CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN AFRICA

(AMECEA)

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

REGULAR PROGRAMME

BACHELOR OF EDUCATION PROGRAMME

CLASS NOTES

ED 401: GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING

LECTURER: BR. DR. JAMES NYAKUNDI

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INTRODUCTION
You must have some prior knowledge of human growth and development, as well as the
various stages that a child experiences as they grow up, in order to successfully complete this unit.
Infanthood, early childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood are stages one has to understand.
Knowing about these stages enables you to see the value and practicality of guidance and
counseling in assisting students in resolving issues that they encounter both inside and outside the
school setting.
Additionally, you should be familiar with the processes of general socialization, moral
development, and personality development that have an influence on young people as they interact
with their surroundings. This interaction between the individual and their surroundings might have
beneficial or harmful effects.
You may also need to be conversant with the processes that go in education, issues
connected with quality education, the education of the girl-child, factors that make children drop-
out of schools, and those connected with high or low performance, emotional issues or development
or career aspirations. This means that you as their teacher and counsellor have a lot to contribute to
the wellness of these learners and their future successes. The knowledge and skills of guidance and
counselling are useful in helping them.
You may at this opportune moment be thinking how inadequate you are as far as guidance
and counselling is concerned. This unit is designed to equip you with the knowledge and skills to
become good and effective guidance and counselling teacher in the school. As you go through this
unit, it is very clear that you are becoming an agent of change’. Guidance and Counselling are ‘all
about change.’
In school, there are young people of different ages, sex, interests and life orientations. They
all need some kind of proper guidance so that they can change without any pressure exerted on
them. Since they are young, lack real-life experience about life in general, are unaware of
themselves, they do not in any way know how to bring about changes nor understand their
implications on their lives. Among them are those who may resist change because they are already
tuned to a particular approach to life, or are accustomed to what life means to them, and therefore
would not like to change at all. This is the core of what you are about to begin doing when you have
completed the course. You are going to work with them and endeavour to cause desirable
adjustments in them. These changes that are anticipated will be a reflection that you will have
imbued them with skills of copying and/or what they can do on their own, to make changes in their
lives.
We live in a world full of rapid changes. These changes are coming about because of the
technological developments taking place every now and then. Traditional cultures, beliefs, values
and social relations in traditional societies are being eroded very quickly by foreign cultures,
through television, internet, magazines, music and other toxic influences. All these rapid changes
lead to confusion and uncertainty among young people. These rapid changes leave us all confused
to the extent that we do not know what to do, or the next step to take. This is when your knowledge
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and skills in counselling become very handy to all of us. How all of us, including your students, will
change will depend on your ability to conduct guidance and counselling, notwithstanding our
differences in terms of interest, personality, cultural background and life circumstances.
As a teacher-counsellor, you have embarked on another journey, a journey to help people,
especially the learners to deal with changes that come suddenly and unexpectedly into their lives.
Your positive and prompt contributions will in the end make them live an independent, happy and
effective life. Before you can do that, you need to acquire the knowledge, skills and competencies
for guidance and counselling. Guidance and Counseling has a unit enables you to become a good
and effective and prolific Guidance and Counsellor in the school as well in the community.
Definitions of Counselling
Biswalo (1996) defines counselling as a process of helping an individual to accept and to use
information and advice so that he/she can either solve his/her present problem or cope with it
successfully.
According to British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy (2002), counselling
takes place when a counselor sees a client in a private and confidential setting to explore a difficulty
a client is having, distress that the client may be experiencing or perhaps the client’s dissatisfaction
with life or loss of a sense or direction and purpose.
The American Counseling Association conference (2010), a consensus definition of
counseling: “Counseling is a professional relationship that empowers diverse individuals, families,
and groups to accomplish mental health, wellness, education, and career goals.”
Counselling is the psychotherapeutic relationship in which an individual receives direct help
from an adviser or finds an opportunity to release negative feelings and thus clear the way for
positive growth in personality.
Definition of Guidance
Ruth Strang. “Guidance is a process of helping every individual, through his own efforts, to
discover and develop his potentialities for his personal happiness and social usefulness.”
A.J. Jones. “Guidance involves personal help given by a competent person; it is designed to assist a
person in deciding where he/she wants to go, what he/she wants to do, or how he/she can best
accomplish his purposes; it assists him/her in solving problems that arise in his/her life. It does not
solve problems for the individual, but helps him to solve them. The focus of guidance is the
individual and not the problem; its purpose is to promote the growth of the individual in self-
direction.”

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Knapps. “Learning about the individual student, helping him/her to understand himself/herself,
effecting changes in him/her and in his/her environment, which will help him/her to grow and
develop as much as possible, these are the elements of guidance.”
Secondary Education Commission, 1952. “Guidance involves the difficult art of helping boys and
girls to plan their own future wisely in the full light of all the factors that can be mastered about
themselves and about the world in which they are to live and work.”
Crow and Crow. “Guidance is assistance made available by personally and adequately trained men
or women to an individual of any age to help him manage his own life activities, develop his own
points of view, make his own decisions and carry his own burdens.”
Guidance and counseling in education therefore, is a new concept which refers to a specialized
group of services a school provides to enrich the educational experiences of each student. It must be
noted that Guidance and Counseling like two sides of a coin, are used interchangeably and are often
tied together.
Differences between Guidance and Counseling
It is true that the terms guidance and counseling are used interchangeably and despite the fact that
the two words are seen as professional assistance to clients, we need to know some areas of
distinction for the use and understanding of practicing guidance and counselors in the field.
It is important to note the following slight differences of the two terms for effective application.

