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Supporting pupils: A study of guidance and pupil support in Scottish schools

Appendix A2: International perspectives

A2.1 Introduction

In this section, we review evidence from a search of international literature to show how pupils/young people are supported in other countries.

A2.2 International perspectives 1: North America

2.2.1 United States of America

In the USA the equivalent of 'guidance' functions are performed by 'school counsellors'. Sears and Coy reported that these counsellors roles were often impeded by their being assigned to 'administrative or quasi-administrative duties (eg counting credits, keeping track of attendance, discipline)' . There have been various models of school counselling in the past but the most widespread model is that based on the 'Missouri Comprehensive Guidance Model' which is now used in between 25 and 30 other states . This model has been characterised as follows:

The Missouri Comprehensive Guidance Program Model has two major parts: structural and programmatic. The structural part has five components: Definition and Philosophy, Facilities, Advisory Council, Resources, and Staffing Patterns and Budget. This part addresses administrative aspects of the program that do not involve contact with students, but are essential in maintaining the administrative and structural integrity of the overall program.

The programmatic part has four components: Guidance Curriculum, Individual Planning, Responsive Services, and System Support. The Guidance Curriculum consists of structured developmental experiences presented systematically through classroom activities, to provide students with knowledge of normal growth and development and to promote good mental health and assist them in acquiring life skills. The curriculum is organized around (1) career planning and exploration; (2) knowledge of self and others; and (3) educational development.

The Individual Planning component consists of activities that help all students set goals, plan, and manage their own learning, as well as their personal and career development. Conversely, the Responsive Services component consists of activities to meet students' immediate needs and concerns, whether these require counselling, consultation, referral, or information.

The System Support component consists of management activities that establish, maintain, and enhance the guidance program as a whole through professional development, staff and community relations, consultation with teachers, advisory councils, community outreach, program management, and research and development.

The developer of the 'Missouri Comprehensive Guidance Model' was Norman Gysbers, who has written this about it:

One of the assumptions upon which comprehensive, developmental counselling and guidance programmes are based is that there is guidance content that all students should learn in a sequential, systematic way. A major feature of comprehensive, developmental counselling and guidance is a focus on student outcomes (competencies), the achievement of which are the responsibility of the programme. Knowledge and skills to be learned by students as a result of the programme are variously grouped under such categories as (1) personal, social, career and educational; (2) knowledge of self and others, career planning and exploration, and educational and vocational development; or (3) learning, personal/social, and career/vocational. These categories serve to identify domain or content areas of human growth and development from which student competencies are drawn.

There are 'four interactive components' to this model. These are 'guidance curriculum, individual planning, responsive services and system support'.

Elsewhere Borders and Drury (1992) have identified four core principles of school counselling programmes:

• Independent educational program ('Counseling and guidance is a distinct, comprehensive program rather than a "set of loosely related services" ... As a full-fledged, independent program, counselling and guidance is comprehensive, purposeful, and sequential.')
• Integrative program. ('In an integrative program, guidance is infused into all areas of the traditional curriculum ... Other implications of this core principle are that counselors are school team members and that all school staff participate in the counselling and guidance program.')
• Developmental program ('Effective counseling programs are clearly based in human development theories ... Program content, goals, and interventions should reflect this theoretical foundation.')
• Equitable program ('Effective school counseling programs serve all students equally.').

Borders and Drury also specify that the qualifications for undertaking a counselling role in this system should include 48 hours taught at masters level, 150 hours 'practica' and 600 hours internship, and that the best counsellor to student ratio is 1:100 at secondary school level. More recently Gysbers has stressed that a comprehensive guidance programme must serve all students equally, that it is developmental and preventative as well as remedial, that it is based on student competencies, and that student counsellors should spend 100 per cent of their time working in the programme with other non-guidance duties being eliminated .

Evaluations of the Comprehensive Guidance model report that it has enhanced students' grades and attitudes to schools although research has tended to focus more on remediation activities than on preventative interventions .

