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Discipline and Ideas in the

Applied Social Sciences
Quarter 1
Module 2: The Professionals and
Practitioners in the Discipline of
Counseling

Discipline and Ideas in the Applied Social Sciences

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Quarter 1 : Module 2: The Professionals and Practitioners in the
Discipline of Counseling

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Regional Director: Gilbert T. Sadsad

Assistant Regional Director: Jessie L. Amin

Development Team of the Module

Writer: Mary Rose R. Austria

Editors: Leonor V. Binaohan, MT1 / Jovelyn A. Florece, TIII

Reviewer: Dr. Wilma Joy M. Del Monte, EPS / Darcy Guy Y. Mañebo, EPS

Illustrator: Mary Rose R. Austria

Layout Artist: Mary Rose R. Austria

Disciplines and Ideas in the Applied Social Sciences - 12

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Quarter 1 – Module 2: The Professionals and Practitioners in the Discipline of Counselling

I. Introduction:
‘

In this lesson you are expected to understand better the Professionals and Practitioners in counselling,
their roles, functions, and competencies, and their specific work areas.

Lesson 3: The professionals and Practitioners in the Discipline of Counselling

Topic: 3.1. Roles, functions and competencies of counsellors

3.2. Areas of specialization where counsellors work

II. Objectives
At the end of the lesson you are
expected to:

 Discuss the roles and functions of counsellors

 Describe the areas of specialization where counsellors work
 Illustrate the different career opportunities of counselors, through a graphic organizer
 Value the importance of counselling

III. Vocabulary List

Adolescent
  :  person who is developing into an adult : one who is in the state of adolescence

Anorexia
: loss of appetite especially when prolonged

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Bulimia
: a serious eating disorder that occurs chiefly in females, is characterized by
compulsive overeating usually followed by self-induced vomiting or laxative or diuretic
abuse, and is often accompanied by guilt and depression

Agoraphobia
: abnormal fear of being helpless in a situation from which escape may be difficult or
embarrassing that is characterized initially often by panic or anticipatory anxiety and
finally by the avoidance of open or public places

Nursing home
: a public or private residential facility providing a high level of long-term personal
or nursing care for persons (such as the aged or the chronically ill) who are unable to care
for themselves properly
Relapse
  : a recurrence of symptoms of a disease after a period of improvement

Ethical
: conforming to accepted standards of conduct

IV. Pre-Test

Multiple Choice

Direction: Choose the correct answer and write it on the blank provided.

___1. It is considered as the fastest field in counseling

A. Child development counselling C. Marital counselling
B. Gerontology counselling D. Health counselling

___2. The following are the core values of counselling except;

A. Human resource C. Service
B. Integrity D. Social justice

___3. Giving an_______ is one of several functions that counselors to perform

A. Autonomy C. Respect for human dignity
B. Advice D. Responsible caring

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___4. These professionals work with people suffering from addictions
A. Guidance counselors C. Genetics counselors
B. Addictions and behavioural counselor D. Rehabilitation counselors

___5. It is the role of marriage and family counselors

A. to help students to plan goal C. to help couples and families deal with social
And emotional problems
B. to help people suffering from disabilities D. to help people suffering from addiction

V. Learning Activities

Activity 1.
Who do you think are the professionals practitioners in the discipline of counseling. Write your
answer in the space provided below

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 Activity 2.
In three sentences give the difference between the roles and function of counselors

__________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________________

Activity 3.

Your task: List down at least five competencies that counselors should have

1. _______________________________________________________________________

2. _______________________________________________________________________

3. _______________________________________________________________________

4. _______________________________________________________________________

5. _______________________________________________________________________

Explore:

Roles and Functions of Counselors

The Philippine Republic Act.No. 9258(Sec.2-3) defines a guidance counselor as
a natural person who has been professionally registered and licensed by a legitimate
state entity and by virtue of specialized training to perform the functions of guidance
and counselling.
According to Gibson and Mitchell (2003) a helping profession is composed of members
“who are especially trained and licensed to perform a unique service for fellow human
beings”.

Roles / Functions Description

Individual Assessment Seeks to identify the characteristics and
potential of every client ; promotes the
client’s self-understanding and assisting
counselors to understand the client better
Individual Counseling Considers as the core activity through which
other activities become meaningful. It is a

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 client centered process that demand
confidentiality. Relationship is established
between counselor and client.
Group Counseling and Guidance Groups it means of providing organized and
planned assistance to individuals for an array
of needs. Counselor provides assistance
through group counseling and group
guidance.
Career Assistance Counselors are called on to provide career
planning and adjustment assistance to
clients.
Placements and Follow -Up A service of school counseling programs with
emphasis on educational placements in
course and programs.
Referral It is the practice of helping the clients find
needed expert assistance that the referring
counselor cannot provide.
Consultation It is the process of helping a client through a
third party or helping system improve its
service to its clientele.
Research It is necessary to advance the profession of
counseling; it can provide empirically based
data relevant to the ultimate goal of
implementing effective counseling.
Evaluation and Accountability Evaluation is a means of assessing the
effectiveness of counselor’s activities.
Accountability is an outgrowth of demand
that schools and other tax-supported
institutions be held accountable for their
actions.
Prevention This includes promotion of mental health
through primary prevention using a social –
psychological perspective.