Guidance Counselling
Counselling refers to the professional advice
The Meaning of Guidance can be
provided by a counsellor or therapist to needy
1 understood as “to direct” or “to show the
individuals so that they can overcome their personal
path”
and Psychological Problems
2 It is preventive in Nature It is mostly remedial and curative in Nature
3 It is comprehensive and Extroverted It is done in-depth and introverted
Guidance helps or assists the person to Counselling tends to change the perspective, to help
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choose the best decisions him get the solution by himself or herself
Counselling helps them come up with a well-
5 The guidance gives clients ready answers
informed solution
The guidance uses an external approach to Counselling uses the in-depth approach to establish
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tackle the issue at hand the root cause of the problems before tackling it
Guidance is the best approach for tackling Counselling is best employed in tackling socio-
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educational and career problems psychological and other personal problems
It can be provided by any person who is Counselling is mostly provided by Trained
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experienced in a particular field or expert professional
This is less private or confidentiality is not
9 This is mostly confidential
guaranteed
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 Guidance Counselling
This can be given to individuals or in a
10 This gives one to one
group
Guidance can be given from Schools, Counselling is given in a special setting conducive to
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home; everywhere; womb to tomb. giving and receiving help for interviewing
The main purpose of the guidance is to
The main Purpose of Counselling is to Help
Optimum development of individual
12 individuals develop self-confidence and adjust to life
students for the ultimate development of
strategies and schooling problems
the school
Benefits of Effective Guidance & Counselling:
1. Students are given proper guidance on how to deal with psychological problems which can
badly impact their studies. Through these sessions, the students will be able to develop
certain problem-solving skills which to an extent help them deal with particular issues
surrounding their lives.
2. The students are advised on how to cope with different situations they tend to face in their
school life. For instance, how should they talk politely or relate with their peers? This advice
will give them perspective on how should they behave in certain scenarios.
3. It helps to shape a student’s behaviour and also instill enough discipline in them. Proper
guidance helps them achieve their goals, well guided & counselled students to know what to
do and how to do things in the best possible way.
4. Students learn how-to live-in peace and harmony with others in the school community.
Thereby, they also learn to appreciate other people in their class.
5. It helps to bridge the gap between students and the school administration, since they are able
to guide their problems through a proper counselling channel in the office.
6. Students get comprehensive advice on careers, courses and jobs that enable them to make a
proper and informed choice and understand what they can do after they are done with
school.
7. It allows students to talk to teachers about various experiences that make them
uncomfortable. They can openly share problems that they cannot share with their parents.
8. Talks related to alcohol, drugs, personal feelings or any kind of abuse, can be openly
discussed. Guidance and counselling also make students better human beings since they are
counselled on how to act and behave in a particular situation
9. It enables students undergoing certain difficulties in their lives, to ask questions and clarify
them through guiding and counselling. Therefore, counselling helps them ask without any
fear since the person in charge is willing to help.
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Components and Scope of Guidance and Counselling Programme
Although all the guidance services can be offered in schools, amount of time and resources often
hinder the provision of most of these services. Most schools are concerned with behavior
modification and thus guidance services geared towards that end may look more desirable than
those that are not directive or prescriptive. Educational, vocational and personal-socio problems
demand direction thus making the following services mandatory.

1. Educational Guidance:
Providing clients with all pertinent information that can enhance educational development is the
procedure at hand. Information of this kind includes the type of school, such as private,
government-owned, boys-only or girls-only, missionary school, the fees charged at such schools,
the facilities offered, such as labs, computers, dormitories, admittance requirements, and the caliber
of staff. Numerous educational issues, such as failure, poor performance, the improper topic
combination, the wrong career choice, truancy, class skipping, exam cheating, illness, social
economic reasons (lack of funds to purchase textbooks for assignments), cultism, etc., demand
educational counselling.
2. Vocational/Career Guidance
This method involves assisting clients in selecting the best career path based on their interests,
skills, and aptitude. Ability is important, but so is attitude. With a little training, a client will
succeed in that field. There is a requirement for some psychological testing, even with a choice of
subject combination.
3. Vocational/Career Counselling
Is also required by issues that arise from clients' career choices or vocations, such as clients who
have chosen any job without preparation or experience, clients who have advanced and need to find
alternative means of support, or clients who do not enjoy their jobs. Man lives for two things,
according to Sigmund Freud: 1. To love and be loved, and 2. To work.
4. Personal Social Guidance
These rules and regulations are put in place for secondary school students for uniform treatment,
and students are involved in formulating these rules and regulations so that justice can be obtained
when imposing punishment for offenders. This is the process of assisting the clients to adjust and
live happily with the members of his environment who inspire indifference.

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5. Personal Social Counselling
This is necessary because of the numerous issues that arise from issues like inter-personal conflicts,
lack of information, individual differences, inferiority complexes, and self-concept.

6. Marital Guidance
This is the process of teaching young people about the parts of the body and their functions. It also
serves as a means of delivering a well-rounded education on how to engage in inter-social
relationships with the appropriate party at the appropriate time and place while maintaining
complete self-control, maintaining the appropriate social-personal distance, and refraining from
shaking hands that extend past the shoulder.
7. Marital Counselling
It involves helping clients whose transition into couple-hood is delayed for one reason or another or
those who transition but are experiencing instability. It is required by strange issues such being
difficult to get, cold weather, hygiene, social economic conditions, problems with the law,
incompatibility, childlessness, poor health, etc.
8. Rehabilitation
This is the process of restoring hope in a client who has experienced a tragedy, lost money, lost a
part of his body that makes him despairing, and helping him maximize his remaining potential. The
goal of rehabilitation counseling is to make clients less dependent on others and more self-reliant so
they may participate to the growth of their society to the fullest extent possible.