2.2.2 Canada

Guidance systems in Canada have developed from the US model. There is a system of specialised counsellors who are usually (but not always) specially trained . Young identifies the following merits of this specialist approach:

• 'Counsellors have a working knowledge of their school ...'
• 'There is a highly uniform model of counsellor training ...'
• There is a 'clear division of roles and responsibilities ...'
• '... it enables counsellors to be effective leaders in schools.'

Some 'liabilities' of the approach are:

• Counsellors may be appointed 'for administrative expediency without relation to skills, training or role'

• 'In systems that become entrenched with specialized personnel, the danger arises that human resources, rather than the needs of the users, may drive the programme.'
• 'The specialist approach can be implemented in a rigid manner ...'
• '... at present there are few formal guidelines or evaluation procedures in place for the evaluation of counsellors.'

A2.3 Europe

2.3.1 Eurydice information on guidance arrangements in European countries

There is a considerable amount of information on the educational arrangements of European countries which is held by the Eurydice database (Eurydice, the information network on education in Europe: www.eurydice.org). The extent and coverage of this information varies from country to country. Below are brief summaries of what it has to say about guidance arrangements in some of the countries in the database. All information is derived from the Eurydice database unless otherwise stated .

2.3.2 Austria

'Counselling is part of the educational mandate schools have to fulfil and thus one of the duties of the headmasters and of all teachers at a school.' There is a 'School Psychological and Guidance Service' to provide specialist services (psychological testing and careers guidance). At the transition from primary to secondary school, guidance will mainly come from the class teacher. Secondary education in Austria is highly differentiated. In secondary schools student counsellors are teachers who fulfil a full teaching role, but are exempted from a number of hours for their guidance activities. Secondary pupils undergo a compulsory 'Vocational Orientation' exercise and there are also work placement schemes.

2.3.3 Denmark

Educational and vocational guidance and labour market orientation is an obligatory topic. Class teachers are responsible for individual guidance and counselling, although all schools have an 'educational counsellor', who is one of the teachers of the school with this remit added as part of their job. In upper secondary schools the headteacher will appoint one or more guidance counsellors from among the permanent teaching staff. They are to 'perform this function as part of their normal duties for a period of three years at a time'. This involves delivering a series of around 20 guidance lessons (on educational and vocational topics) and offering individual guidance to pupils. The information from Denmark stresses educational and vocational aspects of guidance. There is no mention of personal guidance/pastoral care.

2.3.4 France

There are two information and guidance services which are under the responsibility of the Minister of Education. The first is the 'National Information Office on Education and Professions (Office National d'Information sur les Enseignements et les Professions - ONISEP) while the second is in the form of 'centres for careers information and guidance' (Centres d'Information et de l'Orientation - CIO) which have the responsibility for delivering information and guidance to school users and other job seekers. Within schools guidance is provided by an 'educational team' and a 'teaching team'. The first comprises individual pupils, their parents and their teachers; while the second comprises the teachers for each class group of pupils. Decisions about individual pupils are made by staff meetings and class councils. ("... the Class Council makes career proposals, which are then communicated to the families.") The information from France says nothing about individual counselling or personal guidance / pastoral care.

2.3.5 Germany

German secondary schools have what are known as 'counselling teachers' who are 'members of staff with extra training in educational science and psychology'. These provide career advice, but also 'speak with pupils individually when learning or behavioural difficulties arise and maintain a general counselling service for pupils and teachers alike'. Counselling teachers will work with local youth welfare offices as required. Local employment offices have 'careers information centres' and offer career consultations to secondary school leavers. School psychological services 'offer individual assistance using psychological diagnosis, counselling and treatment methods'. They also 'advise teachers and schools on key issues with a psychological component like the assessment of performance, individual promotion and on conflicts'.

