How One Traditional Counselor Education Program Is Changing

1
How One Traditional Counselor Education
Program Is Changing

• Phyllis Post, Ph.D. and Ed Wierzalis, Ph.D.
• Amy Bowman, MA, Suzanne Cochran,
• and Stephanie El, MA
• University of North Carolina at Charlotte
• Transforming School Counseling
• Counselors Count in Accountability
• June 3-5, 2004
• Norfolk, VA

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Overview

• Introduction
• Changes in our program
• Students projects
• Lessons learned
• Comments/Questions

3
Changes in our program

• Professional Identity
• Core of skills
• CACREP..change
• Portfolio
• Systems/Advocacy course
• NCATE

4
Amys Project Unveiling the Achievement
GapEOC Test Results in Algebra 1 and English 1
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Research Question

• What is the distribution of race and gender on
  EOCs in Algebra I and English I at Northwest
  Cabarrus High School?

6
Collecting the Data

• Consulted with counselors re topic and sources
  of information
• Retrieved test results from North Carolina
  Department of Public Instruction website

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Percentage at or above Level 3 on Algebra I EOC
by Race and Gender
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Findings

• Minimal difference between genders both years.
• Whites scored higher than African Americans both
  years.
• African American students achievement dropped
  significantly the second year white students
  stayed about the same.
• Significant achievement gap between white and
  African American females both years.
• African American female students achievement
  dropped significantly the second year.

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Percentage at or above Level 3 on English I EOC
by Race and Gender
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Findings

• Females achieved at a higher level than males
  both years.
• Whites scored higher than African Americans both
  years.
• A 20-25 achievement gap between African American
  and white students was shown both years.
• White females exhibited a higher level of
  achievement than white males (approximately 8
  percentage points) both years.

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Conclusions/Questions from this data

• Why are African American students in this school
  so far behind white students in achievement level
  on English I EOCs?
• Why are white students achieving at a higher
  level than African Americans on both tests?

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Lessons Learned

• At first, hesitant about abandoning role of
  counselor
• Made the connection between research and
  counseling interventions
• Data gives credence to many beliefs
• Need to find a balance

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Suzannes Project

• EOG Scores and Mathematics Tracking Practices of
  Eighth Grade Students

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Research Questions

• What is the distribution of EOGs scores of eighth
  grade students by race, gender, and SES?
• What factors are related to the tracking
  practices of mathematics courses?

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Collecting the Data

• Assistant Principal of Instruction
• North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
  (2003) Online Data
• Math Tracking Teacher Survey

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EOG Scores by Race, Gender, and Free and Reduced
Lunch
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Findings

• School of Excellence
• Slight differences for race
• No differences for gender
• Noticeable differences SES

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Defining Tracking

• Jeannie Oakes (1992) defines tracking as
  groupings of students that educators form through
  an overall judgment about students intelligence

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Math Tracking Teacher Survey

• Overall, which of the following do you think has
  the greatest influence on the math courses in
  which students are placed?
• EOG scores (7)
• Math grades from previous classes (0)
• Iowa Test of Basic Skills (2)
• Teacher recommendation (2)
• Parent(s) /Guardian(s) (2)

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2. What is your opinion of the way students are
tracked for math courses throughout their middle
and high school years? Please explain.

• If students are tracked as regular math
  students, they will have less opportunity in high
  school to take advanced classes. They are limited
  to only one in the freshman year therefore not
  allowing them to take all math available. (8th)
• I like tracking it is much easier to teach
  students who are on similar levels. However, my
  students are told by high school people that they
  cant double up on math classes. They are
  tracking and this is negative. Not allowing them
  to double up, the math classes that they are
  taking in middle school will track students
  throughout high school. (8th)

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3. Would you like to see any changes in the way
students are tracked in math classes? If so,
please describe.

• No, the only thing is I dont want to see
  children not have the opportunity to take
  advanced classes in high school because of the
  classes they take in middle school. (8th)

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Findings

• EOG scores selected most influential factor of
  tracking
• Students limited in choice of high school math
  courses
• Tracking makes a difference can limit future
  opportunities

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Conclusions/Questions from this data

• Why is there a discrepancy in EOG scores by SES?
• How can we provide ALL students opportunities to
  take advanced level math courses in high school?

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Lessons Learned

• Stakeholders
• Systemic changes
• Using data
• Job opportunities
• Accountability
• Roles as school counselor

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Stephanies ProjectHow do race and gender
reflect in absences, school suspensions, and 3rd
quarter failures of 8th grade students?
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Collecting the data

• Charlotte Mecklenburg School Website
• NC Department of Public Instruction websites
• 8th Grade School Counselor

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Absences, Suspensions, and 3rd Quarter Failures
by Race
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Findings

• Latinos are absent more than twice as much as
  African American and European American students
• African Americans are suspended more than twice
  the rate of European Americans
• The percentage of failures of African American
  students is lower than their rate of suspensions
  while the opposite is true for European
  Americans.

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Conclusions/Questions from this data

• Why are Latinos absent at a higher rate than
  other students?
• Why are 30 of African American students being
  suspended?
• Are African American and Latino students being
  passed when they are not in school to learn?

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Lessons Learned

• I am not a numbers person but this process showed
  the importance and impact of using data it put
  more emphasis on the facts
• When I shared the data with the counselor, she
  was surprised at my findings.
• Much of the data collected is part of public
  record, and yet my data confirms that an
  unaddressed problem exists in this school

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Traceys Project

• What is the race and gender of students selected
  to attend character celebrations in January,
  February and March?

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Amy V.s Project

• What is the effect of school choice on
• math and reading EOG scores
• at ABC Middle School?

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Chriss Project

• What is the relationship between ethnicity,
  gender, socioeconomic status (SES), Limited
  English Proficiency (LEP) and academic
  achievement as measured by the End of Course
  (EOC) scores for the US History class at a large
  urban high school in North Carolina?

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Lauries Project

• How do race and gender affect students
  transition to middle school in terms of their
  academic achievement?

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Lessons Learned

• When I was first introduced to the idea of
  collecting and scrutinizing data and addressing
  issues through the use of system-wide programs
  rather than individual counseling, I was
  extremely resistant. However, this course and
  this project have helped me to see that using
  data may be the only way we can identify some
  inequities in effect at the school which will
  harm the students if not addressed. This
  understanding has led me to alter my view of the
  role of the school counselor, and I now intend to
  add the study of data to my school counselor
  schema.

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Comments/Questions
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Contact Information

• Phyllis Post
• Professor
• Department of Counseling
• UNCC
• Charlotte, NC 28223-0001
• 704-687-2026
• 704-687-2916 (fax)
• ppost_at_email.uncc.edu
• Ed Wierzalis
• Assistant Professor
• Department of Counseling
• UNCC
• Charlotte, NC 28223-0001
• 704-687-6271
• 704-687-2916 (fax)
• eawierza_at_email.uncc.edu