Multicultural Counseling Programs

Today's students are the most culturally, ethnically, and racially diverse ever in our country's history (Ziffer & Wietor, 2006). 21st century school counselors are challenged in their ability to provide an appropriate array of services needed by students (Behring, 2002). In many school districts a shortage of support personnel exists, including social workers, school psychologists, and guidance counselors (American School Counselor Association, 2006). In addition to their services to individual students and families, school counselors are also often given the responsibility for "creating culturally accepting environments" in school settings (Schwallie-Giddis, 2004).

Keywords Culture; Diversity; Guidance Counselors; Minority Groups; Multicultural Competence; Multicultural Counseling; Multicultural Education; Racism; School Culture

Overview

Twenty-first century American schools are educating a generation of the most diverse students who vary intensely between cultures, ethnicities, and races in the history of education in the United States (Ziffer & Wietor, 2006). This rapid growth of diverse population groups challenges educators, including school counselors, to provide appropriate educational and support services (Sanchez, 1995). Henriksen and Nikels (2005) point out, "as the faces of our nation's youth change, it is essential that professionals within the school systems assist young people as they transition into a diverse global community."

The growth of minority population groups in the United States has outpaced the growth of the white population since the late twentieth century (National Center for Education Statistics, 2007). Hispanics have surpassed blacks as the largest minority group in the country, growing 192% between 1980 and 2005. In comparison, the white American population grew only 10% during the same 25-year period. Minorities are predicted to represent 39% of the population in the U.S. by the year 2020. In states such as California, New Mexico, Texas, and Hawaii the previous minority population has now become the majority (NCES, 2007).

Students and educators bring different cultural backgrounds to the school setting, based on factors such as gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religion, sexual orientation, and disabling conditions (Behring, 2002). Each group has different beliefs, values, norms, traditions, language and other distinctive features. Culture is multifaceted, encompassing individual identity, group identity, cognition, communication, and behavior patterns. Students and educators can belong to multiple cultural groups, resulting in significant variation within and across cultural groups.

Twenty-first century school counselors are challenged in their ability to provide an appropriate array of services needed by students (Behring, 2002). In many school districts a shortage of support personnel exists, including social workers, school psychologists, and guidance counselors (American School Counselor Association, 2006). Student caseloads are too high for counselors to effectively provide services to all students. While the American School Counselor Association advise that there be a 250-to-1 ratio of students to counselors. The national average for the 2004-2005 was 479 (American School Counselor Association, 2006). While the American student population continues to diversify, the majority of school counselors providing services are not culturally or linguistically diverse, making it vital for counselors to learn and utilize culturally competent practices (Nuijens & Klotz, 2004).

These challenges are further complicated by the many diverse needs of students entering the schoolhouse today. Chandras et al. (2006) states that, "In our increasingly global and diverse world, counselors need to develop an ability to work with students whose backgrounds and experiences are different from their own. Cross-cultural knowledge and skills are a must for counselors who work with culturally different students and their families" (Chandras, DeLambo, & Chandras, 2006, ¶ 17). These skills include the ability to listen, value diverse cultural norms, and leave open the idea of their own values and cultures (Diller & Moule, 2005).

The Role of School Counselors

Schools counselors, while also giving their services to students and their families, are often given the responsibility for "creating culturally accepting environments" in school settings (Schwallie-Giddis, 2004). This involves the development and implementation of ongoing school wide programs that raise multicultural awareness and promote tolerance. Counselors contribute by helping to educate and sensitize majority culture students to their peers who have cultural and linguistic differences. Meanwhile, they have the responsibility of helping culturally and linguistically diverse students assimilate into the school culture. These minority students face unique challenges such as:

• Problems associated with discrimination, injustice, and racism;

• Language barriers;

• Cultural stereotypes;

• Forming positive identities when school and home cultures differ;

• Reconciling differences between two different cultures;

• Peer pressures that differ from family cultural values and traditions;

• Varied roles of females;

• Academic problems related to language barriers; and

• Feelings of suspicion and distrust of schools and professionals (Baruth & Manning, 2000).

The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) has adopted a position statement related to meeting the multicultural counseling needs of students which states:

“Professional school counselors advocate for appropriate opportunities and services that promote maximum development for all students regardless of cultural backgrounds and strive to remove barriers that impede student success” (ASCA, 2004, as cited in Canada, 2005, p. 52).

