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Description
The American School Counselor Association has developed the ASCA National Model[R] in order to provide school counselors with a structure for effective practice. The ASCA National Model can help school counselors think proactively about how they can best serve the students in their schools, and it contains ideas and tools for developing comprehensive school counseling programs that use the current best practices in the field. This article briefly summarizes the ASCA National Model and uses the model to identify effective program components for addressing student transitions.
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Students experience significant transitions of various types throughout their educational journey, J and school counselors have often been instrumental in helping them make the shifts successfully. Increasingly it is clear that in order to serve all students effectively, we must think proactively and systemically about what actions to take during these key times. The ASCA National Model: A Framework for School Counseling Programs (American School Counselor Association, 2005), written by Judy Bowers and Trish Hatch, provides a useful structure for thinking about how to develop school counseling programs that most effectively support students in successful transitioning.
The ASCA National Model[R] builds on the solid foundations of the Comprehensive Developmental Guidance Model (Gysbers & Henderson, 2000), the Results-Based Model (Johnson & Johnson, 1997, 2001), and the National Standards (Campbell & Dahir, 1997; Dahir, Sheldon, & Valiga, 1998). It was specifically developed to address the growing need for standardization and accountability in school counseling programs. While there are tremendous variations in schools and student populations, school counseling programs can share many elements. This article uses the ASCA National Model as a structure to suggest the program components that school counselors can put into practice in order to create successful transitions for all students.
THE ASCA NATIONAL MODEL
According to the ASCA National Model, a school counseling program is "comprehensive in scope, preventative in design and developmental in nature" (ASCA, 2005, p. 13). A comprehensive school counseling program strives to help all students pre-K through 12th grade achieve success in school through preventive education contained in guidance curricula, counseling, student planning, and consultation and systems support.
ASCA National Model school counseling programs have four components: the foundation, the delivery system, the management system, and the accountability system. The foundation is the basis of the model, and it addresses the philosophical underpinnings of the school counseling program. It consists of concise, thoughtful statements about beliefs, program philosophy, and mission and is linked to the mission and goals of the school. The foundation also contains information about the expected student competencies that school counseling programs will address in the academic, career, and personal/ social domains (Campbell & Dahir, 1997).
The delivery system includes guidance curricula, individual student planning, responsive services (e.g., counseling, referral, consultation), and systems support (e.g., collaboration, program management, professional development). The management systems are the systemic monitoring processes that ensure the implementation of the program. This includes contracts or agreements with administrators about responsibilities and program implementation, action plans, calendars, data use, and advisory councils. The accountability system includes results reports, performance evaluations, and program audits that measure and communicate with stakeholders about program results and related data.
In addition to describing the program foundation and systems for delivery, management, and accountability, the ASCA National Model integrates the Education Trust's (2002) Transforming School Counseling Initiative themes of leadership, advocacy, collaboration, and systemic change. The ASCA National Model encourages school counselors to focus on academic success and to promote equity and access to educational resources for all students.
The ASCA National Model and Transitioning into Elementary School
Foundation. Kindergarten is usually the start of formal education for children in public schools and is, thus, a significant transition period. The foundation of an elementary... |
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