View of Parent Expectations of an Elementary School Counsellor: A Concept-Mapping Approach

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Canadian J o u r n a l of C o u n s e l l i n g / R e v u e canadienne de c o u n s e l i n g / 1 9 9 7 , V o l . 31:1 67

Parent Expectations of an Elementary School Counsellor:

A Concept-Mapping Approach

Barbara L. Paulson

Mark H . Edwards

University of Alberta.

Abstract

A concept-mapping process was used to understand parental expectations o f an elementary school counsellor's role. T h e 25 parents who participated generated 91 statements that were subsequently sorted by each parent and analyzed to develop a seven-theme conceptualization of parental expectations. Parents requested that the counsellor become highly involved i n providing services that involve support, referral, education, and information. In addition to perceiving the counsellor as a provider o f direct counselling services, parents expected that the school counsellor would collaborate extensively with them. Additional expectations include developmental p r o g r a m m i n g for all c h i l d r e n i n the school and services involving teacher consultation, special needs programming, and community liaison.

R é s u m é

O n a utilisé un r é s e a u cogniti! des concepts pour comprendre ce à q u o i s'attendent les parents du r ôl e de conseiller d'orientation à l'école é l é m e n t a i r e . Les 25 parents q u i ont p a r t i c i p é à cette é t u d e ont produit 91 é n o n c é s , q u i ont ensuite é t é classés par chaque parent et analysés. Il en a résulté une conceptualisation c o n s t i t u é e de sept t h è m e s décrivant les attentes des parents. Les parents ont d e m a n d é que le conseiller s'implique à fournir des services liés au soutien, à l'envoi à d'autres professionnels, à l ' é d u c a t i o n et à l'information. E n plus de percevoir le conseiller en tant que pourvoyeur de services de counseling directs, les parents comptent que le conseiller d'orientation collabore beaucoup avec eux. D'autres attentes comprennent l ' é l a b o r a t i o n de programmes pour tous les enfants de l'école au niveau de d é v e l o p p e m e n t a p p r o p r i é et des services ayant trait à la consultation avec les professeurs, la programmation pour enfants ayant des difficultés d'apprentissage, et la liaison avec la c o m m u n a u t é .

T h e advent o f site-based b u d g e t i n g and the d e m a n d for heightened accountability i n school systems challenges the elementary school counsellor to create a role definition that incorporates the needs o f an important g r o u p o f stakeholders: the parents. H e l m s a n d I b r a h i m (1985) c o n c l u d e d that "counsellors i n the school system need to seek input from their constituents as to high-priority functions" (p. 273). As counsellors' priorities may fail to match the expectations o f parents, it is critical that school counsellors demonstrate that c o u n s e l l i n g programs have a positive impact o n c h i l d r e n and their development. U n f o r t u nately, counsellors have been criticized for their inability to c o m m u n i -cate what they d o and its impact o n c h i l d r e n i n schools (O'Bryant, 1990; Synder & Daly, 1993).

In a desire to clarify the role o f a counsellor as perceived by the parents i n an E d m o n t o n elementary school, a needs assessment o f parents was undertaken using a m e t h o d called concept-mapping. Specifically, the goal o f this study was to develop an understanding o f parents'

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expecta-68 Barbara L . Paulson, Mark H . Edwards

tions for an elementary school counsellor and to create a conceptual understanding o f these expectations. A n additional purpose was to dis-cern the relative support for each o f the identified tasks to be i n c l u d e d i n the counsellor's role.

C u r r e n t role expectations o f elementary counsellors suggest the need to focus activities o n involving the most significant adults i n the child's life ( H o l m g r e n , 1996). In light o f new education policies, parents are b e c o m i n g increasingly involved i n establishing school priorities a n d participating i n p r o g r a m p l a n n i n g . Indeed, in some provinces parent involvement i n school decision-making is b e i n g mandated t h r o u g h par-ent advisory councils (Alberta E d u c a t i o n , 1995). A second consideration is the growing desire o f parents for all c h i l d r e n to benefit from counsel-l i n g programs. Research i n this area shows strong support for ecounsel-lementary counsellors who provide school-wide interventions with preventive a n d educational components (Borders & Drury, 1992; Hardesty & D i l l a r d , 1994; Miller, 1989). By e x p a n d i n g the counsellor's knowledge o f parents conceptions o f the c o u n s e l l i n g service, counsellors can respond m o r e appropriately to the specific needs o f elementary school c h i l d r e n .