Goals of Guidance and Counselling in Schools

Different individuals have different perceptions of what can be expected of counselling. However
there are five commonly named goals of counselling.
1. Facilitating Behaviour Change
Counselling seeks to improve a client's behaviour in order to increase their level of productivity.
Goals may be quantifiable in order for the client to evaluate the programme. Although specific
actions are not heavily emphasized during the counseling process, Rogers (2015) argues that
behaviour change is a required outcome of the process.
2. Improving Relationship
Due to their negative self-perception, many clients frequently experience serious interpersonal
difficulties. Similar to how poor social skills make people respond defensively in relationships. The
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counsellor would then try to assist the client in raising the quality of their life by fostering stronger
interpersonal connections.
3. Facilitate Client’s Potential
Assisting people in adjusting to new circumstances and obstacles. It is inevitable that as we mature,
we will have challenges. The majority of us do not finish all of our development responsibilities in
one lifetime. It will eventually become difficult for us to cope, and we may end up trying different
coping mechanisms that are not always successful.
4. Promoting Decision Making
The purpose of counselling is to empower the client to choose the best course of action without
interference from others. Counselling will assist people in gathering information and in making
sense of emotional issues that might conflict with or be connected to the decision at hand. The
strengths and interests of these people will come into better focus. Additionally, they will learn to
recognize the attitudes and emotions that may affect their choice and judgment.
5. Enhance Potential and Enrich Self-Development
Assist people in adjusting to new circumstances and difficulties. By granting the individual control
over their environment and assessing their level of responsiveness and reach to their surroundings,
counselling aims to optimize an individual's freedom. Counsellors will help them discover coping
mechanisms. Counsellors can also help with issues including obesity, drug addiction, sexual
dysfunction, and compulsive gambling in addition to depression, anxiety, and shyness.
NB: As one grows up, they are helped to understand the responsibilities in life and have positive
attitudes to enable them succeed in their roles.

CATAGORIES OF COUNSELLING COALS

Counseling Goals may be simply classified in terms of counsellor goals and client goals or the
immediate, intermediate, or long- range goals of therapy. Broadly speaking, counselling goals may
also be separated into the following categories:
1. Developmental Goals
Developmental Goals are those wherein the client is assisted in meeting or advancing her or his
anticipated human growth and development (that is socially, personally, emotionally, cognitively,
physical wellness, and so on).
2. Preventive Goals
Prevention is a goal in which the counsellor helps the client avoid undesired outcome.
3. Enhancement Goals
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If the client possesses special skills and abilities, enhancement means they can be identified and/or
further developed through the assistance of a counsellor.
4. Remedial Goals
Remediation involves assisting a client to overcome and/or treat an undesirable development.
5. Exploratory Goals

Exploration represents goals appropriate to the examining of options, testing of skills, and trying
new and different activities, environments, relationships and so on.

6. Reinforcement Goals

reinforcement is used in those instances where clients need help in recognizing that what they are
doing, thinking, and/or feeling is okay.

Other Goals and aims of guidance and counselling Include:

The following are the goals of guidance and counseling to help the individual:
Self-direction: Is the capacity to solve issues, make decisions, and use resources on one's own.
Self-understanding: Is the capacity to recognize one's strengths, limitations, and available
resources. Self-acceptance: Is the capacity to accept those things that one cannot change.
The aims of guidance are self-realization, self-direction, self-acceptance, and self-
understanding, as shown in the Figure 1. These goals are accomplished by considering situational
elements like family, school, peers, and the community as well as self-related factors like needs,
abilities, potentialities, and limitations of the individual.

SELF SITUATIONS
Needs Family
Abilities School
Potentialities Peer Group
Limitations Community

Self-Realization
Self-Direction
Self-Acceptance
Self-Understanding

Figure 1: Aims and Goals of Guidance

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 The self-situational field is dynamic and unbounded, concentrating on various facets of a
person's self and situation. As a result, counseling and guidance involve a wide range of
stakeholders, including parents, teachers, administrators, and community members. Through a
variety of guidance services, including orientation, evaluation, career information, counseling,
recommendation, placement, and follow-up, it seeks to achieve the objectives of guidance.
ED 401: GUIDANCE AND COUNSELLING
NOTES FOR WEEK TWO & THREE
The functions of a school Counsellor
1) Planning and development of the school guidance and counseling program. In planning and
developing the program the objectives and procedure for meeting the objectives should be clearly
formulated. An effective guidance program in a school requires the cooperation of teachers. The
counselor should assist in defining the objectives of the program, identify the guidance needs of
students through the need’s assessment survey, and assist in developing plans of action.
2) Coordinating various aspects of the program in a meaningful way. Coordinate the accumulation
of meaningful information concerning students through conferencing students and parents,
standardized tests, academic records (records unusual behavior exhibited by the child) personal
forms, cumulative records and records of past experiences.
3) Coordinates the maintenance of students file or confidential records (C.R.F) and cumulative
record folder. The counselor interprets students’ information to students, parents, administrators and
teachers.
4) Provides students with vocational, educational and personal- socio education.
5) Identifies students with special needs in consultation with the subject teachers.
6) Counseling students, teachers, administrators and members of the community.
7) Mediate conflict between students and teachers
8) Improve parent/teacher relationships
9) Assist with college applications, jobs and scholarships
10) Facilitate drug and alcohol prevention programs
11) Refer students to psychologists and other mental health resources
Principles of Guidance and Counselling
As you are aware, counseling and advising are professional activities that are founded on a set of
acknowledged principles. Some of the principles of advice and counseling that have come from the
fields of psychology, sociology, education, and other social sciences include the following:
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1. Guidance and Counseling is tailored to the individual: Every person is different. We are
aware that no two people are alike. They vary in terms of skills, passions, aptitudes,
personality traits, values, attitudes, and other factors. When offering guidance and
counseling to a student, this fact must be considered. This theory implies that a technique or
a strategy that may be employed to help one person might not be appropriate in the situation
of another. Counseling and guidance are therefore tailored to each individual.
2. Guidance and counselling is focused with the "whole individual": Attention should be
given to an individual's overall development rather than just one aspect of his or her
personality. This implies that every circumstance or issue that an individual face must be
viewed from a comprehensive angle in order to promote overall personality development.
3. Guidance and counselling is always goal directed: Setting goals is a crucial task of
guidance and counseling. One of the fundamental criteria in any guidance and counseling
situation is the setting of achievable goals and working toward them.
4. Guidance and Counselling is professional service: Only someone with professional
training may help and counseling. If it is offered by someone who isn't trained, the clients
will suffer more injury.
5. Guidance and counseling should be based on a thorough knowledge of the traits or
characteristics of human growth and development: Each stage of a person's life has its own
traits and developmental goals that must be met.
6. Achievement of tasks, together with the effects of the interaction of the environment with
the person are the deciding factors that shape the total personality of the person at a
particular stage of life.
7. Guidance and counselling is meant for all those who need help: It is well known that
guidance and counselling is required by every individual at all stages of his/her development
irrespective of the age, caste, sex, occupation, status etc. It should be given to all those who
need assistance at any point of time in their life span.
8. Guidance and counselling is not specific to any stage of development: It is required in all
stages of one’s life. Human beings need guidance concerning different things at each stage
of their life. Guidance and counselling is a continuous process. It is believed that guidance
and counselling cannot be restricted only to the time of solving the problems.
9. The main emphasis is on helping the student to achieve an all-round development. When
these are undertaken for the explicit purpose of enabling individuals to overcome problems,

