Post 10

The vignette in Dollarhide and Saginak’s (2012) chapter is a real situation that a counselor will have to deal with. The staff lounge is a unique place in a school. It is a place where teachers are open and honest about how they feel. Often times, teachers will vent about students, parents, and administration demands. From my experience as a teacher, our school counselor does stop into the staff lounge to check on students and their progress. Also, she checks up on us to see how we are doing. Although Donna may have been a little passive in the vignette, it is still a hard situation to deal with. I am not going to lie; I often blame parents for my students’ shortcomings (academically and behaviorally). However, it is the entire school’s obligation to support our students, parents, and community. It is not simply one person’s/groups fault. That is why the school counselor is so important in the educational system. With collaboration, I am sure Donna could help change the perspective that her colleagues have. I liked what Dollarhide and Saginak (2012) wrote under their Intent section. A counselor must be passionate in what he or she is doing. This passion will transfer to the students that the counselor is working with. In addition, if the students do not realize the lesson’s importance and value, they will never truly learn it. I feel that my biggest strength as a future counselor is my ability to connect what I am teaching to the importance of it to my students. My experience in the classroom will help me with the delivery and implementation of my CSCP. I can be honest and say that I will need to work on educating adult stakeholders. Like the vignette presented at the beginning of chapter 9 presents, I will need to educate my colleagues, parents, and community members on many different issues that may arise in my school. To do this, I will have to be knowledgeable. As a 5th grade teacher, I found that Ako (2005) provided some important information about the development of middle school students. After I looped up to 5th grade last year, I noticed a difference in my student’s attitudes and behaviors. My students were maturing, and some were even going through puberty. These changes affected the way they acted and the choices that they made. I tried my best to provide opportunities for them to be more responsible and independent. I tried to prepare them for their future middle school experiences. Middle school students are more independent, asked to be more responsible, and asked to make choices that can affect their life. I like the idea of teaching middle school students decision-making strategies. These strategies and other resources can help middle school students have a smoother transition. At the same time, it can help them become more effective students. Akos, P. (2005). The unique nature of middle school counseling. Professional school counseling, 9(2), 95-103. Dollarhide, C.T., & Saginak, K.A. (2012). Comprehensive school counseling programs (2nd Ed.). New York: Pearson, Inc.