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New School; New Way of Life Counseling Group

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New School; New Way of Life Counseling Group

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This small group will provide strategies and goals for sixth-graders at Covington Middle School who are struggling to transition to a new school socially and academically during virtual and hybrid learning. The transition from elementary to middle school is one of the largest transitions for students, and in the year 2020, it is even more difficult due to the Covid-19 Pandemic and the introduction of virtual and hybrid learning. This group will provide strategies for time management, staying organized digitally, and making meaningful peer and teacher connections online and in person.

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American School Counselor Association Mindsets and Behaviors

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American School Counselor Association Mindsets and Behaviors

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Through the participation of this counseling group, students will master the following ASCA Mindsets and Behavior standards.

M.2: Self-confidence in the ability to succeed.

M.3: Sense of belonging in the school environment.

M.6: Positive attitude toward work and learning.

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The publicity plan for this group is to send a flyer, digital and a hard copy, to all sixth-grade teachers. The flyer will have information for teachers to either email or return the flyer with a list of two or three students that are having a difficult time adjusting to middle school. The teachers will be encouraged to put students who are not engaged academically or socially on their list.

Once students are identified, The counselor will then meet with each identified student one on one to describe the group and go through a pre-group interview and screening.

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Once the students have been identified, the school counselor will meet with each student individually to conduct a screening. In each screening the counselor will tell students about the group including, but not limited to, the topic, the goals for the group, and the expectations of being part of the group. Once the group is explained to the student, the counselor will then ask the student if he or she is interested in participating in the group, if the student understands what being in the group involves, and if the student has any questions regarding the group.

After all the students who were on the needs support list have been interviewed and screened, the counselor will then pick the students. The students will be picked based on their willingness and desire to be a part of the group, if the student has experienced a crisis blocking participation in the group, and the overall ability for the student to engage and interact fully.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educations, 2015)

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Informed consent will be collected from the group participants parents through a permission form. Once the students have been picked for the group, each student will receive a permission form to take home to their parents. Parents will also be emailed the form.

It is part of school policy that students involved in any counseling program also give assent. Due to this, students in the group will receive a copy of the form during the first session.

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Group rules that are discussed with the students in the pre-group screening include:
1. All group members understand and  respect confidentiality.
2. Every group member treats each other with respect.
3. Group members may choose to not share information if he or she does not feel comfortable sharing.

Group rules to that are to be discussed during the first session will include:
1. Everyone will have an opportunity to talk and share.
2. One person speaks at a time. That person must be holding the talking piece.

Group members will have the opportunity during the first session to collaborate and create additional rules to follow during the group lessons.

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The group members are all sixth-grade students at Covington Middle School, however the group may be greatly diverse and dynamic.

The following stages will be followed:

Stage 1
Stage one will compose of building trust between the students and school counselor, and trust between the students. Plans to build that trust include honest discussions, giving students in the group a voice, and showing the students in the group that the school counselor is not giving up on the students. Each group session will begin with a discussion question to help build community, trust, and routine.

Stage 2
Stage two is the group working together to accomplish group goals as well as individual goals. Each group session will be structured the same including a welcoming discussion question, main lesson/activity, and closing journal entry. Students will take part in checking for progress and success as a group, and will also be given time for tracking his or her individual progress in a journal.

Stage 3
For the final stage, students will engage in reflection based activities. The discussion question for the final week will be a reflection of successes. Students will identify and share 3 positive things that have happened in relation to school over the past six weeks. After the students take their post-assessment, the group will close with a discussion about the group ending. In this discussion, reminders about confidentiality will occur, and strategies and plans for feeling the loss of the group will be discussed to help the students continue to move toward progress.

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educations, 2015)

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The leadership style best to work with this group is Participative Leadership. This leadership provides structure and guidance, but allows the students in the group to be mindful of their participation and engagement in the decisions of the group. This leadership allows students to have a voice. It is important that this group learns to have a voice and that he or she is responsible for their goals and successes.

(Cherry, 2020)

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Many of Yalom's Therapeutic Factors will be present during each session of this group. Instillation of Hope and Direct Advice can be present since the students are receiving specific strategies and goals to help them be successful, resulting in the students to have faith that the group sessions will be effective.

Interpersonal learning and development of socializing techniques will also be present during the group due to the consistent dialogue and communication throughout the group. Targeted instruction regarding social skills will also occur within the group lessons.

(Yalom, 1995)

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The American School Counselor Association provide professional standards and competencies of a school counselor. One of those standards is B-SS 3b. This standard states that school counselors will provide support for students, including individual and small-group counseling, during times of transition, heightened stress, critical change or other situations impeding student success. This standard directly relates to this group since this group was built upon student need in time of transition between schools and the stress of a new environment along with a new way of life due to COVID-19.

(American School Counselor Association, 2019)

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According to Section 33. 003 of the Texas Education Code states that each school district shall adopt guidelines to obtain written consent from the parent or legal guardian for students to participate in a school counseling group program. This legal requirement is important for school counselors to obtain, save, and document consent before providing group services to students.

2 Texas Education Code § 33

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American School Counselor Association (2019). ASCA School
Counselor Professional Standards & Competencies. Alexandria,
VA: Author.

Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators. (2015). Professional school counselor small group counseling guide: A professional school counselor’s guide to planning, implementing, and evaluating school-based counseling groups. https://dese.mo.gov/sites/default/files/guid-respon-serv-small-group-counseling-guide-2015.pdf

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

2 Texas Education Code § 33