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 the services may have to be terminated after the solution has been found. However, efforts
require to be continued in terms of programmes to prevent the recurrence of the same
problem. There is nothing like a one shot and one-time guidance programme.
10. Guidance and counselling should be based on reliable data: Information about the
individual/student is the basis for guidance and counselling services. Therefore, a counsellor
should have reliable data/information about the individual. The counsellor should make
efforts to collect the information from the appropriate sources (parents/guardians, teachers,
peers etc.) using validated and reliable psychological tests and tools.
11. Guidance and counselling should have a flexible approach: By flexibility we mean
flexibility in the use of tools for getting data, selection of methods/ strategies for guiding,
approaches for monitoring etc. An approach tried out for a student would be a learning
experience for another situation providing insights into similar problems of other students.
Guidance services
As we have seen, a school guidance programme which should embrace all educational efforts of the
school cannot be rightly confined to any particular level of education. Among the guidance services
designed to enrich students wholesome educational experience and other adjustment problem areas
include; orientation, information, appraisal, counseling, placement, research referral and follow-up
services.
1. Orientation Service: Through this service, the students entering the school for the first
time are assisted to find their feet in their new school environment. Each student is given
the opportunity to understand what he or she has come to the school to do. The student
through this service is made to know things that exist in the school, where they are and how
they are used.
2. Information Service: The students need some basic information on some educational,
vocational and personal-social issues. Through this service, each student is given
information-based assistance to make him or her possess the ideas they need before coming
to a decision on any life matter that affects them as an individual.
3. Appraisal Service: This service is designed to collect, analyze and use a variety of
objective and subjective personal, psychological and social data about each student for the
purpose of better understanding of the students, and for giving them effective assistance in
their effort to know themselves and maximize their resources, their strength and weaknesses,
proper steps are then taken to help them.

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 4. Counseling Service: This is the core/ nucleus of guidance services given to students to help
them solve their problems. Through the service, students are given personalized attention to
help them resolve any obstacle to their academic progress, or handle those decisional
problems relating their vocation, education, family, and personal issues.
5. Placement Service: The counselor through the service advises, directs and counsels the
students on their placement in remedial or special issues and schools. They make necessary
suggestions for their employment, working conditions, entry requirements,
economic/financial and advancement opportunities, promotion.
6. Research Service: Through this service the counselor endeavors to up-date and gather new
information vital for improving the assistance they give to their target clients.
7. Follow-up Service: Through this service, the counselor observes how far the client is
moving or keeping with the agreement they reached. Through this they find out the relapse
rate if any, whether there is need for further assistance or counseling.
8. Referral Service: Through this service, the cases above or beyond the counselor’s
competencies or preparation are referred to appropriate resource persons within the
community for the needed assistance. Here, cases of blind, dumb, deaf and mental
retardation are referred to appropriate agencies for proper care.

Why are guidance and counseling services necessary in a school situation?

Guidance and counselling aim at developing the students’ intellectual abilities by giving those
opportunities to acquire knowledge, skills and attitudes. Keeping a balanced personality of each
student and helping them develop their own abilities to solve their own problems in and out of
school.
1. Students often experience problems of adjusting to school demands or following school
regulations and striving for academic excellence. Failure to achieve the set goals causes
frustrations.
2. Students are constantly expressing emotions that reveal anger, depression or despair due to
difficulties experienced at home which are related to the social-economic situation.
3. Students experience problems related to growth changes which may be a source of worry,
frustration and inactivity.
4. Students are constantly interacting with teachers and their peers. These forms of interaction
are not always smooth. Social skills are needed which some students may be lacking.
5. Health-related problems block or delay a student’s attainment of the set goal and thus cause
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 frustration which results in inability to concentrate in learning.
6. Students often find themselves in situations that lead to conflict. They need guidance in such
situations so that they can make a satisfactory choice in situations where two motives are
aroused simultaneously.
7. Frustrated students and those experiencing conflict find it difficult to concentrate on learning
activities.
8. Guidance and counseling help in maintaining school discipline.

Philosophical Assumptions Underpinning Guidance and Counselling

The counseling profession has a foundation of humanistic and holistic values and beliefs.
Basic philosophical underpinnings of the counseling profession include:
 The holistic nature of people
 The uniqueness of each individual,
 The strength of multicultural pluralism
 Mental health and personal growth
 Self-responsibility
 Social and vocational involvement for individuals with mental and physical disorders.

