You are a professional school counselor at a large, local public elementary school where you have been assigned as the fifth-grade counselor. A teacher has referred the following student to you for in-school counseling services.
Anaya is a short, small-framed African-Caribbean girl who is the youngest of five children in her family, with all of her siblings being boys aged 11-17. Prior to January of this school year, she and her siblings lived with their mother and father in a typical middle-income home and neighborhood. Everyone in the immediate family is very loving and protective of Anaya. Anaya relishes in the fact that her parents often call her “their little baby girl” and that her brothers proudly speak of “their baby sister”. At the beginning of the school year, Anaya was an energetic, bubbly, and vivacious girl whose presence could not be either ignored or overlooked! Given her conscientious nature, Anaya did everything she could to do well in her subjects, including readily volunteering and participating in class discussions, activities, and events. A friendly child, Anaya actively engaged in making friends, and enjoyed playing with her classmates. Since returning to school from Mid-Year/Holiday vacation, Anaya’s teacher, Mr. Hassell, has noticed a significant – if not drastic – change in Anaya. The light glow that she previously cast has dramatically dimmed. No longer is she energetic, bubbly, and vivacious. Rather, she is withdrawn and rarely speaks to others. Anaya’s grades have plummeted from solid A’s to low C’s, and she appears to be anxious and frightened with a great deal on her mind. The tone of her voice, as well as the stance of her body language, suggest that she may be sad and depressed. Moreover, her classmates now tease, taunt, and make hurtful jokes about her. In a parent-teacher conference called by Mr. Hassell to discuss Anaya’s decline in academic performance and overall “presence,” Anaya’s parents arrived independently, barely spoke to or addressed each other, and informed Mr. Hassell that they separated just after the New Year.
Anaya’s mother commented that she, Anaya, and the boys had moved in with an elder uncle, the uncle’s second wife, and their two sons, aged 20 and 22. Anaya’s mother went on to say that her children do not like the living arrangement, and especially dislike the uncle’s sons, for they are rude and say very inappropriate things with sexual connotations around Anaya. When Anaya or her brothers confront the uncle, his wife, or their sons about this, it is always “blown off”. Anaya’s father, upon hearing about this for the first time, became infuriated. He shouted and threatened Anaya’s mother that she had better immediately move his children out of her uncle’s house. Mr. Hassell sees a great deal of potential in Anaya and wants to do all he can to assist Anaya in terms of advocacy and support.
For your APA-formatted final integrative paper (Title Page, three – five pages of text, and References Page), please express how you – as Anaya’s counselor – will assist her with the concerns raised by Anaya’s teacher, as well as the issues manifested by her affect and behavior, and the apparent dynamics within her family. Elaborate on counseling issue(s) assessment, approaches, skills, resources, implications, et cetera that are pertinent to this case study. Be as inclusive and integrative as possible from what you have learned in EDU 542. You are allowed to use your textbook, other academic and professional resources, and appropriate online resources (e.g., ACA web site, ASCA website, relevant YouTube videos) to assist in completing this assignment.