# data[].attributes.body
Counselors will introduce students to strategies, interventions, and resources to help them in future testing environments. Students will identify, develop, and implement study skills to improve future test scores. Counselors will organize one section of each 6th grade, 7th grade, and 8th grade students to participate in the small groups.

# data[].attributes.body
Throughout the Strategies and Skills for Success Group meetings, the counselor will deliver lessons and activities to help students master the following American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Mindsets and Behaviors:

Mindsets:
M 1. Belief in development of whole self, including a healthy balance of mental, social/emotional, and physical well-being

M 2. Self-confidence in ability to succeed

M 5. Belief in using abilities to their fullest to achieve high-quality results and outcomes

M 6. Positive attitude toward work and learning

Behaviors:
B-LS 3. Use time-management, organizational, and study skills

B-SMS 5. Demonstrate perseverance to achieve long- and short-term goals

(American School Counselor Association, 2004)

# data[].attributes.headline
Establishing Rules, Norms, and Expectations

# data[].attributes.subject
Establishing Rules, Norms, and Expectations

# data[].attributes.body
Ground rules are established before the first group session and presented to each student during the pre-screening process; however, there should be time in the first meeting to discuss what each rule "looks like" and "sounds like." The group will have the opportunity to create rules in addition to rules that were created prior to the first meeting. The counselor will create a flyer to display, which includes group-created norms and expectations. Each group meeting will open with a quick reminder of group norms.

# data[].attributes.body
After going through the screening process and explaining the group's purpose to the student, the counselor will let the student know they have the right to choose not to be in the group and will be asked if they would like to move forward with participation.

# data[].attributes.body
After using needs assessment data, the counselors will schedule one-on-one meetings with each identified student. The counselors will give each group member an informational flyer and share more details concerning:

Group topics and objectives

Dates and times of the meetings

Attendance and confidentiality agreements

Inclusion criteria

Participation expectations

In addition to explaining to the students that they will be learning skills and strategies to  help them with test-taking, the counselors will:

Promote the fun activities that will be included in the group sessions

Discuss the potential for meeting new people or fostering new friendships

At the end of the one-on-one sessions, the counselor will:

Confirm the student's understanding of the group

Ask for questions or clarification the student may need

Gauge each student's interest in participating in the group sessions on a scale of 1 to 10

Ask the student if they are willing to participate (once this is established, the counselor should ask why or why not)

Confirm that the student is willing to adhere to the confidentiality and attendance expectations

Inquire about the students' goals for the group sessions

Before ending the pre-screening meeting, the counselor will inform the student that they would like to discuss the group with their parent or guardian.

The counselor should tell the student that, even if they show a low interest level, they would like the student to review the flyer with their parents and that the counselor will also reach out to their parent or guardian.

All students should be given a consent form to be signed by the student's parent or guardian.

Once the pre-screening is complete, all students who have agreed to the expectations will become a confirmed group member, pending parent consent. The counselor will reach out to the parents and guardians of the students who did not agree to expectations or were hesitant to participate. Based upon these discussions, the counselor may choose to revisit the discussion with students or choose a new potential participant.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015)

# data[].attributes.body
Counselors will follow the procedures below to inform stakeholders of necessary information:

Administrators: Counselors will propose the Strategies and Skills for Success group plan during the August administrators planning meeting with a presentation that will include pertinent information from the Small Group Action Plan.

Students: Counselors will distribute a printed flyer to each student chosen to participate in the group to increase excitement and engagement. Counselors will then perform a pre-group interview.

Parents: A counselor will contact each identified group member’s parents and send home a Parental Consent Form two weeks prior to the start of each section. If the parents do not return the form by the due date, the counselor will directly contact the parents.

Teachers: After the counselor determines each group, they will send an email to each group member’s 2nd-period teacher. This communication will allow the teacher to plan for the student’s absences from class while participating in the group sessions.

# data[].attributes.body
Participative Leadership will be the style used when working with the small groups. Participative leadership, also known as democratic leadership, is generally the most effective leadership style (Foels et al., 2000).

This style of leadership offers guidance to group members but also allows all group members to participate and offer input to the group. Participative leadership encourages group members to take an active role and creates value for everyone. Although this leadership style gives the leader the final say over the decision-making process, group members feel engaged in the process and are more motivated and creative.

# data[].attributes.body
Yalom created 11 therapeutic factors that assist with and explain the group therapy process and the benefits. The factors also influence change and healing in group therapy. An overview of the factors is listed below, indicating which are most beneficial.

1. The instillation of hope creates a feeling of optimism for each group member.

2. Universality helps group members realize that they are not alone in their impulses, problems, and other issues. Students learn that others share the same experiences.

3. Imparting information helps educate and empower members of the group with knowledge pertaining to their specific psychological situation.

4. Altruism allows members to gain a sense of value and significance by helping other group members.

5. Corrective recapitulation provides for the resolution of family and childhood events within the safety of the group family.

6. Socializing techniques promote social development, tolerance, empathy, and other interpersonal skills. This factor is ideal for small groups.

7. Through imitative behavior, group members learn to adopt the coping strategies and perspectives of other group members. Imitative behavior lends itself to lead by example.

8. Interpersonal learning teaches group members how to develop supportive interpersonal relationships.

9. Group cohesiveness gives members a sense of acceptance, belonging, value, and security, which is extremely important in small group settings.

10. Catharsis releases suppressed emotions and promotes healing by disclosing information to group members. Although this is tough, learners will be able to release fears and help one another.