A l t h o u g h i n c l u s i o n o f parents' perceptions i n the development o f c o u n s e l l i n g programs is essential, it remains a largely untapped element i n the development o f the counsellor role. In a state-wide survey ofthe Missouri C o m p r e h e n s i v e G u i d a n c e Program, Hughey, Gysbers, a n d Starr (1993) reported that more than 80% o f parents r e s p o n d i n g to the survey had visited a h i g h school counsellor d u r i n g the school year. In synthesizing 30 years o f professional literature o n school c o u n s e l l i n g , Borders a n d Drury (1992) c o n t e n d e d that special effort s h o u l d be given to increasing parents' involvement i n the development of the counsel-l i n g p r o g r a m because parents continue to be the singcounsel-le strongest infcounsel-lu- influ-ence o n their c h i l d r e n .

Counsellor Roles

Counsellors have m u l t i p l e roles a n d perform a wide variety o f tasks i n a school. Traditionally these roles have been defined by the profession, with many o f the tasks b e i n g assigned by school administration (Gysbers & H e n d e r s o n , 1988). Political, social, a n d economic forces are also creating pressure for counsellors to change both their role a n d the delivery o f services. In addition, the effectiveness o f existing counsell i n g services is rarecounselly demonstrated and c o m m u n i c a t e d to the c o m m u -nity even when such programs have a significant impact o n the academic a n d social development o f the c h i l d (Borders & Drury, 1992: Gysbers, Hughey, Starr, & L a p a n , 1992; S c h r ä d e r , 1989).

C o u n s e l l i n g , consulting, a n d c o o r d i n a t i n g roles have been identified as the major roles o f school counsellors (Hardesty & D i l l a r d , 1994: Pardeck & Pardeck, 1989). However, the emphasis a n d priority o f these

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Parent Expectations <ì!)

roles have been shifting from direct service provider to one o f l i n k i n g needs a n d resources with c o o r d i n a t i n g a n d consulting as the central functions (Carroll, 1993; Paterson & Janzen, 1993; W e l c h & M c C a r r o l l , 1993). A change toward m o r e i n d i r e c t services means the counsellor must make a conceptual shift from a closed-systems m o d e l to an systems m o d e l (Welch & M c C a r r o l l , 1993). M o v e m e n t toward an open-community-systems approach means more emphasis o n collaborative approaches a n d the need to deliver services to groups rather than to individuals.

Needs Assessment

Students, parents, a n d school staff often have widely differing percep-tions o f why a counsellor is needed a n d o f what tasks they s h o u l d perform. Increasingly, school counsellors are b e c o m i n g interested i n assessments that identify the needs o f parents, teachers, students, a n d administrators (Fairchild, 1993; F a i r c h i l d & Seeley, 1995). T h e results o f such assessments provide the basis for developing an e x p a n d e d counsel-l o r rocounsel-le i n a comprehensive guidance p r o g r a m modecounsel-ls such those as o u t l i n e d by Gysbers a n d H e n d e r s o n (1988) a n d establishing effective methods o f achieving counsellor accountability (Borders & Drury, 1992; Myrick, 1989).

T h e initial stages o f understanding a n d delineating school c o m m u n i t y expectations usually begin with a needs assessment. Characteristically, when attempting to determine the needs o f the school community, counsellors have used questionnaires that ask the participants to rate a p r e d e t e r m i n e d set o f tasks. T h e information possessed by the researcher limits both the scope o f the questions a n d the participants' responses. If open-ended questions are asked a n d written responses are requested, respondents are reluctant to give detailed answers.

C o n c e p t - m a p p i n g was chosen as an alternate needs assessment tool i n an attempt to develop a comprehensive information base that considers the expectations o f the major stakeholders. O n e o f the most important aspects o f concept-mapping is that the process is participant-oriented. It allows for the clustering o f qualitative data into u n d e r l y i n g themes as they are reported by participants rather than as defined by the organiza-tion or researchers (Daughtry & K u n k e l , 1993; K u n k e l 1991; T r o c h i m , 1993). T h i s helps to reduce the limitations imposed o n data collection by p r e d e t e r m i n e d questionaires a n d open-ended questions.

