Beyond Coping: Plan a Path Through Grief and Loss by Eugenia Kathleen Burnett

1. Grief and Loss Group Counseling

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A small group for grief and loss called, Beyond Coping: Plan a Path Through Grief or Loss, will be offered for high school students. Is is for students who have suffered the loss of a close friend or family member through death, divorce, incarceration, or otherwise. It can also include those who have experienced loss of friendship, loss of a relationship, or loss of a support system through such things as a move or divorce. The participants will be students in grades 9 through 12.

2. Knowledge, Attitudes and Skills from Group Counseling

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The ASCA Student Standards: Mindsets & Behaviors for Student Success describes the knowledge, attitudes, and skills students should take from group counseling. Participants will learn to express their feelings, coping strategies, and information and skills for future use.

Specifically, the following mindsets and behaviors apply:

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

B-SMS 1. Responsibility for self and actions

B-SMS 7. Effective coping skills

B-SMS 9. Personal safety skills

B-SMS 10. Ability to manage transitions and adapt to change

B-SS 1. Effective oral and written communication skills and listening skills

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

B-SS 4. Empathy. (ASCA, 2014)

3. Letting People Know

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In order to let students know about the group, a variety of methods will be used.

*An email will go out to teachers informing them about the group and letting them know that they may recommend a student by visiting with any of the four counselors on campus.

*An announcement will be included on the school counseling team's webpage in the school's website.

*A brief School Messenger message will be sent out to all parents via email with a note to go to the school's website for more information.

*Brownwood ISD has video announcements on TV screens in all main areas and hallways. Information about the group will also be shown in those announcements.

4. Participant Screening

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In order to keep the group small and effective (6-8 students), participants will be screened to determine if they will be a good fit which is both an ethical consideration and a vital element to group success (ASGW, 2007). Screening will occur one-on-one with a counselor. The counselor will give each potential participant a questionnaire which helps determine whether there is a mutual fit by asking about their motivation, readiness, and desire to achieve the group goals.

Advertising announcements instructed interested participants to stop by and let any one of the four counselors know of their interest. When they do, the counselor will schedule a time for an informational meeting and the questionnaire to serve as a screening tool.

In her dissertation for Brigham Young University, Baker (2010) presents questionnaires which can serve as guidelines for counselors to create their questionnaires specifically tailored to the group's purpose. Attached herein is a link to the document containing the questionnaires.

Information about the group given to interested students will be a description the group and its purpose, the place and time, the group's goals, confidentiality, and participation requirements (see Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015).

12. References

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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

American School Counselor Association. (2014). Mindsets and behaviors for student success: K-12 college- and career-readiness standards for every student. Alexandria, VA: Author. https://schoolcounselor. org/asca/media/asca/hom

American School Counselor Association (2020). The school counselor and group counseling. Alexandria, VA: Author. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/Standards-Positions/Position-Statements/ASCA-Position-Statements/The-School-Counselor-and-Group-Counseling

American School Counselor Association. (2022). ASCA ethical standards for school counselors. https://www.schoolcounselor.org/getmedia/44f30280-ffe8-4b41-9ad8-f15909c3d164/EthicalStandards.pdf

Association for Specialists in Group Work. (2007). Best practices guidelines. www.asgw.org.

Baker, E.L. (2010). Selecting members for group therapy: A continued validation study of the group selection questionnaire. Brigham Young University Scholars Archive. https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3127&context=etd

Berg, R.C., Landreth, G.L. & Fall, K.A. (2018). Group counseling : Concepts and procedures: Vol. Sixth edition. Routledge.

Breeskin, J. (2024). Group psychotherapy column: Procedures and guidelines for group therapy. Society of Group Psychology and and Group Psychotherapy. https://www.apadivisions.org/division-49/publications/newsletter/group-psychologist/2011/04/group-procedures

Cherry, K. (2023). How to lead: 6 leadership styles and frameworks. Very Well Mind. https://www.verywellmind.com/leadership-styles-2795312

Corey, G., Williams, G. T., & Moline, M. E. (1995). Ethical and legal issues in group counseling. Ethics & Behavior, 5(2), 161. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327019eb0502_4

Duncan, D. A. (2020). Death and dying: A systematic review into approaches used to support bereaved children. Review of Education, 8(2), 452–479. https://doi-org.easydb.angelo.edu/10.1002/rev3.3193

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://www.missouricareereducation.org/doc/smallgroup/SmallGroupCounseling.pdf

Samuels, A. (2019). Texas legislature 2019: Texas school safety measures expanded with House amendments to sweeping legislation. The Texas Tribune. https://www.texastribune.org/2019/05/21/texas-school-safety-measures-expanded-house-changes-senate-bill-11/

School Counselor Certificate, 19 Tex. Admin. Code § 239 (2017)

School Counselors and Counseling Programs, 2 Tex. Edu. Code § 33.005 (2019)

Texas Senate Bill No. 11, 2020.

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

5. Informed Consent

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In order for students to participate in group counseling on the BISD campus, informed parental consent must be obtained as per the Texas Education Code §33.003 (1995) and the ASCA's Ethical Standards (2022). Permission forms will be sent the the participant's home. Because the group will be small, the counselor will speak to each parent, either in person or on the phone, to explain the group and the permission sought.

As for the student, informed assent is also required (ASCA, 2022). The ASCA's Ethical Standards explains informed consent as helping students understand the limits of confidentiality, the benefits of the group counseling, and all associated facts and risks.

