Appendices

Appendix 1: Certificates of Achievement from Preston City Council:

 

Appendix 2: Email of invitation to thank you meal from tutor:

 Appendix 3: Student Evaluation Form:

Appendix 4: Teacher Evaluation Form:

Appendix 5: Learning Styles Inventory (Learning Styles Inventory, 2014)

Appendix 6: Prospects list of matched occupations

Appendix 7: Personal Development Plan

During the few months between completing my degree and graduation, I plan to continue volunteering for Preston City Council, hopefully getting the chance to work some more health and nutrition programs within the community. I am also about to begin applying for volunteer opportunities of shadowing a health promotion worker, this would give me a clear insight into the job, allowing me to decide for sure if I would enjoy it. I believe that continuing to practice reflection whilst volunteering is essential, many employers desire staff members whom are able to showcase personal development, via reflection; therefore this is an important area of improvement. Specifically I have devised three clear targets which I wish to meet within the coming year:

1.      Develop oral communication skills; with relation to addressing a group of adults (i.e. interview panel). I intend to do this by making an appointment at the universities careers advice center, where they offer opportunities to experience practice assessment centers, which are becoming increasingly common within job applications.

2.      Gain more experience within the nutrition and health sector. I plan to do this by sustaining contact with my supervisor at Preston City Council and also looking for other volunteer opportunities around the area. I also plan on contacting a number of health promotion specialists, requesting to shadow them for a period of time.

3.      Gaining more knowledge and qualifications within the nutrition and health sector is vital for me. Therefore I am planning to complete my level one award in health awareness and level two award in health promotion.





Reference List

Briggs, H. (2013, June 13). Rise in child obesity-related hospital admissions. Retrieved May 8, 2014, from BBC NEWS: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-22849112

Carper, B. A. (1978). Fundamental Patterns of Knowing in Nursing. Advances in Nursing Science, 1(1), 13-24.

Gibbs, G. (1988) Learning by Doing: A Guide to Teaching and Learning Methods. Oxford: Further Educational Unit, Oxford Polytechnic.

Grubaugh, S. (1989). Non-verbal language techniques for better classroom management and discipline. The High School Journal, 73(1), 34-40.

Johns, C. (2000). Becoming a Reflective Practitioner. Oxford: Blackwell Science

Learning Styles Inventory. (2014). Retrieved May 8, 2014, from Learning-Styles-Online.com: http://www.learning-styles-online.com/inventory/results.php

Mckeachie, W. J. (2002). Teaching Tips: Strategies, Research and Theory for College and University Teachers (11 ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.

Mezirow, J. (1990). Fostering Critical Reflection in Adulthood: A Guide to Transformative and Emancipatory Learning (1 ed.). San Fransisco: Jossey-Bass.

Paton, G. (2013, July 8). The revised national curriculum: subject by subject. Retrieved May 8, 2014, from The Telegraph: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/10166742/The-revised-national-curriculum-subject-by-subject.html

Prospects. (2012). Prospects. Retrieved May 8, 2014, from Health promotion specialist: http://www.prospects.ac.uk/health_promotion_specialist_entry_requirements.htm

Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., & Jasper, M. (2001). Critical Reflection for Nursing and the Helping Professions: A User's Guide. Palgrave Macmillan.

Schön, D.A. (1987). Educating the reflective practitioner. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Assignment 2- Part 2

“There has been a four-fold increase in the number of children and teenagers admitted to hospital for obesity-related conditions in the last decade” (Briggs, 2013). This statement provides an accurate representation of the child obesity problem in the UK. In an effort to combat this epidemic, commencing September 2014 the government have published a revised national curriculum, which from then on will involve students aged five-fourteen engaging in cooking lessons (Paton, 2013). These lessons will incorporate the understanding of nutrition, preparing dishes, learning cooking techniques and understanding seasonality, similar to the programme on which I’ve been working. Throughout my placement Alison, my supervisor continuously offered chances to discuss career opportunities within the council along with my personal career aspirations. Completing this work placement has enabled me to make a conscious decision that working in a primary school on a full-time basis, is not for me. However Alison’s role of ‘Community Nutrition Worker’ for the council interested me greatly. I have a great passion for nutrition and would thrive off a job such as this. A career in community nutrition and health presents various opportunities to get involved in devising and delivering different programmes and schemes, opposed to the monotonous day-to-day routine of teaching in a school. The recent emphasis upon nutrition and health in children could present new job opportunities. A brilliant job opportunity would be to create a team of enthusiastic health and nutrition specialists, who could devise and deliver nutrition programmes to schools and colleges around the country. Although I am only beginning my career path, there is no harm in being aware of future opportunities and having aspirations, no matter how optimistic they may be.

In order to aid the process of choosing a suitable career path, I created an account on Prospects (an official graduate’s career website). This enabled me to complete a number of questionnaires, which identified my key skills, motives and desires, producing a list of careers which may be suitable for me, (Appendix 6). A Health Promotion Specialist was found to be a well matched job for myself. Although sports science was my chosen degree, throughout the course of the year I have always favoured nutrition and health related modules. To be a health promotion specialist I would be required to attain vast amounts of experience within the sector, building upon leadership skills and learning to effectively motivate and influence others. Health promotion is a very broad subject, various areas of which I am unfamiliar with, therefore it may be beneficial for me to complete training such as level 1 and 2 awards in health promotion. In accordance with Prospects (2012) upon completion of my sports science degree I would be eligible to apply for this job. Although I may be at a disadvantage to those who have/are working towards a nutrition specific degree, I believe that my drive and enthusiasm will help me get into this sector of work. Key professional and personal attributes required for this job include: excellent oral and written communication skills, negotiation skills, initiative and research skills. Although my written communication skills are quite accomplished, my oral communication skill need much improvement, I believe that this will come with practice and experience. Research skills are something which I do possess as an outcome of working towards my degree, completing my dissertation in Eating Disorders required me to do a lot of reading and research. Health promotion specialist jobs in the NHS range of typical salaries are £21,176-£34, 189, to begin (Prospects, 2012). This job also offers opportunities for career development, leading to roles such as senior health promotion specialist and possibly assistant managers.     

With relation to future career aspirations I need develop my oral communication skills, by conveying the confidence I have established in front of the students (work placement), when presenting information to a group of adults (e.g. at a job interview). Using reflection to attain personal development is a relatively new skill to me; it is a useful skill to possess in order to showcase my ability to critically reflect to potential employees. In order to pursue a career in community health or nutrition it is imperative that I further develop both personal and professional attributes discussed throughout the assignment. In order to achieve this effectively, I have devised a personal development plan (Appendix 7); outlining clear actions I must undertake in the near future, in order to meet my aims.