HISTORICAL AND CONCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT OF GUIDANCE AND

COUNSELING

Introduction

The major historical events that have had an impact on the concepts are very significant for the
present and also in helping counselors identify the way forward.

a) Guidance Movement in the Western World

The guidance movement was started with an emphasis on vocational information, planning and
guidance. Vocational education was believed to be that part of both organized and unorganized,
methods of securing occupational confidence and experiences by individuals for achieving
occupational proficiency. Vocational planning was regarded as a process for helping students or
others to develop and accept an integrated and adequate picture of themselves and of their roles in
the world of work, to test this concept against reality and to accept its benefits with satisfaction.

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The concept emanated from the fact that;
1. Both human personalities and the economic order are in the process of continuous change
and development.
2. People differ in their potential and capacity for work but can qualify for a number of
occupations.
3. Each occupation requires a characteristic pattern of ability, interests and other personal
qualities.
4. There are variations among individuals with respect to the nature and tempo of development
through various stages.
5. The earlier pattern of an individual is influenced by parental and socio-economic factors, as
well as unique patterns of abilities, interests and other personality characteristic.
6. Vocational guidance is a long process extending through the school and working life.
Hence, there is a need to:
a) Possess a thorough knowledge of aptitudes (ability) and interest patterns.
b) Study personality traits that are important for successful adjustment and achievement.
c) Have knowledge of unique patterns of physical and health assets and liabilities.
d) Know about temperamental trends, needs, attitudes, values, aspirations, ambitions, general
mental ability, socio-economic status, etc.
e) Have adequate information regarding the world of work.
In this regard, occupational information is very useful for accomplishing the above objectives.
Occupational information is any, and all kinds of information regarding, and position job or
occupation that is potentially useful anyone choosing and occupation.

Early Development
The first systematic work in guidance was by George Merill in 1885 at the California school
of Mechanical arts in San Francisco, California, USA. Merrill’s approach provided for exploratory
experiences in each of the trades taught by the school, and was accompanied by counseling for job
placements, and a follow-up of graduates.
Another pioneer in the field of guidance was Frank Parsons (1909), who was the first to coin
the term ‘Vocational Guidance’ in his book Choosing a Vocation. Many of the views expressed in
the book reflected his own experiences and varied activities. Parsons’ ideas can be translated into
three aspects of modern terminology namely; Appraisal of the individual, the furnishing of
occupational information, and the provision of counseling.

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Two developments emerged from Parsons’ ideas:
a) One development expanded his first principle through an elaboration of psychological
techniques for the appraisal of the individual, often leaning heavily upon psychometric
methods by which abilities, interests and various other characteristics of the individual were
judged.
b) The second development resulted from the combination of Parsons’ second and third
principles, the provision of occupational information and counseling. But emphasis was
upon the dissemination of occupational information, and counseling became a directive,
advice-giving exercise.
There was very little room in this pattern of thinking for such ideas as meeting the needs or
values of the individual, or helping the individual to achieve self-realization through discovering an
occupation compatible with his/her self-image. There seemed to be an implicit faith that, given
accurate and ample occupational information, the individual could somehow use the results of
his/her personal analysis and, with little advice and assistance, make a proper choice of vocation.
Other people who contributed to the guidance movement are Goodwin (1911), Weaver (1912),
and Davis (1913). Goodwin organized a citywide guidance programme for the City of Cincinnati,
Ohio, USA, in 1911. He proposed five conditions, which he regarded as necessary for successful
vocational guidance in a large high school, and these are:
1. The appointment of a guidance director with time for supervision.
2. A school organization which permits close contact between each pupil and at least one
teacher of the right type.
3. The exercise of an intelligent and sympathetic helpfulness on the part of the teacher.
4. A logical analysis of the personal characteristics of each pupil.
5. The adaptation of school works to the vocational needs of the community.
Weaver was responsible for bringing guidance services to New York City Schools in 1912. He
organized a number of local agencies to deal with guidance and placement. Lastly, Davis (1913)
began his work on guidance by organizing school-wide programmes on personality, culture and
character development, and vocational information related to regular curriculum subjects. He was
the first person to promote the guidance movement from within a school system rather than from
outside it. Hence the stage was set for guidance services in schools.

