School Counselor's Role in Supporting Students from Varied Backgrounds
School teachers should be well-versed in ethnic understanding and expertise in order to support children from varied backgrounds. It is important for school counselors to truly appreciate and navigate the difficulties that different students can encounter, even though they do not speak to them.
The Role of a Professional Psychologist in Supporting Military Families
Service children and families are often met with a number of problems that can only be resolved by a professional psychologist with thorough knowledge of military tenets. Strong awareness and command of military doctrines are needed for the advisor to successfully support military students. Most specifically the counselors are supposed to be conversant with the military language which is often different from the contemporary language used in the open conversation. Different branches of military service are said to have a unique set of terms and the moral codes. For the purpose of embracing effective communication, the counselor must learn and understand the language embedded in military culture.
Understanding Justin's Case Study
In regards to Justin's case study, there is much more plan of action that the school counselor ought to have done to enable him to manage frustrations in school. Justin being born from a military service member, he had started carrying a strong sense of family responsibility especially when his father is on deployment. He has adopted the culture of being a warrior in the battle when the father is away from the family. Being the male firstborn child in the family, he strongly feels obliged to protect his mother alongside their young sibling. He felt that he is the second in command of the family affairs after his father and in case the father is on the deployment, then he remains in charge. For effective counseling, the school counselor is therefore required to understand the culture of self-sacrifice and sense of duty that is related to the military service.
Impact of Justin's Father on his School Performance
The counselor is also expected to learn and understand the relationship between Justin and his Father. Justin's performance in school was influenced by the reaction from his father. He, therefore, finds it hard to excel since his father is away and there is no one to motivate and encourage him. Like many service personnel, Justin was mainly focused on impressing his father who according to him is his senior-most powerful personnel. Similarly, like many service members, Justin had high self-expectation to excel academically merely to please his father. This is the actual that usually happens in military culture. Junior service members usually excel to please their masters for the purpose of attracting more favor. There is high loyalty and respect for high-ranking personnel in the service, and the culture must have sunk deeply into Justin's mentality, thus affecting his concentration in class.
Establishing Rapport with Justin
Last but not least, the school counselor should ensure to establish a long-term rapport with Justin in order to effectively address his challenges in school as well as at home. The counselor should provide a friendly and sober environment that supports confidentiality amongst them. Just like any service members, Justin requires privacy to open up to the counselor. This is the reason why he often rejected assistance from his fellow students since he views them as inferior class members who should not share his secrecy. Not even his mother or the teacher should come to know his challenges unless his father who is the superior and the overall in command of the army.
Conclusion
Understanding military culture is essential for professional school counselors. The counselor ought to have an in-depth understanding of the military language since it is different from the normal language used in the conversion. This may require them to literary learn or gained the knowledge through interaction. However, before navigating through the challenges faced by the children from military families, the counselor should have a wide understanding of the sense of rules and regulation that determine who military families can socialize with freely.
Work Cited
Rebekah F. Cole. Understanding Military Culture: A Guide for Professional School Counselors. Retrieved from http://tpcjournal.nbcc.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Pages%20497-504.pdf on 23rd February 2017.
