Advances in School Counseling: New Paradigms, Programs, and

PreparationGary L. Troxell, Ed.D

Lancaster Bible College

Kevin Wilkerson, Ph.D.Co-Director- School Counseling Program

University of Scranton

Presentation Objectives• Introductions

• School Counseling (R)evolution

• New Paradigms, Programs, and Preparation• Illustrations

• Looking Ahead• Resources• What next?

• Questions and Comments

Introductions

• A little about us

• A little about you

• Brief professional examples of best practices in School Counseling

School Counseling (R)evolution

• ASCA National Standards for Students (1997) http://ascamodel.timberlakepublishing.com/files/NationalStandards.pdf

• ASCA National Model (2003, 2005) http://www.schoolcounselor.org/files/Natl%20Model%20Exec%20Summary_final.pdf

• ASCA School Counselor Competencies http://www.schoolcounselor.org/files/SCCompetencies.pdf

• Evidence-Based Practice for School Counselors

The ASCA National Model

STUDENT AND SYSTEM FOCUSED SCHOOL COUNSELING

Moving From Programmatic Pieces to Intentional Integration

MentoringStudents

PhoneContact

StudySkillsGroup

SmallGroup

ClassroomGuidance Behavior

Management

Bully ProofingProgram

Tutoring

Typical Student-Focused School Counseling Program Activities

IndividualCounseling

Random Acts of Guidance

Ready! Fire! AIM!

MentoringStudents

PhoneContact

StudySkillsGroup

SmallGroup

ClassroomGuidance Behavior

Management

Bully ProofingProgram

Tutoring

Intentional Student-Focused School Counseling Programs

70% Attendance Rate for Low SES Students

IndividualCounseling

Data Driven Priorities

MentoringStudents

PhoneContact

StudySkillsGroup

SmallGroup

ClassroomGuidance Behavior

Management

Bully ProofingProgram

Intentional and Integrated Student-Focused School Counseling Programs

70% Attendance Rate for Low SES Students

IndividualCounseling

Data-Driven Priorities

AND EVIDENCE BASED PRACTICE

Intentional and Integrated Student Focused Interventions

Interventions IDENTIFIED, EVALUATED, EMPIRCIALLY SUPPORTED, AND designed to directly help students gain knowledge and skills in the areas of academic, career, and personal/social development in order to help them better navigate the educational system

LeadTaskForce

ReviewPractices

ReviewSchoolPolicies

DisaggregateData By

???

Advocatefor

TaskForce

Team With

Parents &Community

ReviewSchool

StructureAdvocateFor

Change

System-Focused School Counseling Programs

StudentFocus

Groups

LeadTaskForce

ReviewPractices

ReviewSchoolPolicies

DisaggregateData By

???

Advocatefor

TaskForce

Team With

Parents &Community

ReviewSchool

StructureAdvocateFor

Change

Intentional System-Focused School Counseling Programs

70% Attendance Rate for Low SES Students

StudentFocus

GroupsData-Driven Priorities

LeadTaskForce

ReviewPractices

ReviewSchoolPolicies

DisaggregateData By

???

Advocatefor

TaskForce

Team With

Parents &Community

ReviewSchool

StructureAdvocateFor

Change

Intentional and Integrated System-Focused Counseling Programs

70% Attendance Rate for Low SES Students

StudentFocus

Groups

Data-Driven Priorities

AND EVIDENCE

BASED

Intentional and Integrated System Focused Interventions

Interventions IDENTIFIED, EVALUATED, EMPIRICALLY SUPPORTED, AND designed to help the system (school) change in order to better meet the needs of the students.

Examples:•Change educator attitudes, expectations, & priorities•Reduce adult resistance to change•Change policy•Change practice

How Can School Counselors Do This Work?

Creating data-driven, evidence-based school counseling programs aligned with the school’s improvement plan serves students better

Taking a leadership role in schools helps bring about systemic change and alter student outcomes

Evidenced-Based Practice

References: American School Counselor Association. (2003); Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007).

Continuum of Strategies (RTII approaches)

DATA

ACTION PLANAll Students

Large group/Classroom

Small Group

Individual

Referral

Some Students

Few Students

A Student

NEW PARADIGMS, PROGRAMS, AND PREPARATION: ILLUSTRATIONS

Transcript Analysis

Identifying patterns in our own data to determine whether all of our students are participating in courses that will prepare them

for college and careers

Year Behind Proficient Advanced

2003 35.9% 49.2% 14.9%

2004 32.6% 52.0% 15.4%

2005 46.1% 41.4% 12.5%

2006 71.0% 22.9% 6.1%

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

Behind Proficient Advanced

Perc

en

t o

f S

tud

en

ts

2003

2004

2005

2006

Percent of Students Behind, Proficient and Advanced in Math

Note: The level of proficiency is defined by the course the students are in. For example, in 9 th grade a student who is in algebra is considered proficient, a student who is in general math or pre-algebra is considered behind,and a student in geometry or algebra honors is considered advanced. A student not taking math is also considered behind.

