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Description of the Empower/Connection Group

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Description of the Empower/Connection Group

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The purpose of this group will be to empower the quiet students; who are always sitting by themselves at lunch and in the classroom, with strategies to gain confidence to advocate and voice their needs and opinions. The age group of the students will be 6th-9th grade students, so students about 11 to 15 years old.

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By the completion of this group, the Mindsets and Behaviors that the participants will master are mentioned in the American School Counselor Association (2021), which are;

Mindsets:

-M 1. Developing a belief of whole self, social/emotional and physical well-being.

-M 2. Developing a sense of acceptance for self

-M 4. Developing Self-confidence in the ability to succeed

Behaviors:

-B-LS 10. Participation in enrichment and

extracurricular activities

-B-SMS 7. Effective coping skills

-B-SS 2. Positive, respectful, and supportive relationships with students who are similar to and different from them

-B-SS 3. Positive relationships with adults to support success

-B-SS 6. Effective collaboration and cooperation skills

-B-SS 8. Advocacy skills for self and others and ability to assert self, when necessary

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I plan to send out an invitation/google form to students who I feel may benefit from the group based on my observations of students, for them to indicate yes or no to the interest of attending and being a part of the group. The Google form will contain information on the purpose, plan (logistics), and the student learning outcome for the group. The form will first be sent to the students who are most often seen sitting alone and who have recently started. Depending on the student interest responses that I receive, will determine whether or not an advertisement will be needed. If so, then a flyer will be created and posted in student-populated areas; middle/high school hallway, cafeteria, and gym.

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Plans for Pre-group Interview/Screening 

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Plans for Pre-group Interview/Screening 

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An invitation survey via Google form will be sent to students who may benefit from the group based on my observations of students, for them to indicate yes or no to their interest in attending and being a part of the group.

The form will be completed individually.

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The following consent form will be utilized to obtain parental consent for students to participate in the group.

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I plan to utilize the attached guidelines as a starting point to set the rules and expectations for the group.

Some of the group rules that I will predetermine will be;

-Maintaining the group's confidentiality, because confidentiality is essential to this group. What is said in the group is not to be repeated or discussed at any other time or place.

-We do not discuss group members who are not present.

-We begin and end our meetings on time.

As a group, we will create a social contract, through answering the following questions; How do you want to be treated by me the leader? How do you want to be treated by others/each other? How do you think I want to be treated by you? As these questions are being asked the words that are said will be put on a chart paper. If a word is repeated, a checkmark will be placed on it. After responding to all the questions, everyone will be asked to sign the paper indicating that they are agreeing to abide by the social contract while attending the group sessions.

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Guidelines and Ground Rules for the Group

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Stage 1: A way in which I plan to build relationships and trust between group members and myself is by encouraging everyone to communicate openly and honestly with each other, without fear of judgment or criticism. I plan to make sure that all voices are heard and respected so that everyone feels comfortable. I also plan to have an opening/icebreaker activity such as; naming your favorite place to get french fries. Group norms will be established through building the social contract as mentioned in the last slide. At the start of each group session, a confidential statement will be made, while referencing the social contract. Along with expressing the exception to the confidentiality limit to my role as the counselor such as, when a statement is made regarding plans to harm oneself or others, it is the counselor's ethical and legal duty to report this information to the appropriate personnel.

Stage 2: With each lesson, I plan to have assignments that the participants will complete to practice. I plan to reach out to members via school email and in person throughout the week between each check-in.

Stage 3: For the last session/closing session, I plan to have a recap discussion. Each participant will express their takeaways from the group sessions. I plan to maintain contacts and regular check-ins to see how they are doing. After about 2 weeks after the last group session, I plan to send out an email to each group member to see how they are feeling after the group. At the closing of the group, my hope is that the participants foster a friendship that will continue and grow moving forward.

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The type of leadership style that I feel might be fitting when working with this group, would be Participative Leadership (Democratic). In Cherry (n.d), the democratic leadership style is defined as offering guidance to group members, but the leader also participates in the group and allows other group members to provide input. I feel that this approach would work best with this specific population, as it will allow the participants to learn from each other. With this style of leadership, I will provide the expectations of the group, and then only respond in ways that got the participants to answer their questions/statements during a discussion.

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Therapeutic Factors that I could potentially see during my group sessions are, may include;

-"Universality - the demonstration that we are not alone in our misery or our "problems"" (Yalom ID, 1995, n.p.). Participants in the group will learn that they are to each other.

-"Development of socializing techniques - social learning or development of interpersonal skills" (Yalom ID, 1995, n.p.). Participants in the group will learn techniques on gaining self-confidence and socializing techniques.

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The first ethical requirement for counselors that pertains to group counseling that I identify is, "A.7.b. Confidentiality and

Advocacy" (American Counseling Association, 2014, p. 5). By obtaining the guardian & student's consent before engaging in the group, will remove systemic barriers or obstacles that may impede the student's access, growth, and development.

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The second ethical requirement for counselors that pertains to group counseling that I identify is, "A.9.a. Screening"(American Counseling Association, 2014, p. 5). Through screening, prospective group counseling participants will extent possible select members whose needs and goals are

compatible with the goals of the group. Screening will also assist with identifying possible students who will not impede the group process, and whose well-being will not be jeopardized by the group experience.

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American School Counselor Association (2021). ASCA Student Standards; Mindsets and Behaviors for Student Success. Alexandria, VA: Author.

American Counseling Association. (2014). 2014 ACA code of ethics. https://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/default- document-library/2014-code-of-ethics-finaladdress.pdf

Cherry, K. (n.d.).How to Lead: 6 Leadership Styles and Frameworks. Verywellmind. Retrieved September 15, 2024, from https://www.verywellmind.com/leadership-styles-2795312

Yalom ID. (1995). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy (4th ed.). New York: Basic Books.