6. Group Norms, Rules, and Guidelines

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The norms, rules, and guidelines for the group will be written on a large sign and taped to the wall in the meeting room as rules are most effective when posted and reviewed at the beginning of each meeting (Missouri Professional School of Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015). During the first meeting, the attached document will be reviewed in detail. The facilitator will explain that, as the group develops, they have the opportunity to develop new guidelines specific to their experience. Thereafter, at the beginning of each meeting, the norms, rules, and guidelines will be referred to briefly. Participants sign the document and will be given a copy to take with them.

(See Breeskin, 2024 and Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015).

7. Group Dynamics

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The counseling group is for students in grades 9-12 dealing with grief from a loss or event in their lives. Because the subject matter is so sensitive, it's important for students to work well together. They have to trust each other.

Stage 1: Building trust will occur through the norms, rules, and guidelines, along with the structured activities. Beginning each session with a reminder about confidentiality and then briefly reiterating the norms, rules, and guidelines will set the tone for each session. Each of the activities is designed with the age of the participants in mind so as to ensure optimal participation. Berg et al. (2018) reminds that "[i]t is well documented that adolescents respond well to activities within group settings" (p. 185). Through the reassurance of confidentiality and encouragement to participate in the group activities, relationships will develop and trust will naturally emerge. During the prescreening interview, confidentiality will be discussed in detail and the meaning of informed consent will be explained which includes the limits of confidentiality.

Stage 2: This is a structured group and having an assignment for each lesson, and in some cases, homework, will keep the group moving forward. Additionally, completion of the assignments is a way to gauge group progress.

Stage 3: Corey et al. (1995) suggests that closing the group is "an integral part of the therapeutic process" (p. 178) and is essential to not leaving the group with the feeling of unfinished business. Because group closure is an area of concern, the last session of the group involves self-care and information for outside resources so that participants have a plan for the future. Additionally, the proposed group plan includes follow up interviews with each participant and brief check-ins in the days and weeks following the end of the group.

8. Leadership Style

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The leadership style will be participative or democratic. According to Cherry (2023), with children, this type of group proved to less productive but had higher quality contributions. Even though the grief counseling group will be older than Cherry's study, ages 14-18, grades 9-12, it may be necessary to blend a combination of authoritarian with democratic leadership in order to get the group going. Thus, using strong leadership and heavy guidance in the first couple of sessions and tapering off in subsequent sessions may be most effective.

9. Yalom's Therapeutic Factors

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Many of Yalom's (1995) therapeutic factors will be present in grief group counseling. First, and most important, is universality. One of the beginning sessions is geared toward revealing the shared experience among the participants so that they relax and take comfort knowing that they are not alone. Next, as the group sessions progress, participants should feel an instillation hope with activities that encourage optimism and help mood, attitude, and an overall sense of well-being. Finally, because participants experiencing grief or loss may withdraw from social interactions, Yalom's developing socializing techniques is applicable. Based on a shared experience, participants can find comfort in each other and develop their interpersonal skills.

Additionally, because it is a structured group with assignments and activities, there will be moments of imparting information, particularly with the vocabulary activity and the final session which closes the group. There will be instances over the course of the six weeks for students to experience existential factors, like losing a loved one, because this is a grief counseling group.

10. Legal Requirements

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Texas Education Code 33.005 (a)(2)requires the school counselor to design a program that includes a "responsive services component to intervene on behalf of any student whose immediate personal concerns or problems put the student's continued educational, career, personal, or social development at risk" (2019). Duncan (2020) conducted a peer reviewed study which explained the benefits of group counseling in the school setting. The participants felt supported and empowered (Duncan, 2020), which is an effort to support their socio-emotional growth as is required for school counselors.

Next, Texas Administrative Code Sec. 239 (c)(3) also governs. It sets forth the requirements for counselor certification and states that the certified counselor must "counsel individuals and small groups using appropriate counseling theories and techniques in response to students' needs" (2017). Therefore, school counselors are required to utilize a variety of techniques in a variety of settings, including group counseling, as part of their duties.

Finally, Senate Bill 11 (2020) was created to provide safety in schools. Part of its impact is to strengthen mental health counseling in schools which works to reinforce the need to implement group counseling in public schools (Samuels, 2019). Strengthening mental health counseling could include offering a variety of counseling interventions in the school setting, such as group counseling.

11. Ethical Requirements

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Three important ethical considerations stand out for this group therapy:

Screening and orientation
Confidentiality
Freedom from coercion

First, guideline 2 of the Association for Specialists in Group work (2007) requires the counselor to screen members. Not only do they screen for a proper fit, but they must also consider whether they will be harmed in any way by the group experience (ASCA, 2007). There must be a willingness to work toward the group goals from each participant for success. The group plan for this group sets forth a plan to screen each participant during an individual meeting with a counselor. That meeting includes a series of activities, some of which, are to ascertain whether or not the student would do well in a group setting.

Second, confidentiality is both a legal and ethical standard, therefore, it is addressed by many groups. The American School Counselor Association (2020) and the American Counseling Association are among those that pertain. Section B of the ACA is explicit about confidentiality and its limits. Students will not fully participate if they think other participants will gossip about them. Therefore, the group plan includes reiterating the important of confidentiality at the beginning of each meeting as an added measure of protection.

Third, it's imperative that the group setting is safe and free from coercion. ASCA (2007) addresses this issue under guideline 6. For high school students, peer interactions are important. As such, the group leader must ensure that the group members never feel pressured, either directly or through peer pressure. While participation is encouraged, there should not be coercion if a participant does not engage in a particular activity. If that occurs too often, the facilitator should reconsider the participant being in the group.