Chapter 12 - The Delivery System

                Kanika’s Conundrum reminded me of when I graduated from undergraduate school 10 years ago.  I had always wanted to teach elementary school and never in a middle school.  The only position available at the time when I graduated was at the middle level (grades 7-8).  I was really concerned but I thought it was at least a job to get my foot in the door and to gain experience.  It has been the best thing that has ever happened because I love the middle school students and the philosophy.  This has taught me to never close a door on a possibility that you are unsure if you will enjoy or not.  I would never change the age level that I am working with.  For one year I worked in an elementary school with 4^th, 5^th, and 6^th grade students and I realized that I was able to assist and provide more assistance to the students who were slightly older.  Since this experience I try to keep an open mind about all new situations because I am never sure who will reap all of the benefits.  All three levels of school counseling offer many different rewarding aspects, and I may be quite surprised to see which level I enjoy the most. 
                I think I may enjoy still working with middle school students when I graduate but I am not sure because all three levels are so very different in what they have to offer to the students.  I am not counting on one specific age level quite yet.  I want to get certified in elementary and secondary and keep my options open for which age level I may want to work with.  I got great enjoyment out of reading all three levels of the ASCA National Model.  I was thrilled to see that they had a separate one for the middle level.  Typically the middle level gets thrown in with either high school or elementary and then the information is not always pertinent.  This way it is divided up more evenly and I am able to really see and focus in on the program for that level. 
                I was pleased to read and see that typically the school counselor does not plan a lot of lessons during the first two weeks of school.  This happens because the teachers need time to settle in to their positions and learn about their students.  That is the time that the counselor works with new incoming students, crisis’ that arise, or any other needs of the students that come to the office.  This is a very stressful time for the teachers as well.  I think they could become very overwhelmed if something else was thrown at them to put on their plate during the first two weeks of school. 

Dollarhide, C. & Saginak, K. (2012). Comprehensive School Counseling Programs: K-12 Delivery Systems in Action (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.