Instructors: Mrs.
Margo Rizk, M.A., Christian Counselor
E-mail:
mmrizk1@msn.com
Phone:
412-793-1868
Ihab Istafanous, M.D.
E-mail:
istafanous@uthscsa.edu
Phone:
210-497-3453
Course Description:
This course introduces
students to a variety of approaches that have been developed
for premarital counseling. The course also teaches students
a conceptual model for understanding the variety of ways
marriages can become dysfunctional, and introduces them to
short-term methods that can be used when those kinds of
problems develop.
Course Objectives:
At the conclusion of the
course, students will:
1. Understand the importance
of premarital counseling in the Coptic Church.
2. Biblical foundations for
marriage.
3. Able to
address the
normal issues and challenges that all couples face in the
course of their marriage.
4. Understand
the Church guidelines
on engagement, marriage, annulment, and divorce.
Required Text:
1.) So you’re Getting
Married. H. Norman Wright Ph.D. Published
by Regal Books a Division of Gospel Light.
2.) Why Marriages
Succeed or Fail. John Gottman, Ph.D.
Simon& Schuster Rockefeller Center.
On-Site Lesson Schedule:
Readings Prior to
Arrival: The first three chapters in So
you’re Getting Married
The Instructor will
give an overview of the course and will emphasize the
important points.
|
Grading Scale:
|
Test Schedule |
Percentage of
course grade |
|
A 90-100
B 80-89
C 70-79
D 60-69
F below 60 |
Test 1: Lessons 1-6
Test 2: Lessons 7-12
Research paper |
30%
30%
40% |
Course Requirements:
1. Attending the course’s
lectures in the announced conference.
2. Having daily access to the
Internet and basic typing skills.
3. Turning assignments after
the dead line may reduce the score by 25 %
4. There will be a research
paper at the end of the semester.
Distance Learning Lesson
Schedule:
|
Week |
Lesson |
Text Book Assignment |
Test Schedule |
|
Week 1 |
Commitment to Marriage |
Page 7 Ref # 1 |
|
|
Week 2 |
Commitment to Love |
Page 51 Ref # 1 |
|
|
Week 3 |
Commitment to Change |
Page 67 Ref # 1 |
|
|
Week 4 |
Commitment to Evaluate
Expectations and Develop Goals |
Page 103 Ref # 1 |
|
|
Week 5 |
Commitment to Resolve
Conflicts |
Page 187 Ref # 1 |
|
|
|
|
|
Test 1
Group
project |
|
Week 6 |
What Makes Marriage
Work? |
Page 13 Ref # 2 |
|
|
Week 7 |
Marriage Styles: The
Good, The Bad, and the Volatile |
Page 32 Ref # 2 |
|
|
Week 8 |
The Four Horsemen of the
Apocalypse Warning Signs |
Page 68 Ref # 2 |
|
|
Week 9 |
Your Private Thoughts
Become Cast in Stone |
Page 103 Ref # 2 |
|
|
Week 10 |
The Two Marriages: His
and Hers |
Page 137 Ref # 2 |
|
|
Week 11 |
Your Marriage: The
Diagnosis |
Page 162 Ref # 2 |
|
|
Week 12 |
The Four Keys to
Improving Your Marriage |
Page 173 Ref # 2 |
|
|
|
|
|
Test 2
Lessons 1-12
& Research paper |
Group project:
Design a booklet explaining
the crowning ceremony
1. Person #1: Coordinate the
work and be responsible for the final project.
2. Person #2: Design the
booklet including color, font, and clipart.
3. Person #3: Typing
(grammatically correct with no typo errors) and reviewed by
the group.
4. Person #4: Research and
assign points to each person.
5. Person # 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10,
11, 12, 13, 14: Each responsible to write a short paragraph
with Bible verses.
Please remember it is a
booklet.
The
project’s goal:
1. To
Enhance team work
2. Produce
a booklet needed in English to be distributed to the engaged
couple, of course after the approval of HGBY
3. Will be
the first project produced by FMP
Grade Protocol:
All will get the same grade, I
will follow up with the project.
Research Paper:
Choose one of these areas:
1. Explore the traits of a
good marriage
2. The principles of mate
selection.
3. Value of pre-marital
counseling.
4. Prepare a program for
pre-marital counseling.
Note:
Your paper should be a minimum
of five pages and five references (other than the text
book).
1. First page is the title
page (title, your name, instructor’s name, course name)
2. Abstract (summary).
3. Your paper
4. Last page is the reference
page.
