When you meet with your counselor, be sure to bring plenty of questions
By: AGNES DIGGS - Staff Writer | ∞
When the time comes for students to meet with a counselor to form a strategic plan for the academic future, here's some advice to the wise -- go prepared.
"It helps if they have at least started thinking about their future," said Vicki Montgomery, counselor at Valley Center High School. "What are their plans beyond high school? If they have any idea what career they're interested in, that helps us plan."
Ditto and more, said Bonnie Laughlin of Carlsbad, director of college counseling at Francis Parker, a private college preparatory school.
Laughlin, also an independent consultant, teaches the ABCs of college counseling for the National College Board, Western region. She has a master's degree in college counseling and also teaches in the college counseling certificate program at UC San Diego.
Start with a list
Laughlin offered a wealth of advice for students and families whose goal is college.
"I always appreciated it when kids had their questions written out," she said. "That can open up communication. Give me a starting point, and we can go from there."
She suggests students start from the goal they wish to reach and map out the plan necessary to get there.
"Understand what needs to be done each year so when you get to your senior year, you'll be done," said Laughlin. "It's important to get off on the right foot, know your strengths and weaknesses.
"Make an advance plan for the next three years that you can revisit every year, before you sign up for classes the next year. That (the plan) is always something we come back to, and it's always something very flexible. It's easier to tweak a plan than to create a plan at the last minute."
Don't be afraid to ask
Parents and young people should discuss and list questions they want answered. During the meeting with the counselor, the student can take notes, then take the information home to discuss with parents, Laughlin said.
Other counselors note that while it's easy to tell students, "Ask questions," that advice is not so easy to implement.
"In the average class, students are reluctant to ask questions," said Joyce Suber, director, Region 9 of the AVID program of the San Diego County Office of Education. AVID stands for Advancement Via Individual Determination education program. Part of the problem, Suber said, is that students haven't been encouraged to ask questions.
"We're getting to the point where we give them everything," she said. "It handicaps them. They don't know how to problem-solve. For instance, calculators are good, but they (students) don't learn the process involved with finding the solution. In the process, they have to ask questions. They have to critically think about the answers."
Sometimes students don't know how to frame a question. Part of the problem is that they have to step outside their comfort level to get to the information they need.
"It's fear of whether the teacher will accept the questions," Suber said. "It's fear about what their peers will think, because students are more afraid of each other than anything."
How adults can help
Adults are crucial in helping motivate students to seek information and become more comfortable with question-and-answer exchanges, she said.
"Parents are in the forefront, the first teachers," she continued. "So they have to be part of that. If parents really want to know how their children are doing, they need to ask questions. Not just 'how was your day?' but what did they learn, what does it mean, how does it relate to what you learned last week. And if the child can explain it, that means they are learning the concept. If not, they know they have to go back and ask questions."
At Fallbrook High School, college and career counselor Karen Ritchie and staffers in the career center begin an outreach program to students even before they hit the campus. It starts with making sure that everyone knows about the four-year plan to meet graduation requirements and that everyone's on the right path to that goal.
A typical question Ritchie gets is, "Are we doing what we're supposed to be doing?" The answer depends on what it is the student wants to do, she said.
It's becoming more and more critical for parents and students to understand the importance of the four-year plan, Ritchie said, "because, with the competition for colleges and universities, we don't have a lot of time to backtrack and fix problems."
Her advice to students and parents is to learn as soon as possible what resources are available.
"You can't wait for information to fall in your lap," she said. Parents should attend "school nights" so they can establish contact with teachers and school officials for the future.
Bonnie Laughlin suggests that the optimum plan, especially for seniors, would be to have a short list of schools they are interested in and why. Then, she said, they should do some self-analysis. "Ask yourself what you like and don't like. What kind of learner am I? What sports, clubs, subjects, types of other kids do you like? All that becomes fodder for a counselor when they sit down to plan. All those things can help a counselor pinpoint colleges that are going to fit."
Nine's the number
The ninth grade is a good place to start planning, Laughlin said. It marks the beginning of the cumulative grade average. Choose classes carefully, she counsels. "Go in strong and come out stronger. If you start off strong, you lay a strong foundation, and it can stand a few cracks."
Another important element, particularly for freshmen, is to visit some of the local colleges.
"Students can decide whether they like the anonymity of a big school or the intimacy of a small one," Laughlin said. "That's a huge thing to understand. And I can't think of any better way to get a ninth-grader really motivated than to take them to a college campus and see what it's about. Chances are they'll work harder to get there."
Where the anxiety sets in is when the students wait too long to know what they want to do or what they need to do, Laughlin said.
"My last statement in almost every parent workshop is that it's not where you go to college, it's what you do at the college you go to. This should be a fun, learning discovery project, but if you wait until senior year, it's not. It's an anxiety-ridden process," she said.
Contact staff writer Agnes Diggs at (760) 740-3511 or adiggs@nctimes.com.
TRY THIS EXERCISE
Bonnie Laughlin of Carlsbad, director of college counseling at Francis Parker High School, suggests this exercise to start getting into the college mind-set:
- Quiz your teachers, coaches or parents. Ask questions such as, "Where did you graduate from college? Did you start there or at a two-year college?"
"It's important to get comfortable with asking questions of adults," Laughlin said.
- Also, interview a professional person such as a doctor, veterinarian, lawyer, or even just a neighbor. Ask what they studied in college, what was their major, what did they do to reach where they are right now.
-- Staff writer
Agnes Diggs
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