ASCA SCHOOL COUNSELOR PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS & COMPETENCIES 5
B-SS 1. Design and implement instruction
aligned to the ASCA Student Standards:
Mindsets & Behaviors for Student Success
in large-group, classroom, small-group and
individual settings
a. Use student, school and district data to identify achievement,
attendance and discipline issues to be addressed through
instruction
b. Assess cultural and social trends when developing and
choosing curricula
c. Identify appropriate evidence-based curricula aligned to the
ASCA Student Standards: Mindsets & Behaviors for Student
Success or select/develop other materials informed by research
and best practice if evidence-based materials do not exist
d. Demonstrate pedagogical skills, including culturally
responsive classroom management strategies, lesson planning
and personalized instruction
e. Create lesson plans identifying activities to be delivered,
standards to be addressed, to whom activities will be
delivered, how they will be delivered and how data will be
assessed to determine impact on student outcomes
f. Use a variety of technologies in the delivery of lessons and
activities
g. Engage with school administrators, teachers and other sta
to ensure the eective implementation of instruction
h. Analyze data from lessons and activities to determine impact
on student outcomes
B-SS 2. Provide appraisal and advisement
in large-group, classroom, small-group and
individual settings
a. Develop strategies to provide appraisal and advisement to
students and families about attaining the ASCA Student
Standards: Mindsets & Behaviors for Student Success
b. Use assessments to help students understand their abilities,
values and career interests
c. Include career opportunities, labor market trends and global
economics to help students develop immediate and long-range
plans
d. Help students cross reference individual assessment
results (e.g. MBTI, Holland Code, ASVAB, O*Net) with
occupational/career goals
e. Help students understand how academic performance relates
to the world of work, family life and community service
f. Help students understand the importance of postsecondary
education and/or training as a pathway to a career
g. Help students and families navigate postsecondary awareness,
exploration, admissions and financial aid processes
h. Connect students to workplace experiences to deepen
understandings and explore career interests
B-SS 3. Provide short-term counseling in
small-group and individual settings
a. Use data to identify students in need of counseling intervention
b. Provide support for students, including individual and small-
group counseling, during times of transition, heightened
stress, critical change or other situations impeding student
success
c. Explain the dierence between appropriate short-term
counseling and inappropriate long-term therapy
d. Explain the impact of adverse childhood experiences and
trauma, and demonstrate techniques to support students who
have experienced trauma
e. Respond with appropriate intervention strategies to meet the
needs of the individual, group or school community before,
during and after crisis response
B-SS 4. Make referrals to appropriate school
and community resources
a. Maintain a list of current referral resources, consistent with
school and district policies, for students, sta and families
to eectively address academic, career and social/emotional
issues
b. Communicate the limits of school counseling and the
continuum of mental health services
c. Articulate why diagnoses and long-term therapy are outside
the scope of school counseling
B-SS 5. Consult to support student achievement
and success
a. Gather information on student needs from families,
teachers, administrators, other school sta and community
organizations to inform the selection of strategies for student
success
b. Share strategies that support student achievement with
families, teachers, administrators, teachers, school sta and
community organizations
c. Consult with school counselors and other education and
counseling professionals when questions of school counseling
practice arise
d. Facilitate in-service training or workshops for families,
administrators, other school sta, teachers or other
stakeholders to share school counseling expertise
B-SS 6. Collaborate with families, teachers,
administrators, other school staff and
education stakeholders for student
achievement and success
a. Partner with others to advocate for student achievement and
educational equity and opportunities
b. Explain the potential for dual roles with families and other
caretakers
c. Identify and involve appropriate school and community
professionals as well as the family in a crisis situation
d. Supervise school counseling interns consistent with the
principles of the ASCA School Counseling Professional
Standards & Competencies