Accountability
![Picture](/uploads/5/6/3/1/56318547/9664306.jpg?250)
"To demonstrate the effectiveness of the school counseling program in measurable terms, school counselors analyze school and school counseling program data to determine how students are different as a result of the school counseling program" (ASCA, 2012).
Accountability answers the question, "How are students different as a result of receiving the comprehensive school counseling program?" (ASCA, 2012). Professional school counselors use data to evaluate the effectiveness of their programs, and they present this data to administrators in order to advocate for the absolute necessity of their positions. We have moved on from and era of "guidance counseling" to professional school counseling because our field has become data-driven. We are now proving that we do what works, not only what "feels good" and "seems to be working". We as professional school counselors must keep ourselves accountable for determining which aspects of our programs are truly helping our students and which aspects call for improvements.
Professional school counselors maintain accountability for their comprehensive school counseling programs through data analysis, program results, and evaluation and interpretation of those results. Data analysis informs decisions made about comprehensive school counseling programs, and data are reviewed repeatedly for end-of-year program evaluations and goal-setting for the future. Key data that are often analyzed for this purpose include school data profiles, which summarize student achievement, attendance, behavior, and the school's safety record over time. These elements can determine changing trends in the school profile, and further analysis of the comprehensive school counseling program results can suggest whether or not the program is addressing and impacting these trends. According to the ASCA National Model, the analysis of results is at the heart of having a data-driven, comprehensive school counseling program. Analyzing data from Curriculum Results Reports, Small-Group Results Reports, and Closing-the-Gap Results Reports contributes to more focused programming, more effective interventions, and a more influential comprehensive school counseling program. After analyzing this data, school counselors can evaluate their own strengths and areas for growth, as well as the program's strengths and areas for improvement. This also provides the opportunity for administrators to evaluate the school counselor's performance and review program goals set at the beginning of the year.
I must admit that accountability is one component of comprehensive school counseling programs that I struggled to grasp during my first year. I understood and appreciated the need for collecting, analyzing, and sharing data, but from what I had seen during my practicum experience, I did not see where school counselors find the time for this. Although I still believe this will be a struggle, I have learned through a number of projects that it is being data-driven that guides our programs and makes what we do as professional school counselors worthwhile. Data guides us to our at-risk student populations, data tells us how to best help these students, and data tells us when we have succeeded in helping our students succeed.
Accountability answers the question, "How are students different as a result of receiving the comprehensive school counseling program?" (ASCA, 2012). Professional school counselors use data to evaluate the effectiveness of their programs, and they present this data to administrators in order to advocate for the absolute necessity of their positions. We have moved on from and era of "guidance counseling" to professional school counseling because our field has become data-driven. We are now proving that we do what works, not only what "feels good" and "seems to be working". We as professional school counselors must keep ourselves accountable for determining which aspects of our programs are truly helping our students and which aspects call for improvements.
Professional school counselors maintain accountability for their comprehensive school counseling programs through data analysis, program results, and evaluation and interpretation of those results. Data analysis informs decisions made about comprehensive school counseling programs, and data are reviewed repeatedly for end-of-year program evaluations and goal-setting for the future. Key data that are often analyzed for this purpose include school data profiles, which summarize student achievement, attendance, behavior, and the school's safety record over time. These elements can determine changing trends in the school profile, and further analysis of the comprehensive school counseling program results can suggest whether or not the program is addressing and impacting these trends. According to the ASCA National Model, the analysis of results is at the heart of having a data-driven, comprehensive school counseling program. Analyzing data from Curriculum Results Reports, Small-Group Results Reports, and Closing-the-Gap Results Reports contributes to more focused programming, more effective interventions, and a more influential comprehensive school counseling program. After analyzing this data, school counselors can evaluate their own strengths and areas for growth, as well as the program's strengths and areas for improvement. This also provides the opportunity for administrators to evaluate the school counselor's performance and review program goals set at the beginning of the year.
I must admit that accountability is one component of comprehensive school counseling programs that I struggled to grasp during my first year. I understood and appreciated the need for collecting, analyzing, and sharing data, but from what I had seen during my practicum experience, I did not see where school counselors find the time for this. Although I still believe this will be a struggle, I have learned through a number of projects that it is being data-driven that guides our programs and makes what we do as professional school counselors worthwhile. Data guides us to our at-risk student populations, data tells us how to best help these students, and data tells us when we have succeeded in helping our students succeed.
Reference: American School Counselor Association (2012). The ASCA National Model: A Framework for School Counseling Programs (3rd ed.). Alexandria, VA: Author.