A Closer Look at Curriculum
Medicine Wheel began nearly seven years ago when RedCliff Ascent admission officers received inquiries into services for young adults 18 and over. RedCliff Ascent had decades of experience serving adolescents. We felt we had something unique to offer young adults as well.
Since that time, our curriculum has been refined to reflect the specific needs of adult students. As Medicine Wheel grew, so did the need for an even more thorough curriculum focused on our adult students complex needs.
Medicine Wheel’s phase work is the result of a team effort from therapists, administration, and staff. We asked students which aspects of the program were most effective and which parts should be enhanced. The list of ideas was overwhelming.
In our minds, a medicine wheel should be a physical manifestation of who we are. It should be a means by which a person could overcome the struggles taking place within and find peace. The medicine wheel should be a map which brings a person’s inner self into harmony with the world around them.
By using the medicine wheel as a symbol of life, it was our hope students could pinpoint areas of strength and weakness within their own lives and find the power to overcome the behaviors that inhibited their development.
With that objective identified, we began incorporating the strengths of our earlier curriculum with the ideas and experience of students and staff. What resulted is a program that recognizes and meets the needs of our students and also disrupts their old behavior patterns.
We’ve adapted the symbol of the medicine wheel to the specific phases of our program. Here is a brief glance at the six phases of Medicine Wheel:
Phase 1 – East / Child. Represents new beginnings, new life, and a rebirth.
Students play games, analyze childhood stories and become acquainted with the rules and structure of the program.
Phase 2 – South / Adolescent. Represents warmth, light, exploration, questioning the world around us. Students examine their creativity and individuality.
Phase 3 - West / Adult. Represents the setting sun, leaving childhood and adolescence, finding inner strength. Assignments focus on thinking critically and communicating effectively with others
Phase 4 - North / Elder. Represents darkness, night, looking at the world from a different point of view. Though not yet elders, students are given opportunities to think about the influential people in their lives. They discover what it means to be a leader and set goals for their future.
Phase 5 – Center / Self. Students participate in a three day solo camp. They complete an assignment designed specifically for them by their therapist. They prepare a recovery maintenance plan and get ready for the Cougar Council.
When phase five is completed, students prepare for a presentation before the Cougar Council. The Council consists of administrators, therapists, staff, and fellow students, who have shared the journey with the presenter. Students share some of the experiences that brought them to Medicine Wheel as well as stories from their journey to recovery. They share their recovery maintenance plan. Following the presentation, council members are free to ask questions or challenge the student’s perception. Once the council is satisfied that the student has made significant progress, phase six is delivered.
Phase 6 – Outer / Others. Students return from their solo and Cougar Council and are senior members of the community. They focus on mentoring others and ensuring that the culture of the community remains intact as they prepare to leave the community.
Since implementing the new phase work, we have seen a positive change in the depth in which our students engage in therapy and interact with their peers. The curriculum helps students to develop increased leadership, improve communication, and build a strong community of support and understanding. As one of our former students stated, the purpose of Medicine Wheel is to “feed your spirit not your ego.”
Now more than ever, we are proud of what we are accomplishing at Medicine Wheel. More importantly, we are proud of the students who demonstrate the courage and determination to participate in, and complete the program.