11. Existential factors incorporate learning how to exist as part of something larger than oneself. This factor brings a member into the awareness that life will continue with pain, death, sadness, regret, and joy. By living existentially, members learn how to accept these conditions without escaping from them. Members learn how to live with these feelings and through them.

("Group therapy," 2019)

Although this is a comprehensive list, most of these factors would be extremely beneficial when working with the small test-taking strategies group. For this particular task, one factor that may not be useful is existential factors.

# data[].attributes.headline
American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards

# data[].attributes.subject
American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards

# data[].attributes.body
A.7 Group Work
c. Inform parent/guardian(s) of student participation in a small group.
(American School Counselor Association, 2016)

By contacting parents about group participation, the school counselor ensures that they meet the requirement of consulting with parents to aid in the success of students (TEC §33.006).  Additionally, according to the Texas Education Agency (TEA), counseling programs should foster a culture of collaboration, including the involvement of parents in a student's educational advancement (2018). Within the standards developed by the TEA for school counselors, the implementation of Guidance Curriculum includes parental involvement.

# data[].attributes.body
The counselor will pass out this form to help guide the discussion to establish group norms and expectations. The counselor will have the students decide as a group what information the counselor will include as a part of the official group norms and expectations, and then the counselor should record them.

# data[].attributes.body
The counselor will use the information each group discusses to fill in the chart on the attached flyer. The flyer will be displayed at each session to serve as a reminder of all norms and expectations.

# data[].attributes.body
Once the student has given verbal assent to participation, they will be given the consent form to take home to their parents or guardians with the expectation that the form will be returned by the end of the school week. Students will be informed that this consent form must be signed by both the student and a parent or guardian in order to participate in the group.

The counselors will contact the parents of selected members to explain what the group entails and what will be provided. They will discuss the positive aspects of the group and let the parents know that their child will be pulled from class during small groups. Parents will be able to ask questions and express concerns. At this time, parents will be notified that a consent form will be sent home that must be returned in order for their child to participate.

# data[].attributes.headline
American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards

# data[].attributes.subject
American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards

# data[].attributes.body
A.7. Group Work
d. Use data to measure member needs to establish well-defined expectations of group members.
(American School Counselor Association, 2016)

School counselors should aim to integrate data collection and analysis when developing goals for their program (TEC §33.005).  By using needs assessment data, school counselors are able to identify growth areas for students across the campus (Texas Education Agency, 2018). Specifically, as counselors aim to expand their guidance curriculum, evaluating needs assessments can guide lesson development that will allow for student growth and the ability to teach skills that can be used throughout a student's educational experience. According to the Texas Education Agency, high-performing counseling programs characteristically include those that: " Use data regularly to analyze and improve student learning" (2018, p 20).

# data[].attributes.body
Getting Acquainted, Setting Norms, and Building Trust

This stage is also referred to as the storming/norming stage.

Establishing and building trust within the group is very important and the main task of the beginning phase of group counseling (Corey & Corey, 2014).

To build trust among the group members, the first session will include an icebreaker activity to allow the group members to make connections with one another. The goal is to make the students feel comfortable and get them to enjoy attending the group. The counselor will create a safe space for students to share information; however, they should be aware that students may not participate or share until they feel more comfortable.

Counselors should encourage students to contribute to promoting their investment in the group. Expected behaviors will be modeled. Redirection will be used as necessary.

ASCA (2016) Ethical Standard A.7.e emphasizes that confidentiality within the group should always be the norm. Counselors will discuss confidentiality and guidelines for maintaining discretion within the group. Counselors will review the rules that were previously discussed when students agreed to participate in the group.

Unfortunately, it is understood that students will not always adhere to confidentiality in a group setting.

In this stage, group members may be hesitant to disclose information because they are fearful of someone outside of the group finding out personal information.  The counselor should establish that what goes on in group meetings stays in meetings, prior to sharing sessions. Once cleared, students may feel more comfortable sharing more about themselves and their experiences.

Stage 2:
Working Together to Accomplish individual and Group Goals

This stage is also called the performing stage. The students will be given specific assignments that will help them stay on task. Students should begin feeling more comfortable with each other during this stage and should be more willing to open up and also support one another. The lessons will be structured to allow opportunities for students to gain confidence in themselves. Each activity will have a checks and balances system in which the students self-reflect and rely on other group members to encourage participation. The counselor should serve as a facilitator and guide the group, but the members' participation will determine the success of each session. This stage provides an opportunity for the members to take on more responsibility.

Stage 3:
Ending the Group

When the time comes to end the group, the counselor should be aware of each student's feelings regarding the conclusion of the group. This stage is often referred to as the mourning stage. Counselors must keep in mind that bonds between members of the group have been formed, and students may genuinely feel sad, anxious, or alone because the group is ending. Students will be given an opportunity to share their feelings or concerns about the group's termination. The counselor should also reiterate confidentiality and the importance of keeping group conversations and dynamics private.

The group will reflect on accomplishments and focus on ways to continue utilizing the learned strategies. Counselors will stress the importance of members continuing to communicate with one another.

A follow-up session will be set up to offer support and provide all students the opportunity to reconvene and discuss how effective their initial small groups were.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
CTMS Small Group Counseling Consent Form

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Thank you for taking our survey. Participating in this survey is voluntary and your responses will be keep confidential. Please select the response that best applies to you.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Thank you for taking our survey. Participating in this survey is voluntary and your responses will be keep confidential. Now that you have gone through the 6 Week Test Taking Strategies Small Group, please select the response that best applies to you.