Meeting the Needs of the Whole Child

Part of being a school counselor is meeting the needs of the whole child. This is part of creating a holistic program that will allow the school to see that the school counselor does more than coordinate testing. The school counselor can help close achievement gaps, teach social emotional learning skills, guide students in their college and career goals, and assist the school administration in identifying school-wide need. In 2007, the ASCD started the ‘Whole Child Initiative’ to an effort to change the conversation about education from a focus on narrowly defined academic achievement to one that promotes the long-term development and success of children. According to Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), Social and emotional learning enhances students’ capacity to integrate skills, attitudes, and behaviors to deal effectively and ethically with daily tasks and challenges. CASEL created the Collaborating Districts Initiative in 2016 to help school districts systemically integrate social and emotional learning into everything they did.