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My professional perspective is focused on school counseling at the middle school level. I received my MED in School counseling from Texas A&M-College Station. I am currently a 5 year veteran ELA teacher. I hope to use my counseling certificate to become a school counselor.

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Edinburg, is a closely knit community which strongly emphasizes the value of providing a good education. The ECISD encompasses 945 square miles which makes it one of the largest in the nation. It offers 3 high schools, 5 middle schools, 27 elementary schools, and 1 alternative campus.

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I spoke with my current head counselor at South Middle School, Joe Martinez. He has a been a counselor at my campus for 30 years. I spoke to him about any legal or ethical implications he is concerned about in his career.

1. School counselors are obligated by law and ethical boards to work cooperatively with Child Protected Services, foster systems, and social workers. They must ensure that all the students are provided a safe living environment, as well as school environment.

2. School counselors are obligated by law to report bullying at the campus level. There are safeguards and procedures in place to respond to these situations. Responsive systems must be in place to ensure that students feel safe psychologically, emotionally, and socially. Just recently the David's Law was created to protect students from bullying in the classroom and online. Districts are required to implement anonymous bullying reports and are obligated to investigate within 3 days of the outcry. After the investigation those that are deemed bullies are removed from the campus and placed at another.

3. Counselors are required to attend a monthly meeting at central office. It is at these meetings where counselors are given the most up to date information on guidance counseling and responsive services.

4. Maintaining state mandated testing standards is a major issue with school counselors. Their job is to maintain a safe and secure location of STAAR assessments and report any testing irregularities and violations, even if this means it affects their campus' results.

5. Counselors must maintain confidentiality between students and teachers. If the issue does not directly concern a teacher or another student, information may not be disclosed under any circumstance. This is also the case with parents that no longer have custody of the student. Only the legal guardian is allowed to be given information regarding the student regardless of biological relations. Information must be withheld from any individual that has had custodial rights revoked.

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The American School Counselor Association (ASCA)

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The American School Counselor Association (ASCA)

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After reviewing the ASCA website, I found various resources for responsive services. One in particular was about helping kids deal with hurricanes/floods. It provides steps to help the misplaced students. I felt this was relevant to today's events and in my community. We are often left in flood water after a down pour and have students that struggle getting to school or maintaining healthy living standards.

2. The ASCA provides ethical tips for school counselors to follow:

1. Act in the best interests of the students at all times. Act in good faith and in the absence of malice.

2. Inform students of possible limitations on the counseling relationship prior to the beginning of the relationship.

3. Increase awareness of personal values, attitudes and beliefs; refer when personal characteristics hinder effectiveness.

4. Actively attempt to understand the diverse cultural backgrounds of the students with whom you work, including your own cultural/ethnic/racial identity and its impact on your values and beliefs about the counseling process.
(just to name a few)

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Ethical Tips for School Counselors | American School Counselor Association (ASCA)

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National School Boards Association (NSBA)

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National School Boards Association (NSBA)

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This association provided very interesting information in relation to bullying. It provided a detailed description of what the state is required to do in bullying cases. I found this interesting because it stated that the victim not the bully is to be moved campuses. This is different from my district's policy that states the bully must be moved to a different campus.

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As a school counselor at the middle school level, I believe that it is imperative to my student's success in the classroom that I completely understand the legalities behind bullying situations. After reading about my district's policy and the state policy, I have taken special interest to ensure that I am ready to resolve bullying cases.

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The resource that I found through Library services was a book titled, "Preventing Bullying and School Violence." It is filled with resources and strategies for educators to implement at school.
Twemlow, S. W., & Sacco, F. C. (2012). Preventing bullying and school violence. Retrieved from https://ebookcentral.proquest.com

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Texas State University has provided a tremendous amount of resources in relation to David's Law. This law was passed in Texas to protect student's from bullying. It provides flowcharts to help identify bullying and how to define bullying. They provide media resources that can be helpful in professional developments on campus.

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After researching my topic and understanding the ethical issues in my career choice, I understand the importance of understanding David's Law and its implications on the Texas Education System. Being a school counselor, it is imperative that I understand the steps and techniques in resolving bullying conflicts. The ASCA website provided detailed and specific examples related to maintaining ethical standards. The NSBA provided detailed law descriptions of Texas and the obligation of resolving bullying. My favorite resource that I found was provided by Texas State University. They provided a plethora of resources regarding bullying and the productive implantation of systems and safeguards. These would be extremely helpful in Professional Development sessions.

This topic is extremely important to educators because it ensures a healthy teaching environment for their students. Students must feel safe when they attend school. If they are safe, fed, and happy then they are more likely to be academically successful. I know that as a school counselor I will be faced with bullying cases. This is especially the case at that the middle school level. I must prepare myself with a toolkit of techniques and strategies to combat bullying.