Characteristics of the Modern School Counselor - …

1 Characteristics of the Modern School Counselor JAMES L. LISTER *. policy statements (1, While most of these Characteristics have long 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7), reflecting the work of coun been considered as desirable attributes of selors, Counselor educators, School adminis virtually all educational personnel, they have trators, and other groups, have several useful only recently become minimum expectations purposes. They have helped: (a) to define of the School Counselor . in broad terms the Counselor 's role as con 1. Primary identification as a Counselor . ceptualized by his professional association; School counselors have traditionally viewed (b) to provide the Counselor with guidelines themselves first as teachers and second as for implementing his role concept within the counselors. That the Modern Counselor is School setting; and (c) to suggest uniform coming to identify himself primarily as a standards for the preparation of School coun Counselor and secondarily with the setting in selors which are being adopted for use by which he works or the groups he has chosen state and regional School accrediting agencies to serve is perhaps an example of increased and by state certification programs.

2 Professionalization occurring throughout the While it is obviously impossible to legis so-called helping professions teaching, late professionalism and competence, the counseling, psychiatry, medicine, social work, publication of these policy statements rep and others. resents a "coming of age" of the counseling The Modern Counselor has chosen to profession. These statements make it patently concentrate on assisting other human beings clear that the School Counselor can no longer to utilize their potential to its maximum plead ignorance concerning how he might through the process of the counseling rela best go about his task, nor can he claim to be tionship and other guidance services. He a professional when his formal preparation believes that there is a common body of un and supervised practical experience fall short derstandings about how persons develop and of the minimum standards agreed upon by about how that development can be maxi his profession.

3 Mally facilitated which is independent of the This article should serve as an aid to setting in which he works and of the par educational leaders who hire, supervise, and ticular clientele he serves. work as colleagues with counselors. It is de The Counselor is certainly knowledge signed to acquaint educators with the impact able about the setting in which he works, and of these developments upon the professional he must naturally specialize in his under identity and functioning of the School standing of the age group he serves; these Counselor . elements, nevertheless, are not the primary The following Characteristics should typify the Modern Counselor who has made a * J ames L. Lister, Professor and Chairman. De career commitment to assisting in the opti partment of Personnel Services, College of Edu mum development of children and youth.

4 Cation, U niversity of Florida, Gainesville March 1969 563. bases of his role concept. Because of this selors will not be met by counselors with two change in professional identification, the years of preparation within the foreseeable Modern Counselor can be expected to differ future, many secondary schools will attempt from his earlier counterpart in several ways. to staff their guidance programs with a pro First, he will be younger; second, he will fre portion of counselors who have two years of quently come from a non-educational back work. ground; and third, it can be expected that The content of the Modern Counselor 's he will have received his preparation through program of Counselor education will increas full-time study. ingly include work in foundation disciplines 2. A broad, extensive program of coun related to education such as anthropology, selor education.

5 The Modern Counselor will sociology, and philosophy. Psychology will have a minimum of two years of study in continue to be an important element of most Counselor education. The standards for the preparation programs. Supervised practical experience is, and will increasingly become, preparation of elementary and secondary a major component of the Counselor 's prep School counselors (5. 7) recommend two years of graduate study as the minimum for aration program. Two trends which have implication for effective functioning as an independent pro the School Counselor are the emphasis upon fessional Counselor . While it is clear that the one-year prep supervised practice in the setting in which the Counselor will work and the introduction aration program will continue to be offered of the full-time internship at the completion by a great many university Counselor educa of other program requirements.

6 A great many tion programs and that state certification in Counselor education programs have offered a guidance will for some time require only one counseling practicum in an on-campus lab year of graduate work, two years of prep oratory setting to which public School stu aration will become increasingly common. dents come for counseling and guidance Over half of the members of the American services. Such experiences provided students School Counselor Association now have at with excellent opportunities to learn under least two years of work in counseling and supervision to relate effectively with students. guidance, and it can be expected that this They could not, however, give students a trend will continue as state departments of chance for working within the School setting education and higher levels of Counselor cer so that they could develop skills in consulting tification add School accreditation.

7 The modem Counselor will take his with teachers, developing the counseling pro gram, and relating to students in non-coun graduate work in an institution that offers a seling relationships. high-quality program of Counselor education. The off-campus or field practicum in Master's degrees in counseling are currently which the student is supervised jointly by the being given in universities in which one or School Counselor and the university instruc two professors teach all of the courses in tor is now becoming a common addition to counseling and guidance. the on-campus laboratory experience. Less In 1965 Stripling (8) estimated that common is the requirement of the full-time there were only 45 institutions in the nation internship in the School setting. The super capable of meeting minimum professional vised internship was first a doctoral-level re standards for the preparation of secondary quirement, but it is now being added to the School counselors.

8 At that time those institu two-year program of Counselor education by tions awarded only one-third of the master's some institutions. The field practicum and degrees in secondary School counseling, and the full-time internship within the School set of these master's degree students, only about ting are particularly necessary for those stu 10 percent completed the minimum two-year dents who enter Counselor education from program for secondary School counselors. fields other than education and who have had Since it is obvious that the demand for coun little firsthand experience in schools. March 1969 565. 3. A bility to communicate his role to the graduate School depends upon his continuing entire School . The Modern Counselor can be association with other counselors and per expected to have a clear concept of the ways sonnel workers.

9 Wasson and Strowig (9). in which he, as a Counselor , can contribute found that counselors who functioned in iso to the maximum development of the students lation from other counselors exhibited atti in his School , and he must be capable of tudes toward counseling that differed signifi clearly communicating this concept to stu cantly from those held by counselors with dents, faculty, administration, and com colleagues in the same School . munity. The Counselor whose students, col To maintain themselves and increase leagues, and administrators do not under their skills and understandings, it is impor stand his role in the School has failed at one tant that counselors be able to consult with of the key Counselor functions communi other counselors and related professional per cation. sons both in and out of the School .

10 It is to be A few counselors look to their principals expected that the counseling staff of a School to tell them what to do as guidance workers. or district would have at least one meeting Ironically, it is often these same counselors per month devoted to increasing their under who complain that they are unable to func standing of the counseling and guidance tion as they believe they should because their process, better understanding of the student administrators have assigned them to non- groups with which they work, and in develop guidance duties. The Modern Counselor can ing better relationships among themselves. be expected to remain in constant dialogue It is to be expected that the Modern Counselor with his administrators and colleagues about will attend and participate in local, state, and his role as a Counselor .