively, and it gives people a better impression of your manners and abilities, which might be important if your supervisor is asked to write a reference for you in the future. In addition, by training yourself to write properly, you develop skills necessary to deal with future clients and supervisors, who are unlikely to tolerate bad e-mail manners. Please use the following guidelines when e-mailing me and other professors.
- Even telephone conversations start with “Hello” and end with “Goodbye.” Therefore, please use a formal salutation when e-mailing professors, such as:
Dear Dr. Janowiak
- When e-mailing faculty, remember that you are not communicating with a friend or relative, therefore do not use informal language in your e-mails.
- If you have a request, say it politely. You can start with “I would like to ...”, “I wonder if you can ...,” “May I ...,” “Is it possible to ...,” “Do you mind ....” DO NOT WRITE: “I want to know ...,” “I want you to…,” “Send this to me …,” “Tell me when ....” Just adding the word “please” does not mean that you are being polite. “Please” can be used in commands, for example, “Please behave yourself” or “Please finish the project tomorrow.”
- Your identity is an important clue to the context of the message. Every semester I teach approximately 100 students in four classes, therefore identify yourself as a student in the class you are enrolled in, such as:
Dear Dr. Janowiak,
I am a student enrolled in your Self-paced HED 4730: Teaching Stress Management and Emotional Health course.
- Be concise. Faculty get many e-mail messages every day, and often read them quickly. E-mails that are too lengthy may not be read carefully, or may be left unread until more time is available.
- Always, re-read your e-mails and check for spelling and grammatical mistakes before sending them.
- When making an appointment, you can suggest a few time slots, but always say something like “If these times do not suit you, please feel free to let me know any other time that you prefer / that is convenient to you.” If you cannot make the date suggested, say, “I am sorry, but I cannot come to see you on [Monday].” Do not say, “I am not available on [Monday].”
In conclusion, if you do not use a formal salutation and my name (Dr. Janowiak) or establish who you are and what class you are enrolled in, your e-mail message will not be read or responded to.
Lessons
When you have reviewed the information on this home page, click on the Lesson 1 link. Complete the reading assignment in the textbook, and then read the discussion notes on the Web. When you are prepared, complete the written assignment and e-mail your answers to me and Student Services using the submit assignment button in each lesson. Be sure to include the course name and the submission number in the subject line of your e-mail. You will follow this procedure for each lesson in the course.
| Lesson 1 | Introduction |
| Lesson 2 | Teaching Methods |
| Lesson 3 | Journal Writing |
| Lesson 4 | Writing a Lesson Plan |
| Lesson 5 | Practicing Meditation and Relaxation |
| Lesson 6 | Dealing with Substance Abuse |
| Lesson 7 | Dealing with Violence and Abuse |
| Lesson 8 | Humor Therapy |
| Lesson 9 | Social Support and Stress |
| Lesson 10 | Dealing with Depression and Suicidal Behavior |
| Lesson 11 | Time Management |
| Lesson 12 | Hostility and Stress |
| Lesson 13 | Nutrition and Stress |
| Lesson 14 | Seeking Solitude |
A Final Word
I want you to find Teaching Stress Management and Emotional Health engaging, interesting, and enjoyable. You may proceed at your own pace through assignments, lessons, and activities. Krishnamurti once wrote, “There can be no true learning where there is fear or competition.” In the absence of these negative incentives and through personal involvement I am confident that you will begin the lifelong process of achieving for yourself the changes you wish to see in your future students' stress management and emotional health.