Critical Issues in Counseling

EPSY 5194

Professor Orv C. Karan

Fall 2008

Office Hours: Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 9 AM to noon.

E-mail:

Telephone Number: 860 486-0207

Course Description

This course covers three main topics. The first topic will be an introduction to the broad profession of counseling. It will include exposure to the historical aspects of the counseling profession, professional counseling roles/specialties, professional organizations, legal issues and professional preparation and credentialing.

The second topic will address the ethical standards of the American Counseling Association and the American School Counseling Association. Case studies illustrating a wide variety of ethical issues in school counseling will be presented and discussed.

The final topic will identify critical and emerging issues/concerns among Connecticut’s school age youth. These were derived from various news sources and from a series of interviews and focus groups conducted throughout Connecticut during the last school year. Respondents included Directors of school counseling programs, counselor supervisors, program alumni and school counseling interns. Each year some of these “hot button” issues/concerns will undoubtedly change, which is to be expected. But by continuing to identify and solicit input from the media and from the field one of the ultimate purposes of this course is to introduce and begin addressing these issues/concerns now during your graduate studies so that you will not be overwhelmed or surprised when confronted by them once you begin practicing as a professional school counselor.

This course is also aligned with several of the basic tenants/elements of the Neag School of Education’s conceptual framework. The tenants addressed in this course are drawn from the themes of learning and leading and include those related to the professional knowledge base, evidence-based professional practice, inquiry and leadership. The course objectives follow. Of these, objectives 1, 2 and 3address the basic tenants related to the professional knowledge base; objectives 4 and 8 address the basic tenants related to evidence-based professional practice; objectives 5 and 6 address the basic tenants related to inquiry while objectives 7 and 9 address the basic tenant of leadership.

Objectives

  1. To identify the historic elements and trends which have shaped the counseling profession
  1. To examine the professional roles and functions of various counseling specialties
  1. To explore the impact of professional organizations, certification and licensure on the counseling profession
  1. To identify ethical and legal considerations in professional counseling and to apply these through case study reviews
  1. To identify the most frequently cited critical issues/concerns among Connecticut’s school age youth facing today’s school counselors
  1. To practice working together as team members in the planning, development and delivery of final products
  1. To prepare and give presentations to different simulated audiences, e.g., parents, students, teachers, school administrators, members of boards of education and state legislators, and in so doing, advocate for attitudinal and systemic changes that can remove barriers and facilitate positive improvements.
  1. To practice giving and receiving constructive feedback
  1. To improve your professional communication skills

Public speaking, which includes developing, creating and making effective presentations as well as giving and receiving constructive feedback, are essential professional skills. As you evolve from the role of graduate student to professional school counselor you need practice honing these skills because you will be using them in many forums such as: PPTs, staff meetings, community agency meetings, developmental guidance lessons, group and/or individual counseling sessions, and while advocating on behalf of students to Boards of Education and/or State legislators, etc. This course is intended to give you multiple opportunities to have such practice.

Textbook: There is no textbook for this course. However, copies of the ACA and ASCA codes of ethics and brief articles on a variety of critical issues/concerns will be distributed in class.

Grading

Class participation

Your active class participation is not only encouraged, but it is expected and will account for 35% of your final grade. Please note that the amount or frequency of your contributions is less important than its quality. In other words, how often you contribute during any class session will be less important than what you contribute, but you must contribute in some obvious way. As future school counselors it is important for you to learn how and when to participate in discussions, how to present and share information and how to be an active listener.

Group participation

The class will be divided into four groups and you will be randomly assigned to one of these. Each group will receive at least four brief case studies on ethical issues involving school aged youth. Your group will be asked to publicly discuss its cases in the presence of your other classmates by addressing the questions that will accompany each case study, by highlighting the ethical standards that are influencing your opinions and by engaging your audience in discussion. At the end of the semester each group will conduct a peer evaluation of its own members. This will account for 15% of your final grade.

Critical issue presentations

Each group will also be assigned a minimum of four critical issues/concerns, which will be selected from the array displayed in the following Table.

Table One: Critical and Emerging Issues for 2008-2009

Peer Issues Personal Issues Family/Home Issues Legal/Authority Issues Misc. Issues

Bullying Conflict resolution Limited parent involvement Problems with the law Gang related

Cyberbullying Anger management Neglect and abuse Disrespecting adults Loss of family

Internet Safety Obesity Divorce & separation Incarceration & return School Violence

Girls fighting girls Stress management Parental suicide “Goethe kids”

Poor interpersonal

relationships Decision making Domestic violence

Sexual issues and

relationships Internet and gaming addiction

Self destructive behavior, e.g.,

self-injury, substance abuse and

disordered eating

Carryover at school from issues outside of school

Disenfranchised &

without a sense of belonging to school

Teen pregnancy

Underachievement

Suicide

Poor study skills-unprepared for high school and beyond

Difficult adjustment to high school

Lack of sleep

  • TV in bedroom
  • MySpace, Face Book
  • Text messaging and cell phone use
  • Video games

Grief/Depression

Each group’s task will be to research each of their assigned topics in sufficient detail that they can make 15-20 minute power point presentations about them to various pre assigned audiences such as students, parents, teachers, boards of education, and legislators. During each group’s presentation your classmates from other groups will assume the role of your group’s assigned audiences, i.e., students, parents, etc. The members of your audience for each topic will evaluate your group’s presentation and recommend a grade. That grade will be given to every member of your group and will account for 25% of your final grade.

Power point presentations

After each presentation your group will be expected to reflect on and incorporate the audience’s suggestions and recommendations and then distribute a final version of their (hopefully revised and improved) presentation to every other member of the class by no later than the last day of class. Thus, at the end of this course, each of you will leave with a set of no less than 16 polished power point presentations on contemporary critical issues/concerns faced by Connecticut’s schools. Each group’s set of final power point presentations will account for 25% of each member’s final grade.