CNDV 5380 Foundations of School Counseling
Winifred Jackson SP2 12 - SC9049
Essay for New Students in the School Counseling Program
Section A: Career Position (maximum ½ page):
Write a brief paragraph describing the career position(s) you would like to pursue. This may include short and long term professional pursuits. You must include a brief rationale why you believe it is important to pursue this career path at this point in your professional life.
Position Goal Statement:
As a teacher, I have spent many hours analyzing data and sharing with our staff. During this time, I have learned and developed many leadership skills, including good communication and listening skills, reliability, patience, and as I prepare for a future position that lead to my essential career to pursue the position of assistant principal or technology director. As an assistant principal I will have the responsibility of helping to assist my principal in maintaining our performance rating and/or improving our rating. In order to accomplish this task, I will analyze the campus curriculum, data, demographics, personnel, tutorial programs as well as any other areas that influence the performance of the students. After gaining some years of experience, I would like to become a principal for the district. By getting experience in all area as I climb the career ladder, I will be better equipped to handle the job. As a twenty-six year veteran teacher, I have seen students bring more and more problems to school, which can hinder their learning. I feel that I need some skills and techniques in how to handle these situations and counseling will provide me with these skills. As I pursue my career to be an administrator, I feel that I will need some additional training in how to handle parents, staff, and students in a different fashion. The high demands for every child to perform on these advanced tests has caused me to want to be knowledgeable on how to help all stakeholders in achieving the campus goals; therefore, I will need to understand what is available for my students.
Section B: Statement of Purpose (maximum 1/2 page):
Write one or more paragraphs describing why you want to serve in a school counseling position. This statement addresses the purpose or motivation for seeking the degree versus obtaining a specific position. In developing this statement, you should consider the following:
· What do you hope to accomplish as a counselor?
· What educational needs do you see counselors addressing?
· What personal needs influenced your motivation to become a counselor?
· How will you use the program experiences to prepare you to impact students?
As a leader, I would like to see the school reach its full potential. Helping the school reach its full potential will mean building a team of faculty, administrator, students, parents and community members who will work together to ensure student success. My goal as an administrator is to be an instructional leader who advocate for all students. I will aspire to lead a school that embraces all students regardless of their individual abilities or needs. I want to foster a school community where diversity and individual differences add character and strength. I believe that all children can learn, as educators, we have to remain current in our field to reach all learning styles. In order for me to be able to motivate students as well as staff, I must provide a safe successful learning environment for students and staff, accomplish through daily positive examples of moral and ethical values while recognizing and celebrating all cultures. According to a Model Comprehensive, Developmental Guidance and Counseling Program
For Texas Public Schools, “Comprehensive, developmental guidance and counseling programs are vital to the achievement of excellence in education for all students” (Texas Education Agency, 2004, p.11). As I continue to advance my knowledge in the area of counseling and technology, I will be equipped with the necessary skills to promote a positive learning environment for all students. Counselors must help the teacher and administrator address the needs of all learners, such as the English Language Learners, special education, at-risk, homelessness, bullying. They should be able to help the parents with resources and serve as a mentor for their students. I plan to use the skills I acquire from these counseling courses to help my students with understanding the importance of getting an education regardless of their home situations. My site mentor is the school counselor, and I needed some additional courses to complete my degree in educational technology. Dr. Abernathy suggested that I take some counseling courses to meet the requirement, since I had already completed all the courses for Educational Leadership under my previous degree from Lamar University.
Section C: Rubric to Score (1/2 page):
Lamar University is named after Mirabeau B. Lamar, Father of Texas Education, who said, “Education is the guardian genius of democracy.” Is this still relevant today? What is your understanding of the purpose of public education today?
I believe that this quote is still relevant today because educators must engage students in thinking critically about their society by giving them opportunities to explore learning beyond the classroom. Educators in the 21st century must recognize the critical need for developing 21st century skills by providing an education that addresses the “whole child”, the “whole person”, and does not limit training and curriculum to workplace readiness. My understanding of education is to prepare children to become critical thinkers for citizenship to compete in a global world. Furthermore, I believe education helps to prepare children for college or develop skills for them to use in the workforce. The purpose of education is to create knowledgeable individuals who will be able to make an impact to society, be active in civic and community affairs and to lead healthy lives. No Child Left Behind has made education about accountability, data, and test scores instead of focusing on the whole child developing physical and mental. Education is flexible, creative, challenging, and complex and addresses a rapidly changing world filled with fantastic new problems as well as exciting new possibilities. Yes, Mirabeau B. Lamar quote is still relevant in the 21st century.
Section D: Reaction Statement: (1/2 page):
I believe that all students can learn at higher levels than we have previously believed.
This could be either true or false depending on your perspective. Use a rationale and support your responses in your half page essay.
As an educator, I know students can learn at a higher level than we have previously believed because students are learning how to use technology at an earlier age. Almost all students can achieve at high levels if they are taught at high levels. Some students require more time and more instruction at high-level course if they cannot read the materials. If students are going to attain high standards, they need teachers who know the subjects and know how to teach the subjects. Educators must vary instructional approaches to match the learning styles of students, differentiating instruction, providing access to high-quality preschool programs, consistently exposing students to high-quality instruction, generating support from families and communities, and consistently intensifying implementation of best-practice instructional strategies and approaches in all classrooms and in all content areas. Educators must provide instruction that is flexible, creative, challenging, and complex to increase high-level thinking skills. During a recent comprehensive needs assessment, the research has shown that the achievement gap is closing between ethnic groups, social economically disadvantaged and at-risk students by the teaching students at a higher level than in previous years. The new STAAR test has changed the way teachers present instructions and require students to perform at a higher level use Bloom’s level of thinking.
Reference:
Texas Education Agency (2004). A model comprehensive, developmental guidance and counseling program for Texas public schools: A guide for program development Pre-K-12th Grade. Retrieved from http://www.schoolcounselor.org/files/Texas.pdf
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