School Counselor Induction and the Importance of Mattering

Measuring Evaluation Competency Among School Counselors

“…Programs such as the school counselor mentoring program in Missouri could also be used for direct in vivo experience in incorporating evaluation activities into practice with supervision and support. Mentoring programs are widely used in school settings to support ongoing professional development for school counselors, teachers, and other personnel (Curry & Bickmore, 2012; Ingersoll & Strong, 2011). Curry and Bickmore (2012) found that structured supports for novice counselors, including a formal mentor and high-quality professional development, positively affected new counselors’ feelings of “mattering.” Mentoring programs could play a significant role in fostering evaluation competencies among new school counselors entering the field.…”

Understanding the first year of novice school counsellors

“…Although it is unrealistic, school principals and teachers expect novice school counsellors to become experienced as soon as possible (Matthes, 1992). This causes extra stress and burden on novice school counsellors (Curry & Bickmore, 2012). Having inadequate experience causes novice counsellors to experience more anxiety in problematic situations.…”

“…Guest (2000) found that 40% of the participating school counsellors stated that their formal training did not meet the requirements in the field, which caused them to feel inadequate. One of the best strategies to overcome this perception of inadequacy is to create a system where experienced school counsellors can support the novice ones (Boyd & Walter, 1975;Curry & Bickmore, 2012;Roberts & Borders, 1994;Stickel & Trimmer, 1994;Sutton & Page, 1994). However, unfortunately, only 23% of novice counsellors receive professional support (Matthes, 1992).…”

“…The first year of the profession is a critical period for the novice school counsellor, because of their social status change and because they are no longer students but professionals (Nazlı, 2016). However, since most cannot receive expert mentor support (Curry & Bickmore, 2012), they may experience anxiety for a variety of reasons, including feelings of inadequacy (Skovholt & Rønnestad, 2003) and different expectations (Aslan, 2003;Johnson, 2000;Korkut, 2007). This qualitative study aims to explore what novice school counsellors experience in the first years of their professional careers.…”

School Counseling District Supervisors’ Experiences and Perceptions Regarding School Counselor Preparation for Practice

“…School counselors are trained in master’s and doctoral preparation programs to be leaders, advocates, collaborators, and agents of school-wide systemic change through implementing comprehensive school counseling programs (American School Counselor Association [ASCA], 2020). Even with often rigorous and comprehensive preservice preparation, novice school counselors still face myriad challenges transitioning into the field (Curry & Bickmore, 2012; Slaten et al, 2013). District-level school counseling supervisors perform a variety of functions with the aim of assisting with school counselors’ transition from preservice to practice (ASCA, 2019d; Cicero, 2009; Cook, 2008; Hurt, 2014; Somody et al, 2008; Walsh, 2018).…”