Welcome to Fingal Community College Guidance Counselling Service.
Guidance in Fingal Community College involves a range of learning experiences, provided in a developmental sequence that assist students to develop self-management skills which will lead to effective choices and decisions about their lives. Guidance is viewed as a continuum, an on-going process which begins before the young person enters the school and continues until they graduate from secondary school. While Guidance Counselling is delivered by professionally trained School Guidance Counsellors, it is also acknowledged that Guidance is a whole-school approach. Management, teaching staff, SNAs, Student Support Team, Year Heads, parents, and students are all important stakeholders whose input is welcomed in the delivery of this Guidance Counselling service, which in turn forms part of the overall school Guidance Plan.
The students' needs, on which the school Guidance Counselling service is based, can be grouped under three headings: Educational, Career and Personal & Social guidance.
- Educational Guidance Counselling - this area of guidance recognises individual learning abilities as well as a young person's innate talents. Students receive support to access relevant information, to use resources available and to develop the skills necessary to gain maximum benefit from their time in school. Workshops and guidance meetings involving study skills, exam answering techniques, goal setting, programme choice, subject choice, and levels, form part of this process.
- Career Guidance Counselling - the Guidance Counsellor helps individuals to identify career goals by developing their self-analysis skills in addition to sourcing and managing career information. Students explore and clarify career possibilities. They are supported to make informed decisions and to take the necessary practical steps to implement these decisions.
- Personal Guidance Counselling - this strand of guidance aims to empower the young person to make decisions, and to develop the skills and attitudes necessary to help cope successfully with their personal and social relationships both inside and outside school.
Counselling is viewed as an interactive learning process between counsellor and the young person which approaches, in a holistic way, the personal, educational and/or career needs of the student. The counselling service can offer support to individuals outside the classroom context. The Guidance Department also aims to promote both the pastoral and the disciplinary structures in the school. Anxiety issues, social exclusion, bullying, family crisis, scholastic under-achievement, abuse, sexual identity issues, peer pressure and self-esteem issues are some of the concerns with which the Guidance Counsellor can offer support.
Guidance is provided in the following ways:
- Individual and group guidance counselling is available, as appropriate
- Classroom career guidance in both Junior and Senior Cycle
- Study Skills & Exam Answering workshops for each year group, 1st - 6th year
- Parents & guardians will meet with the School Guidance Counsellors at Information Evenings, at organised guidance meetings and on request
- Presentations to parents & guardians on year appropriate guidance including subject choices and applications to Higher and Further Education
- Aptitude and Career Interest Inventories are administered by the Guidance Counsellors
- Organised in-school talks given by representatives from Institutes of Higher and Further Education, employment bodies and so on
- Referral where necessary (e.g. Educational Psychologist), specialised counselling, etc
- Ms O'Brien attends weekly meetings of the Student Support Team and works closely with Year Heads and school management
- On-going support of students with special educational needs, students who are at-risk and students who require additional support
Individual appointments are available as required. Depending on the needs of the student, referral to external agencies may be required and will be communicated to parents. Our confidentiality policy is communicated to all students in class and at their initial appointment.
Incoming First Years
The School Guidance Counsellors introduce the elements of the service to the first year classes. It will be a new educational resource to incoming students, therefore it is important that the availability of the Guidance Department is made known to them. Students are informed of the procedure of using a guidance slip to leave class.
Parents & Guardians
At Fingal Community College, parents and guardians are welcome to visit the Guidance Counsellor, organised by appointment. Alternatively, an email or phone-call regarding concerns can be accommodated quickly.
Fiona O'Brien
Guidance Counsellor
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