As counsellors change their delivery o f services, the n e e d for addi-tional management a n d administrative skills increases. Typically, coun-sellors have p a i d little attention to the management aspect o f delivering counselling programs ( C a r r o l l , 1993). A recent study that identified 80 counsellor tasks i n A l b e r t a schools made no direct m e n t i o n o f needs assessment, p r o g r a m p l a n n i n g , or accountability functions (Calder &

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70 Barbara L . Paulson, Mark H . Edwards

Chorney, 1995), even t h o u g h these are essential characteristics o f an effectively administered c o u n s e l l i n g p r o g r a m . Also, understanding the perceptions o f students, teachers, a n d parents o f the school counsellor role c o u l d provide the basis for establishing measures o f systematic accountability (Hughey, Gysbers, & Starr, 1993). Despite agreement i n the literature o f the importance o f establishing accountability, the pre-vailing reasons cited a m o n g practitioners for not d o i n g so are a o f lack o f familiarity with methods or an overwhelming caseload (Fairchild, 1993).

It is evident that the roles a n d functions o f an elementary school counsellor are c h a n g i n g a n d that they are dramatically affected by the way i n w h i c h tasks are perceived. It is crucial to find effective a n d timeefficient methods that assess the expectations of the parents a n d i m m e d i -ate c o m m u n i t y a n d that can be easily used by counsellors. G i v e n the increasing importance o f the parents involvement i n school p r o g r a m p l a n n i n g , a n d the scarcity o f e m p i r i c a l research identifying perceptions o f school c o u n s e l l o r ' s role as it is conceived by parents, this study seeks to add to o u r understanding o f parents' expectations for the elementary school counsellor.

M E T H O D A N D P R O C E D U R E

Concept-Mapping

C o n c e p t - m a p p i n g is a relatively new methodology that combines qualita-tive a n d quantitaqualita-tive research strategies a n d acqualita-tively involves research participants i n generating items a n d gathering data (Daughtry & K u n k e l , 1993; T r o c h i m , 1989). C o n c e p t - m a p p i n g permits a g r o u p to create the-matic representations o f ideas a n d goals. In organizations it can be a useful tool for assessing expectations a n d d e l i n e a t i n g organizational goals. W h e n the raw information is collected, concept-mapping allows for analyses o f the i n f o r m a t i o n using a set o f statistical methods that groups qualitative data into u n d e r l y i n g themes as they are reported by the participants. Consequently, this approach permits a careful evalua-tion o f the participants' perspectives regarding specific issues, goals, a n d expectations.

In addition, because the data are sorted by each m e m b e r i n the group, the potential for bias is r e d u c e d as c o m p a r e d with qualitative data that is sorted into themes by one or two investigators. Bias is further r e d u c e d because the analysis of card-sort groupings is not c o n d u c t e d by the g r o u p leaders using their own subjective interpretation, but rather accom-plished t h r o u g h objective statistical analysis o f the groupings, w h i c h are d e t e r m i n e d by the participants. T h i s has the advantage o f m a k i n g it unnecessary for either the respondents or the researchers to specify any of the dimensions o r attributes w h e n sorting the data. Finally, w h e n completed, the themes have practical utility as they suggest statistically

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Parent Expectations 71

the organized p r i n c i p l e s i m p l i c i t i n participants' sorting (Daughtry & K u n k e l , 1993).

T h i s study uses concept-mapping methodology to identify parents' perception o f counsellor roles a n d to determine the u n d e r l y i n g themes within w h i c h these roles can be categorized. By gathering information based o n parents' perceptions, the thematic analysis s h o u l d , therefore, be sensitized to the local needs o f the school community. Also, large amounts o f i n f o r m a t i o n were sorted into related themes i n an objective way by allowing parents to provide direct i n p u t without the constraints o f preconceived notions. In addition, experimenter bias is reduced by having many parents sort the themes rather than relying solely o n the researchers.

Stages of Developing Concept Maps

T r o c h i m (1993) o u t l i n e d i n his c o m p u t e r p r o g r a m m a n u a l the six specific steps that are involved i n the development o f concept maps: (a) preparation, w h i c h includes the selection o f participants a n d develop-ment o f focus for the conceptualization; (b) the generation o f state-ments; (c) the structuring o f statestate-ments; (d) the m a p p i n g o f statements i n thematic form ; (e) the interpretation o f the data; a n d (f) the use o f the themes to guide p l a n n i n g a n d evaluation.

