Counseling Techniques for School Counselors

School counselors face many challenges when working with students.

School counselors face many challenges and responsibilities when dealing with students. These responsibilities go far beyond just guiding students through the process of choosing classes. Counselors also are in a role to aid students with personal, social, emotional and career advice as they advance through the grades and near graduation. In order to effectively aid students in all of these areas, there are several techniques school counselors should learn.

Academic

School counselors are often called upon to help students who are struggling academically to learn more effective study skills. To help a larger amount of students more efficiently, school counselors can create study skills groups. Counselors can email teachers to get a general sense of how many students could benefit from the group, and the group can cover topics that most of the students express difficulty in. Some of the possible group topics can include finding a good study place, test anxiety, listening skills, taking notes, reading comprehension and goal setting.

Personal

School counselors help students from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds navigate areas of peer pressure and interpersonal relationships. Counselors should be aware of their own cultural and personal biases and values and ensure that these do not interfere with developing a sense of respect for the cultures and personal issues of students. Not only can school counselors help students navigate personal issues with tolerance, they can also aid school staff members through modeling possible strategies to achieve a safe school atmosphere for all students. Some techniques for this type of modeling can include gathering staff members and discussing their feelings on diversity, sharing case studies regarding issues of diversity in schools with them and helping them develop strategic plans to enhance the feelings of a supportive school environment.

Social and Emotional

Students face many situations that can contribute to feelings of anxiety and depression. Not only do they worry about academic performance, but some may also face difficulty fitting in or being targeted by bullies. Counselors can help students one on one by discussing their particular situations and helping them face the negative emotions that they may be struggling with. For instance, a counselor can help a student identify and challenge negative thoughts, teach a student relaxation techniques, and work on building positive self talk to help students gain confidence.

Career

Career help is especially pertinent for high school students, but school counselors can even begin guiding middle school students toward ways to achieve their long-term career goals. Students may be confused about majors to choose in college, colleges to apply to or even whether they should go to college. Certain activities, like a personal inventory or personality tests, can help students explore their passions and make decisions about their futures. Also, a personal inventory, which should be updated with activities and interests every year, can help students build resumes by cataloging their extracurricular activities over their high school careers.

References

• The School Counseling Guide: Study Skills Group Agenda
• Counseling Outfitters; Counseling Strategies and Techniques to Sensitize School Counselors to the Life Experiences of Culturally Different Students; Kan V. Chandras, David A. DeLambo, and Sunil V. Chandras
• The School Counseling Guide: LGBT teacher in-service training
• The School Counseling Guide: Test Anxiety Strategies and Interventions
• The School Counseling Guide: Students' Personal Inventory