School Counseling for the Achievement Gap: Attitudes and Beliefs of School Counseling Graduate Students About Culturally Responsive School Counseling
Abstract
School counselors are uniquely positioned to mitigate gaps in opportunity,
achievement, and attainment for culturally and linguistically diverse students. However,
culturally responsive school counseling is a relatively new field and many practicing school
counselors lack requisite knowledge and skills. This heuristic, critical qualitative inquiry
explores the attitudes and beliefs of school counselors-in-training in a school counseling
graduate program at a Midwestern, urban university focused on equity and social justice.
Participants were chosen based on their commitment to multicultural competence, social
justice, and culturally proficient consultation and advocacy. Results revealed the importance
of cultural responsiveness, bias awareness and mitigation, advocacy, and critical, reflective
practice. In addition, participants shared beliefs that all students deserve a facilitative
learning environment, that the world is fundamentally unjust, that children’s family
experiences are formative, and that they are the experts of their own experiences.
Table of Contents
Introduction -- Review of Literature -- Methodology -- Findings -- Conclusion and recommendations -- Appendix A. Multicultural Counseling Competence and Training Survey-Revised -- Appendix B. Interview protocol -- Appendix C. Focus Group Protocol -- Appendix D. Participant Informed Consent
Degree
Ed.D. (Doctor of Education)