The role of the school counselor is further delineated:

“Professional school counselors take action to ensure that students of culturally diverse backgrounds have access to services and opportunities that promote maximum academic, personal/social and career development. Professional school counselors use a variety of strategies to: increase awareness of culturally diverse persons and populations, increase sensitivity of students and parents to cultural diversity, enhance the total school and community climate for all students. Professional school counselors have the skills necessary to collaborate with students, parents and school personnel to identify attitudes and policies that impede the learning process of culturally diverse students. Professional school counselors strive to ensure that all students' rights are respected, which allows students to maximize their potential in a supportive environment and encourages maximum growth and development. The professional school counselor continues to seek professional development to better understand the cultural traditions and customs of their students. The professional school counselor also collaborates with members of the community who provide services to students from a variety of backgrounds” (ASCA, 2004 as cited in Canada, 2005, p. 52).

The Council for the Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP, 2001) demands that accredited counselor preparation programs must offer and make available proper counseling to students with curricular experiences that tend to investigate issues associated with sociocultural, demographic, and lifestyle variety.

Traditional School Counseling Programs

As our nation's predominant culture has historically been European-American, the values and beliefs that guided the creation of American schools have been European-American (Behring, 2002). School counseling programs, accordingly, have been developed based upon best practices for European-American students, and most school counselors have been trained in traditional interventions and approaches that have been tested and validated to meet the needs of the majority population, but may not be appropriate for culturally diverse students. Counselors who are unaware of cultural differences, including cultural perspectives toward school and success, cultural customs, mannerisms, native languages, and family expectations and their implications for counseling, run the risk of mistakenly assuming traditional counseling practices are effective for students of all cultures. This mismatch can lead to ineffective practices that promote negative attitudes among students, academic and social segregation, discrimination, academic injustice in curriculum and instruction, academic failure, high dropout rates, and acts of physical and verbal violence (Henriksen & Nikels, 2005; Behring, 2002). Because schools are a microcosm of society, these consequences can have a lasting effect that is detrimental to both individual students and society at large.

Culturally Responsive Practice

Counselors need to understand cultural influences that affect students' learning styles, coping and problem solving mechanisms, and ways of negotiating identity (Yeh, 2002). They also need to be aware that ethnic minority students are in the process of exploring multiple identities, influenced by social, cultural, and political factors; therefore their identities are constantly shifting. Counselors need to be sensitive to this process and accept the multiple identities of students as they encourage them to appreciate their cultural heritage.

The development of culturally responsive practice "requires an ethic of caring and understanding in an effort to build bridges between children whose cultures and backgrounds do not necessarily mirror the cultural dictates of mainstream American society" (Day-Vines, Patton, & Baytops, 2003, para. 5). Bridging the cultural divide requires "understanding, respect, and competence in dealing with cultural differences." Culturally responsive counseling practice incorporates "diverse perspectives into the counseling process in a manner that validates and affirms children from marginalized groups and recognizes the contextual dimensions of race, culture, class, gender, religion, sexual orientation, and geography" (Day-Vines, Patton, & Baytops, 2003, para. 5).

Multicultural Competence

To be effective in meeting the multicultural needs of today's students, counselors need to be "systemic and culturally multiplistic thinkers" who recognize that each student belongs to multiple cultural groups (Behring, 2002). Effective multicultural counselors recognize that even though students have similar or universal experiences, they still experience significant differences in regards to their membership in different cultural groups. Counselors need to have a proper awareness and acceptance of what students share in common as well as what they differ in (Edles, 2001).

School counselors need to demonstrate multicultural competencies and develop multicultural counseling programs that are reflective of and responsive to the diversity of students represented in the school setting (Behring, 2002). To be most effective, multicultural counseling programs should be a part of a school's comprehensive multicultural education curriculum that provides knowledge, "fosters understanding and appreciation of ethnic diversity, and promotes positive interethnic relations" (Yeh, 2002, p. 4). Yeh (2002) explains,

“Majority children are more likely to be ethnocentric and less aware of ethnic differences, it is especially important for them to have accurate information about minority groups and an understanding of the value of diversity in enriching a society. Minority children are typically already familiar with the majority culture, while their own culture has been ignored or disparaged by the curriculum. A better understanding of the strengths and achievements of their own culture will increase their self-esteem” (p. 4-5).