Competencies of Counselors

Seven distinct competence areas of counselors. There might be other areas but we
will focus on the input of McLeod (2003).
1. Interpersonal Skills - counselors who are competent display ability to listen, communicate
empathize ; be present ; aware of nonverbal communication; sensitive to voice quality
responsive to expressions of emotion, turn taking, structure of time and use of language
2. Personal beliefs and Attitude - counselors have the capacity to accept others, belief in
potential of change, awareness of ethical and moral choices and sensitive to values held by
client and self.
3. Conceptual ability – counselors have the ability to understand and assess client’s
problem; to anticipate future problems; make sense of immediate process in terms of wider
conceptual scheme to remember information about the client.
4. Personal Soundness – counselors must have no irrational beliefs that are destructive to
counseling relationships, self-confidence ,capacity to tolerate strong of uncomfortable

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feelings in relation to the clients, secure personal boundaries, ability to be a client ; must
carry no social prejudice, ethnocentrism and authoritarianism.
5. Mastery of Techniques – counselors must have a knowledge of when and how to carry
out specific interventions, ability to assess effectiveness of the interventions, understanding
the rationale behind techniques, possession of wide repertoire of intervention
6. Ability to understand and work within social system – it is the awareness of family and
work relationships of client the impact of agency on the clients, the capacity to use support
networks and supervision ; sensitivity to client from different gender, ethnicity , sexual
orientation, or age group.
7. Openness to learning and inquiry – counselors must have the capacity to be curious
about client’s backgrounds and problems; being open to new knowledge
Career Opportunities for Counselors
Career opportunities for counselors cover corporate environment in human resources
departments, school student services departments, academe, NGOs, court, detentions and
prison setting, as well as in a wide range of human development service providers. They can
work as individual professionals or as members of a team or as employees in agencies and
departments that deal with people.
Educational and school counselors. They offer personal, educational, social, and
academic counseling services. The professionals often work in elementary school, high
school, or university settings to help students assess their abilities and resolve personal or
social problems, and so in tandem with teachers and school administrators.
Vocational or career counselors. These professionals facilitate career decision
making. They aid or groups in determining jobs that are best suited to their needs, skills, and
interests. In some cases, they may also help clients who are already employed to improve
their skills, including how to manage work-related stress or burnout. This can also stretch to
providing support to individuals who have lost their jobs. For those seeking jobs, they also
provide skills such as practicing for an interview and developing a meaningful and
acceptable resume.
Marriage and family counselors. These professionals offer a wide range of
services for couples and families. They help couples and families deal with social issues,
emotional problems, and in some cases, mental health treatment. They do conduct
counselling sessions with couples or the entire family unit.
Addictions and behavioural counselors. These professionals work with people
suffering from addictions. These may range from drugs, alcohol, sex, eating disorder,
gambling. They help family members who have been affected by the addict’s actions to deal
well with the situation as much as possible to survive the wounds.
Mental Health counselors. These professionals work with people suffering from
mental or psychological distress such as anxiety, phobias, depression, grief, esteem issues,
trauma, .They aim to promote mental health. In treatment centers or facilities, counselors
have physicians, psychologist, social worker, and other health care professionals as their
treatment team,
Rehabilitation counselors. These professionals are engaged with individuals
suffering from physical or emotional disabilities. The goal is to facilitate the rehabilitation
process and prevent relapse, they provide personal and vocational counselling.

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 Genetics counselors. These professionals operate in a very specialized context of
dealing with genetic information for individuals. The common area here is counselling
parents who are concerned with determining if their potential offspring might be at risk for
being born with an inherited disorder, or individual adults themselves who may be at risk of
developing a genetic disease. These group of professionals work as members of health care
teams composed of doctors, genetics, nurses, and social workers.

Areas of Specialization where counselors work

Counselors are practically found in all spheres of human development, transitions, and
caregiving. Peterson and Nesenholz (1987) identified 11 major areas

1. Child development and counseling. Child development and counselling as area of

specialization includes parent education, preschool counseling, early childhood
education, child counseling, battered and abused children and their families

2. Adolescent development and counseling. Area of specialization covers middle and

high school counselling, career development, psychological education

3. Gerontology (the aged). As area of specialization considered the fastest growing field
and essentially involves counselling, community centers, counseling, nursing home
counseling, and hospice work.

