Lesson 2 Reflection

Content:

1. Positive Statement

What are you most proud of in your Lesson 2 Presentation and why?
-For this 30 minute presentation, I think I knew more information that came from credible sources that I actually backed up, as opposed to the 10 minute one where I forgot to even mention where I got my information from. I'm more confident in presenting my information because I actually know what I'm talking about.

2. Questions to Consider
       a.     What assessment would you give yourself on your Lesson 2 Presentation (self-assessment)?

       AE       P          AP       CR       NC

       b.     Explain why you deserve that grade using evidence from the Lesson 2 component contract.
I met all the requirements needed for a P. Nothing more, nothing less. I made time, turned in my lesson plan, displayed my EQ poster, etc.

3. What worked for you in your Lesson 2?
I think people were more attentive during this presentation. I tried to keep it as entertaining and informative at the same time, and I think I did a decent job for the most part.

4.  (What didn't work) If you had a time machine, what would you have done differently to improve your Lesson 2?
I would have changed the activity just by setting more rules and sticking by them. It needed more organization in my opinion.

5. Finding Value
What do you think your answer #2 is going to be? 
My second answer is probably designing a specific treatment plan based on the user's situation.

Independent Component 1

LITERAL

(a) I, Stephanie Salas, affirm that I completed my independent component which represents 30 hours of work.

(b) Cite your source regarding who or what article or book helped you complete the independent component.

For completing my independent component, I did an extensive amount of research using my mentor, Isabel Godoy, documentaries, books, and articles. I actually have a best source for each category. The website that helped me the most was the National Institute on Drug Abuse (www.drugabuse.gov), a documentary named "The World's Most Dangerous Drug," and a book titled "Substance Abuse: Information for School Counselors, Social Workers, Therapists, and Counselors." 

(c) Provide a digital spreadsheet (aka log of the 30 hours).   Post it next to your mentorship log.

Done.

(d) Explanation of what you completed.

For my Independent Component, I decided to create a blog where I would show all of the research that I've come across, post/reblog pictures & videos, as well as recommend and review books, music, and films that all revolve around the dangers of substance abuse and how to recover from it. I also include some experiences with my mentor, but only a few. Here's the link: http://armedwith4mind.tumblr.com/

INTERPRETIVE 
Defend your work and explain how the significant parts of your component and how it demonstrates 30 hours of work.   Provide evidence (photos, transcript, art work, videos, etc) of the 30 hours of work.  

This isn't the best picture but the one that i posted on my extra blog post didnt show up for some reason :-( Basically what was happening was that all the counselors met up together for a training and were asked to give feedback on how they thought they were doing and how the program could be improved. Alot of them got cut out but I got to sit in with a group and listen to what they had to say. Not gonna lie, it was pretty emotional but it was fascinating to see how much they care about helping their clients. At this training I learned how hard it is emotionally for the counselors, especially when the clients refuse to cooperate, which is often. Or when they think a client had successfully finished the program but then end up relapsing or dying from an overdose or violent crime. For 3 hours I got to hear what a counselor has to deal with everyday and it's not really not as simple as people make it out to be.

This is a picture of the SEA office located in Crenshaw. After the training, me and my mentor came here and had to print out and edit a couple of letters that we then had to deliver to the clients, notifying them that they were now enrolled in the program. This was the first and probably the only time I will have interacted with a client.

 

A couple of weeks ago I spent a good amount of time at the Cal Poly Library looking for some books that would give me more depth on the topic and luckily I found these 4. (titled Drug Addiction in Youth, A Handbook on Drug & Alcohol Abuse, Substance Abuse, and Drug Abuse (Current Concepts and Research.)

APPLIED
How did the component help you understand the foundation of your topic better?  Please include specific examples to illustrate how it helped. 

The amount of research I did was crazy, and honestly I came across a lot of information that I would have NEVER come across just from doing research checks. Did you know that methamphetamine was originally invented by the Japanese to give to their pilots so they would do well during WWII? Well I didn't, but I do now. And I thought that was crazy. I also learned how the demand for these drugs keep rising and rising, as well as the costs (for certain drugs) Did you know that 4 oz of crystal meth costs around $4,000? The crazy thing is people would actually be willing to pay that much.

