The Questions Now

Notes from a hospital chaplain on art, suffering, and finding God in the questions

Reaching Further: CPE Level II Learning Goals

At the start of each unit of CPE, we begin by setting learning goals and mapping out how we plan to address them.

Crafting a good learning goal—let alone the 2-5 learning goals you’re probably expected to produce—takes careful consideration and reflection. And nailing down and articulating these goals can be hard work, as evidenced by the fact that my blog posts on this topic are the posts that get by far the most traffic. If it can be of any help to my fellow journeyers, I’ve decided to share my final set of learning goals, from all the way back in 2018. Not surprisingly, all of these are goals I continue to work on to this day (though I have also continued to make progress in each of them). I think that’s one of the marks of a truly relevant personal goal.

My own advice is to spend some time intentionally reflecting on how you would like to grow as a pastoral caregiver. What skills and interests are your present circumstances inviting you to give deeper attention to? Where have you felt most challenged or unfree? When have you felt most excited/curious/alive? What resources are available in your clinical setting to you to help you work on these goals? How can you make full use of group and individual supervision?

Also consider the following:

• Feasibility (Do I have the resources in place to work meaningfully on this goal at this time?)
• Measurability (How will I know I am meeting my goal? How will my peers and/or educator(s) be able to tell I am meeting my goal?)
• Enjoyability (Will I actually want to work on this goal, or will I avoid it? How might I self sabotage? Who/what will help keep me on track if I choose to work on something I know will be hard and uncomfortable for me? How can I make it fun?)

Following the format recommended in my own CPE setting, these were my Level II learning goals for my fourth and final unit of CPE:

Goal: I will reflect on my relationship to authority, in others and in myself.

1. Reason for choosing this goal : I would like to examine and work with my habit of holding back, deferring to others’ authority, and hesitating to claim my own authority. I want to become more confident and at home in naming my unique strengths and growing edges as a pastoral caregiver.
2. Objectives : I will use group and individual supervision to reflect on how my personal history impacts my understanding of authority. I will observe how authority impacts my interactions with peers, supervisors, patients, the interdisciplinary team, and in a Consultation and Assessment Committee. My peers and supervisors will give me feedback on when they observe me holding back, and help me to talk about the factors that lead me to hold back or defer to others.
3. Evaluation : I will claim my unique strengths and weaknesses as a pastoral caregiver with greater confidence and freedom. I will articulate ways my understanding of authority connects to my values and theology.

Goal: I will explore the impact of gender in my pastoral care.

1. Reason for choosing this goal : I am deeply interested in the connection between gender and human relationships and communication, but have only passingly explored this in CPE so far. I have noticed that some of the times I feel least free in pastoral care are when issues of gender roles and sexuality are highlighted, particularly in interactions with male or transgender patients.
2. Objectives : I invite my peers and supervisor to help me reflect on how gender dynamics are at play in our interactions, and the impact this has on our functioning as a group. I will use verbatim seminars, case presentations, IPR, and individual supervision to reflect on how gender impacts my assessment and pastoral role in patient encounters, and interactions with staff. I will draw on resources from the behavioral sciences to reflect on my perception of gender in my own experience and personal history, and in the experiences of my patients.
3. Evaluation : I will exhibit a greater sense of freedom in identifying and discussing how gender impacts me and my pastoral functioning. My verbatim/case presentations will demonstrate an increased awareness of how gender is at play in pastoral encounters.

Goal: I will expand my resources for pastoral assessment and care of those who are dying.

1. Reason for choosing this goal : Some of the pastoral conversations that I most treasure, that feel most precious and holy, are the conversations I have with people who know they are dying. Often, however, I find it hard to assess and respond to their needs. I want to expand my capacity to listen to the needs of these patients, to meet them where they are, and to offer appropriate pastoral interventions.
2. Objectives : I will research and apply insights from the behavioral sciences and my own theological resources in understanding my interactions with the terminally ill and dying. I will use verbatim/case presentations, as well as group and individual supervision, to reflect on pastoral encounters where I felt challenged or limited in my ability to assess and care for dying patients. I will use individual and group supervision to talk about how my own experiences with death and dying shape my expectations and assumptions. I will reflect on my own feelings and expectations surrounding my own death.
3. Evaluation : My verbatim/case presentations will reflect a wider range of interventions and ability to be present to the needs and concerns of those who are dying.

If you found this post helpful, you may also want to check out my other posts on Level I Learning Goals and Level II Learning Goals. For examples of verbatim case studies, check out this case presentation from 2018 and this one from 2020.

For further discussion on the role of authority in pastoral care, see this excerpt from my final final self-evaluation.