School Counseling scope of practice is the appropriate activities that school counselors are allowed to engage in. A few of these activities are providing individual and small-group counseling to students, interpreting student records, and giving classroom lessons based on student’s needs that were identified through collected data. School Counseling Scope of Practice is important for school counselors to understand because it informs them on appropriate and inappropriate activities as well as makes sure they understand the range of their job duties to ensure safety for both students and the counselor (ASCA, 2019).

Academic Development is the knowledge and skills that are leading school counseling programs to use activities to contribute and get the most out of students’ education and learning. Academic Development is important for school counselors because it helps students get in the right headspace about their education and gets them ready for life and college if they choose so. (ASCA, 2019).

Career Development is the knowledge and skills that are directing school counseling programs to help students recognize that school and the real world are intertwined and get students prepared and ready to enter into either college or the work field. Career Development is important for school counselors because it creates a habit of getting students thinking about their future and helping them take charge of their lives (ASCA, 2019).

Social/Emotional Development is the knowledge and skills that are ushering in the way to help students understand and control their emotions/behavior and utilize their social abilities. Social/Emotional Development is important for school counselors because it helps to create a safe and nurturing environment for all students to be confident, happy, positive, and successful (ASCA, 2019).

The ASCA Mindsets and Behaviors for Student Success represents student’s comprehension, capabilities, and behaviors that they must have to be successful is various aspects of their life. There are 35 standards that students should be able to exhibit based on their school counseling program. This is important for school counselors because the Mindsets and Behavior standards are used to evaluate student’s progress and make a school counseling program that leads students to success (ASCA, 2019).

The ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors are standards that school counselors abide by to show professionalism, honorableness, and authority.  They help school counselors make certain choices and help in preserving students and themselves. The ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors are important because it is a clear set of requirements that school counselors must follow to ensure they are acting morally and nobly (ASCA, 2019). 

The ASCA School Counselor Professional Standards and Competencies highlight the mindsets and actions that school counselors must abide by to accomplish the intense job duties and meet all student’s needs. The Professional Standards and Competencies guide both new and experienced school counselors to ensure they are following certain guidelines and have the most efficient school counseling program possible. The ASCA School Counselor Professional Standards and Competencies are important because they help school counselors recognize and understand their thoughts and actions as well as create an effective school counseling program (ASCA, 2019).

School Counseling Direct Services are in-person exchanges between a school counselor and students that help them gain proper knowledge, beliefs, and abilities that are noted in the ASCA Mindsets & Behaviors and Career Readiness Standards. School Counseling Direct Services are important because they allow for interactions with students and the ability to focus on any concerns (ASCA, 2019).

School Counseling Indirect Services are services that are provided without the student present, such as working with stakeholders to discuss the student’s changes, behaviors, needs, etc. These indirect services have a positive impact on student’s success as well as their opportunities. School Counseling Indirect Services are important because they are a way for school counselors to work with other individuals such as parents, teachers, and administration to benefit and gain a better understanding of the student's needs (ASCA, 2019).

According to the ASCA National Model (2019), the school counseling program assessment is utilized to examine advancement toward full implementation of a complete school counseling program and to find strengths and weaknesses in that program. Each part of the program assessment incorporates benchmarks for program application within each element of the ASCA National Model (ASCA, 2019). The main purpose of examining the program assessment is to steer future measures within the school counseling program to result in more efficient outcomes for students. (ASCA, 2019).

According to the ASCA National Model (2019), Annual Results Reports are created to make sure school counseling programs are the most effective and to notify decisions that are correlated to the development of the program. Annual Results Reports are an important part of a data-informed school counseling program, and there are two types of reports which are Classroom and group Mindsets & Behaviors and Closing-the-gap reports (ASCA, 2019). Ultimately, results reports work as a guide to ensure all students are served, share the impact of the activities and services, support advocacy for systematic change, etc.

According to the ASCA National Model (2019), Assessing and appraising school counselors involves self-assessment, formal appraisal of school counselor performance by a qualified administrator and individual reflection of the data that educates the assessment and appraisal. The ASCA School Counselor Professional Standards & Competencies assessment is utilized to self-assess school counselor’s abilities such as knowledge, skills, and attitudes. The purpose of the assessment and appraisal is to ensure that school counselors are prepared to create, preserve, and strengthen a school counseling program that conveys academic achievement, future career planning, and social/emotional development (ASCA, 2019).

One additional Mindsets and/or Behaviors that I would have selected for the lesson plan is “M 6. Positive attitude toward work and learning” (ASCA, 2019). I would add this mindset because the challenge is that there is an increase in discipline referrals related to behaviors, escalation, conflict, and outbursts in the 2^nd-grade classrooms. The conflict can arise for many reasons such as shutting down when things get tough in the classroom, not feeling accomplished, etc. Focusing on how to create a positive attitude toward work and learning may help students stay positive, thus resulting in fewer referrals.

