Development of Counselling Teachers’ Competency Based on Mindfulness and Action Learning Principles

Abstract

The purposes of this action research were to 1) study the behavioral and mental health problems of junior high school students and the teachers who work as counselors’ situation in expanding educational opportunity schools under Saraburi Municipalities. 2) compare the competencies of teachers who work as counselors before and after participating in the teachers’ counselor competency development based on mindfulness and action learning principle activity.  The sample size consisted of 8 teachers who work as a counselor in expanding educational opportunity schools under Saraburi Municipalities. Research tools were used in this study including the process of developing teacher counselor based on mindfulness and action learning principle activities which had 5 steps: “1. Establishing mindfulness, 2. Problem determination in student counseling problems, 3. Asking questions to understand the problem, 4. Implementation in a real situation, and 5. Exchange of implementation outcomes and learning from implementation”. Data gathering tools included the teacher counselor competency evaluation form, the children depression screening form, the student behavior questionnaire and the interviewing form for teachers who work as counselors. The descriptive statistics of percentage, mean, standard deviation and t-test were used to analyze the quantitative data. The content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data.

            The results showed that  1) 653 junior high school students, 272 had problems and need support accounted for 41.65%. The three most common problems were family problems, game addicted and conflict with their friends accounted for 6.28, 3.52 and 2.76 percent respectively. In addition, the results revealed that were no available positions for specialized teachers in counseling who should work as counselors for solving student’s behavioral and mental health problems. Teachers without counseling specialty are not confident in their counseling skills.  2) The mean score of the teacher counselor competency after the participation was significantly higher at 0.05 level.