Blog 14

            I must say that the comprehensive school counseling program (CSCP) is a very in-depth process.  At the beginning of the semester, I was really confused of what it was but now, I think I have a very good handle on it.  It is a lot of work to make sure you have all of the components, but once you do and have it set in your school than it should really work.  I don’t know how school counselors did it in the past.  Was everything just so unorganized?  Were there any standards back then?  I think Dahir, Burnham, and Stone (2009) got it right when they said that CSCP really improves a school.   They said that studies have proved that students that take part in CSCP earn higher grades, are involved in fewer classroom disruptions, and show improved peer behavior.  It’s a lot of work, but the results show that all schools should have a CSCP. 

            The question that Dahir, Burnham, and Stone (2009) want to find out is the thoughts school counselors have on CSCP in their school.  From what they found, the middle school counselors have the highest ratings.  I kind of find this surprising because school counselors in middle school have some much stuff to do because that is when teen change the most and have a lot of their problems.  Even though I find this surprising, this data actually makes sense because I think middle schools greatly benefit the most by having a CSCP.  I would like to think that middle school counselors need the CSCP way more than any of the other schools because there is so much that happens in middle school.  Now I am not saying that elementary and high school shouldn’t have it, but I think middle school needs it the most because of all the changes that the students go through.  The study was very interesting, but to me everything makes sense.

            Overall, this class has been a great experience for me.  It has been a lot of work, but I have learned so much.  I understand that CSCP is very important and if we all follow the guidelines, then we will know not only how to do our jobs, but we can greatly help our kids like Dahir, Burnham, and Stone (2009) have found.  CSCP are important to have and every school should follow the guidelines so that we can effectively help the students in our schools.

Dahir, C. A., Burnham, J. J., & Stone, C. (2009). Listen to the voices: School counselors and comprehensive school counseling programs. Professional School Counseling, 12, 182-192. doi:10.5330/PSC.n.2010-12.182