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RATIONALE ESSAY

Name: Stephen Carmick

Instructor: Chris Hout

Date: 3/28/2021

RATIONALE ESSAY: PART 1

INTRODUCTION:

The following essay will include how the Applied Human Behavior program’s learning outcomes

have helped me prepare for working in the field of Human Services and functioning in “the real world” in

general. Specifically, we will look at which assignments from each course had the biggest impact for me

from the AHB programs learning outcomes. These learning outcomes are: human systems and diversity,

practice and intervention, community engagement and responsibility, professional preparedness, and

personal values and development learning. Not only have we learned a ton about the aspects of social

work and how people behave, but I feel like I’m not the only student one who has learned something

about themselves.

Throughout my time here at NAU I have constantly gone back and forth whether I want to work

with young adults, or within the National Kidney Foundation (or a non-profit of sorts). The reason I say

the National Kidney Foundation is because I have been offered an internship with them once I complete

my masters in social work in the upcoming years. I have had two kidney transplants and continue to fight

my way through life every day which is the main reason the National Kidney Foundation would give me

so much satisfaction. My ultimate goal at the National Kidney Foundation is to join a team that works on

lowering the average years on the transplant wait-list.

The Applied Human Behavior program has definitely shaped my perspective on the best practices

and being an ethical practitionerr in the field of human services. From diversity training to trauma and

treatment essays and group discussion boards, all of the assignments have taught me a little something

about myself and how I should present myself and function within the behavioral science field. Some of

the things I have learned in the Applied Human Behavior program include: how important time
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management is in the field and in personal life, the value of ethics within individuals and organizations,

and lastly how important diversity is whether it be professional or personal. Just as in the Applied Human

Behavior program; the real world ability to practice time management, personal relations, personal

values/ethics, and diversity are equally important in my everyday life. Growing up being the weird kid

with four kidneys was hard. However, I have learned through the experience of the AHB program to not

only embrace my difference, but by putting it to use in my life and career path.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES Section Development

Section 1: Human Systems & Diversity

There are four subsection learning outcomes that contribute to human systems and diversity. I

chose sections 1.1 and 1.4. Subsection 1.1 describes the importance in understanding the nature of human

systems and to apply historical perspectives to analyzing and solving current social conditions. The

project/assignment that helped me start to understand this concept was the literature review presentation

that I completed in AHB 365 in fall of 2018. This assignment was the kick start to my AHB classes 3+

years ago and introduced me into a totally new world of learning. From this assignment I learned how to

dissect and analyze key elements of current research on behavioral and psycho-social aspects and

treatments of the human experience. This project helped me see how behavioral, biological and

psychological theories and practices impact patients, families, and communities in today’s world. The

other project that really helped me was the course spanning task that I did in AHB 340 in fall 2 of 2018. I

do remember from this project that I was able to apply the deviance theory to real world problems and

show how deviance directly affects our communities and societies today. Other than that, I cannot for the

life of me remember what else occurred in this project!

Now moving on to the second part of learning objective 1, subsection 1.4 states how students

need to understand the concept of resiliency applied to support client success when working with a

diverse population. The project that coincides with this subsection was certainly the motivational
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interview from AHB 420 in spring 2020. My partner and I did this interview project after we had attended

an AA meeting for the course (pre-coronavirus). During this project, I remember we had to come up with

many different scenarios based on diversity and resiliency and we had the opportunity to play the role of

patient and practitioner. This project directly relates to the concept of resiliency being applied to support

clients in the behavioral health field.

Section 2: Practice & Intervention

The second learning outcome is practice and intervention. I focused on the subsections of 2.3 and

2.7. Subsection 2.3 states to explain the aspects of human development, life-cycle, family relationships

and how they all individually affect personal growth. I picked the genogram project that I completed in

spring 2020 in AHB 450. I did not do this project on an optional case study as provided in the syllabus of

AHB 450. However, we did do it on our own families and the breakdown of family relationships and how

they have each affected us. This was really interesting to do because I feel like we normally don’t have

the time to breakdown our own families history and talk about what problems there are and how they

have affected us in the long run. The aspects of human development and life-cycle tend to go hand in

hand with this project. Also, we presented in front of the class and had discussions on each person’s

family history and we were able to process important information that made them who they are today.

The second learning outcome (practice and intervention) was probably the most impactful and the one

that I focused on the most throughout my education in the AHB program.

The second subsection I decided to cover from practice and intervention was 2.7. Subsection 2.7

is developing urban and rural community planning skills that use interpersonal communication and

advocacy to empower cities/governments to create sustainable living and community systems. I chose the

discussion boards from AHB 375 to cover this subsection that I took in spring of 2021. The we only had

to do one PowerPoint project for the discussion boards based on our readings from that week and discuss

with our peers on what their findings where. The PowerPoints ranged from broken windows theory,

globalization, slums and migration, to ladder of citizenship participation. All of which are very interesting
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topics on the aspect of creating sustainable living for people of all ethnicities, situations, and economical

status.