Preparation

Before the concept-mapping process is begun, two preparatory steps are necessary: c h o o s i n g the participants a n d d e c i d i n g o n the specific focus for the conceptualization. A l t h o u g h T r o c h i m (1993) d i d not establish a m i n i m u m n u m b e r o f participants, o n the basis o f his own research he suggested a g r o u p o f 20 to 30 people w o u l d provide a valid sorting o f the data. T h e question to elicit i n f o r m a t i o n needs to be w o r d e d clearly, simply, a n d with a single focus i n o r d e r to avoid confusion.

Generation

O n c e the focus has been established a n d the participants chosen, the concept-mapping process begins with the generation o f a set o f state-ments based o n participants' perceptions o f the question. T h e goal is to generate a set o f statements that represent the entire conceptual d o m a i n for the topic o f study. T h e statements themselves can be generated t h r o u g h a brainstorming process whereby the participants state their o p i n i o n s o n the question. T h e statements from a l l participants are collected, c o m b i n e d , a n d edited to remove redundancies ( T r o c h i m , 1993).

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72 Barbara L . Paulson, M a r k H . Edwards

Structuring

A card-sorting procedure is conducted o n the edited list o f statements i n order to identify interrelationships between statements. F o r the sorting task, each statement is p r i n t e d o n a separate card or paper. A further advantage o f the sorting procedure is that it is easily understandable by participants a n d takes relatively little time to accomplish. T h e different g r o u p e d statements are then collected from the participants to begin the data analysis.

Mapping

T h e statistical procedures involved i n the representation o f the state-ments requires several steps. First, the results o f the sort for each person are placed i n a binary similarity matrix. Second, the i n d i v i d u a l sort matrices are added together to obtain a c o m b i n e d g r o u p similarity matrix that has as many rows a n d columns as there are statements. T h i s final similarity matrix is considered the relational structure o f the con-ceptual d o m a i n because it provides information about how the partici-pants g r o u p e d the statements ( T r o c h i m , 1989). T h e matrix is a m e t h o d o f tabulating how all the participants sorted each item with all other items.

M u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l scaling techniques are then a p p l i e d to the similarity matrix using a n o n m e t r i c two-dimensional solution. T h e statistical tech-nique o f m u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l scaling is performed o n the card-sort data to suggest statistically the organizational principles i m p l i c i t i n the partici-pants' sorting ( T r o c h i m , 1993). Statements that are closer to each other are likely to have been sorted together more frequently.

Finally, the statements are g r o u p e d or partitioned into clusters or themes that represent conceptual groupings o f the o r i g i n a l set o f state-ments by means o f cluster analysis. Cluster analysis is used to identify conceptually similar groups o f sorted items. These analyses identify the c o m m o n categories that emerge from the group as a whole.

Interpretation

Interpreting involves the inspection o f each g r o u p o f statements or themes. E a c h theme g r o u p i n g is given a title that seems to describe its contents. T h i s identification process can be completed by the o r i g i n a l sorters or by the investigators ( T r o c h i m , 1989). Clusters o f statements that are closer together s h o u l d be more similar conceptually than clus-ters that are i n different thematic groupings. T h i s final result provides a concise, simplified summary o f the conceptualization o f the g r o u p participants.

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Use of the Themes

T h e results o f the concept-mapping process can then be used to develop organizational plans, to understand g r o u p expectations, a n d to establish outcome measures for programs. In addition, T r o c h i m (1993) stated that each category o r g r o u p i n g can be viewed as a measurement con-struct a n d can be used to provide d i r e c t i o n for future research. A s a result, the concept-mapping process can be used effectively for needs assessment a n d development o f psychological constructs.

Selection of Participants

A l l 25 participants (16 female, 9 male) were parents o r guardians o f c h i l d r e n e n r o l l e d i n the same medium-sized K-6 elementary school (331 students) who volunteered to participate i n generating information for the study. Each grade level was represented by at least two parents. T h e school is located i n a large suburban area with a p o p u l a t i o n o f m i x e d socioeconomic status. Parental involvment was solicited t h r o u g h a letter sent h o m e with each c h i l d i n the school a n d by r o o m representatives from the Parent Advisory C o u n c i l t e l e p h o n i n g all parents. Parents were invited to participate i n a m e e t i n g to help gain an understanding o f how best to serve the needs o f their c h i l d r e n through the school counsellor.

