COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course examines the phenomenon of death in modern society, with a special emphasis on implications for older persons.  Issues such as the meaning of death, the dying process, survivorship, and suicide are treated.  Special attention is paid to the role of the professional in death education.
 

COURSE GOAL

This course is designed to increase content knowledge and personal awareness of issues relating to aging, death and bereavement.  Facts and theories will be learned with the goal of deepening students' personal understanding of death and strengthening their practice as educators and human
service professionals.
 

COURSE OBJECTIVES

1.  Participants will achieve a wider and deeper understanding of the 'death system,' from its historical, psychological and sociological perspectives.

2.  Participants will be able to critically discuss questions and concerns about death that relate to everyday living.

3.  Participants will learn how death and bereavement affect the lives of older persons.

4.  Participants will be challenged to integrate theories and research into their professional practice.

5.  Particpants will learn the importance of death education and will be challenged to locate and develop their own roles as professionals vis-a-vis death education.

6.  Participants will plan and write a workshop curriculum for a professional audience of their choice in the area of aging, death, and bereavement.

7.  Students will explore in depth some specific aspect of gerontology-thanatology.  They will communicate this research in a written form.
 

REQUIRED READING

    Tolstoy, Leo.  (l960).  The death of Ivan Ilych.  New American Library.

    Sarton, May.  (l973).  As we are now .  W.W. Norton.

    Lewis,  C.S. (1961).   A grief observed .  Bantam.

    Albom, Mitch (1997  Tuesdays with Morrie.  Doubleday.

 
    In addition to the four "core" books above,  students will choose and read one of the following:

     Rinpoche, S. (1992).  The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. San Francisco: Harper

     Lynch, Thomas (1997).  The Undertaking . New York: Penguin Books

     Kubler-Ross, Elizabeth (1997).  The Wheel of Life:  A Memoir of Living and Dying.,  New York:  Touchstone

     Callanan, M. and Kelley, P.  Final Gifts:  Understanding the Special Awareness, Needs, and Communications of the Dying..
 

RECOMMENDED READING

    Byock, Ira (1997).  Dying Well: The Prospect for Growth at the End of Life.  N.Y.:  Riverhead.

    de Hennezel,  Maria  (1997).  Intimate Death:  How the Dying Teach Us How to Live.  N.Y.:  Vintage.

    Hosansky, A. (1993).  Widow's Walk.  New York:  Donald Fine.

    Moody, H.R. (1993).  Ethics in an Aging Society .  Baltimore:  Johns Hopkins University Press.

    Nuland, Sherwin (1994).  How we die.  New York:  Alfred A. Knopf

    Wiesel, Elie (1969).  Night.   Avon/Discuss Books.

There are a number of periodicals in the USM library that are also worth consulting.  Two specifically dedicated to the field of thanatology are Omega (Por)  and Death Studies (Por).   Gerontologically oriented journals include The Journal of Gerontology (Por),  The Gerontologist (Por),   Generations (Gor),  Research on Aging (Gor)  The Journal of Gerontological Social Work (Por),  The Journal of Gerontological Nursing (Por),  and Educational Gerontology (Gor).

Selected books and articles will be recommended throughout the course of the institute.  Students are also encouraged to share readings that have been important to them in this literature.
 

COURSE PROJECTS

There will be two written projects required of each institute participant who is seeking graduate credit:

1.  Each participant will plan and write a workshop for an audience of her/his choice in one aspect of death, dying and bereavement.  While it is highly preferable that either the subject matter or the target audience involve older adults, some students have no contact with older persons in their professional lives and may have compelling reasons to focus attention on another age cohort. Examples of workshop designs developed by participants in former institutes include a program on death awareness for nursing home personnel,  a unit on aging and suicide for community mental health professionals, a death education intervention for local school teachers, and an orientation to grief and loss for a church group.

The plan for the workshop, at minimum, ought to consider the following factors:

    * Who is the audience?
    * Who is sponsoring the workshop (who owns it)?
    * What specific aspect of death and dying is being addressed and why (theoretical rationale)?
    * A detailed outline of activities (list of objectives, course plan, etc.)
    * A listing of hand-out materials (please include samples), films, and other learning aids.
    * A bibliography of references

You will not be expected to actually conduct this workshop.  A written plan is sufficient.  However, if your situation allows it, carrying out the education/training would be an added bonus (and you can do this anytime in the future).

2.  Each participant will prepare one of the following options:

a.  Write a traditional, library-research-oriented  term paper.  Select a specific theme within the parameters of gerontology-thanatology of interest to you, read on this subject, and write a paper discussing the major findings of your research.  Be sure to include a bibliography of your references.

b.    Write a position paper on one of the important ethical issues in the field of death and bereavement.  The preferred medium here is "essay."  Begin with your thesis, and develop arguments (from the literature, from your own professional experience) that defends your position.
Include a bibliography.

c.    Keep a personal journal.  The major purpose of this option is to enable people to work on a deeply personal level to integrate materials from the course into their own lives and professional practice.  However, several rules guide this option:

       *  Integrate readings (those we've explored in the institute,  other things you've been reading along the way . . . ) with your own experiences and reflections in at least a portion of the entries.

       * Maintain a consistent flow of entries (don't leave large gaps in your writing)

       * Include at least 15 entries (averaging two or three entries per week).

d.  Develop a creative or artistic project, incorporating theories, ideas, and feelings experienced in this course.  Examples of creative projects may be writing a short story, developing a sequence of poems, writing a play, producing a slide presentation or film, etc.

Both the workshop curriculum and the written project are due Friday,  August 13, 1999.   Please deliver your materials to my mailbox in Bailey Hall or mail them to the address on the top of the first page of this syllabus.
 

ACCOMODATIONS

If you need course adaptations or accomodations because of a disability, please make an appointment with me as soon as possible. I shall be as flexible as possible to help you succeed in this course of study.  Other kinds of assistance are available at various units within the university.   For information about learning disabilities,  please contact the Office of Academic Support for Students with Disabilities, 237 Luther Bonney Hall (780-4706).   Tutoring may be obtained through The Learning Center, 253 Luther Bonney Hall  (780-4228).  Personal counseling may be arranged through the Counseling Center which has two locations: 106 Payson Smith Hall in Portland (780-4050) and Upton Hall in Gorham (780-5642).
 

INSTITUTE OUTLINE

Monday, June 23        (AM)      Introduction to the course
                                                  Personal awareness exercises

                                    (PM)      Death in Contemporary America:
                                                  Guest speaker:  Jean Badran

Tuesday, June 24         (AM)      The Demography of Death
                                                  Death and History
                                                  Stage Theories of Dying

                                   (PM)      Small Group Discussions of Tolstoy's Ivan Ilych
                                                  Film:  "W;t"

Wednesday, June 25  (AM)      Introduction to Death and Old Age
                                                  Film:  "Dying"

                                   (PM)      The Death of a Spouse
                                                 Guest Speakers:  Nancy Payne and Karen Day

    Thursday, June 26   (AM)      Foundations of Suicide
                                                  Suicide and the Elderly

                                    (PM)     Guest Speaker on Hospice:  Catherine Studley
                                                 Field Trip:  Jones Rich and Hutchins Funeral Home (Portland)

     Friday, June 27        (AM)    Bereavement
                                                  Film: "Shadowlands"

                                     (PM)    Bereavement (continued)
                                                 Personal expressions/reflections on Aging, Death, and  Bereavement
                                                 Conclusions