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 Another dimension to the development of the present movement was the beginning of personnel
work in industry. Munsterberg (1913) pioneered the introduction of job-analysis techniques to
industry. This resulted in the development of group tests of mental ability.
Short-form editions of these tests, such as the Wonderlic Personnel Inventory, enabled business
and industry to become more objective in the selection of new employees, with a maximum
expenditure of time and energy. The excess profit tax, which was placed on business and industry,
as an indirect result of the Second World War, also had a favourable effect on personnel work.
Many industries started to expand their own personnel services at this time. Thus, the following
three factors were mainly responsible for the growth of personnel work in industry:
a) The development of job-analysis techniques.
b) The construction of short-form group tests of mental ability.
c) The excess profit tax.
Later Developments
Three major lines of thought relevant to the conceptualization of vocational guidance came into
focus
a) An increasing recognition of the basic importance of personality dynamics in vocational
choice and adjustment coupled with a rising interest in psychotherapy.
b) The emergence of the developmental view of the individual.
c) A reconsideration of the meaning of work.
The first of these new lines of thought on vocational guidance on the basis of personality
dynamics and psychotherapy came, not from vocational education, but from efforts to provide
improved assistance to returning veteran soldiers after the Second World War. There were also
changes within the area of occupational information which, apart from looking at job availability,
demanded information about work requirements, including training time, aptitudes, temperament,
physical capability, as well as work conditions.
A second major change in the conceptualization of vocational guidance came in the shift
towards a concept of vocational development, and away from the more static notion of matching
men and jobs. Super (1967) contrasts occupations and careers, and he defines a career as the
‘sequence of occupations, jobs and positions throughout a person’s working life’, noting that this
concept of a career may be expanded at either end by adding prevocational or post-retirement years.
Hence, he was able to call for an all-class theory of vocational guidance’, in contrast with a ‘middle-
class theory’, which considered socioeconomic status and its normal concomitants, a continuing
vocational guidance from elementary school years through later school years and employment.
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A third shift in the conceptualization of vocational guidance might be labeled a reconsideration of
the meaning of work. This shift was more in the realm of ideas than activities or programs. The
meaning of work has two major sources: one religious and the other social, derived from the social
classes and religious systems of Western Europe.
Thus, on the social side, work reflected the class distinction of feudal times, between the
common man who worked and the noble whose status was based on family and land. On the
religious side, manual work was dignified when performed by members of religious orders.
Other events that influenced the development of guidance were economic and industrial changes,
such as the shift from farm to non-farm production, a shift from the production of goods to the
production of services, technological changes, the mobility of people (such as geographical mobility
and status mobility), demographic characteristics of the work-force, such as age, sex, and race, and
employment prospects for special populations.
b) Guidance movement in Africa
Prior to western influence, most African societies had various forms of social services that
were provided for young people and children, so that they could develop and grow into responsible
and productive members of their communities or ethnic groups. To function effectively in one’s
community, one needed to be aware of the values, beliefs and roles one had to play as a member of
a particular regiment or sex. Many young boys and girls were socialized or taught the ways of their
communities, as well as the various skills their forebears used to earn a living or to provide for their
families. Initiation schools, for example, taught young people things they would need later on in
their adult lives. For instance, they would learn about the history their ethnic group, how to relate to
each other as boys or girls and how to behave as adults, as well as know their responsibilities as
parents or members of the community.
The extended family provided other services that young people and children needed.
Grandparents, uncles, aunts and other relations were sources of information that young people
needed as they grew up. For example, a boy talked to his uncle if he had questions regarding
relationships with girls. Likewise, the girl talked to an aunt or elder sister whenever she wanted to
know more about issues related to sexuality.
Skills in carving, hunting and other occupations needed later on in life were passed onto
young people by parents, at different stages in the development of each child. Some of the
behaviors and skills were learnt either by observing adults, or acquired through other means of
training. Every community has its culturally-based social services for young people and children

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among these culturally-based social services was the extended family system in which relatives
played a significant part in providing guidance and counseling for the young. As mentioned earlier,
the initiation schools ceremonies introduced young people to the history of the ethnic group, its
custom and any other cultural activities that every member of the community needed to know about
in order to live a successful life.
In his discussion of the cultural relevance of guidance and counseling in Botswana, Macs
(1995) concluded that Botswana has a history of communal support and compassion for those in
need. He argued that the helping structures, which are introduced as part of guidance and counseling
programmes in schools, should be compatible with the best cultural values, and should incorporate
the best traditional healing practices. Mapp-Robinson (1987) also recognized that: ‘Guidance and
counseling for individuals have always formed part of the African strategy for combating
personality problems and practiced by indigenous counselors´.
Literature about formal guidance and counseling is rather scanty in Africa. However, the
beginnings of guidance in some African countries can be dated back to the fifties in countries such
as Nigeria, which made great strides in the field. In other countries, such as Malawi, Tanzania,
Zambia, and Swaziland, guidance services did not exist until the late sixties. As with the USA
beginnings in the 1900s, the emphasis was on vocational information, awareness of the world of
work, the location of employment, and the reduction of examination anxiety.
While the focus on career guidance continues in most African countries, some countries,
such as Botswana, (which introduced guidance and counseling in the education system in 1963), are
now trying to develop comprehensive guidance programs that cater for the personal, social,
vocational and educational needs of the learner. This was due to the realization that the existing
guidance programs failed to address the needs of the individual. Since 1985, after a policy direction
seminar on guidance and counseling an integral part of the education processes. Guidance and
counseling, therefore, is seen as supplementing and complementing all other educational programs
in the school. The guidance and counseling services also aim at addressing the need and concerns of
learners and different levels of academic achievement, education and development.

Challenges Faced in the Field of Guidance and Counseling

In most cases, guidance services were limited to the graduating classes in secondary schools.
The place of guidance and counseling in the education system has been of great concern in many
African countries. Its presence in the system can be likened to that of psychology in the USA in the

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late nineteenth century, when psychology as a discipline was regarded as a branch of philosophy.
Hence, to many educationalists in Africa, guidance and counseling can be given by any teacher,
whether a graduate or a non-graduate teacher. A teacher in a school is appointed and is referred to
as the
‘Career master / mistress’ or ‘career adviser’. In most cases, he/she has no training, and has
no insight into the functions of a guidance-counselor. It is obvious, therefore, that there is much to
be done before guidance and counseling can have a proper place in our education systems.
Guidance counselors, in most countries in Africa, have struggled with the problem of a lack
of recognition, and the realization of guidance and counseling as an integral part of the education
and growth of every child. While some heads of schools made time available for teachers to provide
guidance and counseling services to their students, other relegated it to an extra-mural activity, and
therefore provided it only if students we free, or regarded it as an after-school activity. They saw the
education of the child as merely the provision of academic knowledge and skills in reading and
writing. Hence most students left school with very little knowledge about themselves and how to
cope with the realities and challenges they would face later on in life. Generally, students failed to
cope with a number of situations such as unemployment, and, if employed, they either failed to keep
the job, or lacked an understanding of what was required of them.
Other problems that continue to affect the development and effective implementation of
guidance and counseling programs, in the Eastern and Southern African countries, include the
imposition of western models, which do not reflect African culture, illiteracy, ignorance, and
conservatism which lead to the failure to implement guidance and counseling programmes, a lack of
trust and skepticism regarding guidance and counseling, a feeling among the administration that
guidance and counseling personnel threaten their positions, no legislation to protect guidance
counselors, uncoordinated and indiscriminate deployment and re-deployment of guidance
counselors, a lack of support from senior management in government, and limited resources for
implementation.
There is, however, one consolation, and that is the realization by many African countries of
the importance of guidance in schools and colleges. Beginning in the early eighties, the Economic
Commission for Africa (ECA) has organized a number of workshops and conferences on guidance
and counseling, both at the regional and country levels. These workshops and conferences have
made many people, both in the public and private sectors, aware of the need of guidance in schools.
Many African countries have now established guidance services in schools. Some countries are far