Data Collection Procedure

Data were collected at a two-hour m e e t i n g o f parents that was specifi-cally designed to use small-group processes to generate task statements, groupings, a n d priority ratings.

Step 1. In response to the question "What d o parents expect an

elemen-tary counsellor to do?" the parents were asked to brainstorm ideas i n small groups using cooperative learning strategies.

Step 2. A s the task statements were generated, they were edited for

obvious duplicates a n d then typed to create a complete set o f statements. D u r i n g the coffee break, lists o f all 91 statements were p r i n t e d a n d cut up into i n d i v i d u a l task statements.

Step 3. In the second part o f the meeting, each participant was given an

envelope c o n t a i n i n g a complete set o f 91 statements a n d asked to sort them into piles that made sense to them. T h e only restrictions placed on the sorting were that (a) each statement c o u l d be placed only i n one pile, (b) more than one pile n e e d e d to be created, a n d (c) some items must be sorted together, although some items c o u l d be sorted into their own pile ( T r o c h i m , 1993). W h e n participants saw that several sort possibilities existed, they were instructed to select the arrangement that seemed most sensible to them.

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Step 4. T h e 91 task statements were c o m p i l e d into a questionnaire

format with an equidistant L i k e r t rating scale ranging from strongly

opposed (I) to strongly in favour (5). Participants were asked to rate all o f

the task statements. T h e rating instructions were: circle the appropriate n u m b e r to indicate whether the elementary school counsellor s h o u l d be involved i n this task. T h e questionnaires were c o m p l e t e d by all parents at the meeting.

Data Analysis

T h e statistical analysis o f the data involves a two-step process: (a) a n o n m e t r i c m u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l scaling procedure ( M D S ) is performed, a n d (b) a hierarchical cluster analysis is used to sort items into consistent clusters representing similar concepts. M D S is a term that refers to a "a set of procedures that can be used to represent spatially the interrelation-ships a m o n g a set o f objects" (Fitzgerald & H u b e r t , 1987, p . 469). T h r o u g h the M D S analysis each statement is located o n a p o i n t map. Statements that are closer to each other o n the map are sorted together m o r e frequently, a n d conversely, statements that are rarely sorted to-gether are m o r e distant o n the map. In the second stage o f the analysis the i n d i v i d u a l statements were g r o u p e d together into distinct themes that represented similar concepts t h r o u g h the cluster analysis as pres-ented by T r o c h i m (1989).

In conjunction with the thematic analysis, mean ratings o f all 91 task statements were c o m p u t e d to assess the relative support for each task i n the parents' expectations o f the elementary school counsellor role. Be-cause the data analysis was c o m p l e t e d several weeks after the evening meeting a n d the parent g r o u p was unavailable, the name o f each theme was assigned by the researchers based o n the content o f the items contained i n each thematic g r o u p i n g .

U s i n g the m u l t i d i m e n s i o n a l scaling ( M D S ) procedure within the con-cept m a p p i n g p r o g r a m produces a stress value that is an overall i n d e x o f the stability o f the M D S solution a n d ranges from zero (perfectly stable) to one (perfectly unstable). A c c o r d i n g to T r o c h i m ( 1989) a value o f less than .30 represents a stable M D S solution whereas a stress value over .40 indicates data that are not consistently sorted into any thematic way. T h e analysis o f this data resulted i n a final stress value o f .29 i n d i c a t i n g a consistent a n d stable sorting for this set o f data.

R E S U L T S

Multidimensional Scaling and Bridging Values

A d d i t i o n a l analysis with the concept-mapping procedure generates b r i d g i n g values for each o f the seven thematic clusters. B r i d g i n g values represents how frequently each item is sorted with the other items i n that

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cluster. A low b r i d g i n g value means "that the statements i n that cluster were m o r e frequently sorted with statements within the cluster than with statements i n other clusters" ( T r o c h i m , 1993, p. 123). T h e b r i d g i n g index (BI) ranges i n value from 0 (low) to 1 (high) where lower values mean that the clusters are m o r e likely to have statements that make sense together, a n d consequently are placed closer to each other o n the concept map.

