A Competency‐Based Model for Counselor Certification

Abstract

The state of Washington has recently begun several state-wide competency-based certification programs. These programs are being used to evaluate school counselors at three levels of functioning. Examples of the program used by the Southeastern Washington Counselor Consortium to certify counselors at the beginning level are presented. Required competencies, activities that help the counselor achieve proficiency in these competencies, and individual evaluation procedures are included in the program. The purpose of this competency-based program and an evaluation of counselors, programs, problems, and issues are presented.In 1971, the Washington State Board of Education proposed guidelines for certification of school personnel, providing opportunities for sweeping changes (Bruno 197 I). One response was the establishment of competencybased training and certification programs. Eight consortiums, consisting of representatives from the professional association, the school organizations involved, and the college or university in the area, were formed throughout the state to establish and carry out the new certification programs. The Southeastern Washington Consortium began a counselor certification program on January I, 1975, based on the competency model partially presented in this article. ADVANTAGE OF COMPETENCY-BASED PROGRAMSThe counseling profession has been accused of failing to demonstrate competence to clients, school administrators, teachers, and the public, thus causing these groups to question the value of counseling. After many counseling proJames T. Shoemaker is Assistant Professor and Jackie L. Splitter is a graduate student in guidance and counseling, both in the

Work samples and simulations in competency evaluation.

“…Another strong advantage of work samples and simulations is their ability to measure interactive skills, such as with a patient, a client, company management, or a school child. To illustrate the importance of such measures, in a competency model developed by the state of Washingon for school psychology (Shoemaker & Splitter, 1976), certification of counseling skills required that the applicant demonstrate the ability to develop an atmosphere and relationship that stimulates open communication. Specifically, the applicant must demonstrate effective use of (a) minimal encouragement for the client to talk, (b) silence, (c) open-ended questions, and (d) a focus on the client's content without introducing irrelevant data.…”

A Competency‐Based Staff Development Approach for Improving Counselor Education

“…There are many theoretical statements (Arner et al 1976;Bernstein & Lacomte 1976;Brammer & Springer 1971;Kennedy 1976;Shoemaker & G. Brian Jones is Principle Research Scientist and Charles W. Dayton is Associate Research Scientist at the American Institutes for Research, Palo Alto, California Splitter 1976) and surveys (Jones 1976) that support giving more attention to competency-based education of more attention to competency-based education of counseling personnel. For example, the data reported by Jones (1976) showed that 77.4 Percent of 239 respondents (from a nationwide sample of state supervisors of guidance, representatives of counselor education institutions, and staff from nontraditional institutions offering graduate degrees in guidance and counseling) expected at least "some benefit" or "significant improvement" from making counselor training programs competency based.…”

The Challenge and Opportunity of Competency‐Based Counselor Education

“…Five decades ago, counselor educators were writing extensively about competencies in counselor education (Dash, ; Gavilan & Ryan, ; Shoemaker & Splitter, ). The initial conversations about setting preparation standards for counselors were about identity and what knowledge and skills a counselor needs to enter practice.…”