School Counselors’ Current Experiences in the Classroom in a Post-Pandemic Era: A Mixed-Methods Study

Abstract

School counselors support the academic, career, and social/emotional development of all students in their care, and one important method of delivery of a comprehensive school counseling program is the use of classroom instruction. In this exploratory, sequential mixed-methods study, we examined participant responses from nine focus groups regarding the school counselors’ experiences with delivery of classroom lessons, in combination with a national survey of 247 practicing school counselors. Results underscored participants’ desire to spend more time in classrooms and ongoing barriers to classroom access. We discuss implications for school counseling practice and school counselor education.