School Counselors’ Experiences With Ethical Decision Making

Using a purposeful, convenience sampling method, we explored six school counselors’ experiences of ethical decision making. We used a transcendental phenomenology research method and identified the themes of consulting, referring to ethical guidelines, documenting, contributing factors, and engaging in professional development. This article discusses implications for school counselor preparation programs and practicing school counselors.

Antiracist School Counselor Preparation: Expanding on the Five Tenets of the Transforming School Counseling Initiative

As a profession, school counseling must serve as an active force against systemic racism, and school counselor preparation must equip future professionals as antiracist agents of change. This article expands the original Transforming School Counseling Initiative (TSCI) tenets that sought to re-envision school counselor preparation in the late 1990s with language that explicitly supports antiracism. The authors offer a definition of antiracist school counseling and sample assignments and experiences that align with the revised tenets.

A University/School District Partnership to Close the Information, Opportunity, and Attainment Gaps for Students in Urban Schools

This article outlines how to replicate strategies employed during a two-decade partnership between the University of North Florida’s (UNF) school counselor preparation program and Duval County Public Schools, a large, urban, southern school district. The partnership created a culture of collaboration built on a mutual social justice philosophy for the purpose of closing attainment gaps. Participation in the partnership has become mandatory for UNF school counseling candidates in their preparation to be systemic change agents who ferret out and eliminate opportunity gaps and information gaps to benefit K–12 students.

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

District-level school counseling supervisors assist with school counselors’ induction into the school counseling field; however, related research is lacking. As a result, we conducted an exploratory thematic analysis to investigate district supervisors’ experiences and perceptions regarding novice school counselors’ transition from preservice to practice. Results included three themes, largely encompassing school counselor preparation: (a) preparation program variation, (b) preferring face-to-face preparation modalities, and (c) suggestions for strengthening school counseling preparation and practice.

School Counselor Roles and Opportunities in Promoting EcoWellness: Integrating Nature Connection in K–12 Settings

Nature positively impacts holistic wellness and K–12 student learning, although this phenomenon has largely been unstudied in school counseling. School counselors are in a unique position to champion nature connection in school communities to promote holistic wellness and positive learning outcomes. This article introduces EcoWellness as a framework for strategically infusing nature throughout the comprehensive school counseling program. We discuss strategies for school counseling practice and implications for school counselor preparation and research.

EFIKASI KENDIRI, SIKAP, KESEDIAAN DAN CABARAN MENJALANKAN KAUNSELING KLIEN BERKEPERLUAN KHAS[SELF-EFFICACY, ATTITUDE, READINESS AND CHALLENGES IN EXECUTING THE GUIDANCE AND COUNSELING SERVICE WITH SPECIAL NEED CLIENTS]

This research studied self-efficacy, attitude, readiness and challenges in executing the guidance and counseling service with special need clients. Employing a mixed methods research design, this research focused on 400 counseling teachers servicing at secondary schools in Perlis, Kedah and Penang, Malaysia. Three instruments were used in this research – ‘School Counselor Self-efficacy Scale’, ‘Attitudes toward Disabled Person Scale – Form O’ and ’School Counselor Preparation Survey – Revised’. For the quantitative part, multiple regression analysis was used. The research findings illustrate that self-efficacy appear to be the biggest contributor (31.9%) towards the readiness level in executing special need client counseling. The combination of self-efficacy level and attitude adds 3.8% to the influence towards counseling teachers’ readiness to execute guidance and counseling for special need students. The qualitative analysis on 12 participants gives insights into the challenges faced by the counseling teachers. This research is hoped to help counseling teachers understand factors (such as self-efficacy and attitude) that may influence the readiness to face the challenges. This research also explains the importance of counseling teachers’ self-efficacy and attitude towards clients with special needs in determining the intention of certain behaviours. This is to ensure that counseling teachers are competent in the guidance and counseling services especially for clients with special needs. Keywords: Attitude, guidance and counseling service, self-efficacy, special need clients, readiness and challengesCite as: Bakar, R., Che Aman, R. & Syed Abdullah, S.M., (2017). Efikasi kendiri, sikap, kesediaan dan cabaran menjalankan kaunseling klien berkeperluan khas [Self-efficacy, attitude, readiness and challenges in executing the guidance and counseling service with special need clients]. Journal of Nusantara Studies, 2(2), 264-281. AbstrakGuru kaunseling menghadapi pelbagai cabaran dalam perkhidmatan bimbingan dan kaunseling klien berkeperluan khas. Hal ini berpunca daripada ketiadaan latihan khusus dalam bidang pendidikan khas. Kajian ini mengkaji efikasi kendiri, sikap, kesediaan dan cabaran menjalankan perkhidmatan bimbingan dan kaunseling klien berkeperluan khas. Reka bentuk kajian adalah berbentuk campuran (mix-method) dan memfokus kepada 400 guru-guru kaunseling yang berkhidmat di sekolah-sekolah menengah di Perlis, Kedah dan Pulau Pinang. Tiga instrumen digunakan dalam kajian ini iaitu School Counselor Self-efficacy Scale, Attitudes toward Disabled Person Scale – Form O dan School Counselor Preparation Survey – Revised. Analisis regresi berganda menunjukkan kombinasi efikasi kendiri dan sikap merupakan penyumbang kepada kesediaan menjalankan bimbingan dan kaunseling murid berkeperluan khas dengan efikasi kendiri merupakan penyumbang terbesar iaitu sebanyak 31.9%. Analisis kualitatif terhadap 12 subjek kajian pula mendapati cabaran guru kaunseling ketika menjalankan perkhidmatan bimbingan dan kaunseling murid berkeperluan khas di sekolah adalah dari sudut komunikasi, kecekapan, membina hubungan, layanan, kepercayaan, penentuan matlamat, penerokaan, komitmen klien, celik akal klien, dan pelaksanaan program. Cabaran-cabaran tersebut berjaya diatasi oleh guru kaunseling disebabkan efikasi dan sikap yang positif. Kajian ini diharapkan dapat membantu guru kaunseling memahami faktor-faktor seperti efikasi kendiri dan sikap yang boleh mempengaruhi kesediaan untuk mengharungi cabaran ketika menjalankan sesi bimbingan dan kaunseling. Kata Kunci: Bimbingan dan kaunseling, efikasi kendiri, klien berkeperluan khas, kesediaan dan cabaran, sikap.