A n inspection o f the b r i d g i n g values indicates that p r o v i d i n g a com-munications l i n k between school a n d c o m m u n i t y (BI=.21), delivery o f consulting to teachers (BI=.31), developmental programs (BI=.32), a n d special needs p r o g r a m m i n g (BI=.32) were the clusters with the lowest b r i d g i n g values. These appear to represent discrete p r o g r a m m i n g areas for the school counsellor. Two clusters, counselling services (BI=.47) a n d information resources (BI=.51), contain b r i d g i n g values i n the m i d d l e range, which suggests tasks a n d roles that were frequently sorted i n other clusters. As these two clusters involve many c o m m u n i c a t i o n a n d informa-tion activities, it is understandable how these items c o u l d be i n c l u d e d i n other groupings. T h e conflict resolution cluster (BI=.70) has the highest b r i d g i n g value, w h i c h signifies that the items i n this cluster were most frequently sorted i n several other clusters, suggesting that the sorters often considered these theme items to be related to the other themes. In effect, a cluster with a h i g h b r i d g i n g value reflects concepts that l i n k adjacent themes conceptually.

Thematic Clusters

T h e c u l m i n a t i o n o f the concept-mapping process is a set o f thematic groupings as shown i n Table 1, w h i c h represents the conceptual frame-work o f parents' expectations o f an elementary school counsellor. A n examination o f the concept solution shows how the seven themes are related conceptually, whereas the items that constitute the various roles a n d tasks i n each theme are detailed i n Table 1. T h e mean rating o f each item indicates the relative importance o f that task i n the theme. T h e higher the mean score, the m o r e support the parents h a d for a particular task to be a part o f the counsellor's role.

A seven-concept solution was chosen as b e i n g the most conceptually clear i n understanding the expectations o f the parents a n d i n identifying the meaningful components o f an elementary school counsellor's role. T h i s concept solution is based o n the operative p r i n c i p l e that to maintain the integrity o f the M D S results, one must a choose a clustering solution that partitions the items into groupings that d o not overlap i n multi-d i m e n s i o n a l space ( T r o c h i m , 1989).

Information resource occupies the central location o n the map. A n

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T A B L E 1

Themes and Items from Parents ' Concept Map of an Elementary School Counsellor

Themes and Items M" Themes and Items

1. Information Resource Be able to refer parents to

appropriate sources 4.88 Work with teacher/student/

parent team to solve problems 4.84 Communicate among students,

parents, and teachers 4.76 Share information obtained at

workshops 4.52 Participate in school functions 4.40

Deal with conflicts among

students from different schools 4.20 Transfer information from other

schools 3.76

2. Conflict Resolution

Parents should be informed any

time a child is having a problem 4.88 Tell parents who counsellor is 4.64 Assist in conflict resolution 4.60 Act as a mediator between

students, teachers, and parents 4.52 Help develop guidelines for

discipline policy 4.44 Serve as a mediator in parent/

school conflict 4.44 Be more proactive by being more

involved in the classroom 4.24 3. Consultant to Teachers

Offer suggestions for dealing with

problems 4.80 Communicate openly with

teachers 4.72 Give teachers ideas how to handle

problems in the class room 4.72 Correspond with teachers about

student behaviour 4.52 Teach teachers how to identify

special needs children 4.44 Inform teachers on how to

recognize learning problems 4.40 Act as a mediator with parent/

teacher and student/teacher 4.40 Suggest alternative forms of

discipline for teachers 4.36

3. Consultant to Teachers (cont'd) Be a resource to teachers when

dealing with parents 4.28 Monitor home situations for

problems 4.12 Be a sounding board for teachers 4.08

Help teachers deal with problem

parents 4.04 Identify home problems and

suggest things teacher can do 4.04 Help the teachers in creating new

activities 3.84 Be a resource for teacher

education 3.76 Recommend new teaching

methods 3.64 Create weekly meetings with

teachers regarding students 3.32 Substitute for teachers or help

out in the class 3.12

4. Communication Link

Know what resources are available 4.84 Be aware of referral agencies 4.80 Being aware of the problems in

the community 4.52 Know the needs of the school

community 4.44 Know what resources the school

needs 4.24 Bring community members into

the school to address students 4.12 Bring in community professionals

when needed 4.08 Partnership with local police 3.80

How to get students involved in

the community 3.76 Be the key communication link

for the school 3.64 Work with church in workshops

or community league 3.64 Encourage volunteer relationships

and create partnerships 3.64 Hold or suggest workshops at the

community league level 3.40 Form a community activity that

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TABLE 1 (cont'd)

