Program Overview
School counseling has undergone a transformation from a program of entitlement to one of performance and continuous improvement. What is working with and for students? School counselors now focus on improved student results that measure the impact of goals and objectives. The essential question becomes” How has student academic achievement improved as a result of what counselors do”?
School counselors must use data to assess student needs, establish measurable goals, and measure the results of guidance and counseling activities. This helps to ensure accountability. Data is collected, disaggregated and analyzed to determine areas of student strength and areas in need of improvement. Gathering and analyzing school data identifies the trends and concerns that establish a proactive school counseling program.
Among possible data sources for counselor use are:
Standardized test data
Grade point average
High school graduation rate
Retentions
Enrollment in Honors, AP, college Level Courses
Remedial courses taken
Free/Reduced Lunch students
Gender
Ethnicity
Socio-Economic status
Participation in support services
Attendance
Discipline referrals
English as a Second language
Mobility
Family Status
Other
The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) has identified four counselor skills that help to articulate the new role of school counselors. They are:
Leadership
Advocacy
Collaboration
Systemic Change
ASCA has also identified four other components of an effective 21st Century school counseling delivery system. These are:
Guidance and Counseling Activity Log
In part because of HB 1187, but also to help provide services for all students who are "at risk of not being at promise", school counselors must develop guidance and counseling programs that are more results driven.
Recommended Time Allocations
(ASCA National Model) |
Elementary School |
Middle School |
High School |
Guidance Curriculum |
35-45% |
25-35% |
15-25% |
Individual Student Planning |
5-10% |
15-25% |
25-35% |
System Support |
10% |
10% |
10% |
Responsive Services |
30-40% |
30-40% |
25-35% |
Non-Counseling Activities |
5% |
5% |
5% |
The Guidance and Activity Log is designed for school counselors to use as a source of data collection and assessment of their guidance and counseling programs. This is a suggested timeline structure, which has been adapted from the Missouri Comprehensive Guidance Program, and is designed for school counselors to comply with the guidelines of HB 1187. This time log can be used to analyze the distribution of the counselor's time and the various tasks the counselor is performing and to provide base line data for the redistribution of the counselor's time if necessary. It is also useful for determining where more educational support may be needed. Please remember that these are only recommended time allocations.
Note: If too much time is being spent on Non Program activities, an evaluation of the Guidance and Counseling Program should be done to determine what program areas are being negatively affected and thereby not reaching all students.