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Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators (2015) suggest the following participant guidelines and ground rules:
1.  Understand and Respect Confidentiality
2. Only one person should be speaking at a time
3. Provide everyone with an opportunity to participate and share
4. Respectful words and responses are to be used by everyone
5. Treat one another with respect
6. Be on time
7. Actively participate
8. Everyone has the right to pass on an issue
9. Have an open mind and accept other members success and/or lack of in their development
10. Other guidelines can be developed as a whole group.

Everyone should understand and respect the ground rules. These are most effective when they are posted somewhere in view and reviewed before every session. Ground rules should be referenced often. The members should monitor and encourage participation from everyone to develop a sense of ownership and mutual responsibility.

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One of the several code of ethics addressed includes the screening process for this group.
ACA (2014) under A.9.a. Screening states, "Counselors screen prospective group counseling/therapy participants. To the extent possible, counselors select members whose needs and goals are compatible with the goals of the group, who will not impede the group process, and whose well-being will not be jeopardized by the group experience" (p. 6).

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Education Code: Sec. 33.006 states the general duties and responsibilities of the school counselor. The general duties include (a) The primary responsibility of a school counselor is to counsel students to fully develop each student's academic, career, personal, and social abilities.

The development of this group further deepens the responsibility of guiding the students to developing fully in their academic, careers, personal, and social abilities.

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EDUCATION CODE CHAPTER 33. SERVICE PROGRAMS AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES

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EDUCATION CODE TITLE 2. PUBLIC EDUCATION SUBTITLE F. CURRICULUM, PROGRAMS, AND SERVICES CHAPTER 33. SERVICE PROGRAMS AND EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES SUBCHAPTER A. SCHOOL COUNSELORS AND COUNSELING PROGRAMS Sec. 33.002. CERTIFIED SCHOOL COUNSELOR. (a) From funds appropriated for the purpose or other funds that may be used for the purpose, the commissioner shall distribute funds for programs under this subchapter.

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When considering Yalom’s Curative Factors of Group Treatment, some of the following may be conspired through this group. Because the group consists of students who are all struggling with study skills and the implications of those, universality may develop. Students may learn that they are not alone. As some begin to show progress, the hope is that imitative behaviors take place. In addition, students may provide and receive direct advice as well as interpersonal learning.

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Leadership styles are classifications of how a person behaves while directing, motivating, guiding, and managing groups of people. There are many leadership styles. Some of the most widely discussed include: authoritarian (autocratic), participative (democratic), delegative (laissez-faire), transformational, transactional, and situational.

Great leaders can inspire political movements and social change. They can also motivate others to perform, create, and innovate. As you start to consider some of the people who you think of as great leaders, you can immediately see that there are often vast differences in how each person leads.

Fortunately, researchers have developed different theories and frameworks that allow us to better identify and understand these different leadership styles.

Lewin's Leadership Styles

In 1939, a group of researchers led by psychologist Kurt Lewin set out to identify different styles of leadership.﻿﻿ While further research has identified more distinct types of leadership, this early study was very influential and established three major leadership styles that have provided a springboard for more defined leadership theories.

In Lewin's study, schoolchildren were assigned to one of three groups with an authoritarian, democratic, or laissez-faire leader. The children were then led in an arts and crafts project while researchers observed the behavior of children in response to the different styles of leadership. The researchers found that democratic leadership tended to be the most effective at inspiring followers to perform well.

Authoritarian Leadership (Autocratic)

Authoritarian leaders, also known as autocratic leaders, provide clear expectations for what needs to be done, when it should be done, and how it should be done. This style of leadership is strongly focused on both command by the leader and control of the followers. There is also a clear division between the leader and the members. Authoritarian leaders make decisions independently, with little or no input from the rest of the group.

Researchers found that decision-making was less creative under authoritarian leadership.﻿﻿ Lewin also concluded that it is harder to move from an authoritarian style to a democratic style than vice versa. Abuse of this method is usually viewed as controlling, bossy, and dictatorial.

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Authoritarian leadership is best applied to situations where there is little time for group decision-making or where the leader is the most knowledgeable member of the group. The autocratic approach can be a good one when the situation calls for rapid decisions and decisive actions. However, it tends to create dysfunctional and even hostile environments, often pitting followers against the domineering leader.

Participative Leadership (Democratic)

Lewin's study found that participative leadership, also known as democratic leadership, is typically the most effective leadership style. Democratic leaders offer guidance to group members, but they also participate in the group and allow input from other group members. In Lewin's study, children in this group were less productive than the members of the authoritarian group, but their contributions were of a higher quality.

Participative leaders encourage group members to participate, but retain the final say in the decision-making process. Group members feel engaged in the process and are more motivated and creative. Democratic leaders tend to make followers feel like they are an important part of the team, which helps foster commitment to the goals of the group.

Delegative Leadership (Laissez-Faire)

Lewin found that children under delegative leadership, also known as laissez-faire leadership, were the least productive of all three groups. The children in this group also made more demands on the leader, showed little cooperation, and were unable to work independently.

Delegative leaders offer little or no guidance to group members and leave the decision-making up to group members. While this style can be useful in situations involving highly qualified experts, it often leads to poorly defined roles and a lack of motivation.

Lewin noted that laissez-faire leadership tended to result in groups that lacked direction and members who blamed each other for mistakes, refused to accept personal responsibility, made less progress, and produced less work.

Observations About Lewin's Leadership Styles

In their book, The Bass Handbook of Leadership: Theory, Research, and Managerial Applications, Bass and Bass note that authoritarian leadership is often presented solely in negative, often disapproving, terms. Authoritarian leaders are often described as controlling and close-minded, yet this overlooks the potential positives of stressing rules, expecting obedience, and taking responsibility.