Themes and Items from Parents ' Concept Map of an Elementary School Counsellor

Themes and Items Themes and Items M"

4. Communication Link (cont'd)

Solicit local business support for

student recognition 3.16

5. Counselling Services

Inform parents when counselling

occurs 4.80 Coordinate with parents

regarding problem issues 4.76 Involved with^parents when there

is testing to be done 4.76 Communicate with parents

discreetly 4.68 Be open to parental involvement/

suggestions 4.60 Act as a general resource for

information 4.52 Teach social skills between

parents and students 4.46 Career and academic counselling 4.36

Help counsel parents on junior

high schools 4.28 Information for parents about

school choices 4.24 Give parents information on

tutoring 4.20 Resource person for parenting 4.16

Help parents learn to listen

openly to students 4.04 Educate parents about the child's

subculture 3.80 Parenting courses 3.68 Home visits 2.68

6. Special Needs Programming

4.88 4.72 4.72 Counsel in areas of concern

Identify learning problems Be able to identify problem kids Be able to recognize behaviour

symptoms related to abuse 4.68 Identify reasons for misbehaviour 4.64

Readiness for Grade 7 4.44

6. Special Needs Programming

(cont'd)

Testing and screening 4.36 Identify children who are bright

or over-achievers 4.36 Track potential problems 4.32

Help gifted students 4.28 Test children for learning

disabilities 4.20 Develop programs for students

who require extra help 4.16 7. Developmental Programs

Be accessible for students and

parents 4.96 Be a support resource for all

students 4.88 Guiding students to have

self-worth and self-respect 4.84 Teach children anger

management skills 4.84 Teach students how to handle

peer pressure 4.80 Teaching children coping skills 4.76

Let children know that he is their

friend 4.72 Explain the counsellor role to

students 4.72 Be able to recognize a small

problem before it becomes bigger 4.56 Making students aware of

individual differences 4.52 Have suggestion box for student

input 4.48 Advocate for students 4.44

Ensure full integration of new

students 4.24 Help children set up proper study

skills 4.20 Teaching learning techniques for

students 4.00 Be an impeccable role model to

children 3.44 Note: Participants rated each item according to its importance i n their expectations of what a

counsellor should do, using a 5-point equidistant Likert Scale ranging from strongly opposed (1) to strongly i n favor (5).

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such as referral, c o m m u n i c a t i o n , a n d mediation are key, or central to the parents' expectations o f the school counsellor. T h e r e m a i n i n g six the-matic clusters are located a r o u n d the central theme like spokes o n a wheel. T h e y start with conflict resolution, then with consultant to teacher adjacent, followed by communication link, counselling services, special needs

programming, a n d developmental programs to complete the circle. A s the

location o f the themes o n the map is entirely determined by the sorting o f the statements a n d not their ratings ( T r o c h i m , 1993), each o f the thematic groupings provides information o n how parents perceive the counsellor's role a n d what can be considered as essential to parents i n the provision o f c o u n s e l l i n g services.

D I S C U S S I O N Parent Conceptualizations

Parents want the school counsellor to be highly active i n c o m m u n i c a t i n g a n d p r o v i d i n g services that involve support, education, referral, a n d information. In addition, parents perceive that the counsellor s h o u l d have extensive involvement i n m e d i a t i o n and conflict resolution a m o n g teachers, students, a n d parents. Usually this has not been a role for counsellors. Parents' expectation o f a counsellor as both a consultant a n d a c o m m u n i c a t o r stress the critical need for b r i n g i n g together school personnel a n d parents to resolve student concerns rather than for the counsellor to work i n isolation.

A n examination o f the themes demonstrates a h i g h d e m a n d for the provision o f services through consultation and c o o r d i n a t i o n that moves the counsellor away from p r o v i d i n g direct services. These collaborative functions i m p l y an emphasis o n the family, the school, a n d the c o m m u -nity as a collective resource for c h i l d r e n that the counsellor s h o u l d access.