Appropriate Counseling Strategies

Strategies school counselors can utilize to meet the needs of culturally diverse students include:

• Providing culturally appropriate counseling services that are linked to the school, families, and community;

• Offering equity in counseling-related services to ensure high outcomes for all students, regardless of culture;

• Insuring that student assessments are culturally appropriate;

• Advocating for culturally appropriate curricula, programs, and support services;

• Coordinating a system-wide cultural awareness program;

• Providing educational opportunities in native languages for parents to learn the same curriculum as their children;

• Setting inclusive academic goals that are measured equitably;

• Collaborating with educators to develop programs and curricula that are appropriate for diverse learning styles;

• Developing interventions that are respectful of students' cultures;

• Providing opportunities for students to develop support systems; and

• Conducting and publishing research concerning effective multicultural practices.

Wittmer (1992) views school counselors as "catalysts" that can promote a school culture that values and respects diversity. Utilizing the ASK model, counselors can educate students on the importance of awareness of self and others; not assuming that everyone wants to be part of the majority culture, sensitivity and communication skills that honor other cultural viewpoints, and knowledge of the culturally different, enabling students to become "culturally skilled." Counselors can develop and deliver activities utilizing various modes that emphasize these themes.

The development of effective multicultural counseling programs staffed by school counselors who demonstrate multicultural competence helps schools become "culturally proficient" (Lindsey, Robins, & Lindsey, 2004). In a culturally proficient school, all members feel valued in an atmosphere of inclusiveness and respect for differences. A culturally proficient school is one that actively implements policies, procedures, and practices that value, engage, and include all members of the school community. Cultural proficiency is reflected in the way a school treats its faculty, students, and community. To be considered culturally proficient, schools five critical elements need to be present:

• Valuing diversity;

• Assessing culture;

• Managing the dynamics of difference;

• Institutionalizing cultural knowledge; and

• Adapting to diversity.

Applications

Multicultural Counseling Competencies

In response to the need for counselors to meet the needs of diverse students, researchers have developed various multicultural counseling competencies. Several are discussed here.

The most widely recognized conceptual framework was developed by Sue and Pedersen (1996) and includes three areas:

• Cultural Awareness and Beliefs: Counselor's sensitivity to his/her personal values and biases and how these may influence the counseling relationship.

• Cultural Knowledge: Counselor's knowledge of the individual's culture, worldview, and expectations for the counseling relationship.

• Cultural Skills: Counselor's ability to provide services in a way that is culturally sensitive and relevant.

Holcomb-McCoy (2004) has developed a checklist of 51 competences in nine critical areas:

• Multicultural counseling,

• Multicultural consultation,

• Understanding racism and student resistance,

• Multicultural assessment,

• Understanding racial identity development,

• Multicultural family counseling,

• Social advocacy,

• Developing school-family-community partnerships, and

• Understanding cross-cultural interpersonal interactions.

Chandras, DeLambo, & Chandras (2006) have identified four competencies of "confident and sensitive" multiculturally effective counselors. These include:

• Awareness of his/her own cultural values, biases and assumptions,

• Awareness and understanding of the student's world view,

• Knowledge and application of culturally appropriate intervention strategies and

• Willingness to exhibit empathic understanding.

Baruth and Manning (2000) identified five characteristics of "culturally competent counselors":

• Awareness of their own cultural characteristics;

• Awareness of how their counseling backgrounds may affect counseling decisions;

• Ability to resolve differences of race and beliefs between counselors and counselees;

• Knowledge of cultural groups and knowledge and understanding of counseling and therapy; and

• Ability to send and receive appropriate verbal and nonverbal messages.

Multicultural Education Models

Banks' (1993) model of multicultural education can be used by school counselors as a guide to educate students on self-acceptance and acceptance of others from a multicultural perspective. The model includes four primary dimensions:

• Content Integration: Refers to the incorporation of people with multicultural backgrounds and different experiences in content coursework, which helps classrooms become more inclusive and helps students be more accepting.

• Knowledge Construction: Involves the development of new information that would help students in recognizing what is similar and different in every unique individual.

• Prejudice Reduction: Involves helping students create positive attitudes toward diverse individuals.

• Processes: Involves creating an empowering school culture and social structure through student involvement (Banks, 1993).

Another useful model for multicultural education is the Ecological Model developed by Bronfenbrenner (1979) and refined by others (Knoff, 1986; Nuttall, Romero, & Kalesnik, 1992). Sanchez (1995) outlines the model:

“According to this model, we try to understand or evaluate a student (the microsystem) in the context of his/her mesosystems (immediate family, extended family, friends, network), macrosystems (culture or subculture), and exosystems (social structures). This model places the diverse learner, school staff, and parents/community in an ecological context, which then allows both for a broader understanding of the critical issues affecting students from diverse backgrounds and the development of relevant service and educational models. These educational models need to be highly sensitive to the particular community and social contexts of which the diverse learners and school staff are members” (Sanchez, 1995, p. 3).