4. Martial relationship counseling. Martial or relationship counseling includes premarital

counseling, marriage counselling, family counseling, sex education, sexual
dysfunction counseling, and divorce mediation.

5. Health. Health as an area of specialization offers possibility for nutrition counseling,

exercise and health education, nurse counselor, rehabilitation counseling, stress
management counseling, holistic health counseling, anorexia ar bulimia counseling,
and genetic counseling.

6. Career/ lifestyle. As an area of specialization, career and lifestyle counseling includes

guidance on choices and decision-making pertaining to career of lifestyle; guidance
on career development.

7. College and university. College and university as an area of specialization offer the
following opportunities: college student counseling, student activities, student
personnel work, residential hall or dormitory counselor, and counsellor educator.

8. Drugs. Drugs as area of specialization has several options such as substance abuse
counseling, alcohol counseling, drug counseling, stop smoking program manager,
and crisis intervention counseling.

9. Consultation. Consultation as an area old specialization covers agency and corporate

consulting, organization development director, industrial psychology specialist, and
training manager.

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 10. Business and industry. Business and industry areas of specialization include training
and development personnel, quality and work-life or quality circles manager,
employee assistance programs manager, employee career development officer,
affirmative action, or equal opportunity specialist.

11. Other specialties. Other specialties may include phobia counseling, agoraphobia,
self-management, intra-personal management, interpersonal relationships
management, and grief counseling.

VI. Practice Tasks

Show that you have learned something by doing this activity.

Practice Task#1.

Your Task: Briefly describe the following areas of specialization where counselors work:

1. Child development and counseling

______________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

2. Adolescent development and counseling

______________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

3. Gerontological counseling
______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

4. Martial or relationship counseling

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 _____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________
5. Health

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________
6. Career / lifestyle counseling

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

RUBRIC ( 15 points )

Criteria 10 points 5 points Total score

Content You were able to described 6 You were able to described

correct areas of specialization 4- 3 correct areas of
where counselors work specialization where
counselors work

Grammar You committed no or minimal You committed two ( 2 )

grammatical error in this three ( 3 ) errors in this
output output

Practice Task # 2.

Your Task: Through a graphic organizer, illustrate the different career opportunities of counselors.
Include a short description for each.

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 Different Career opportunities for Counselors

Practice Task #3

Your Task: Make a short (5 to 10 sentences) Reflection papers on the following:

 My most significant learning about the topic is______________________________

____________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

 If I am given a chance to be a counselor, I would like to be _________________

___________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________

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 ____________________________________________________________________

Rubric ( 15 points )

Criteria
Content 5 points
Organization of ideas 5 points
Correctness in grammar 5 points
Total 15 points

VII. Post Test

Multiple choices

Direction: Choose the letter of the correct answer and write it on the blank provided

___1. What area of specialization is considered as the fastest growing field in counseling?
A. Child development counseling C. Marital counseling
B. Gerontology counseling D. Health counseling

___2. Which is not a core values of counseling.

A. Human resources C. Service
B. Integrity D. Social justice

___3. Which of the core values of counseling primarily means respecting the potential of very human
being?
A. Autonomy C. Respect for human dignity
B. Personal integrity D. Responsible caring

___4. Mrs. Fe Dizon a guidance counselor at Malaya National High School treated her client in very
compassionate way and never judges her/ his clients situation. Which among the core values of
counseling did Mrs. Dizon manifest?
A. Personal Integrity C. Autonomy
B. Respect of human dignity D. Responsible caring

___5. Which of following best describes marriage and family counselor?

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 A. helps students to plan goal
B. helps people suffering from disabilities
C. helps people suffering from addiction
D. helps couples and families deal with social and emotional problems

VIII. Assignment/Additional Activities

If you will be given a chance to be a counselor today, what career opportunities will you like
to get and be hired? Give your reasons (at least two to three reasons)

____________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

___________________________________________________________________________

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Answer key:

1. B
2. C
Pre test 3. B
4. B
5. C

Practice Task #2 graphic organizer Career Opportunities for counselors

Practice # 3 Reflection paper See attached rubric

1. b
2. c
Post test 3. c
4. b
5. d

References

Curriculum guide page1 of 7

Most Essential Learning Competencies

Sampa, E.M., ( 2017) Disciplines and ideas in the Applied Social Sciences. Rex Book Store, Inc. pp.
24-36

https://www.academia.edu/37131995/DISCIPLINES_AND_IDEAS_IN_THE_APPLIED_SOCIAL_SCIENCE
S?email_work_card=title

https://www.pngguru.com/free-transparent-background-png-clipart-kizeu

https://www.northeastern.edu/geo/voice/2018/02/08/whats-news-america/

https://www.netclipart.com/isee/hJmhJi_cancer-social-science-and-applied-social-science-poster/

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