When determining if a student would like to join the small group, the counselor will meet with the individual to discuss the group topic, goals, tasks and membership. After group selections have been made, the school counselor will send a formal invitation to the student to participate in the small group. The school counselor will send home informed consent letters both hard copy and via email. The school counselor will discuss any concerns the student may have prior to attending the first session. 
•      How do you plan to assess participant readiness to participate, willingness, and interest? 
The school counselor will assess participant readiness to participate by conducting a formal interview with the student.

•      Will you screen participants individually or as a group? 
Participants will be screened individually. The counselor will discuss with the student the group and ask the student if they would like to join. It is best if the school counselor uses the T-A-P method (Morganett, 1990). In using this method, the school counselor tells the potential participant about the group, asks if they want to participate, and picks members based on group dynamics (Morganett, 1990). 

The school that I work for does not have a specific written policy for group counseling. My district has its own group of school counselors that conduct group counseling and this task is not completed by the guidance counselors. School counselors may make referrals for outside counseling services and provide a list of community resources for parents and students.

•      What rules are predetermined by you and what rules can be determined as a group? 
The ground rules are predetermined by the group leader, should additional rules need to be created, those will be decided as group and added to this sheet.

I plan on building relationships by reviewing the purpose of the group and individual goals. I think it is important to establish early dialogue among the group members in order form them to make connections to one another. 

Group norms will be established in the first session. The school counselor will set expectations. This will be reinforced at the beginning of each meeting. 

 The school counselor will remind the students the limits of confidentially in the beginning of each session. While confidentiality cannot be guaranteed, group members will be encouraged to not talk about sensitive subjects (or others) outside the group. 
 

•      Stage 2- How do you plan to keep your members working cohesively and productively as you progress through each session towards your learning outcomes? How will you check in with group members to gauge progress throughout the group?
Group members will review the session purpose as needed and be reminded of improvements and goal attainment as the group progresses. 

•      Stage 3- What is your plan for group closure? Will you monitor/explore how group members are feeling about the group ending?  
As the group concludes, members will complete exit interview to reinforce newly learned skills. The school counselor will also review confidentiality. Should a student want or need continuation of group counseling, plans will be made to continue during the next session.   

(Missouri Professional School Counselors and Counselor Educators, 2015)

•      Why do you feel that approach would work best with this specific population?
I feel this approach would work best with this specific population because often new students to the country or state are reluctant to speak up and voice his or her opinions. For example, only 30.8% of Japanese students are not afraid of expressing his or her opinion before debates (Fukuda, 2003). While the group sessions are not necessarily debates, discussions will be held with non-native English speakers who have differing opinions. The facilitator will be able to encourage participation and guide topics to allow students the freedom formulate answers and responses to keep the conversations going.

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

American School Counselor Association (2014). Mindsets and Behaviors for Student Success: K-12 College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Every Student. Alexandria, VA: Author.

Cherry, K. (2020, August 03). What Are Prominent Leadership Styles and Frameworks You Should Know? Retrieved September 11, 2020, from https://www.verywellmind.com/leadership-styles-2795312

Fukuda, Shinji (2003) Attitudes toward argumentation in college EFL classes in Japan. Proceedings of the First Asia TEFL International Conference. Pusan, Korea. pp. 417-418

Lau v. Nichols, 414 U.S. 563

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. Retrieved from https://dese.mo.gov/sites/default/files/guid-respon-serv-small-group-counseling-guide-2015.pdf

Morganett, R. S. (1990). Skills for living: Group counseling activities for young adolescents. Chicago: Research Press.

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