Model Program

The President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (2003) has recognized the Dallas School-based Youth and Family Centers as a model culturally competent school-based mental health program. From its beginning in 1969, the program has grown to be system wide, providing comprehensive health, mental health services, and youth and family support services to 160,000 students in more than 200 schools and their families (Jennings, Pearson, & Harris, 2000). A multidisciplinary team coordinates service delivery. Counselors must mirror the diverse structure of races and ethnicities seen in the student population that they must cater to.

Terms & Concepts

Culture: Culture is "an integrated pattern of human behavior that includes thoughts, communications, languages, practices, beliefs, values, customs, courtesies, rituals, manners of interacting and roles, relationships and expected behaviors of a racial, ethnic, religious or social group; and the ability to transmit the above to succeeding generations." (National Center for Cultural Competence of Georgetown University, n.d.)

Diversity: Diversity is defined as: the variation of observable and demonstrable physical and behavioral differences within a nonspecific grouping, most often referring to human populations" (ERIC, 2003).

Minority Groups: Minority groups are "subgroups within a larger society that are distinguished from the majority and each other by race, national heritage, or sometimes by religious or cultural affiliation" (ERIC, 1966).

Multicultural Competence: Multicultural competence refers to the degree to which counselors have appropriate levels of self-awareness, knowledge, and skills to counsel individuals from diverse cultural backgrounds.

Multicultural Counseling: Multicultural counseling is a helping relationship between a counselor and individuals from different cultural backgrounds, genders, world views, sexual orientations, and social classes.

Multicultural Education: Multicultural education is education "involving two or more ethnic groups and designed to help participants clarify their own ethnic identity and appreciate that of others, reduce prejudice and stereotyping, and promote cultural pluralism and equal participation" (ERIC, 1979).

Racism: Racism is the belief that differences in ability or intellect can be attributed to race and that a particular race is superior to others. Racism also refers to prejudice or acts of discrimination based upon race.

School Culture: School culture refers to "Patterns of meaning or activity (norms, values, beliefs, relationships, rituals, traditions, myths, etc.) shared in varying degrees by members of a school community" (ERIC, 1996).

Bibliography

American School Counselor Association. (2004). Position statement: Cultural diversity. Retrieved October 10, 2007, from American School Counselor Association http://www.schoolcounselor.org/content.asp?contentid=249

American School Counselor Association. (2006). Retrieved September 10, 2007, from http://www.schoolcounselor.org/

Banks, J. A. (1993). Multicultural education: Historical development, dimensions, and practice. In L.D. Hammond (Ed.), Review of Research in Education (pp. 3-49). Washington, DC: American Educational Research Association.

Baruth, L. & Manning, M. (2000). A call for multicultural counseling in middle schools. Clearing House, 73 , 243-246. Retrieved September 20, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=2873305&site=ehost-live

Behring, S. (2002). School counseling in the twenty-first century: A systemic multicultural approach. Greensboro, NC: Clearinghouse on Counseling and Student Services (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 464277).

Bronfenbrenner, E. (1979). The ecology of human development. Cambridge, MA: -Harvard University Press.

Canada, M. (2005, December). School counselor’s concerns regarding effective crisis intervention for students of diverse backgrounds. Retrieved October 21, 2007 from http://contentdm.lib.byu.edu/ETD/image/etd1134.pdf

Chandras, K., DeLambo, D., & Chandras, S. (2006). Counseling strategies and techniques to sensitize school counselors to the life experiences of culturally different students. Retrieved October 1, 2007, from Counseling Outfitters http://counselingoutfitters.com/Chandras.htm

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Day-Vines, N., Patton, J., & Baytops, J. (2003). Counseling African American adolescents: The impact of race, culture, and middle class status. Professional School Counseling, 7 , 40-51. Retrieved October 10, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=11360371&site=ehost-live

Diller, J. V., & Moule, J. (2005). Cultural competence. Belmont, CA: Thomson Wadsworth.