Throughout my research one of the most important things I've learned is that addiction is a disease. Even if the person made the decision to try a drug, it was never their decision to become addicted because it was something that was beyond their control. Their body and brain have become so accustomed to the drug that they don't know how to function without it, and that is why they make the decisions they do. I was watching a show called Addicted, and in one episode, a 19 year old girl had become addicted to meth and had begun prostituting herself in order to pay for the drug. If she wasn't smoking meth, she was smoking weed. She was basically high 24/7. During multiple occasions while she was smoking meth, she would burst into tears and blurt out repeatedly that she didn't want to be like this but that she couldn't stop, and now I understand why. That information, in my opinion, is so vital when a counselor is considering treatment to offer their client.

Training.

so today I missed school, but for a good reason! Instead of doing normal paperwork like always, there was a training today for the counselors at a charter school in Manchester Square so I decided to accompany my mentor aka my mother. The training wasnt focused on improving interaction with the client, but it was more of a chance for the counselors to debrief their experiences and give feedback. When I first got there, they were separated into groups and were told to answer a certain number  of  questions relating to their job and the company and to not be scared  to open up and be as honest as possible.  I was grouped with a mental health counselor, a parent counselor, a bed side counselor who offered services to teens who had been terribly injured in a gang related accident,  and  a counselor who dealt with teens who were heavily involved in gangs.  The stories these people told me were unbelievable and crazy but really gave me good insight on what they have to endure every single day.
It was a good experience.
                                             

Blog 12: Third Interview Questions

Content:

Post 10 open-ended questions for approval you want to ask an expert in the field of your senior project.  The first question should be your essential question and the other nine must be about the foundation of your essential question or help you answer your essential question.

1. How can a drug rehab counselor best help a teen with a history of substance abuse?

2.  What are the most common drugs that teens abuse?

3. From your experience, what are some factors that cause a teen to become addicted to drugs?

4. How likely are teens to relapse during rehab treatment?

5. What causes teens to relapse during treatment?

6. What is the best way to prevent a teen from relapsing during rehab treatment? 

7. Are there different types of therapies that work better depending on the substance that is being abused?

8. What therapies are currently being used and how successful are they?

9. How long must a teen stay in rehab in order to fully recover?

10. Why is it important to help a teen with a history of substance abuse?

Blog 11: Mentorship 10 Hours

Content:

1.   Where are you doing your mentorship?
SEA Charter School in Pomona.

2.   Who is your contact?
Isabel Godoy.

3.   How many total hours have you done (total hours should be reflected in your mentorship log located on the right hand side of your blog like your WB)?   
I've done 13 hours as of today.

4.   Summarize the 10 hours of service you did.
On my first day there I got a tour of the entire school and office. After that, most of my hours came directly from working in the office. The counselors have time sheets and progress sheets about the clients that they have to fill out and submit every month, so I usually just help my mentor fill out those. When I'm there there's always a handful of employees and they are constantly telling me stories about their clients (without revealing names of course) or crazy things they've encountered (one almost got caught in a drive by in South Central when going to visit a client.) They keep it entertaining.

5.   Email your house teacher the name of your contact and their phone number confirming who they should call to verify it.  
Okay.

Senior Project, The Holiday

Content:

1.  It is important to consistently work on your senior project, whether it is break or we are in school.  What did you over the break with your senior project?
I can honestly say that I did absolutely nothing related to the senior project. All the teens were on break, as well as the counselors. 


2.  What was the most important thing you learned from what you did and why?  What was the source of what you learned?
The most important thing I learned is that I probably should have worked on it during the break because now I'm going to have to cram all my remaining hours into a few days before the hour check.

3.  If you were going to do a 10 question interview on questions related to answers of your EQ, who would you talk to and why?
I would interview a counselor that comes directly from a Treatment Center due to their experience and knowledge of what it takes to actually help someone recover from an addiction. I've been looking up centers and actually found this one by googling "best treatment centers in the OC"

This treatment center is designed specifically for teens and I think it would be a great help, and also more reliable than treatment centers in Pomona, as I have mentioned my frustration earlier. My dad lives in Fullerton so getting there would not be any trouble. Hopefully I'll be able to get an interview.

Mentorshipppppp

I've been lagggggging on my Mentorship hours. I've completed maybe four hours, and I know the mentorship check is sometime in January so that's my new years resolution lol. The picture above is of my current mentorship location. The church is actually one of SEA's Charter Schools, and the main office is located in the back. Thats where I go and do my hours, which is honestly mostly office work. Since I've changed my essential question, I'm currently looking for a new mentorship opportunity that's focused specifically on substance abuse. I guess I'll just see how it goes.