TODAY’S VIEWPOINT IS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF GUIDANCE COUNSELLING IN SCHOOLS. IT IS WRITTEN BY PENSIONERS FM HEAD OF OPERATIONS, IBIWUNMI ISHOLA
The need for guidance and counselling services in all learning institutions cannot be over-emphasised.
While frank parsons, the father of the American guidance movement, is considered the father of guidance and counselling through his work in vocational advice, the beginning of modern guidance in Nigeria can be dated to 1958.
In that year, some reverend sisters of St. Theresa’s college in Ibadan, Oyo state capital, saw the importance of providing their final-year students with sufficient career or vocational assistance.
Hence, in 1958, the reverend sisters extended an invitation to interested and more enlightened people in the community to come to the school.
experts from different fields were invited to give career talks to final-year students.
This act helped students gain knowledge about the world of work, which helped many of them chose successful careers or higher education institutions thereafter.
As a result of the positive outcome, some additional schools in Ibadan and other nearby towns began to arrange career talks for their students.
Also in 1961, the federal ministry of education encouraged guidance and counselling development in schools by establishing a guidance and counselling unit.
Furthermore, as a result of this singular action, career masters and mistresses began to appear, and interested teachers in the educational system were given the task of gathering and disseminating career information to students.
Guidance and counselling embraces services for students to enhance their academic success in schools.
It makes them aware of their strengths and weaknesses, discover their interest, potentials and assist them in planning and accomplishing desired and realistic lofty goals.
Also counselling entails receiving an individual in consultation, listening and discussing the problems in order to understand and easily identify personal strength and drives.
In spite of the prominent place of guidance and counselling in Nigerian educational system, it is disheartening that the services have only been given lip-service in schools.
In most schools, the practice is entrusted to inexperienced senior members of academic staff, while in other schools, the school administrators offer skeletal guidance and counselling services for the students.
In an ideal society, guidance and counselling services in schools should be handled by professionally-trained guidance counsellors.
Meanwhile, the future of guidance and counselling services in Nigeria is dependent on finding solutions to the problems plaguing the profession.
research studies have indicated that inadequate funding which leads to lack of facilities and resources is the main hindrance to effective school guidance and counselling.
It is worthy to note that guidance and counselling in Nigeria has a promising future.
The federal government has approved study programs in guidance and counselling in most nation’s universities as a result of this understanding.
Also, almost all Nigerian universities provide guidance and counselling centres, while a lot of organizations are currently showing interest in guidance and counselling services.
It was also suggested that guidance and counselling be included in the training of Nigerian teachers.
In conclusion, government should devise and enforce policies that could help ensure that guidance counsellors in schools are still up-to date in ties with a fast-growing population.
