Family Development class project becomes a true family affair

Students in the Family Development class taught by OU-C education faculty member Jamie Harmount during fall quarter recently invited family members to class to observe poster boards that the students had created to depict their own family experiences.

“Throughout the quarter we look at ‘family’ from birth through death. At the end of the quarter, the students develop display boards that depict who they are in relation to their family,” Harmount explained. “Family can be defined in many ways: biological, adopted, foster, friends, marriage, church, etc. On their boards they place pictures of themselves, family, and friends. They place items that give us a glimpse of who they are and how they came to be who they are today. The students have artifacts that show their interests and hobbies. Each display board gives us an idea of the different stages of the student's life and generations before them.”

It was an event with a purpose and very relevant applications.

“Our students will be working with families of which will be made up of different people and relationships,” Harmount explained. “The students need to appreciate the different compositions of family and understand what is going on with the family in the stage of life they are in. The students need to know who they are, and how who they are today is influenced by the people around them from birth to where they are now in their life.”

The class includes not only early childhood education majors, but also students majoring in academic areas such as family studies, social work, psychology and nursing.

Having family members participate in the final class session added a new twist to the class and illustrated the meaning of family in a way that cannot be otherwise experienced.

“I have taught this class at OU-C for 10 years, and this is the first time I have asked students to bring a family member to the event,” Harmount said. “We had family members from different stages of life. It was great to meet the family members, but most importantly it was nice to see the pride the students' family members showed toward the student. It was a day of a multitude of smiles and a few tears.....that's family!”