School Counselor Association Research Articles

School counselors in the classroom: A systematic review

AbstractThe American School Counseling Association has continuously defined school counselors as having a role in the classroom across four different iterations of the ASCA Model. And yet, the amount of scholarly production is limited along with the amount of time school counselors report actually spending time in the classroom with students. Further, the social‐emotional learning (SEL) movement, among others, has encouraged the utilization of teachers in classrooms to provide lessons and interventions related to the social‐emotional development of students rather than school counselors who have been trained to do so. The current study examines the literature on school counselor‐facilitated classroom interventions over the past 30 years utilizing systematic review procedures to do so. The results indicate that only 40 classroom intervention studies have been published in peer‐reviewed journals over the past 30 years. Implications for counselor education scholars and school counselors are discussed.

Liberatory school counseling practices to promote freedom dreaming for Black youth

The American School Counseling Association calls for professional school counselors to support the holistic development and success of all students. However, the field of school counseling is riddled with practices that have harmed and dehumanized Black students. For example, school counselors engage in practices (e.g., social–emotional learning and vocational guidance), which work to reinforce white supremacy and dehumanize Black students. Further, school counselors may also contribute to the ways that the basic and unique needs of Black students are overlooked, leading to the continued systemic adultification of Black students. What is needed is a radical imagination of school counseling, which centers on homeplace as the foundation in order to engage in freedom dreaming. In this article, the authors engage this radical imagination to detail an antiracist view of school counseling practice that embraces freedom dreaming and homeplace through healing and Indigenous educational practices, youth-led school counseling, and critical hip-hop practices to promote joy, creativity, power, love, resistance, and liberation.

School Counselors Applying the ASCA 2016 Ethical Standards

<p>As the student population becomes more diverse in the United States (Human Rights Campaign, 2018; National Center for Education Statistics, 2018), school counselors (SCs) are also called upon to provide comprehensive school counseling programs to meet the needs of all students (ASCA, 2019). In addition to following the profession’s national model, the American School Counseling Association’s Ethical Standards (2016) provide a set of guidelines including specific language aimed at providing culturally competent counseling services to students and stakeholders. With this in mind, the purpose of this manuscript is twofold. The first goal is to provide SCs with strategies for use when providing services to diverse students. Next, the authors will highlight sections of the ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors (ASCA, 2016) that specifically address diverse students’ needs. Case scenarios will also be provided.</p>

Professional School Counseling in Vietnam Public Schools

School counseling as a profession is in its embryonic stage in Vietnam. National education reform initiatives have focused on curricula, standardized tests and textbooks, yet have essentially ignored problems of violence and students’ mental health. The American School Counseling Association model can serve as a guide for a culturally appropriate school counseling model for Vietnam. We explore the Vietnam education context and the existing practice of school counseling and make recommendations for professional school counseling in Vietnam.

Digitally Responsive School Counseling Across the ASCA National Model

Technology plays an increasingly important role in the lives of students and other education stakeholders. Professional school counselors (PSCs), however, have only tentatively begun to integrate digital tools into their professional work. Given the extensive information and considerations posited by technology and its role in students’ lives, the work of the school counselor has become more complex. This paper argues for expanding the use of interactive technologies specifically within the Delivery System of the American School Counseling Association’s (2012) National Model. We examine how digital communication tools can enhance and extend the ability of PSCs to meet the needs of students. Implications for school counseling programs, PSCs, students, and educators are considered.

School Counselor Perceptions of a Comprehensive School Counseling Model and Implications for Practice

The study examined school counselor perceptions of the American School Counseling Association’s Comprehensive School Counseling Program (CSCP) on academic outcomes (better-reported grades and better-standardized scores) of middle school students with a focus on recommendations for the tasks and responsibilities of school counselors. The study was qualitative and used a phenomenological approach through semi-structured face-to-face interviews to provide inquiry into school counselors’ perceptions of an effective school counseling program.

“That Is When My Life Changed for the Better”: Students’ Perceptions of Exemplary School Counselors

ABSTRACTThis study is an analysis of senior high school students’ responses to an essay question that asked about the positive impact of their school counselors and importance in their academic, career, and personal/social development. Using thematic analysis, we analyzed 259 student college scholarship essays submitted to the School Counseling Association of a Midwestern state. The resulting six themes were personal attributes of the school counselor, professional attributes of the school counselor, process of engagement, school counseling services provided, challenging student circumstances, and personal impact of the school counselor.