All Students Behind Proficient Advanced

4.3 3.9 4.5 4.9

4.4 4.2 4.5 4.8

4.3 4.1 4.4 4.7

3.9 3.7 4.2 4.4

0.0

1.0

2.0

3.0

4.0

5.0

6.0

All Students Behind Proficient Advanced

Aver

ag

e N

um

ber

of

Co

lleg

e P

rep

C

ou

rses

2003

2004

2005

2006

Average Number of College-Prep Classes

The average should be at least 4.5 to be on trajectory to be College Ready graduation.

Note: The level of proficiency is defined by the course the students are in. For example, in 9 th grade a student who is in algebra is considered proficient, a student who is in general math or pre-algebra is considered behind,and a student in geometry or algebra honors is considered advanced. A student not taking math is also considered behind.

Master Schedule Analysis

Identifying patterns in course offerings, teacher distribution, class

sizes, and time efficiency in our schedules

Examination of the Master Schedule Analysis

Look for:

• Patterns in these charts and what they indicate

• Changes you may implement to ensure that students have access to career and college-ready courses and support

Distribution of Classes (Percent)    

         

         

         

         

         

         

         

         

         

         

         

         

  9 10 11 12

Math 39% 23% 20% 18%

ELA 32% 28% 22% 19%

Science 42% 23% 26% 9%

Social Studies 36% 25% 19% 21%

Foreign Language 48% 28% 21% 3%

Average 40% 25% 22% 14%

Of all math classes, what percent of them are 9th grade classes?

Enrollment:~ 1,800

Percent of College-Prep Classes by Subject

65% 67%

82%87%

100%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

1

Pe

rce

nt

of

Co

lle

ge

-Pre

p C

las

se

s

Math ELA Science Social Studies Foreign Language

Math 65%

ELA 67%

Science 82%

Social Studies 87%

Foreign Language 100%

Percent of Courses that are College Prep

Of all science classes, what percent of them are college-prep classes?

LOOKING AHEAD

A Great School Guidance & Counseling Program

Key Points

1. A written mission statement exists and is used as a foundation by all counselors.

2. Services are organized so that all students are well served and have access to them.

3. The program operates from a plan for closing the achievement gap for minority and lower income students.

References: American School Counselor Association. (2003); Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007).

A Great School Guidance & Counseling Program

Key Points

4. The program has a set of clear measurable student learning goals and objectives established for academic, personal/social skills, and career development.

5. Needs assessments are completed regularly and guide program planning.

6. All student receive classroom guidance lessons designed to promote academic, social/personal, and career development.

References: American School Counselor Association. (2003); Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007).

A Great School Guidance & Counseling Program

Key Points

7. The program ensures that all students have academic plans that include testing, individual advisement, long-term planning, and placement.

8. The program has an effective referral and follow-up system for handling student crises.

9. School counselors use student performance data to decide how to meet student needs.

References: American School Counselor Association. (2003); Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007).

A Great School Guidance & Counseling Program

Key Points

10. School counselors analyze student data by ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic level to identify interventions to close achievement gaps.

11. School counselor job descriptions match actual duties.

12. School counselors spend at least 80% of their time in activities that directly benefit students.

References: American School Counselor Association. (2003); Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007).

A Great School Guidance & Counseling Program

Key Points

13. The school counseling program includes interventions designed to improve the school’s ability to educate all students to high standards.

14. An annual review is conducted to get information for improving next year’s programs.

15. School counselors use computer software to: (a) access student data; (b) analyze student data, and; (c) use data for school improvement.

References: American School Counselor Association. (2003); Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007).

A Great School Guidance & Counseling Program

Key Points

16. The school counseling program has the resources to allow counselors to complete appropriate professional development activities.

17. School counseling priorities are represented on curriculum and education committees.

18. School counselors communicate with parents to coordinate student achievement and gain feedback for program development.

References: American School Counselor Association. (2003); Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007).

What Next?

• Change hiring practices• Look for SC’s who can articulate a new vision for School

Counseling• Introduce new interview questions

• “How do you determine the impact of your work?”• “What processes do you use to identify achievement gaps and

remove barriers to learning?

• Conduct serious program audits and assessments• Rethink School Counselor professional

development

Questions and Comments

• Today’s Pp presentation will be available at www.papsa-web.org

• E-mail addresses• Gary- gtroxell@lbc.edu• Kevin- wilkersonk2@scranton.edu

Resources

American School Counselor Association. (2003). The ASCA National Model: A framework for school counseling programs. Alexandria, VA: Author.

Dimmitt, C, Carey, J. & Hatch, T. (2007). Evidenced-based school counseling. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

The Education Trust - NCTSC (National Center for Transforming School Counseling )