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What is counselling according to you?
 

We hear the term “guidance counsellors” quite frequently, isn’t it? The guidance counsellors are frequently being portrayed as pleasant people who usually talk with“trouble-making” students in order to understand them well. Nowadays, counselling has become very important in schools and educational institutions and counselling courses for teachers are the need of the hour. Just like every other person, students also require the right counselling and guidance in their life.
 

We all need counselling at a certain phase; we also search for the right person to get appreciated supervision so that we can get the solution of a problem. Counselling provides the significant information as well as an outlook to specific students that might not be able to get it otherwise. Also, students can voluntarily seek advice from the school counsellors. The goal behind this practice is to expand the child’s situation for his/her own benefit, rather than correct it for the advantage of the school.
 

Counselling involves –

• Identifying pupils’/students’ distinct developmental and educational needs
• Finding psychological and physical discomforts in the child
• Classifying the environmental aspects which have an influence on pupils’/students’ functioning
• Early intervention
• Vocational guidance
• Handling any conflict
• Addressing the needs acknowledged or not
• Attaining the right knowledge
• Empowering an overall development

The accurate valuation of children’s developmental needs is one of the foremost responsibilities of teacher-counsellors.
 

But then again, why a learner or a child needs guidance and counselling at which stage?
 

Well, today due to a plethora of fields, students are unable to find the right field for themselves and are confused to choose a course. So, in this situation, they feel like getting some guidance from the student counsellors. Effective counselling for students can really support them in their career related matters along with any other concerns.
 

Well, you must be wondering if guidance and counselling are the same. The answer is NO. Guidance is something about giving advice or any kind of important piece of information. Counselling is giving some professional advice from a Professional Counsellor to a person.
 

The counselling Process
 

In many situations, we have seen that students and young learners face issues to deal with psychological problems. Eventually, this can badly impact their academic growth as well as their personal life. With the help of proper counselling sessions, students can develop firm problem-solving skills that will support them in dealing with certain issues. The issues can be anything like - how to talk considerately, how to relate with their peers, even if a child is a victim of bullying, suffering from any mental problems, substance abuse, personal feelings and so on.
 

Role of a teacher-counsellor:
 

We can say that counselling fills the gap between learners and the administration. So, how teachers can help the students as counsellors?

• Teachers can make a good rapport with the students
• Start talking to your learners, make them feel comfortable and build the relationship
• Develop the self-confidence in your students
• Teachers should listen to the problems of a student
• Let your students be expressive
• Try to maintain the privacy of the stuff related to a particular student
• Teachers should maintain emotional consistency
• A teacher should feel compassionate about the learners

Also, if we talk about the responsibility of school counsellors, then there are many –

• A major component of that responsibility is accountability
• They are accountable for analysing the data on their own efficiency
• School counsellors personalize their methods to make the best use of their value to students
• Nowadays, one of the most significant recent changes to the school counsellor’s role is dealing with cyberbullying
• A school counsellor should always work to be aware of the latest social issues
• They are always there to give advice to learners in crucial situations

Well, the role of the counsellor is ever-changing; it depends on diverse factors at work within the school and so on.
 

The chief beneficial effect of Quality Counselling is it helps to prepare students for academic, career, and social challenges. As learners spend most of their time in school and college hence, the school administration plays a vital role in shaping up the personality of the students. Certificate course in counselling for teachers is the perfect way to provide the Quality Counselling in schools. The mental well-being of the students is very important and the teachers should be trained to counsel students and address a range of issues effectively.