The end of the CEP project

The CEP project came to an end on 30th September 2010, and the Final Report is being submitted tomorrow, 30th November 2010.

The project has involved a huge amount of work by partners and project staff, and the innovation from previous projects has, in our opinion, been transferred to the partners. This transfer has brought about excellent results- since October 2008, 153 students of 14 nationalities have studied on the course, and 15 tutors from the 4 partner countries have been trained in online tutoring methods. Students have evaluated the online resources, and have consistently rated them more favourably than comparable face-to-face courses: 25% of students who returned data reported that they had definitely or possibly transferred sectors as a result of the CEP project. Over 80% of students reported that they had already, or would be able to, use their learning experience in subsequent teaching practice. Over half of students reported that after the course, they would be continuing in their current role with added skills/knowledge, whilst 26% would go into psychotherapy practice (after their training) and 8% would be making a career change into psychotherapy after the end of the course.

The tutors and partners reported significant impacts from participating, e.g.
“Surprised and delighted by the level of disclosure and intimacy on this course - students supported each other through some very difficult forum threads and chatrooms.” (P1 tutor)
“This is a fantastic experience. It is unbelievable what levels of intimacy, sharing and support can be reached through this platform. It is also a unique chance for people coming from different countries in the world to connect through human experiences.” (P1 tutor)
“It is more my own tempo, I can think about it more before I give my feedback and support. To my own surprise, it is more personal than in real live training!” (P2 tutor)
“I definitively want to continue this e-learning training!” (P2 tutor)
“I was a bit afraid of the medium in the beginning, but I learned very fast to appreciate the virtuel learning environment.” (P2 tutor)

The course has also been assessed by external evaluators and highly rated. Strengths identified were:
- creative design
- range of different elements and resources
- flexibility
- student-centered approach
- accessibility
- structure (short manageable units)
- good communication and feedback possibilities
- the inspiring scope and range of the content and subjects of the course (such as existential wellbeing, existential counselling, life strategies and dimensions of life)
- the richness of creative assignments and exercises- the high levels of commitment amongst the staff

Sections of the course materials have been translated into both French and Dutch, as have the 250 entries for the lexicon of psychotherapy terms. It is our hope that the translated materials will form the basis for CPD for psychotherapists across Europe, and discussions with the EAP have begun.

New term and student numbers

The CEP team have been working hard to prepare the learning environment, course materials and supporting documentation for new students, and they have made a good start to their studies. The new Moodle learning environment is standing up well to the large influx of students- the following students are currently registered for course units:

IS01 Well-being Island
8 students at NSPC, UK
25 students at University of Sheffield, UK
22 students at University of Leuven, Belgium
25 students at University of Masaryk, Czech Republic

IS04 Therapy Island
19 students at University of Sheffield, UK
11 students at University of Masaryk, Czech Republic

So we have a total of 110 students currently studying on the units, with some more Sheffield students due to start a new IS08 Research Methods module in the next weeks, and the students at the University of Bordeaux, France, due to commence in January 2010.

Monitoring call and start of term

Chris Blackmore had a monitoring telephone call today with Helen Metcalfe of ECOTEC to discuss progress on the project. It was useful to be reminded of the action points from July's partner meeting and to receive advice on how to progress on various issues.

The NSPC students have begun this week, although the process of getting students registered for their courses has taken longer than usual. Students in Leuven and Sheffield are due to start this coming Monday, 28th September 2009.

YouTube

We now have a YouTube channel and there are several videos online of interviews (in English) with project staff and a dialogue (in Flemish/Dutch) between project partners Mia Leijssen and Emmy van Deurzen, recorded at the University of Sheffield in July 2009.

Research Associates' meeting in Leuven, Belgium

The CEP Research Associates- Susan Iacovou, Jean-Marc Alexandre, Claude Missiaen and Chris
Blackmore- met in Leuven, Belgium on 31st August, along with the Belgian partner, Mia Leijssen. It was a very useful day, going over the administrative requirements of the project and exploring together how Moodle will be used in each partner country to deliver the SEPTIMUS course materials to students. It was also a great opportunity to get to know one another better and to explore the lovely city of Leuven.

Bordeaux meeting

Digby and Emmy met with the French team in Bordeaux in July, including Marc Auriacombe, Gregory Michel, the new Research Associate Jean-Marc Alexandre and the tutor Melina Fatseas. It was excellent to meet with new colleagues, and also very helpful to have an update on recruitment in Bordeaux and their preparations for teaching students in January 2010.

New media

As well as our CEP Twitter account and CEP Facebook group, we have set up a CEP YouTube channel for posting up interesting video content online. There is nothing there just yet, but in due course, we will edit some of the interviews from the Sheffield partner meeting and post them online.