While authoritarian leadership certainly is not the best choice for every situation, it can be effective and beneficial in cases where followers need a great deal of direction and where rules and standards must be followed to the letter. Another often overlooked benefit of the authoritarian style is the ability to maintain a sense of order.

Bass and Bass note that democratic leadership tends to be centered on the followers and is an effective approach when trying to maintain relationships with others. People who work under such leaders tend to get along well, support one another, and consult other members of the group when making decisions.

Additional Leadership Styles and Models

In addition to the three styles identified by Lewin and his colleagues, researchers have described numerous other characteristic patterns of leadership. A few of the best-known include:

Transformational Leadership

Transformational leadership is often identified as the single most effective style. This style was first described during the late 1970s and later expanded upon by researcher Bernard M. Bass. Transformational leaders are able to motivate and inspire followers and to direct positive changes in groups.

These leaders tend to be emotionally intelligent, energetic, and passionate. They are not only committed to helping the organization achieve its goals, but also to helping group members fulfill their potential.

Research shows that this style of leadership results in higher performance and more improved group satisfaction than other leadership styles. One study also found that transformational leadership led to improved well-being among group members.

Transactional Leadership

The transactional leadership style views the leader-follower relationship as a transaction. By accepting a position as a member of the group, the individual has agreed to obey the leader. In most situations, this involves the employer-employee relationship, and the transaction focuses on the follower completing required tasks in exchange for monetary compensation.

One of the main advantages of this leadership style is that it creates clearly defined roles. People know what they are required to do and what they will be receiving in exchange. This style allows leaders to offer a great deal of supervision and direction, if needed.

Group members may also be motivated to perform well to receive rewards. One of the biggest downsides is that the transactional style tends to stifle creativity and out-of-the-box thinking.

Situational Leadership

Situational theories of leadership stress the significant influence of the environment and the situation on leadership. Hersey and Blanchard's leadership stylesis one of the best-known situational theories. First published in 1969, this model describes four primary styles of leadership, including:

1. Telling: Telling people what to do

2. Selling: Convincing followers to buy into their ideas and messages

3. Participating: Allowing group members to take a more active role in the decision-making process

4. Delegating: Taking a hands-off approach to leadership and allowing group members to make the majority of decisions

Later, Blanchard expanded upon the original Hersey and Blanchard model to emphasize how the developmental and skill level of learners influences the style that should be used by leaders. Blanchard's SLII leadership styles model also described four different leading styles:

1. Directing: Giving orders and expecting obedience, but offering little guidance and assistance

2. Coaching: Giving lots of orders, but also lots of support

3. Supporting: Offering plenty of help, but very little direction

4. Delegating: Offering little direction or support

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It seems like there are as many different styles of leadership as there are leaders. Discover some of the most common leadership style frameworks.

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Refer to page 26 for Guidelines and Ground Rules.

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After providing the students with a fun invitation to the group, they will be informed of the purpose, goals, techniques, rules and procedures. Limits of confidentiality will be explained, and verbal assent will be obtained by the non-adult students.

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Pre-Group Interview and Screening Process

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Pre-Group Interview and Screening Process

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To advertise for this group, personal invitations will be sent to the students via email. This will be a fun invitation to encourage some positivity toward the group. Parents will have information disseminated through an email and followed up with a link to the Padlet for additional information. Teachers will be sent a google form/teacher referral in order to assist with identifying students. This will be sent via email. Teachers and administrators will also receive a link to the Padlet for additional information.

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The name of this small group is “The Success Era Group”. The name is based on the popular, trending theme of Taylor Swift’s, The Eras Tour. Because this is a group of high school students, ages 14-18, the goal of the name is to make a connection with the students using a current trend. This name also specifies an overall goal for the group indicating that the students joining will have a successful year. This small group will focus on study skills that will improve students’ academic success. Such skills will include organization, time management, motivation, and goal-setting, etc.

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After the group members have been identified, the parents will be notified via phone conference. The school counselor will review the group details and inform the parent of procedures; the counselor will provide information about the consent. The parents will then be provided the consent via email or mail, depending on the parent preference and ask that it be returned as soon as possible.

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This group would benefit best from a combination of an authoritarian leadership style and a participative leadership style. This group should have results that are effective, which is proven with the participative leadership style but also one that allows productive results that are of high quality and long-lasting.

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The population of this group consists of a homogenous population of high school students, ages 14-18, all with similar problems preventing them from achieving adequate academic success. This group consists of students that have difficulty with study skills such as executive functioning, including organizational skills, time management skills, motivation and goal setting skills.

The norms are explicit and established by the leader/counselor and reviewed often.

Stage 1: This stage consists of the group members finding their place and building trust within the group and among themselves and the leader. Norms are set during this time, and members are learning to get acquainted with one another. They are building connections during this stage. A self-assessment will allow the group members to reflect on their weaknesses. As a group, students will get acquainted by first playing the toilet paper game. The students will then build trust with one another by working together to identify weaknesses within a fictional character and the implications that relate to those weaknesses. They will work together to develop smart goals for this fictional character. They will then build connections through a discussion of identifying their own weaknesses and development of their individual smart goals.

Stage 2:  During this stage, the students are working together in order to reach their individual goals as well as the goals established as a group. They are beginning to value themselves and the others within the group. This stage consists of members being productive and continuing to find cohesiveness within the group. Students will build trust and cohesiveness through various activities that permit the students to being vulnerable.

Stage 3:  During this stage, accomplishments are being made and goals are being met. Reflection upon individual and group accomplishments are happening as well. This stage also consists of developing plans for continued growth in the future. Sometimes, ending these groups can cause members to feel a “loss” or mourn the group. During this time, students will celebrate one anothers successes. They will acknowledge their successes through the support of the other members by writing thank you notes to one another.