The development and field testing of an instrument to measure middle school counselors' knowledge of stepchildren

School counselors are in a position to receive referrals concerning children's reactions to changing family structures and to help a stepchild adjust to stepfamily living. This study assessed the need for training and education of Virginia middle school counselors regarding their knowledge about counseling stepchildren. This was done by measuring their level of knowledge through the development and use of the instrument, Knowledge and Skills for Counseling Stepchildren: A Self Assessment (KSCS). The focus of this study was the development and refinement of the KSCS. The purpose of the instrument was to assess the training needs of middle school counselors' knowledge about counseling stepchildren. The development of the KSCS took place through conducting item analyses on two pilot studies. Results of the study established a profile of middle school counselors past preparation, current strengths and deficiencies, and the need for training in the area of counseling stepchildren. The majority of counselors had done no prior reading or taken any coursework on the counseling of stepchildren. Test scores on the KSCS were negatively skewed, reflecting a low level of knowledge and identifying a need for training and education in this area. The majority of counselors came from schools where enrollment was 501 to 1,000 and 30% of their caseloads were stepchildren. Counselors from schools where enrollment was 0 to 500 and over 1,000 had caseloads where stepchildren also represented one-third of the students counseled, indicating a consistently high population of stepchildren. The majority of counselors offered no psychological or educational counseling program specifically for stepchildren. Six counselors offered a program specifically for stepchildren and 15 offered time-limited groups for children with separated or divorced parents that addressed issues pertinent to stepfamily living. Recommendations include revisions to the KSCS and required coursework on the counseling of stepchildren for state certification of school counselors.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed. D.

Level thesis:degree_level

doctoral

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Student Personnel Services

Department dc:contributor.department

Student Personnel Services

Grantor dc:publisher

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Year dc:date.issued

1990

Author dc:creator

• Megivern, Monica M.

Chairs dc:contributor.committeechair

• Humes, Charles W.
• Fortune, Jimmie C.

Committee members dc:contributor.committeemember

• Miles, Johnnie H.
• Cromack, Theodore R.
• Little, Linda F.
• Favero, Douglas

Statement dc:rights

• In Copyright

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10919/80025

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/80025