Browsing by Author "Davis, Tamara E."
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- School Counselors\' Perceptions of their Academic Preparedness for Job Activities and Actual Job ActivitiesScott, Emily Goodman (Virginia Tech, 2013-05-01)The school counseling field has evolved over the years and increasingly clarified school counselors' job roles and activities (Burnham & Jackson, 2000; Cervoni & DeLucia-Waack, 2011; Shillingford & Lambie, 2010; Trolley, 2011); however, school counselors\' job roles and activities remain inconsistently understood and practiced (Burnham & Jackson; Cervoni & DeLucia-Waack; Gysbers & Henderson, 2012; Hatch & Chen-Hayes, 2008; Herr & Erford, 2011; Lambie & Williamson, 2004; Perera-Diltz & Mason, 2008; Rayle & Adams, 2008; Scarborough & Culbreth, 2008; Shillingford & Lambie; Studer, Diambra, Breckner & Heidel, 2011; Trolley). School counselors are highly trained in academic preparation programs to perform school counseling job activities in schools (American School Counselor Association [ASCA], 2008). At the same time, the job expectations taught in academic preparation programs can differ from the actual school counseling job (Allen et al., 2002; Bodenhorn, 2006; Brott & Myers, 1999; Chambers, Zyromski, Asner-Self, and Kimemia, 2010; Culbreth, Scarborough, Banks-Johnson, & Solomon, 2005; Holcomb-McCoy, 2001; Kolodinsky, Draves, Schroder, Lindsey, & Zlatev, 2009; Milsom, 2002; Mustaine, Pappalardo & Wyrick, 1996; National Office for School Counselor Advocacy [NOSCA], 2011, 2012a; Pérusse & Goodnough, 2005; Sisson & Bullis, 1992; Steen, Bauman, & Smith, 2008; Trolley). As a result, several researchers recommended collecting data on school counselors' perceptions of the effectiveness of academic preparation to perform work related practices (Kolodinsky et al.; Pérusse & Goodnough; Pérusse, Goodnough, & Noël, 2001; Sisson & Bullis; Trolley). In this dissertation study the author gathered information on and examined discrepancies between school counselors\' reported academic preparation and actual job activities. The author will describe an overview of the problem in Chapter One, an in-depth literature review will be conducted in Chapter Two, the methodology will be described in Chapter Three, the results of the study will be outlined in Chapter Four, and lastly, Chapter Five will include a discussion of the results of the study, including implications and recommendations.
- Student Satisfaction with and Perceptions of Relationship Development in Counselor Education Videoconferencing CoursesStone, Victoria (Virginia Tech, 2006-12-04)Personal interaction and proximity have been the cornerstones for relationship development in counselor education for decades. However, these concepts are opposed by the physical distance and lack of proximity inherent in a distance classroom environment. As the use of distance education increases in higher education, counselor educators must ensure that quality teaching and learning is maintained in the distance classroom. The purpose of this study was to explore student perceptions of counselor education courses taught at a distance using video teleconferencing (VTC); specifically, student satisfaction with course delivery and relationship development in the VTC environment was the focus of the study. Research questions included the following: 1.To what extent are counselor education students satisfied with graduate counseling classes delivered via videoconferencing? Specifically, student satisfaction with: a. the instructor characteristics, b. the technological characteristics, and c. the course management characteristics of the class? 2. What are counselor education students' perceptions of teacher/student relationship development in the VTC classroom environment? 3. What is the relationship between student satisfaction and relationship development when counselor education courses are taught via VTC? Responses from 43 Virginia Tech master's and doctoral level students who participated in VTC Counselor Education courses between 1998 and 2006 were used to explore student satisfaction and instructor/student relationship development in the VTC class environment. The Barrett-Lennard Relationship Inventory © (BLRI; Barrett-Lennard, 1962) and the Telecourse Evaluation Questionnaire (TEQ; Biner, 1993) were the instruments used to create an on-line questionnaire. Participants reported highly positive feelings about the instructor/student relationship (M = 4.1) and perceived that relationship to be honest, direct, sincere, and open. Student satisfaction and relationship development in the VTC class environment were found to be related to one another (r = .48) However, the technology used to deliver VTC courses was not found to be related to students' feelings about their instructor or to their ability to build a relationship with the instructor. Reliability scores in this study were comparable to published scores for these instruments.
- Telling life stories and creating life books: a counseling technique for fostering resilience in childrenDavis, Tamara E. (Virginia Tech, 1997-09-08)Research on storytelling in counseling and psychotherapy with children has typically involved literary and metaphoric techniques that foster client change. There is limited research on the efficacy of telling one's personal life story as a counseling technique, especially in the school setting. The purpose of this study was two-fold: (l) to describe and implement a technique for school counselors to use in individual counseling sessions to foster resilience in children and, more specifically, (2) to explore the effectiveness of telling one's life story and creating a personal life book as a counseling technique to improve two characteristics of resilience -- internal locus of control and perceived coping resources. The research question that guided this study was: To what extent is telling one's life story and creating a life book an effective counseling technique for fostering resilience in children who have experienced loss? A sample of fifty children from two elementary schools (grades 4-6) who had experienced a significant loss were randomly assigned to one of three groups: (1) the experimental group who received the life book technique, (2) a control group of students who received other individual counseling, or (3) a control group who received no counseling at all. Two constructs of resilience in children were measured: (1) internal/external locus of control (Children's Nowicki-Strickland Internal-External Locus of Control Scale) and (2) perceived coping resources (Coping Resources Inventory Scales for Educational Enhancement). Pre-test/Posttest analyses of data following the six-week experimental period were conducted using ANOVA statistical procedures. Quantitative results indicated that, statistically, the life book technique was no more or no less effective in improving internal locus of control or coping resources than either other individual counseling techniques or no counseling at all. However, qualitative evaluation of the technique offered support for the effectiveness of the life book technique as indicated by the life book participants who experienced change in a positive direction on both instruments and the unanimous positive evaluations of the life book participants and participating counselors. Therefore, while the life book technique was not found to be statistically significant in fostering resilience, the positive implications of qualitative analysis warrant further research to explore the life book technique as a school counseling practice to foster positive client change.