Assessment Brief

ORMONDE COLLEGE OF FURTHER EDUCATION

Assessment
The Psychology of Childhood Weighting: 30%
Title:
Issue Date: 16/11/20 Submission Date: 17/12/20

Minor Award and Code: Human Growth and Development 5N1279

Assessment Type: Assignment 1 30%

Learning Outcomes Assessed: LO 1,2,3,4,5

Learners must include a copy of this document with all assignment submissions. All sections should be completed.

Learner Name (or ID if applicable):

Class/Course Group:
Internal Assessor:

Assessment Activity Description and Instructions to Learner: Maximum

In order to complete this assignment, you will need to complete all tasks indicated below. Available
Mark
1. Introduce assignment briefly giving details of the theory you will use to conduct a
needs assessment e.g. Maslow’s hierarchy of Needs, Mention some of the
Psychological theory which might be referred to in your piece e.g Erikson’s 5
psychosocial theory, Piaget’s cognitive theory, the importance of attachment to
psychosocial functioning etc.
2. Identify the needs which are being met in the care situation (5 x 1) and explain why this
7.5
is the case showing relevant referenced theory to support (5 x 0.5)
3. Identify the needs that are not being met and explain why this is the case (5 x 1) 7.5
showing relevant referenced theory to support (0.5 x 1)
4. Detail the interpersonal skills that are required to meet the client’s needs. 5
Description of the interpersonal skills needed
How and why these skills are necessary to meet the client’s needs (10 marks) 5
5. Give a detailed description of appropriate strategies, which could be followed to meet
the client’s needs. Refer to Brofenbrenner’s ecological theory.
Strategies for individual - min 5 relevant strategies (2 marks) supported by relevant 5
referenced theory (3 marks)
Family based responses - min 5 relevant strategies (2 marks) supported by relevant 5
referenced theory (3 marks)
Community based support - min 5 relevant strategies (2 marks) supported by relevant
5
referenced theory (3 marks)
Government funded supports based- min 5 relevant strategies (2 marks) supported by 5
relevant referenced theory (3 marks)
6. Outline a comprehensive and sensitive course of action appropriate to the care
situation. 5
 Course of action that is comprehensive Min 5 X 1
7. The course of action meet needs (2) and is supported by relevant referenced
theory (3) 5

Case Study
Alison is six years old. She has been difficult to manage for about two years. She’s rebellious, moody and
oversensitive and bursts into floods of tears when she doesn’t get her own way. She often screams blue
murder when Rachel her foster parent says “No” to her demands for sweets and fizzy drinks and other
junk food. Rachel is happy that Alison has improved her eating habits and that her sleeping pattern has
settled down. When Alison first arrived she couldn’t sleep and had no interest in regular meals or healthy
food.

Rachel and Daniel, the foster parents have a two-year-old son and Alison has settled into the family quite
well. However, they are worried about Alison’s aggressive behaviour and her inability to make friends at
school and in the community. They are also worried that Alison is taking more and more time and
attention and there is no noticeable improvement in her behaviour. Rachel and Daniel have tried
everything, being hard on her, praising the good behaviour, trying to ignore the bad, star charts, rewards
time out, the lot. Alison has been in their care for six months.

Alison likes her new home. Rachel and Daniel have given her own room and he has brought her favourite
toys with her. It is bright and cheery and he feels safe there. Rachel brings her to school every day and
collects her in the evenings. She brings her to the park and to the swimming pool. Daniel plays camogie
with her. Alison loves helping Rachel at baking and really enjoys eating what they make. They read
stories to Alison and try to reach her by engaging her in activities that he enjoys. She likes living there and
has built up a relationship with them. Though she still has problems expressing her feelings and often
resorts to tantrums or closes them out completely. Alison does not talk about her parents to Daniel or
Rachel because he cannot express her confusion. Alison is also troubled and unsure in her foster home, as
he will have to go back to her natural parents eventually.

Mairead is the community care worker assigned to help Alison and she visits the foster parents weekly.
She is on call should particular difficulties arise. Mairead hopes to return Alison to her home in the long-
term future but he will be in their care placement i.e. fostered until her parents can cope again with the
help of family support workers. Alison has to work through her own emotional issues and her foster
home provides a safe and nurturing environment.

Home is a situation of domestic violence and the violent behaviour between her parents is exasperated by
regular alcohol abuse. Alison’s early memories are of her mum and dad arguing, screaming, shouting and
throwing things around. Then the beatings would start. As she lay in the dark he heard it happening and
was too frightened to go see it all. At night she likes to sleep with the light on so that she can feel safe.
Alison was taken into care, as her social worker feared she would be physically harmed. Alison was
attached to her mother but feared her father. At the moment she is confused and angry about the whole
situation.

Alison has built up feelings of fear and anger, which she cannot express and her stress is channelled, into
her behaviour. She is both aggressive and withdrawn at school. She cannot trust and has no friends. The
other children are afraid of her. Rachel and Daniel were called into the school. The principal is
sympathetic to Alison’s situation, but felt that she must inform the foster parents that Alison was not
 settling into school.

In class, Alison displays an inability to concentrate. She just won’t sit down on her chair, constantly fidgets
and has taken to saying no to her teacher and refusing to co-operate. She’s very lively and can only
behave well if given constant one to one attention. The school is providing help as the learning support
teacher withdraws Alison from class and she responds well to that.

Alison is bored in class and she feels ashamed and embarrassed. She often drifts away and daydreams.
She does not enjoy writing or reading. She can’t make the letters like the other children. She is developing
a poor image of herself and she thinks that she is no good. She would prefer to watch TV for hours but
Daniel and Rachel said that she must go to school.

Alison enjoys sport. She is big and strong and often doesn’t realise her own strength. She likes playing
camogie, running and jumping. She also enjoys painting and colouring although she doesn’t feel she is
good at it. When playing she has been reprimanded for pushing, pulling and annoying children in the
playground. She won’t play the game by the rules. She likes to play the game by her own rules. The
other children regard her as a bully as he takes over the game. Rachel and Daniel are concerned that they
are failing to give Alison a sense of right from wrong but recognise that her home situation has affected
her emotionally.

Declaration of Original Work

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All assignments and other material submitted by you for assessment must be your own work. In line with Kilkenny
and Carlow Education and Training Board’s Assessment Policy, plagiarism or any other form of copying are not
permitted. Learners found copying from each other, directly from text books/websites or other sources etc. will be
in breach of Kilkenny and Carlow Education and Training Board’s Assessment Policy. Evidence for this assessment
may take the form of written, oral, graphic, audio, visual or digital evidence, or any combination of these. All
evidence must be provided in a suitable format as described in the Assessment Activity Description and Instructions
to Learner.

 I declare that all material in this submission is my own work, except where duly acknowledged and
referenced
 I have acknowledged the sources of all quotations, references, tables, diagrams, web-sourced
information etc. from other sources using approved referencing methods (if relevant)
 I have provided a bibliography of all works and sources used in preparation of this submission (if
relevant)
 I understand that failure to comply with the Kilkenny and Carlow ETB’s assessment policy relating to
plagiarism constitutes a serious breach of conduct

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