Factors that Hinder Effective Guidance and Counseling (Coursework Sample)

Factors that Hinder Effective Guidance and CounselingName:Course:Department:Instructor:Due Date: Factors that Hinder Effective Guidance and Counseling Effective guidance and counseling have various benefits for students. It promotes discipline, academic performance, and better career choices (Andegiorgis, 2019). Nevertheless, multiple factors hinder effective guidance and counseling in schools. Some of the barriers to effective guidance and counseling are lack of adequate time for counselors, inadequate formal training in guidance and counseling, inadequate funds, inadequate resources, high teaching burdens, negative students' perceptions regarding guidance and counseling, lack of parents' motivation to their children to seek guidance and counseling, and inadequate administration support provided to teacher counselors (Andegiorgis, 2019). Herdi and Hapsyah (2019) assert that inadequate infrastructures and facilities for guidance and counseling, a high workload, simple and less optimal hours allocated for guidance and counseling, and a lack of understanding of the proper implementation of guidance and counseling services hinder the effectiveness of the services. These barriers ultimately lead to indiscipline cases, poor performance, and poor career choices, among other damaging aspects. This paper discusses the various factors that prevent effective school guidance and counseling. Inadequate Resources Materials Andegiorgis (2019) reported that a lack of school materials hinders effective guidance and counseling sessions. Such materials include a need for proper equipment, facilities, and rooms or appropriate offices for counseling sessions. There should be a standard office whose location would ensure privacy during counseling and guidance sessions (Sinyika, 2021). The office should be comfortable with well-furnished materials like furniture, bookshelves, notice board, remarkable cabinets for record folders, personal notebooks, desks, laptops, counseling reference books, manuals, testing materials, carer guides, journals, and magazines, and internet facilities (Sinyika, 2021). Limited space and inadequate materials and facilities hinder effective guidance and counseling. Funds Lack of funds is a hindrance to effective guidance and counseling services. Adequate financial resources are needed to enhance the sustainability and effectiveness of guidance and counseling services (Sinyika, 2021). It is necessary to determine all the needed costs and to draw a feasible budget. It would prevent overspending and disappointments, which could prevent effective implementation and delivery of the counseling programs. A school could lack enough funds due to student arrears in school fees or lack of support from the government. The school can lack the financial capacity to outsource the needed counselors if it lacks trained counselors. As a result, inadequate financial resources hinder effective guidance and counseling services. Human Resources A shortage of trained and qualified teacher counselors prevents effective school guidance and counseling (Sinyika, 2021). Implementing counseling sessions and programs is challenging when there needs to be more trained human resources. Sinyika (2021) asserts that human resources are crucial in implementing school counseling sessions and programs. They are responsible for planning, monitoring, organizing, and implementing school guidance and counseling programs. They should have relevant qualities, attributes, competency, skills, and knowledge in the guidance and counseling fields or other related disciplines. Inadequate counselors in a school can necessitate outsourcing of counselors from other facilities. Nevertheless, students might refuse to share their issues with outsourced counselors, hence the ineffective guidance and counseling programs. Inadequately trained teacher counselors prevent the delivery and implementation of effective counseling and guidance services and programs. Counselors should be trained in psychology, social work, guidance and counseling, and special education to offer their services effectively (Sinyika, 2021). Subject teachers and counselors should be trained in collaboration to enhance the optimal delivery of guidance and counseling services in school (Herdi & Hapsyah, 2019). Reports have stated that teacher counselors have overburdening feelings since they have counseling duties and teaching duties as their colleagues. The high workload leads to the ineffective provision of guidance and counseling services. Human resources with poor attitudes towards counseling and their work, compromised personalities, and inadequate devotion, commitment, willingness, and confidence in their work make bad counselors, hindering effective guidance and counseling. Human resources should have continuous professional development to increase their knowledge and skills concerning their roles and responsibilities (Sinyika, 2021). Counselors with inadequate academic qualifications make the counseling and guidance sessions ineffective (Herdi & Hapsyah, 2019). Counselors should major in Guidance and Counseling and have the necessary skills required for the effectiveness of their services. They should possess social, pedagogical, professional, and personal skills. Social skills enable counselors to relate well with counselees and other stakeholders. They can apply physiological, psychological, and educational practices and concepts due to pedagogical skills. Moreover, professional competencies help a counselor to understand the student's needs and the needed practices and theories for the student's needs. Personal skills would enable counselors to have devotion and commitment to their work (Herdi & Hapsyah, 2019). Consequently, barriers to effective guidance and counseling are prevented. Inadequate Time Limited time hinders the effective implementation and delivery of guidance and counseling sessions (Sinyika, 2021). Teacher counselors with heavy workloads may need more time to offer guidance and counseling services effectively. Schools that allocate little time for counseling further hinder effective guidance and counseling. In some instances, guidance and counseling sessions and programs are not time-tabled, hindering the effective delivery of the services. Moreover, teacher counselors with many classes and counseling sessions may need more time to offer counseling services effectively. When teacher counselors teach other subjects and offer concurrent counseling sessions, they need more time to offer their counseling services effectively. A teacher counselor could prioritize the allocated periods and consider counseling sessions as secondary programs. Sinyika (2021) noted that a counselor could have other roles, such as administrative duties, further having less time to conduct their counseling duties. Insufficient time for counseling services makes the services and programs fail. Therefore, limited time is a hindrance to effective guidance and counseling. Inadequate Administration Support Inadequate support from the school's administration to teacher counselors prevents effective school guidance and counseling. There should be favorable and supporting procedures and policies to govern the delivery and implementation of counseling and guidance services and programs (Sinyika, 2021). Proper support enables teacher counselors to work freely within their work boundaries. Adequate administration support prevents the workload of teacher counselors from teaching lessons and counseling sessions. Administration can motivate counselors and students concerning guidance and counseling programs available in schools. Favorable policies prevent issues and resistance concerning counselors with teaching responsibilities. In addition, good administration support and leadership enable a favorable teaching and counseling environment. It ensures proper supervision, evaluation, and monitoring of the counselor's work (Sinyika, 2021). The administration could educate parents and learners on the importance of guidance and services, thus enhancing the services' effectiveness. It could also provide support in the form of allowances to counselors to motivate them concerning the implementation of the programs. The administration principal should have considerable knowledge of guidance and principle. It would help provide the needed assistance, plan and integrate programs, supervise the implementation phase, and coordinate the programs (Herdi & Hapsyah, 2019). Consequently, the inadequate administration support hindrance to effective guidance and counseling would be prevented. Limited Parents' Support The lack of parents' motivation for their children to seek guidance and counseling hinders the effective implementation of the services (Sinyika, 2021). Parents and guardians from some family social settings do not encourage their children to seek guidance and counseling when needed. Some believe that their family's privacy would be invaded during the counseling services. Consequently, inadequate parental support hinders effective guidance and counseling in schools. Parents should be involved in the planning stage for guidance and counseling programs to motivate their children concerning the services. It would ultimately enhance the success a...