ABSTRACT
Chapter 6 presents research supporting individual counseling as a direct counseling approach in schools, and the accreditation standards as well as the ethical codes guiding the training and implementation of services. Next, the authors provide a brief overview of typical individual counseling theories used in schools—individual psychology (or Adlerian Theory), Person-Centered Counseling, Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy, Narrative Therapy, and Solution-Focused Brief Counseling. Given the limited time school counselor have when working with students individually, the authors present their Brief Individual Counseling Problem-solving Model, including structuring, core conditions, the problem-solving model, and counselor responses with examples of how to facilitate the model. The chapter concludes with a discussion of how to complete a case study and individual counseling summary notes. The case study format includes three phases—background information on the student, description of the problem, and the treatment plan. Summary notes are completed after each counseling session. This practice is a form of reflective learning that allows the school counselor to closely monitor the student’s progress towards achieving their goals and to plan activities and techniques to use in future sessions.
