Exemplar #2 Analysis

Holistic Eco-systemic Case Study Analysis

Standards Met:
Standard 19 Academic Development
Standard 21 Personal and Social Development
Standard 25 Individual Counseling
Introduction
In Fall 2014, we enrolled in CSP 630: Social Justice and Holistic School Systems for School
Counselors, where we were tasked with completing a holistic eco-systemic case study based on a
student referral from our practicum site. The report detailed the eco-systemic factors that were
involved in the students academic and personal/social development. For my case study, my supervisor
referred a 7th grade student who was struggling academically and socially. In order to gain a better
understanding of the concerns, I interviewed counseling staff and teachers to better understand what
social and classroom behaviors had previously been identified. In addition to the interviews, I
conducted and evaluated observations of the student in a variety of school settings including inside and
outside of the classroom. A couple of the students teachers suggested that the student may be
showing signs of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). In response to the referral and after gathering
information, I was able to recommend interventions that would help the student to achieve educational
success.
Standards of a Comprehensive School Counseling Program
STANDARD 19: Academic Development
A full review of the students cumulative file was completed to better understand the students
academic history. The educational records of this student revealed a history of average grades and a
love for reading and art. The student excels in his current art class but a challenge lies in finding a way
to channel those talents toward other subjects as well. In partnership with my practicum supervisor, we
reached out to the students mother to offer an additional support class but the offer was denied. The

student and I continued to meet on a regular basis to monitor his grades and his progress toward
achieving the academic goals he set out for himself. Our meetings will be discussed in greater detail
under Standard 25.
STANDARD 21: Personal and Social Development
Upon completion of my observations, I found that the student often spent his nutrition and lunch break
eating alone or with one other student. As an intervention to support the students personal/social
development and create connectedness on campus for this student, he was invited to participate in a
lunchtime activity called Club BOND. The student participated each week and as the weeks progressed
the student interacted more and more with the other Club BOND students. As a result, we saw an
increase in his social interactions with other students. As school counselors, its important we
understand the connection between a students personal/social development and their academic
success. As the student was building more relationships at school, his grades began to increase and his
English grade, in particular, increased when his teacher incorporated his artistic talent into one of the
assignments.
STANDARD 25: Individual Counseling
After conducting several observations of the student, I began meeting with the student individually to
gain the students perspective of his academic performance. We met regularly to review his academic
progress. As part of our meetings, we identified specific goals and what steps the student would take to
achieve his goals. During each meeting, the student rated his actions and progress toward achieving his
goals and made adjustments to his plan, as necessary. Another important piece of the individual
counseling was providing personal/social support. The student discussed aspects of his home life and
how it was affecting his school work. In addition, we discussed extracurricular activities that the student
was involved in and how to create balance between the activities and finishing school work for the

following day. In this case, the individual counseling was an essential piece to understanding the
students goals and helping him to succeed academically and socially.
Conclusion
From this assignment, I learned the importance of understanding students holistically. As
graduation nears and I gain more experience at my current fieldwork site, I also realize the importance
of understanding students from an academic and personal/social perspective. Often times in education,
an immense amount of focus is put on grades and how well students are doing in their classes. With
grades at the forefront, its easy to miss other factors that can be contributing to a students academic
success or lack of success. As a future school counselor, it is my duty to recognize and support students
when there are personal/social areas that need development. It isnt one or the other, academics and
personal/social development go hand-in-hand. Looking back on this assignment, if I could do one think
differently it would be to put less emphasis on the observations provided by teachers and more
emphasis on my personal interactions with the student. Its easy to be swayed by the remarks of
another professional when you havent had an opportunity to get to know a student on your own.
Fortunately in this case, I was given the opportunity to know the student well and knew that although
his teachers offered great insight, their opinions were not the end all for this students future.
As I reflect on my two years in the program, this assignment is one of my favorite assignments
because it allowed me an opportunity to connect with a student on a deeper level. From the connection
I built with this student, I feel I am more aware of what it takes to understand a student holistically and
the benefits of allowing for that type of relationship.