This site is a class blog space for new Career and Technical Specializations and Heathcare Science teachers enrolled in the New Teacher Institute (NTI) at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia.
Monday, February 25, 2013
Changed Impressions
After reading the article about the History of Guidance and Counseling, I have gained an understanding of the approach to holistically address the issues that could potentially be negative for learning, mental growth and career performance. It makes sense to understand the human mind in order to help a person become well and productive. Unlike physical medicine, I learned that from reading this article, there seemed to be a push for the understanding of a person's mental well being. Looking at the advancements and modifications through time, there has been more weight given to studies that focus around this very thing. As a teacher, or even as an individual that gets up and goes to work everyday, I take for granted my mental well being. How can I be an imapactful teacher, if I am not working at 100%? Reading this article made me realize that capacity has nothing to do with knowledge, credentials or certifications, but how you function and what types of stimuli in your environment affect those functions. In regard to guidance counselors and their roles, I see the role being a permanent, but changing one. It will be necessary because human growth is an on-going thing, but the role will change due to the nature and demands of society.
Coy, I loved your ending thoughts on your blog regarding guidance counselors having a permanent role and yet a changing role due to “human growth”. As our module has taught us, their role has changed over time and we can safely predict that it will continue to change, as change it should. I recently sat down and spoke briefly with our school counselor and listened as she told me all the things she is required to do and what she would really like to do for our students. In the past, she was put on lunch duty for an hour and a half every day and she felt that this was a total waste of her skills. (I agree!) In our new school, she does not have this duty as this administration “gets it” to some extent. She still feels that there are too many things required and that she cannot do as good a job as she would like. She agreed with me when I stated that it is too bad that administration does not have to take a course like this one as a professional learning class to keep them informed as to just how important a good school guidance counselor can be for our students. Maybe as you said, as the demands of our society change, and thus the demands of our educational system to meet these demands, so will the knowledge of our administrators to understand that they need to continue to look at the role of the guidance counselor and help it evolve into what is really beneficial to all.
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