Exemplar # 1: Case Study

STANDARDS: 18, 21, 23, 25, & 27.

Introduction
One of the first assignments early on in the program was working with an individual case
student. In CSP630 Social Justice and school systems we learned about the impact ecosystems can
have on a students achievement in school. Additionally, in CSP662 Interventions we learned ways
to apply interventions into the work we were doing with our case study at our practicum sites. The
combination of these courses guided us slowly through the entire process of working with students
as a school counselor and really exemplifies many of the standards school counselors are called to
uphold.
Standards Met
Standard 18: Professionalism, Ethics, & Legal Mandates
One of the first things we learned as school counseling trainees is the importance of being
professional, ethical, and legal in our work with students. The case study provided the first
opportunity to practice covering confidentiality, receiving permission from the parents to counsel
their students, and maintaining a professional demeanor in our correspondence with teachers and
parents throughout the counseling relationship. Through the continual secessions, interventions, and
interactions with the case study student, I was able to work through ethical and legal situations
while gaining confidence in my professional work with students.
Standard 21: Personal Social Development
For my individual case study, I worked with a student who struggled with self-control in the
classroom and on the playground. Throughout the year I implemented various interventions to help

engage the student in the classroom, as well as control impulses while on the playground with other
students. One example of an intervention implemented was when the student and I were working on
self-control. I asked the student to read a page in our book, and then sprint to the end of the walk
way and back. I then asked the student to repeat to me the definition of self-control we had just read
in the book. The student was unable to recall the definition. I repeated it to him, had him repeat it
back and then run another lap. Through continuous repetition, I found that the more the student was
able to release energy in a constructive way during the secession, the more engaged he became and
able to understand the concepts. Working with my case study forced me to be creative in my
interventions to ensure my student would continue to develop personally and reinforced the fact that
all students are unique and personal/social interventions will vary depending on the student you are
working with.
Standard 23: Advocacy
Throughout my time working with my case study student there became multiple
opportunities to advocate on his behalf. When first meeting my student, the teacher had a strong
resistance to the student and his behaviors in her classroom. Each week I would update the teacher
on the progress the student was making and check in on how he was doing in the classroom. I
needed to find a way for the teacher to have hope for the student rather than continuing to be
frustrated with him. Through the implementation of a goal setting intervention we were able to find
a compromise that kept the student in the classroom longer without disciplinary issues and enhance
his learning. When the student was given an assignment, he could work on it at his own pace, if he
completed it, he would have time to play with Legos at his desk, until the students were moving on
to the next task. Utilizing the Legos motivated the student to focus and complete his work, while

giving him the freedom to take breaks and play before moving forward with the next school related
task.
Standard 25: Individual Counseling
Working with my student one-on-one, I was able to greatly enhance my practice and skill of
individual counseling. The main purpose of the case study was to establish working with individual
students and gain experience in counseling students. Throughout the year I had five individual
students, however my case study was the longest counseling relationship. The focus of our
counseling sessions was focused on gaining self-control. In our secessions we would read books
focused on self-control and have discussions on what better choices would be for characters in the
book, we would play games focused on controlling your bodily motions, and often would have
discussions about situations that happened that day or during the week and what better choices
could be made. I really enjoyed getting to know my case study student and the development of our
relationship throughout the year. While I may have been teaching my second grader about selfcontrol, he really taught me the value of counseling students and in importance have having a strong
relationship with those you are counseling.
Standard 27: Collaboration, Coordination, & Team Building
When working with students and looking at the ecosystems of their life you quickly realize
how many people impact and influence the student and his or her outcomes. The case study helped
me see how working together with parents, teachers, noon-duties, and the school counselor could
make a positive impact on the students outcomes. Throughout my case study I had multiple
meetings with my students teacher and mother ensuring they were on the same page and that the
students goals were being reinforced throughout all areas of his life. Additionally, with the help of
the school counselor we were able to refer the student to free counseling resources outside of the

school. Working with my case study taught me the value of working with other school personnel
and the students family in order to strengthen the work you are doing as a counselor and to provide
greater support to the student, the teachers, and family all around.
Professional Application
Working on a case study throughout our first year of graduate school helped lay the
foundation and shape my future work as a school counselor. The case study provided the
opportunity to follow a student for an entire year while coving all of the stages of a counseling
relationship; through building rapport, reviewing cumulative files, meeting with teachers and
parents, setting up interventions, adjusting interventions throughout the year, and terminating the
relationship at the end of the year. The case study shaped my counseling style while reinforcing the
importance of each counseling stage.
The applications learned through the case study assignment will be applied to all future
students that I work with. Whether working with another elementary student with issues in selfcontrol or working with a high school student who suffers from anxiety, I have learned the key
techniques and soft skills to work with students at any level or in any situation.
Final Reflections
Working with a case study student provided a blank canvas to begin developing my skills,
style, and abilities to work with individual students. I am grateful to have had the experience of
working with a student throughout an entire academic school year and all of the valuable lessons I
learned through out counseling relationship. The greatest lesson I learned other than the counseling
standards, is that as school counselors we are one piece in the students life long journey of learning
and developing. We may not change everything in one year, but we have made a significant
contribution to their growth and future.