Standard 3

Socio-Cultural Competence

The program provides candidates with opportunities and experiences to display an understanding of ways in which ethnic, cultural, socioeconomic, and environmental factors influence pupil learning and achievement. Candidates will learn skills to work effectively with pupils and their families from diverse backgrounds. The program provides candidates with an understanding and appreciation for diversity.

An understanding of the importance of developing cultural competence is provided to candidates in order to effectively serve diverse and changing communities. The program provides candidates with an understanding of the ways in which educational policies; programs and practices can be developed, adapted, and modified to be culturally congruent with the needs of pupils and their families.

Introduction

The diversity dimension that permeates all courses in the PPS program exposes counseling candidates to cultural differences, diversity, and life style issues.  This exposure is designed to examine useful strategies for the needs of a culturally, socially, and economically diverse American population.  To address this important set of issues, each student is asked to complete a course in Coun 201, Seminar in Multicultural Aspects of Counseling.  In this setting, students have opportunities to explore self-awareness along racial, cultural, and ethnic lines.  They are helped to explore attitudes, values, behaviors, and communication styles that could impede or facilitate a cross-cultural relationship.  The student is asked to identify, provide, and implement strategies for culturally responsive practices. 

Factors to Consider

1. Primary course that addresses Standard 3:

All objectives of Coun 201, Seminar in Multicultural Aspects of Counseling, address factors to consider in Standard 3, Socio-Cultural Competence.  The objectives are listed below:

Coun 201: 

Objectives:

• Be aware of your own cultural values, biases and ethnic identity.  The graduate student will explore personal attitudes, values, and behaviors, as well as explore his/her own racial/cultural identity with respect to the culturally different client.  
• Gather information and gaining social/historical understanding regarding a selected non-mainstream, socio-cultural population in the United States.  The advanced student will gain knowledge of the varied social and psychological experiences of selected U.S. American minority, immigrant and recent refugee groups.
• Apply counseling/psychological theory and data to cross-cultural communication.  The graduate student will identify significant communication and relationship patterns that may impede or enhance the cross-cultural counseling interaction process. 
• Review current literature on methods and outcome studies in cross-cultural counseling and therapy.
• Learn to identify strategies for implementing culturally responsive counseling and therapeutic practices.
• Identify ethical issues relevant to counseling the culturally different.

In order to meet the above objectives, candidates are provided with the following activities:

• Assignment Participate in an Immersion/Emersion Project in which candidates are asked to meet with someone of a different background once a week for an hour
• Develop a treatment intervention based on the healthy aspects of the informant’s background

2. Secondary courses that address factors to consider in Standard 3:

In addition, other courses in the PPS program reinforce candidates’ knowledge and experience relating to cross-cultural issues and further develop candidates’ competence and proficiency in rendering services in school settings.

Course	Course objectives
Coun 150	The student will identify multicultural issues and concerns that relate to specific applications of law relating to minors. Assignment: LawsA
Coun 200	Compare and contrast counseling techniques appropriate for various client populations, including multicultural and social equity populations Assignment: TechniquesA
Coun 202	The student will identify approaches used in working with persons from varied social, ethnic, and cultural diversity groups, including people with disabilities and evaluateattitudes, beliefs, understandings, and acculturative experiences, including specific experiential learning activities designed to foster understanding of self and culturally diverse clients Assignment: GroupA
Coun 203	The student will identify approaches used in working with persons from varied social, ethnic, and cultural diversity groups, including people with disabilities and evaluateattitudes, beliefs, understandings, and acculturative experiences, including specific experiential learning activities designed to foster understanding of self and culturally diverse clients Assignment: AsssessmentA
Coun 206	Identify the limitations of traditional developmental models with respect to ethnic, cultural and special populations. Identify the effects of family dynamics, family life cycle events, and socioeconomic factors on development. Assignment: LifespanR
Coun 208	To provide experiences directed toward the improvement of candidate’s ability to communicate with clients of all ethnic, racial and cultural diversity groups and be involved in the necessary activities toward solution of identified problems. Assignment: PracticumR
Coun 220	Relate career development counseling and cultural value systems to populations and groups CareerA
Coun 233	Understands family development and the life cycle, sociology of the family, family phenomenology, contemporary families, family wellness, families and culture, aging and family issues, family violence, and related family concerns Assignment: TheraplayA
Coun 240	Demonstrate the ability to work knowledgeably, effectively, and sensitively with families whose culture and/or language differs from his or her own Assignment: ExceptionalA
Coun 241	Able to promote the use of ethical standards and procedures in working with pupils who come from different socio-economic, racial, and social backgrounds. Assignment: OrganizationA
Coun 242	Identify the cultural issues in developing and applying methods of consultation services. Assignment: AdvocacyA
Coun 249	Demonstrate an awareness of socio-cultural factors by working with students from diverse cultural backgrounds in an approved elementary school setting. Assignment: FieldworkA
CI 285	Students become more conversant with culturally-based theories of learning and implications for practice Assignment: CurriculumA

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