Development of Perceived School Counselor Support Scale: Based on the ASCA Mindsets and Behaviors

This study presents a culturally and psychometrically sound instrument of perceived school counselor support among Turkish high school students. The study has been framed using American School Counseling Association’s Mindsets and Behaviors for Students Success Model to create a valuable instrument that measures students’ perceptions of their school counselors’ support in a different culture, society, and education system. The results of this study supported the theoretical based Perceived School Counselor Support Scale long and short forms providing initial and strong evidence based on internal structure and relations to other variables. Internal consistency estimates on subscales ranged from good to strong.

Cyberbullying Considerations for School Counselors: A Social Media Content Analysis

Researchers conducted a content analysis of nine social media platforms’ bullying policies based on the American School Counseling Association position statement on bullying to determine the content of the social media platforms’ bullying policies as they connect to school counseling guidelines. Main findings indicated (a) common terms are often unclear and vary, (b) language in policies was mainly negative and punitive, (c) cultural awareness was limited to anti-discrimination, and (d) mental health concerns were addressed but rarely associated with cyberbullying. School counselors can utilize these findings to inform training and prevention efforts to build and maintain safe schools and aid students impacted by cyberbullying.

Empty Playgrounds and Anxious Children

Child-directed play is essential for the healthy development of children. However, many children are experiencing a reduction in access and opportunities for play, and the consequences are being referred to as play deprivation. The numerous benefits of play significantly overlap with the American School Counseling Association’s comprehensive school counseling domains of academic, personal social, and career development. School counselors have a unique role as child development experts to make a positive impact on the play lives of children.

School Counselors’ Activities in Predominantly African American Urban Schools: An Exploratory Study

Increasing criticism of public education in United States cities and metropolitan areas has prompted members of educational specialties (e.g., teacher education, school administration, school counselor education) to lead urban school reform initiatives (Holcomb-McCoy, 2005b). School Counseling has joined the urban school reform movement. In particular, The American School Counseling Association's (ASCA) development of the National Standards and the National Model (ASCA, 2005), as well as the Transforming School Counseling Initiative a component of the Education Trust (2003), are responses by members of the counseling profession to contribute to the most recent school reform efforts. The ASCA National Model is a call for school counselors to design, coordinate, implement, manage, and evaluate comprehensive school counseling programs. In particular, the Model is a call to action for school counselors to promote student success by closing the existing achievement gap between underachieving students (many of whom are students of color or poor) and their more advantaged peers (ASCA, 2005). The Transforming School Counseling Initiative extended ASCA's call to action for school counselors and with regard to how they serve students in urban schools. According to Lee (2005), urban schools largely reflect their neighborhood/residential environment and are typically in geographical areas characterized by a high concentration of people of color, higher rates of poverty per capita, and inequities in the educational system. Within this context, urban school educators have had to contend with a lack of resources, high drop-out rates, and institutional racism (Butler, 2003; Holcomb-McCoy, 1998, 2005, 2010; Moore, Henfield & Owens, 2008; Owens, Pernice-Duca, & Thomas, 2009). Based on these contextual issues that confront urban school personnel, the National Center for Transforming School Counseling made the following recommendations. First the school counseling profession should shift its focus to meet the needs of students for whom schools have been the least successful -low-income students and students of color. Second school counselors should be trained to serve as effective advocates for these particular student populations (Education Trust, 2011; Forbes, 2007; Martin, 2002; Martin, 2007). Empirical evidence on school counselor activities that are reflective of these initiatives has emerged in the school counseling literature. For example, Holcomb-McCoy and Mitchell (2005) examined the activities of 102 school counselors who resided in six urban cities on the east coast (e.g. New York City, Newark, New Jersey). The study's participants perceived low family function, lower academic achievement, and poverty as prevalent issues facing urban schools. The authors acknowledged the need for school counselors in urban settings to be able to work in schools that offer minimal educational opportunities to their students, diminished access to resources, and unstable financial funding. They recommended that future studies should be devoted to examining school counseling activities that specifically address the academic needs of low income students and students of color. Similarly, in a 2009 study of 60 school counselors employed in urban school districts, Owens et. al. (2009) found that school counselors were overwhelmed with addressing issues such as high dropout rate prevention and encouraging low achieving students to be successful. School counselors are ethically bound to develop comprehensive school counseling programs that advocate for and affirm all students from diverse backgrounds (ASCA, 2005). The primary reason for having a comprehensive guidance program in place is to clearly articulate what school counselors do in that particular school or school district. Although the role of school counselors has been studied and described in urban schools, there is a dearth of information available on the activities of school counselors in urban schools that are predominately African American. …