The ASCA Student Standards Pre- and Post-Assessment items align with the Mindsets & Behavior statement because they are working together to measure students’ growth, attitude, and beliefs about social/emotional well-being. The proper questions are being asked about how they perceive their emotions and behaviors, which ultimately aligns with their development of the whole self. The ASCA Student Standards Pre- and Post-Assessment items do not align with the Mindsets & Behaviors statement because many of the questions are focused on whether they believe something is important or if they are good at that topic. These questions aren’t focusing fully on the Mindsets & Behaviors statement.

Yes, the lesson content/materials matched the Mindsets & Behaviors statement of “Belief in development of whole self, including a healthy balance of mental, social/emotional and physical well-being”. This statement matched the lesson content because the morning motivator defined feelings, gave examples of different feelings, and discussed what happens when big feelings and emotions occur. There was also a mindful movement and story of the day that got the students engaged in understanding different emotions. The activity of naming triggers, feelings, behaviors, and then lastly how to cope with these emotions gets the students thinking about their personal development, social/emotional states, and physical well-being.

For this lesson plan, the baseline data was an average of 30 disciplinary referrals per week and the target data was an average of 21 disciplinary referrals per week. According to the results report, this goal was met and there was a 30 percent decrease in referrals. The length of the lessons were thirty minutes and there was a total of ten altogether. The time limit of 30 minutes may have negatively impacted the results because it may have cut discussions short, prevented the opportunity for questions, and the lesson overall may feel rushed.

One way that I would modify the lesson plan to align with my creativity and skillset is under the category of follow-up plans. For the students who did not demonstrate mastery on the pre-/post-assessment of student standards (M&B)/student learning objectives, instead of solely monitoring them, I will plan to follow up with each student. This may be an individual follow-up or a small group follow-up with new activities that help them understand the areas they are struggling in. Since one of the observations was that students are having difficulty identifying and sharing their emotions, I would like to add a classroom bonding exercise into one of the lessons so that all students can feel more comfortable around their peers that they are around a majority of the day. This may help them feel more open and safer to share their ideas, comments, concerns, etc.

The goal of this lesson plan is to demonstrate to students how important self-care is in various aspects of our lives such as socially, intellectually, physically, and spiritually. Students should learn it is important to implement self-care into our lives so that we don’t get overwhelmed and lash out on people we care about. They will also learn the importance of creating a balanced lifestyle and how this can diminish stress and get you prepared to take on any challenges.

One thing that may be challenging for me in implementing this lesson with high school freshman is that they may not take the activity seriously in a classroom setting, and they may not be interested in creating a pie chart regarding their wellness. Choosing an activity that is relatable and interesting to these students will be an essential part of making sure the lesson resides in them.

My core beliefs are that all students, no matter their background, should be treated equally and given the same opportunities and resources to succeed in their education. I believe all students should be given sufficient support inside and outside the classroom to succeed academically, socially, and emotionally. Lastly, I think it takes a village to provide the necessary support for students, meaning collaboration with families, teachers, admin, etc. is needed to ensure proper success and growth. With the proper resources, care, support, and positive environment, I believe students have the opportunity to surpass their expectations.

School counselors advocate for every student in many ways such as gathering and analyzing data to ensure that students are growing and succeeding within the school counseling program (ASCA, 2019). School counselors work with other individuals to advocate for all student’s achievement and make sure everyone has equal opportunities and resources. They also advocate for the learning needs of all students and support the provision of suitable accommodations and accessibility (ASCA, 2019). School counselors create systematic change through their well-designed school counseling program. They use data to show there is a need for systemic change in various dimensions such as equity and access, achievement, opportunity, and information gaps (ASCA, 2019).

As a future school counselor, I will collaborate with other stakeholders such as families, teachers, administration, and other school staff members to get a hold of, collect, and review school data. I will also collaborate with these stakeholders to make sure that annual student outcome goals match with school data and priorities (ASCA, 2019). When long-term counseling is required for a student, I will collaborate with families and other professionals to create referrals to the necessary resources. Lastly, I will collaborate with stakeholders to make sure the curriculum is culturally responsive and there is student-centered instruction happening (ASCA, 2019).

The ASCA Ethical Standards and Guidelines will shape my work with students and other stakeholders by giving me a guideline to refer to so I can ensure my work as a school counselor is the best that it can be. According to the ASCA National Model (2019), the 35 mindsets and behavior standards recognize and organize the attitudes, knowledge, and skills students should be able to illustrate as a result of their school counseling program. As a future school counselor, I will use the standards to evaluate student growth and development, guide the progress of strategies/activities, and ultimately construct a program designed to ensure student's success academically, socially, and emotionally. I will also make sure that I am engaging in open and honest conversations with stakeholders to ensure there is a mutual understanding of our beliefs.

A comprehensive school counseling program entails promoting and increasing student's academic, career, and social/emotional results (ASCA, 2019). A comprehensive school counseling program creates systemic change, shows advocacy for students, shows an understanding of the impact of cultural, social, and environmental influences on student success, and utilizes the school counseling professional standards and competencies (ASCA, 2019).