One extremely important service most schools provide is guidance counseling available to all students. A school's guidance counselor exists to aid students in several different ways. Students can seek out a guidance counselor for emotional/psychological problems, to get advice about what path to follow after high school, college information, scholarship information, and more. Like the title "guidance counselor" states, this is a person who exists to provide guidance to students who need counseling by an adult who is willing to sit down and listen to their needs.

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Teachers and Guidance Counselors

Teachers are only one important part of what makes up a school system. Guidance counselors play a pivotal role in assisting and guiding students when they need an adult to give them one-on-one attention to seek advice. Guidance counselors are adults who students can trust.

Teachers can act as counselors to their students but in general teachers have enough duties to preform to teach students course material and take care of their students educational needs. Guidance counselors are there to help out with extra duties that teachers don't have time for and focus on the future needs of students (college, jobs, and life outside of school) and their emotional and psychological needs.

By working together, both teachers and counselors take care of the numerous needs students have: educational, emotional/psychological, career planning, college preparation, and more.

Overview of the Duties of Guidance Counselors:

• They are educated about a wide variety of academic topics and can aid students in picking colleges and can offer information about scholarships.
• They keep track of students and the classes they take. Counselors keep track of the credits students need to graduate.
• Counselors are trained professionals who typically have a Bachelors or Masters degree in a fields like psychology, counseling, social work, or education.
• Guidance counselors help take care of the psychological and emotional well being of students. Students who need to speak to an adult about problems they are having can speak with counselors.
• They may be asked to help with students who are having disciplinary problems. Often, students who misbehave, are acting out in negative ways for reasons that may be personal or private. Counselors can help talk to problem students to understand why they are behaving badly at school.

Guidance Counselors: Academic, Career, and Personal Assistance

There are three main ways guidance counselors help students. The first is academically. Guidance counselors keep track of students records. They make sure students are taking the classes they need to graduate and that they are getting the grades they are required to have to pass. When students are not fulfilling the standards set by the school system then counselors intervene to help get students back on the path of success. Schools want students to do well and graduate. When they are failing classes, getting in trouble, or skipping classes that indicates a problem exists and counselors step in and try to help students succeed.

The second way counselors help students is through career advice. Guidance counselors are educated about different colleges, admission requirements, scholarships, and more. Students can meet with counselors to receive advice and mentoring to determine the best path for them once they graduate. Counselors can help students write admissions essays, fill out applications, and numerous other tasks related to applying to college.

The last way counselors assist students is with personal and social factors. Students are suppose to be able to trust their school counselors. If they are having problems at home, with peers, or at school then counselors are adults students can confide in. For example, if a student is a victim of physical abuse by a parent then a counselor can help contact social services to aid the student in getting out of such a harmful situation. Counselors are there to help students with their emotional, physical, and psychological health.

Guidance Counselors Are Very Important

Guidance counselors are able to aid students in areas teachers may not be able to help. Teachers focus on the educational well being of their students. Outside of class guidance counselors are available to meet and assist students in other areas. Emotional and mental health, career advice, and academic success are only a few areas where counselors help students. Guidance counselors are a necessary and important part of a school system and exist to help students be successful and healthy.

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