Related Courses and Supporting Documents
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PFP 105 Introduction to Personal Financial Planning
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FSHS 510 Human Development and Aging- I chose to include this document because I felt it is relevant to the content area. Families will need resources in home care for an elder loved one, or even for themselves as they grow old, and they will need to know the options.
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FSHS 550- The Family
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FSHS 552- Families and Diversity
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FSHS 590 Capstone Experience in Family Studies and Human Services
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FSHS 670- Working with Parents:
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SOCIO 211- Introduction to Sociology
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PSYCH 110- General Psychology
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Family Resource Management
An understanding of the decisions individuals and families make about developing and allocating resources including time, money, material assets, energy, friends, neighbors, and space, to meet their goals
Managing resources can be very hard and time consuming depending on the family. All families will manage resources differently from one another, because they are all unique and happen at different points in their lives. Deciding what is needed, and what isn't can be really difficult for a family because we all have different wants and needs. As parents they may think they are making the right decisions, but it may not be what is best for the entire family. As a family life educator we need to know how to work with families, and teach them how to best use their resources.
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This content area can be explained well through Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. This theory has five levels with the bottom being of most importance to the top: physiological (food, shelter, water), safety, love/belonging (family and relationships), esteem needs, and self-actualization. Few people actually make it to self-actualization. Some families prioritize certain levels over the others. Some may rely strictly on the physiological needs if they are just trying to get by day to day. Others struggle for a sense of belonging and love if their family relationship is not strong. Whatever the case, families needs to use resources available to them in order to function in an effective way.
Reflection
Family Resource Management is an important content area because in order to best meet the needs of a family, a professional has to understand the situation and what resources are most vital. When I was taking my social work classes we talked a lot about being connected with different organizations so that you could best help your clients, and give them the resources they need to be successful. Being connected to different resources makes you a huge asset to any client, or company because you will be available to help whoever comes your way. And even if you don't have the resources to help, you can direct them to someone who does have the resources to help.
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In my future career I will be a "resource manager" if I happen to become a teacher of some kind. I will need to know what resources my students have, so that i can tailor their learning to be applicable with what they have.