Virtual School Counseling

Abstract

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) is a national organization that provides frameworks for school counseling programs. ASCA developed a national model that outlines a comprehensive school counseling program. The purpose of the model is to help school counselors do more school counseling, do fewer non-school counseling activities, and provide expert-level tools. This chapter explores the history of virtual schools and the various forms of distance education. Practitioners will learn the benefits and barriers to a virtual school counseling program. Additionally, the chapter presents best practices and highlights special considerations. This chapter is not necessarily an implementation guide; it is a resource for professionals who consider using virtual school counseling and those who already provide a virtual program.

Demystifying Tele-Counseling: Meeting Student Needs Through Ethical Decision-Making and Collaborative Consultation

“…Tele-counseling is providing counseling services using information and communication technologies (ICTs) such as videoconferencing, text, chat, and other internet-supported approaches (Wilson, 2022). Both special and general education programs require experts who can make themselves and services available in a timely manner for consultations, evaluations, team meetings, and direct treatments.…”

“…Educators must advocate for the student and families to ensure that the primary components of remote access are met in order to effectively address the academic, social-emotional, and career exploration needs of students through a remote learning environment. Research indicates that tele-counseling can be an effective medium for providing counseling services to address student needs in the academic, social-emotional, and career exploration domains (Chang et al, 2021; Wilson, 2022). However, while much has been written regarding the use of technology within a school setting (Cheng & Lai, 2020), there is a paucity of peer-reviewed articles regarding the ethics related to the provision of technology-supported educational interventions and tele-counseling in schools.…”

“…Competence to navigate these challenges develops over time and often involves self-reflection, increasing self-awareness, dialogue with peers, and education (Carnes-Holt et al, 2016). While professional associations provide valuable resources for counselors addressing ethical dilemmas, counselors also need support to intentionally build awareness about potential real-world challenges (Warren & Douglas, 2012), particularly in integrating technology (Wilson, 2022).…”

“…With the goal to meet the students’ academic, social-emotional, and career exploration needs, finding better ways to collaborate and connect services with students makes all the difference. The synergy between special educator and counselors’ relationships to comprehensively focus on the school and the detailed individual orientation of special educators to maximize the role that technology can serve to improve outcomes for diverse students (Willson, 2022; Womack & Monteiro, 2022). By utilizing ICT, the efficacy of student-counselor engagement and provision of services may increase, affording opportunities for engagement not adequately provided in more traditional settings.…”