Edles, P. A. (2001). School counselors' universal-diverse orientation and aspects of their multicultural counseling competence. Professional School Counseling. Retrieved October 11, 2007, from American School Counselor Association http://www.thefreelibrary.com/School+counselors'+universal-diverse+orientation+and+aspects+of+their…-a080306019

Henriksen, R., & Nikels, H. (2005). Multicultural school counseling with children in grades K-6. Retrieved October 3, 2007, from Counseling Outfitters http://www.counselingoutfitters.com/

Holcomb-McCoy, C. (2007). School counseling to close the achievement gap: A social justice framework for success. Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.

Jennings, J., Pearson, G., & Harris, M. (2000). Implementing and maintaining school-based mental health services in a large, urban school district. Journal of School Health, 70 , 201-205. Retrieved October 10, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=3280895&site=ehost-live

Johnson, J. M., & Lambie, G. W. (2013). Ethnic identity and social-cognitive maturity in a multicultural group experience. Counselor Education & Supervision, 52, 193-206. Retrieved December 15, 2013, from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=90064485&site=ehost-live

Knoff, H. (1986). The assessment of child and adolescent personality. New York: Guilford Press.

Lindsey, R., Robins, K., & Lindsey, D. (2002). The counselor as a member of a culturally proficient school leadership team. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 464277).

National Center for Education Statistics. (2007). Status and trends in the education of racial and ethnic minorities. Retrieved October 3, 2007 from U.S. Department of Education http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2007/minoritytrends/ind_1_1.asp

Nuijens, K., & Klotz, M.B. (2004). Culturally competent consultation in schools: Information for school psychologists and school personnel. Retrieved October 10, 2007, from National Association of School Psychologists http://www.nasponline.org/resources/culturalcompetence/cc_consultation.aspx

Nuttall, E. V., Romero, I., & Kalesnik, J. (1992). Assessing and screening preschoolers: Psychological and educational dimensions. Needham, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health. (2003). Achieving the promise: Transforming mental health care in America. Retrieved October 10, 2007, from http://www.mentalhealthcommission.gov/reports/FinalReport/FullReport-04.htm

Sanchez, W . (1995). Working with diverse learners and school staff in a multicultural society. Greensboro, NC: Clearinghouse on Counseling and Student Services. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 390018).

School for Mental Health Analysis and Action (2006). Cultural competence and school mental health. Baltimore, MD: Author. Retrieved October 10, 2007, from School for Mental Health Analysis and Action http://csmh.umaryland.edu/resources.html/CulturalCompetenceIB-CSMHA.pdf

Shallcross, L. (2013). Multicultural competence: A continual pursuit. Counseling Today, 56, 30-43. Retrieved December 15, 2013, from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=90009065&site=ehost-live

Schwallie-Giddis, P. Anstrom, K., Granato, L., Sanchez, P., & Sardi, V. (2004). Counseling the linguistically and culturally diverse student: meeting school counselors' professional development needs. Professional School Counseling, 8 , 15-23. Retrieved October 10, 2007 from EBSCO Online Database Education Research Complete. http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=14795504&site=ehost-live

Sue, D. W., Ivey, A. E., & Pedersen, P. B. (1996). A theory of multicultural counseling and therapy. San Francisco: Brooks/Cole Publishing.

Wittmer, J. (1992). Valuing diversity in the schools: The counselor's role. Ann Arbor, MI: School of Education, University of Michigan. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED347475). Retrieved October 3, 2007 from EBSCO Online Education Research Database. http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/28/ee/15.pdf

Yeh, C. (2002). Bridging identities among ethnic minority youth in schools. Ann Arbor, MI: School of Education, University of Michigan. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED347475). Retrieved October 3, 2007 from EBSCO Online Education Research Database. http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICDocs/data/ericdocs2sql/content_storage_01/0000019b/80/19/dd/17.pdf

Ziffer, J. M., & Wietor, J. P. (2006). Celebrating cultural diversity: Empowering students and families through a comprehensive guidance program. Retrieved October 3, 2007, from Counseling Outfitters Web site: http://counselingoutfitters.com/VISTAS_2006.htm

Suggested Reading

Pedersen, P., & Carey, J. (2002). Multicultural counseling in schools: A practical handbook. New York: Allyn and Bacon.

Ponterotto, J. (2001). Handbook of multicultural counseling. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Sue, D., Carter, R., Casas, M., & Fouad, N. (1998). Multicultural counseling competencies: Individual and organizational development. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.

Sue, D., & Sue, D. (2007). Counseling the culturally diverse: Theory and practice. New York: Wiley.