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ahead, while others are still trying to catch up. The most important thing is that there has been a re-
awakening in countries to the problem that youth are facing and of the need to help them.
It is worth noting that some countries now train teachers in school counseling. So that they
can provide effective counseling and guidance. In Botswana, for example, in addition to the general
guidance and counseling courses taken by all those trained as teachers, the University of Botswana
has introduced a Post-Graduate Diploma in Counselor Education (PGDCE), and plans to have other
counselor education programmes at the certificate, diploma, bachelor, and master levels. In
addition, it is now a requirement for every teacher to have studied guidance and counseling at the
pre-service level. Plans are underway to provide training for all teachers in the field of guidance.

Historical Development of Counselling

Over the years, counseling has developed in certain patterns in different parts of the world.
People in all societies experienced psychological and emotional distress and behavior problems
since time immemorial. In these societies therefore, there has always been well established ways of
helping people deal with their difficult situations.
In traditional African Societies, these were diviners, sorcerers, magicians, fortune tellers,
seers, wise men, rainmakers, elders, parents, aunts, and uncles. In Europe, before the 18 th century,
people lived in small communities in the rural set-ups.
Problems were dealt with from a religious perspective. Anyone who was seriously disturbed was
tolerated as part of the community. Less extreme forms of emotional or interpersonal problems were
dealt with by the priest.
The industrial revolution changed this situation as people moved to the cities to work in the
factories. People who were unproductive, the old, sick and insane were left in the rural areas with
no one to take care of them. The elements of an urban industrial, capitalist culture created the
conditions for development of a means of help, guidance and support which addressed confusion
and dilemmas experienced in the personal and inner life of individuals.
Most counseling before 1900 was in the form of advice or information. In the United States,
counseling developed out of humanitarian concern to improve the lives of those adversely affected
by the industrial revolution of the mid to late 1800. Classroom teachers and administrators were the
main practitioners.

1900 – 1909

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During this decade, three people emerged as leaders in counseling psychology:
1. Jesse B. Davis was the first person to set up a systematized guidance programme in public
schools. He suggested that the students be taught a lesson in guidance once a week with the
goals of building character and preventing problems.
2. Frank Parsons focused his work on growth and prevention. He is often referred to as the
‘father of guidance´. He is best known for founding Boston’s Vocational Bureau in 1908.
3. Clifford Beers was hospitalised for mental illness several times. He wrote a book ‘Amind
that found itself’1908 in which he exposed the deplorable conditions in mental institutions.
His work was a forerunner of mental health counseling.
The World War I in 1914 - 1918 brought the need of screening personnel for the U.S. Army
who were tested with numerous psychological instruments. After the war, the devices were used on
civilian populations and psychological testing became popular.
In the 1930’s the Great Depression influenced helpers to emphasize on strategies and counseling
methods that related to employment. Edmund Griffin Williamson and his colleagues formulated the
first counseling theory.
Carl Rogers came up with his client centered theory in1942. World War II 1940 – 1945
brought the need for counselors and psychologists to help select and train specialists for military
and industry.
In 1950’s the American psychological association and American Personnel Guidance association
were formed. Counseling theories as behavioral, transactional analysis, cognitive learning theory
was introduced.
In 1961, there was the publication of the code of ethics for counselors by the American
Personnel and Guidance Association.
In 1970‘s was characterized by diversification of Counseling outside the educational settings and
the term community counseling was coined.
In 1980’s saw more growth of counseling as a profession standardization of training and
certification of counselors started there was also the formation of the council for accredition of
counseling and related educational programmes.
1990’s witnessed the change of the name of the American Association for Counseling and
Development to American Counseling Association with sixteen divisions under it.
From this historical development, it is clear that counseling as a profession developed from the
almost simultaneous concern and activity of Frank Parson; Jesse B. Davis and Clifford Beers to

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provide reform and improve services in vocational guidance, character development of school
children and mental health treatment. It has therefore an interdisciplinary based and became
interlinked with psychometrics, psychology and sociology.

Conceptual Development of Counseling

Different theoretical concept has influenced and shaped counseling. They have provided
guidelines on which counselors make their choices about how to think of and interpret the behaviors
thoughts and feelings of clients. Theories provide counselors with concepts, which allow them to
think systematically about human development and counseling practice.
This lesson will examine the development of these lesson concepts.

Hypnotic Technique
Hypnosis was initiated by John J. Gasser (1727 - 1779 and Franz A Mesmer (1734-1815).
During the 1880’s the influential French psychiatrists Charcot and Janet began to experiment with
hypnosis as a means of treating hysterical patients.
Hypnosis was presumed to help the patient access the area of the mind that was not accessible in
normal waking consciousness.

Psychoanalysis
This was developed by Sigmund Freud (1856 ±1939) who was working with Charcot and
was critical of hypnosis. Psychoanalysis attempted to analyse the human mind by bringing to the
conscious the repressed and suppressed feelings and wishes which had been frustrated in earlier life
and can be re-experience in safety and expressed more appropriately in adult life.