A l t h o u g h parents d i d not d i m i n i s h the roles o f counselling a n d crisis intervention, they d i d expect time to be incorporated into the counsel-l i n g p r o g r a m for acounsel-lcounsel-l c h i counsel-l d r e n . Devecounsel-lopmentacounsel-l p r o g r a m m i n g that meets the needs o f all c h i l d r e n was strongly supported. A l t h o u g h direct coun-selling o f c h i l d r e n with personal a n d academic problems was expected by parents, they were clear i n their desire for many services to enhance the development o f all students i n the school.

Considerable emphasis was placed o n the counsellor tasks that in-c l u d e d in-consultation with and assistanin-ce to in-classroom teain-chers. Parents conceived the identification a n d provision o f p r o g r a m m i n g services to c h i l d r e n with special needs as one o f the major functions o f the elemen-tary school counsellor. A large n u m b e r o f task statements also refer to the need for information a n d referral to c o m m u n i t y agencies. In many o f the tasks described parents emphasized the need for the counsellor to be a

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m e m b e r o f the school team who facilitated learning a n d acted as a resource person for the staff. A l t h o u g h counselling remains essential, services such as c o m m u n i c a t i n g , consulting, a n d c o m m u n i t y liaison were highly emphasized.

T h e participants demonstrated that they were well i n f o r m e d a n d able to provide valuable i n f o r m a t i o n about how best to serve the needs o f their c h i l d r e n . In their discussion o n the future o f role o f school counsel-lors, W e l c h a n d M c C a r r o l l (1993) predicted that ' T h e counsellor i n the schools o f the future may well be a c o m m u n i t y resource specialist. " These sentiments are strongly reflected i n the expectations expressed by the parents i n this study. T h e data gathered from this project suggest that a primary function o f the elementary counsellor will be as a specialist who facilitates c o m m u n i c a t i o n a n d consultation a m o n g the key stakeholders i n the child's learning a n d development.

Implications

It is evident that before school counsellors i m p l e m e n t a change i n their roles, they n e e d to reassess the needs o f the c o m m u n i t y a n d to develop a plan o f action that corresponds to specific c o m m u n i t y expectations. In this study, concept-mapping facilitated the identification o f seven major areas o f expectation as defined by the parents i n one elementary school. T h e results o f this research project suggest that changes i n the elemen-tary counsellor's role w o u l d be necessary to meet the concerns o f parents who participated i n this study. Tasks such as those developed i n this thematic analysis c o m b i n e d with the expectations o f students a n d teach-i n g staff w o u l d provteach-ide a useful framework for delteach-ineatteach-ing a counsellor's role. Interestingly, parents expressed a strong desire for the counsellor to engage i n m e d i a t i o n a n d conflict resolution. T h i s is not a role usually considered to be i n the realm o f counsellor activities. T h i s expectation is an example o f how consulting with the various stakeholders c o u l d result i n major changes i n the type o f services being provided. A s most counsel-lors receive little t r a i n i n g i n needs assessment a n d p r o g r a m evaluation, this further complicates the i m p l e m e n t a t i o n o f counselling functions built o n identifiable needs a n d expectations.

T h e process o u t l i n e d i n this study looks p r o m i s i n g as an aid to plan-n i plan-n g a plan-n d evaluatioplan-n o f c o u plan-n s e l l i plan-n g services. It s h o u l d be plan-noted that the data i n this study are based solely o n i n p u t from a small sample of parents and guardians. Before major changes are undertaken, it w o u l d be neces-sary to gather data f r o m other stakeholder groups i n the school. O n c e the concept-mapping m e t h o d has been i m p l e m e n t e d to assess needs, the i n f o r m a t i o n gained c o u l d be used to develop changes i n the role o f the school counsellor.

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80 Barbara L . Paulson, M a r k H . Edwards

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About the Authors

Barbara L . Paulson, P h . D . is an associate professor of counselling psychology at the University of Alberta who has been extensively involved in the training of school counsellors. H e r research and practice interests are centered o n counselling processes and effectiveness, suicide, and health psychology.

Mark H . Edwards, M . E d , is a full-time counsellor who divides his time between an elementary and a j u n i o r high school in the E d m o n t o n Catholic School District. H e was a member o f the writing team that has developed a new comprehensive guidance and counselling program for Alberta schools and is currently implementing the approach in his two schools.

Address correspondence to: Dr. Barbara Paulson, Department o f Educational Psychology, Faculty o f Education, University o f Alberta, 6-102 Education N o r t h , E d m o n t o n , A B T 6 G 2G5, Fax (403) 492-1318.