How the ASCA National Model Promotes and Inhibits Safe Schools for Queer Youth: An Inquiry Using Critical Theory

This article expands the discussion on safe schools for queer youth by utilizing critical theory (Parker, 2012) to interrogate the American School Counseling Association's National Model (ASCA; 2012). Within this article the ASCA National Model is reviewed and summarized. The author introduces foundational information about critical theory. Drawing on a case vignette from professional school counseling practice, the author argues that the ASCA National Model may be used as a tool for confronting or maintaining the heteronormative status quo within schools, depending upon the critical consciousness of the professional school counselors who use it. Finally, the author provides suggestions for revising the ASCA National Model in a manner that will more effectively interrupt heterosexual and cisgender hegemony to advance safer schools for queer and transgender youth.

School Counseling in Belize: Poised for Great Development

The majority of persons serving as school counselors in Belize do not have the formal training proposed by standard setting bodies, such as the U.S. National Board of Certified Counselors (NBCC) and the American School Counseling Association (ASCA). However, those serving as counselors readily identify responsibilities that parallel those advocated by the ASCA National Model (ASCA 2005). This article identifies characteristics of Belize school counselors, and reviews current school counseling practices and the implications of these for the future of school counseling in that setting. Opportunities for standardization and professional development for school counselors, solidification of a professional identity, and barriers to educational attainment are also explored.

A Study on a Ethical Code for School Counselors: Focused on Suggestions for the New Ethical Code of the Korean School Counseling Association

A Study on a Ethical Code for School Counselors: Focused on Suggestions for the New Ethical Code of the Korean School Counseling Association

LGBTQ Responsive School Counseling Supervision

There remains a lag in the development and implementation of effective strategies to serve lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) adolescents in schools. Although practitioners and scholars have begun to discuss how school counselors can provide effective services for LGBTQ students, there is minimal supervision literature to guide this work. This article presents an application of supervision that integrates LGBTQ Responsive School Counseling across the supervision of a comprehensive developmental school counseling program. Using the American School Counseling Association's National Model as a guideline, the authors provide a vehicle for supervisors to structure their work with professional school counselors.

The Preparation of Professional School Counselors for Group Work

An online survey about the group work training experiences of school counselors was completed by 802 members of the American School Counseling Association (ASCA). Most respondents had one course in group work; a minority had the opportunity to observe or co-lead groups with children and/or adolescents as part of their training. Qualitative analysis of comment data provided more depth and insight about school counselors' training in group work. Implications of the findings are discussed.

The Role of Elementary School Counselors in Reducing School Bullying

In this article, I review the literature on school bullying with an emphasis on elementary schools. Bullying is defined and described, 3 types of bullying are discussed, and the importance of relational bullying is emphasized. I review existing programs to reduce bullying with attention to empirical studies. Barriers to implementation of effective programs are acknowledged. Given the expertise and role of elementary school counselors, they are in a unique position to be leaders in reducing school bullying, a view that is consistent with the American School Counseling Association national model for professional school counseling. I suggest ways in which school counselors can have a significant influence on school bullying, outline implications of research for best practice, and discuss the need for future research.

Professional School Counselors and the Practice of Group Work

An online survey about the use of small groups by school counselors was completed by 802 members of the American School Counseling Association. The vast majority of respondents offered groups in their schools, but were most influenced in that decision by time constraints. Qualitative analysis of comment data provided more depth and insight about school counselors’ practice of group work. Implications and recommendations are discussed.

Professional School Counselors and the Practice of Group Work

An online survey about the use of small groups by school counselors was completed by 802 members of the American School Counseling Association. The vast majority of respondents offered groups in their schools, but were most influenced in that decision by time constraints. Qualitative analysis of comment data provided more depth and insight about school counselors' practice of group work. Implications and recommendations are discussed.

National Survey of School Counselor Supervision

A sample of 267 American School Counseling Association members were surveyed regarding their current supervision, desire for clinical supervision, and rating of supervision goals. Although a small minority of respondents indicated that they were currently receiving supervision, a majority of respondents indicated a desire to receive supervision. Factor analysis of ratings of supervision goals resulted in 3 factors related to the foci or learning dimensions described in J. M. Bernard's (1997) Discrimination Model. Recommendations for counselor educators and school counselor supervisors are discussed.