2.3.6 Ireland

In Ireland there are guidance services and 'guidance counsellors' available in most secondary schools to provide for the personal, social, educational and vocational development and needs of students. All secondary schools have an allocation of hours for guidance. This ranges from 8 hours per week in the smallest schools (less than 200 pupils) upwards. Schools of 500 pupils or more may employ the equivalent of one full time guidance counsellor in addition to their normal complement of teaching staff. In practice most guidance staff also carry a subject teaching load. Guidance staff have to be qualified teachers and, in addition, have successfully completed a one-year post-graduate diploma (2 years part-time). In 1995 a pilot scheme of special teacher counsellors was established in 27 primary schools. Also in 1995 Ireland established their National Centre for Guidance in Education (NCGE - see www.ncge.ie) which is responsible for developing guidance services at all levels of education. A National Educational Psychological Service was established in 1999. It targets school pupils aged 6-18 who require special assistance with psychological and other learning problems.

2.3.7 Italy

In Italy guidance is confined to educational/vocational guidance directing the students through various educational routes. At age 14 pupils transfer from 'scuola media' (middle school) to the upper secondary school. The first year of the upper secondary school corresponds to the last year of compulsory schooling and it is at this stage that pupils will receive guidance about their possible next steps. In practice guidance activities are carried out in a variety of ways as there is no single person responsible for them within schools.

2.3.8 Luxembourg

In Luxembourg the Centre for Educational Psychology and Guidance (Centre de Psychologie et d'Orientation Scolaires - CPOS) has the main responsibility for 'psycho-educational guidance' This includes the choice of secondary schools (following the results of 'psychological and educational attainment tests'); offering general advice to parents, pupils and teachers; helping students make the transition between levels of education (choice of course and institution); and helping with the transition from school to working life. It is also responsible for organising remedial courses. There is no mention of the roles and responsibilities of teachers within schools.

2.3.9 Spain

In Spain the 'autonomous communities' are mandated to create 'specialised services in educational, psychopedagogical and vocational counselling'. In schools, first level counselling is conducted by the form teacher. Second level is the Guidance Department within the school. Third level is specialist 'sector counselling teams' (which cover transitions between schools, learning support, specialist advice to schools, etc). These teams include educational psychologists, social workers, speech therapists and other learning support teachers.

'Counselling Departments have been set up in all Secondary Education Establishments in order to provide form teachers with support and to carry out specific counselling tasks. The action carried out by the professionals that make up the department (varying from one Autonomous Community to another), is centred around four inter-related areas: support for the teaching and learning process; academic and vocational counselling; assistance to special educational needs; and tutorial counselling.'

2.3.10 Sweden

'There are no formal special institutions for guidance. All educational and vocational guidance is given within the schools.

'In all types of schools, it is the responsibility of the school head to ensure that all pupils receive educational and vocational guidance before choosing from the range of options that the school has to offer and before deciding how best to continue an educational route. Most schools have specially trained guidance officers to deal with such questions.'

Schools tend to provide some form of work experience programme, but this is not regulated by central government.

2.3.11 Summary of Eurydice information

There is a great deal of variation in European education systems in guidance provision. They vary in terms of who is responsible for delivering guidance, and what that guidance covers. Guidance may be the responsibility of all teachers (as in Austria, Denmark, and Spain); or it may be delivered by specialist teachers within the schools (Austria, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Sweden), by outside specialists (Austria, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, Spain), or by some combination of these. Luxembourg and France are notable for their reliance on external specialists, while Austria, Denmark and Spain employ the full range of 'first line' guidance by class teachers, specialist teachers, and external specialists.

Guidance can cover combinations of vocational, personal, and educational guidance, and may also include some element of learning and/or behaviour support. All countries provide some form of vocational and educational guidance, but only Germany, Ireland and Spain explicitly say that they include personal guidance. Germany, Luxembourg and Spain are the only countries to mention some learning and/or behaviour support as falling within the remit of guidance teachers. This information is summarised in the table below.

Table A2.1: Summary of Guidance from Eurydice information

*Information from Italy is unclear as to who is responsible for the delivery of guidance.