Section 3: Community Engagement & Responsibility

The third learning outcome deals with community engagement and responsibility. One of the

greatest classes that had an impact on my education here at NAU was NAUY 300W. This was the

dynamic organizations writing course before AHB even had 305W. Throughout this course, we had to

write a final paper on an organization and the good they do for communities. Not only this, but I dove

into the socioeconomic and community issues that the organization can help solve social issues that may

not come to mind. I decided to do my final paper on the National Kidney Foundation and all of the good

they do for communities all over the country who suffer on transplant waiting lists. One other social issue

that you don’t tend to think about is the willingness of individuals to donate organs once they die. There

are currently 121,000 people waiting for a transplant in the U.S. and this is exactly where my goal comes

from. Through this final essay for NAUY 300W I was able to secure an internship with the National

Kidney Foundation once I complete my masters in 2023. Just as I stated in the introduction with my

personal story, this is a great opportunity to use my difference as doing something positive in the world.

The other project/assignment that helped me fully grasp the concept of community engagement

and responsibility was from AHB 350. This was, oddly enough, the discussion boards. The group

discussion boards taught me to not only learn from others, but it gave me a way of thinking about things

in a slightly different way. AHB 450 was one of the courses that really opened my eyes to what is going

on in the rest of the world. Problems that are not talked about nearly enough such as human trafficking,

citizenship, and social responsibility. As most discussion boards work, this one was particularly

interesting because we were using the readings, social justice theories and real world problems in our

discussions. While working in social work, I plan on taking what I have learned not only in this class, but

all classes, and applying it to my everyday life. The biggest problem being the idea of one’s
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socioeconomic status and how it affects each “class” in today’s society which ties into many other classes

outcomes.

Section 4: Professional Preparedness

The fourth overall learning outcome for the Applied Human Behavior program is professional

preparedness. Subsection 4.1 explains to develop professional process skills including documentation,

and personal communication skills that can be transferred over from a variety of human behavioral

careers. The project that helped me accomplish my goal of understanding and developing these skills was

the case study in AHB 425. In this project we were tasked to watching a video (case study) and document

a certain amount of information about the client and what they were talking about. It was quite difficult

for me to exactly understand the information presented in the case study and determine what was

important information to write down. Another task we had to do for this project was develop a “case

plan”. This case plan helps the social worker/practitioner determine what the next steps in treatment

and/or important steps they should take to get out of the situation they are in. As you can probably guess,

this was a great way to practice professional documentation and come up with a case plan all in one.

The other subsection for professional preparedness that I chose is section 4.4. This subsection

states to understand the awareness and capacity to apply the most prevalent ethical, legal, and safety

guidelines for best practice when interacting with clients/patients. The assignment that helped me with

this was the ethics essay/discussion from AHB 425. It was really important as we highlighted three

separate forms of practice within the essay. These included; HIPAA, mandated reporting, and court

ordered mental evaluation. All of which are extremely important in the field of social work/behavioral

sciences. Not only did this essay and discussion board help me understand the ethical, safety and legal

guidelines in the field of social work but it also opened my mind to the other career possibilities in the

field.

Section 5: Personal Values and Development

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This last section of personal values and development is really important as we are finishing up the

Applied Human Behavior program. As you can tell, I learned a ton in my four years here at NAU in the

AHB program. First I’ll start off with the 5.1 subsection. 5.1 states: Explore personal and professional

values, ethics and career driven dilemmas through participation in self-reflection and professional

exploration exercises, self-critique, discussion and group activities. The assignment that helped me a ton

with this was the group discussions from AHB 390 that I took in fall of 2019. Not only were the group

discussion boards helpful in accomplishing this learning outcome but they also taught me a lot about

myself and my personal ethics and values in the workplace. The class was titled Diverse Work

Environments and it certainly helped me open my eyes to what actually occurs in work environments

around the country to this day. I will say one thing, I think that out of anything in the AHB courses, I have

particularly enjoyed the group discussion boards the most. I really like how everyone is allowed to share

their own thoughts and collectively we are constantly learning.

The last subsection is titled: Develop personal experiences, critical thinking skills and challenge

current worldviews through teamwork, self-assessment, course projects, service learning and community

internship experience. The assignment that helped me with this was the final project from NAUY 350

that I took in spring 2019. The assignment taught me on how to challenge the current worldviews on the

idea of not only diversity, but, workplace environments. One thing that still sticks with me is the pay gap

between men and women in the U.S. which is crazy to even think about. For our final project we were

tasked to analyze a case study and essentially act out how the situation would go under professional

involvement rather than between two collogues. The challenge of critical thinking skills and developing

personal experiences have been developed throughout every single class as have the rest of the skills and

learning outcomes. It was difficult to pin-point which assignments specifically helped achieve which

learning outcomes.
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CONCLUSION

There is no easy way to breakdown what I have learned in the four years at NAU in Prescott

Valley. I have learned something valuable from each class that will continue to be with me throughout my

masters and into my behavioral science profession. I think one thing that will stay with me is the

classes/discussions/projects on diversity, resiliency, and even documentation practice. As these are things

that I constantly use in my life now, and in the future, they will forever stick with me. Throughout my

time here in the Applied Human Behavior program my mind, morals, ethics, and personal values have

grown beyond belief. If you told me before college that I would be offered an internship through the

National Kidney Foundation I would’ve thought you were absolutely crazy. I initially wanted to be a

nurse, strictly for the money and my own well-being soon after I started here at NAU-Prescott Valley, I

immediately switched to AHB knowing I would make more of a difference to not only in my own life,

but others.