Climatology for guidance

Abstract

Much of counseling literature stems quite naturally from large school systems where good or poor guidance operations flourish in an atmosphere somewhat detached from petty internal jealousies and aloof from pressures of local downtown interests. But what of the countless smaller communities where, with a paucity of other referral sources, the challenge is greatest for follow-through and finis to problems of youngsters? How grows the counseling concept in whistle-stop and rural market place? For any living thing to grow, flourish, or just exist there must be adaptable soil, at least a balance with natural enemies, and a favorable climate. The educational process in general needs such satisfactory conditions; but no area is so dependent on climate, so reliant on external factors as is the province of the school counselor. It is the contention of some that the guidance program is of such a nature that persistence and proof of the product will, in the tradition of Horatio Alger, always triumph. For administrators, teachers, or counselors to be carried away with this enthusiasm and faith can lead to a fate worse than death-a straw man guidance program that appears on faculty rolls, annual reports, and even school letterheads, but never fulfills its responsibilities. It might be better to have no program at all than one defrauding children, parents, and public by carrying the name but not the duties of a service purporting to challenge basic deficiencies in attitudes, behaviors, and emotional or psychological construction.