There is little information in the Eurydice database about the training of guidance staff. Germany makes explicit mention of 'extra training in educational science and psychology' for specialist teachers. In Ireland an extra one-year post-graduate qualification is required in addition to normal teaching qualifications. Further information on guidance provision in Ireland confirms that, with the exception of this training requirement, their guidance system is similar to that in Scotland . Ireland's guidance and counselling service was established in 1966. It covers a similar range of duties to those in Scotland, and teachers are subject specialists, with some time made available for guidance work . Lang adds the comment that:

In both Denmark and Germany there are class teachers and the role appears to have some significance. In Denmark the National Curriculum prescribes an hour's discussion time a week for all classes at every level to be held with their class teacher. In Germany many schools have Vertrauenslehrer ('teachers you can trust') to whom pupils may go with problems; they also have political education conducted through Socratic discussion methods. Portugal is in the process of introducing personal and social education, though it seems it will be of fairly low status.

A2.4 Elsewhere

Information from elsewhere is patchy. It is known, for example that in Finland there are full-time guidance counsellors who are responsible for delivering careers guidance . In Malawi there is a guidance system which has been described as being 'in its infancy' where full-time class teachers with no specialist training deliver varying amounts and types of guidance depending on the school . In Hong Kong there has been a move towards 'whole school guidance' as schools have 'evolved from a remedial "casework" approach, to a more preventive and developmental approach' , although there is some reported confusion about whether a 'whole school approach' means the involvement of all teachers in guidance or provision of guidance for all students . In New Zealand a 'whole school approach' implies the co-existence of pastoral care systems with specialist school counsellors, so that a typical system might have a deputy principal (guidance), one or two guidance counsellors, five or six house deans, and 25 form tutors .

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has been especially active in investigating international perspectives on careers education and guidance. In 1996 St John-Brooks reported on a survey of educational and careers guidance conducted by OECD's Centre for Educational Research and Innovation which found that careers education may be provided by educational institutions, labour market organisations, or agencies (which may be public, private, or voluntary). Provision varied widely between countries, but he concluded that 'incoherent or incomplete systems tend to be the norm' . At the time of writing this review, the OECD is in the process of conducting a major international review of career guidance policies . There have been some interim results published, and Watts has noted that:

In Ireland and Norway, both of which have school counsellors with a holistic role, there is a risk that the pressing nature and apparent growth of pupils' personal and social problems may seriously restrict the time and attention which the counsellors are able to devote to career guidance matters. In Norway, indeed, the government has accordingly decided to set up a three-year project to separate the two roles by attaching them to different individuals, partly to protect the resourcing of career guidance work, and partly to address its distinctive competence requirements, including keeping in touch with changes in the education system and the labour market.

(These comments seem to reflect the tension which often appears to exist between careers guidance and other aspects of guidance work in schools. Careers guidance is a highly specialised and professionalised area of work which tends to stand apart from other aspects of guidance, at least in the eyes of its practitioners. There is a considerable body of specialised research on careers guidance.)

The OECD review of career guidance policies also published a number of country reports and interim statements . These are mentioned here for reference.

A2.5 Summary

Other countries have developed a variety of ways of conceptualising and delivering pupil support. Specifically:

• In the United States, the equivalent of 'guidance' is usually provided by specialist school counsellors. The most common model of provision is based on the 'Missouri Comprehensive Guidance Model'. This has four components: Guidance Curriculum, Individual Planning, Responsive Services, and System Support. It is 'comprehensive' in that it applies to all students and attempts to integrate guidance into the life of the school. Canada has a similar system.
• Provision of the equivalent of 'guidance' in European countries varies greatly in terms of who is responsible for delivering guidance, and what that guidance covers. Guidance may be the responsibility of all teachers; be delivered by specialist teachers within the schools; or by outside specialists. It can cover combinations of vocational, personal, and educational guidance, and may also include some element of learning and/or behaviour support.

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