Culturally Considerate School Counseling
Helping Without Bias
- Kim L. Anderson - Educating for Change
Foreword by Bonnie M. Davis
"The author's compelling personal story, which serves as a connecting narrative, inspired me to read the book straight through in a single sitting."
—Mary Monroe Kolek, Deputy Superintendent, New Canaan Public Schools, CT
"Anderson writes in a clear voice about students and families who are marginalized by their differences. A copy of this book should be on every school counselor's bookshelf."
—Patricia Hart DeNoble, Clinical Social Worker, Oakdale Elementary School, Dedham, MA
A barrier-breaking guide to honoring each student's individuality
Kim L. Anderson brings her counseling expertise, personal experience, and compassionate perspective to this practical resource that cultivates "cultural competence"— an essential tool for working with diverse populations. Expanding the definition of culture, Culturally Considerate School Counseling addresses how biases have evolved in new and challenging ways, and provides strategies to help school counselors create safe and secure learning environments by:
- Recognizing the unique needs of students, including those with various spiritual beliefs and body types
- Interacting with families, faculty, administrators, and communities in culturally considerate ways
- Applying practical tools learned from case illustrations and new data
- Engaging in self-reflection, self-care, and professional growth
Each chapter features a list of competencies, including the relevant ASCA National Model standards. The volume concludes with a "Culturally Considerate Counseling" model adapted from Anderson's work with veteran Corwin author Bonnie M. Davis, who contiributes to the book with a compelling foreword.
“The author writes in a clear voice for students and families who are marginalized by their differences from the mainstream, offering practical strategies for the practitioner to use with both individuals and systems. A copy of this should be on every school counselor’s bookshelf.”
“The author’s compelling personal story and journey, which serves as a connecting narrative while also serving as a means of explicating specific points in the text, was engaging and resulted in a single-sitting, straight-through reading of the book.”
"This is an extremely thoughtful, well-referenced book that encourages counselors and educators conduct their own research and educate themselves with clients’ issues. All of us (hopefully) experience transformation in varying degrees on professional and personal levels. I feel very strongly that we must all take the responsibility to open ourselves to be transformed. Kim’s work has challenged and inspired me to continue the next steps in my own professional/personal (and thus, spiritual) evolution."
Broad based on issues to do with diversity - not overly focused just on ethnicity (which often in other texts is US centric and not representative of Canadian communities). This book encompasses ability, gender/sexual orientation, religion as well as racial considerations. Accessible and purposeful in its approach.