Behaviorism
Behavioral approach (1950-1970) was a reaction to the ideas of psychoanalysis. The founder
included Lazarous, Arnold, Pavlov, Skinner, Wolpe, Bandura and others.
According to the behaviorists, behavior is mechanistic; it is learnt and can be unlearnt and also
relearned. Behavior modification aims at increasing people’s skills so that they make more options
for responding. The approaches stress the importance of client awareness and participation in the
therapeutic process
Humanistic Approach
These theorists have a positive aspect of human nature. They think of a human being as self-
actualizing. They emphasize on personal growth, choices and freedom. They believe that human

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beings know what they want, but they are just confused they also believe that a healthy person is
always seeking fulfillment in life. People can make constructive change and move from
maladjustment if a conducive environment was offered. Proponents of humanistic approach include
Carl Rogers and Fritz Perls among others.
Qualities of an Effective Counsellor
Professional counsellors help people with relationship issues, family problems, job stress,
mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety, and many other challenging problems that
can impact feelings of well-being and happiness. To be effective in their roles, counsellors should
enjoy helping others and possess specific attributes and skills. The personal and professional
qualities of counsellors are very important in facilitating any helping relationship. A counsellor
must be well equipped to assist individuals to adjust and live a happy and harmonious life. For
effective counselling, the counsellor must be equipped with two kinds of data. First he must have
data relating to the counselee’s background aptitudes, achievements, interests, plans etc. Further, he
must have the skill to interpret this data. Secondly, the counsellor must have information about the
areas in which the counselee may seek his assistance. These areas may be educational or personal.
How can an Educational Counsellor help you?
Educational counsellors offer a wide range of services to families of students seeking to
enroll in different fields. These services vary depending on when the counselor is hired. For
secondary school students, college admissions counselors can help shape the early academic path
for these young scholars. After learning about the interests, academic goals and career goals of the
student, the counselor can begin making suggestions, beginning with class choices. The counselor
may also make recommendations on extracurricular activities, clubs and volunteer opportunities to
pursue.
A good Counsellor has several basic Qualities:
1. Professional Qualities:
 He/she knows the demands and responsibilities of the counselling profession.
 He/she knows the aims and objectives of counselling.
 He is aware of the steps and techniques involved in the counseling process.
 He/she has the best interest of the counselee in mind and receives the trust of the counselee.
 He/she is confident and well versed in the methods and approaches of counselling.
2. Personal Qualities:
 The counsellor respects the client’s individuality and dignity.

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  He knows the psychology of each client, how they think and behave.
 He is kind and sympathetic to clients’ problems and anxieties.
 He is gentle, especially when sorting out corrective measures.
 He is dignified and neat in his manners, speech and appearance.
 He is in control of his emotions especially of anger, impatience and frustrations.
 He is able to use humor and laughter in his counselling, laugh with clients, not laugh at them
or them at him.
3. Communication Skills:
 Effective counselors should have excellent communication skills.
 Counselors need to have a natural ability to listen and be able clearly explain their ideas
and thoughts to others.
4. Acceptance:
 The ability to relate to clients with an open, nonjudgmental attitude.
 Accepting the client for who she is and in her current situation.
 Counsellors need to be able to convey acceptance to their clients with warmth and
understanding.
5. Empathy:
 Counsellors must be able to display empathy, the ability to feel what another person is
feeling.
 Empathy means that you are truly able to imagine what it's like to stand in someone else's
shoes.
 Compassion and empathy help your clients feel understood and heard.
6. Problem-Solving Skills:
 It's not up to a counsellor to solve her clients' problems, no matter how much she might want
to help.
 Counsellors must have excellent problem-solving skills to be able to help their clients
identify and make changes to negative thought patterns and other harmful behaviours.
7. Rapport-Building Skills:
 Counsellors must possess a strong set of interpersonal skills to help establish rapport with
clients and develop strong relationships.
 Counsellors need to be able to place all of their focus on what their clients are saying and
avoid being distracted by their own personal problems or concerns when they are in a

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 session.
8. Flexibility:
 Flexibility in counselling is defined as the ability to adapt and change the way you respond
to meet your clients' needs.
 You don't stay rigid and stick to a predetermined treatment path when your clients require a
different approach.
 Being flexible is one of the most important attributes of a professional counselor.
9. Self-Awareness:
 Self-awareness is the ability to look within and identify your own unmet psychological
needs and desires.
 Such as a need for intimacy or the desire to be professionally competent.
 This ability prevents your issues from affecting or conflicting with those of your clients.
 Self-awareness has a major impact on a counselor's effectiveness.
10. Multicultural Competency:
 Counsellors help people from all walks of life.
 Multicultural competency means that you try to relate to and understand your clients
regardless of their race, ethnicity, religious or political beliefs or socioeconomic
background.
11. Human Skills:
 Counselling effectiveness is measured by outcomes, so skills are required that facilitate
clients improve their lives through changes in their thought processes and behaviour.
 A skilled counsellor can identify negative thinking patterns and enable the clients to replace
them with positive ones.
 The process involves goal-setting and creating appropriate action plans with the client.
 The counsellor needs to be able to challenge, reassure and motivate the client, especially
when the client is resistant or finds it difficult to face painful memories.
 By using the voice to relax the client, the counselor enables him to face challenges more
effectively.
12. Practice Management Skills:
 Whether running her own practice or simply managing her workload as an employee, the
counselor needs to possess a number of organizational skills including prioritizing and
timekeeping.

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 Failure to be organized can result in the counsellor herself appearing unprofessional and
potentially have catastrophic outcomes for the clients and the practice.
 Good record-keeping is particularly important, because all records must be treated
confidentially and the counsellor will be responsible for effective note-taking during the
session.
 Conducting the session in a professional manner involves a number of skills, including the
ability to adhere to a timescale and avoiding disclosing personal information.
 It is essential the counselor learns to control her own emotional involvement during difficult
sessions, which may raise personal issues of her own.

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