5 Nov 2022

120

Small Group Counseling

Format: APA

Academic level: College

Paper type: Essay (Any Type)

Words: 1130

Pages: 4

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In the day to day running of schools, schools are faced with challenges and crisis that carry in nature, intensity as well as the duration at which they take place. Despite the fact that racial discrimination in schools and other social amenities was abolished during the civil war, it is important to indicate that though it is rare in today's society, some students from the minority races are faced with racial discrimination in school. In most of the cases, at the event of racial discrimination in schools, students from the Blacks and the Hispanics community are the most vulnerable groups to discrimination especially in a white dominated society such as Texas. In this group-counseling for the people of color will play a major role in ensuring the social and physical well-being of the students which in turn helps in ensuring that the students are not psychologically affected which would, in turn, affect their academic performance ( Allyn& Glass, 2010) . Statistics indicate that school-going learners’ social aspects significantly affect their well-being in school in matters such as adaptation to the school environment as well as social interaction aspects which play a major role in ensuring holistic development of learners ( Bruce et al., 2009) . In the recent past, numerous universities and colleges are forced to establish counseling programs to cater for the international students as well as the people of color. For example, in 2006, University of Virginia established the Project Rise program which offers counseling sessions for people of color ( Gándara , 2011). At adolescent, students want to belong to a group, and therefore, facing social discrimination due to racial factors significantly affects the adolescent's behavior which in turn adversely impact on their general performance in school activities ( Allyn & Glass, 2010) . Therefore, despite the fact that there are rare cases of racial discrimination in schools, it is important to always protect the minority groups from discrimination, which can be achieved through group counseling. 

Educational Aspects 

The group counseling will enable the students to understand themselves which include their abilities which will in turn help in boosting their self-confidence and self –esteem which is crucial in influencing the psychological well being of a person ( Gándara , 2011). At the university and college level, the students are subjected to a pressure of binding by their peers' demands. Therefore, a minority group of student might lose focus due to the high population of whites dominating them as well as the need to belong to the white society despite being the people of color ( Brigman & Goodman, 2001) . Therefore, when offering to counsel to the minority groups, it is important to focus on academic aspects that focus on their social as well as the emotional well -being which will, in turn, facilitate the psychological well -being of such students enabling them to perform according to their abilities ( Gándara , 2011). Some of the academic aspects to focus on include, acquiring the right attitude and skills in an attempt to help the students learn effectively. Secondly, is planning educational goals which the students aim at achieving at the end of the course or the learning program ( Allyn & Glass, 2010) . Finally, relating the student's school life with real life experiences, the students should be able to connect their school life experiences with life after school ( Greenberg, 2003) . As a result, the students will have a clear focus on their academics as well as the life after school. 

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Information to Include 

While dealing with the minority groups in a learning institution, it is important to provide the group with adequate information regarding their self-concept, their self-esteem as well as their rights. In this case, it is right and appropriate to provide the students with adequate information on what the law indicates about racial discrimination. The law is clear and prohibits discrimination of individuals based on different aspects such as religious, cultural, as well as racial factors ( Brigman & Goodman, 2001) . As a result of providing such information, the minority groups will understand that they have equal opportunities as well as understanding their right which will, in turn, protect them from unfair treatment due to their color ( Greenberg, 2003) . As a result of understanding the law, the whites will also understand that it is wrong and against the law to discriminate the people of color, hence, learn to respect and accommodate them within the school environment as well as in the society ( Allyn& Glass, 2010) . Additionally, it is important to focus on the social and emotional well-being of the blacks and other minority groups. As a result, the minority groups will learn to ensure their emotional and social interaction techniques which will in turn aid in enabling the students to cope in a diverse learning environment effectively. It is also important to indicate to the student the school rules which in some cases prohibited bullying, hence, enabling the students to understand the school policies and rules. Hence, enable the minority group takes appropriate action in the event of being harassed or bullied on racial grounds ( Bruce et al., 2009) . It is also important to indicate how the students social and emotional well -being relates to their academic performance and how to develop appropriate social interaction skills and attitude. 

Group Activities 

Firstly, when dealing with group counseling, it is important to provide a clear guideline on the importance of the counseling as well as to set the objectives that the counselor is expected to meet at the end of the session. It is also important to help the participating students to develop their objectives about the counseling and their academic goals ( Allyn& Glass, 2010) . The objectives will help in establishing whether or not the counseling was effective. Group discussions and dialogues play an important role in enabling individuals to express themselves. Therefore, engaging the group in smaller group discussions and dialogue will enable the students to learn to form each other, and also enable the counter to understand the challenges that majority of the group members are facing. Additionally, in an attempt to understand the student's self-concept and self-confidence, it is important to provide the participants with a few minutes to talk about themselves ( Greenberg, 2003) . From this point, the counselor can evaluate the participant's self-concept and esteem which is crucial in offering appropriate counseling which will in turn help in building the aspects. 

Targeted group, Cultural and Ethical Factors 

The counseling will target the grade nine to twelve students who are in their adolescent age. The adolescent age is challenging, and due to the social interests such as the need to belong as well as the peer pressure experienced at this age. People of color might be faced with challenges in cope in schools that are dominated by the white race, which might, in turn, affect their social, emotional as well as psychological well -being. One of the cultural barriers that might affect the effectiveness of the group counseling is the general belief about the whites and the people of color in a white dominated society whereby the whites are viewed as superior to the blacks and the Hispanics. Due to the nature of the counseling program some students for example, in this case, the whites, are not a target, which in turn violates the school counseling ethics as it requires equal accessibility of all students to counseling programs. 

References  

AllynB.& Glass, S. D. (2010).    The practical handbook of group counseling . Bloomington, Ind.: Trafford Publishing. 

Brigman, G., & Goodman, B. E. (2001).    Group counseling for school counselors: A practical guide . Portland, Me: J. Weston Walch. 

Bruce, A., Getch, Y., & Ziomek-Daigle, J. (2009). Closing the gap: A group counseling approach to improve test performance of African-American students.  Professional School Counseling 12 (6), 450-457. 

Gándara, P. (2011). Paving the Way to Postsecondary Education: K-12 Intervention Programs for Underrepresented Youth. Report of the National Postsecondary Education Cooperative Working Group on Access to Postsecondary Education. 

Greenberg, K. R. (2003).    Group counseling in K-12 schools: A handbook for school counselors . Boston: Allyn and Bacon 

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