COVID-19’s Effect on Students: How School Counselors Rise to the Rescue

Impact of Trauma

Mental health experts predict high expected levels of depression, substance abuse, posttraumatic stress disorder, and suicide in students returning to school after the COVID-19 lockdowns (Wan, 2020). The coronavirus bills passed by Congress included little support for the upcoming mental health issues in the country—with much less support in schools. Wan noted nearly 20% of the United States population is expected to be unemployed during the summer of 2020 due to the COVID-19 shutdowns, affecting financial stress and subsequent family issues. Frasquilho et al. (2016) noted a clear connection between parental distress due to unemployment and financial struggles with adolescent emotional problems due to the tension in the home as a result of COVID-19.

There is a concern among experts that many students will be reentering schools from the COVID-19 lockdowns with family, after experiencing or witnessing multiple Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) including abuse of a child; whether it is sexual, emotional, or physical in nature (Schauss et al., 2019). Research has shown that ACEs clearly affect development in the adolescent brain. Administrators and school counselors see many of these children bring these experiences into schools; sometimes along with aggressive and violent behaviors. Dillard and Beaujolais (2019) found that the cycle of violence including “early sexual and physical victimization experiences are shown to be of etiological significance as pathways to adolescent engagement in sexually abusive behaviors” (p. 643). Forster et al. (2020) discovered a connection between adolescents suffering from ACEs and school violence; such as, bringing or being threatened with a weapon on campus, bullying, fighting, or vandalism. The research showed adolescents who had witnessed an ACE can be victims or perpetrator in school violence.

School counselors are on the front line in assessing needs and providing care to school-age children in a PK-12 setting (Cook et al., 2019). Howell et al. (2019) noted severe impulsivity, increased challenges with higher order thinking, and significant delays in sociability and academic performance are often some of the long-term impact adolescents with a history of trauma face. Research has shown that students suffering from trauma need consistent mental health services, which school counselors can provide short term during the school day. Due to the COVID-19 stay-at-home order and school closures, there had been a lack of consistent mental health services provided. School counselors are trained to refer students and families to mental health counselors (ASCA, 2019) while continuing to support students at school (Howell et al., 2019; Lenares-Solomon et al., 2019).

Intervention and Preventative Screening

By incorporating early intervention and preventive measures using screening tools such as the ACE, Generalized Anxiety Disorder-Seven Item Scale (GAD-7), Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT), and School Refusal Assessment Scale, school counselors can potentially prevent or reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression as well as early substance use (Venta et al., 2019). The ACE questionnaire can help schools identify specific traumatic events or chronic stressors that may impact a child’s academics, behavior, and social and emotional competence (Mendelson et al., 2015; Pataky et al., 2019). This tool is used to identify the 10 types of childhood traumas that a child might have experienced.

The GAD-7 is a self-administered questionnaire that can help detect and determine the possible symptoms of GAD. While the GAD-7 is a commonly used questionnaire, researchers Thompson et al. (2015) also recommended that schools consider implementing a variety of brief anxiety assessments that can be easily used in a school setting by trained school counselors such as Beck Anxiety Inventory for Youth, Self-Report for Childhood Anxiety-Related Emotional Disorders, The Spence Children’s Anxiety Scale, Behavioral Assessment System for Children’s Second Addition, and The Child Behavior Checklist.

The SBIRT is an evidenced-based and very promising substance abuse assessment tool and practice that schools can use to detect early identification of children and adolescents; mostly for students at-risk for alcohol and other drug use (Maslowsky et al., 2017). SBIRT has three main components (a) screening, (b) brief Intervention, and (c) referral to treatment. The three components can be conducted in schools by a trained school counselor.

Another issue with the quarantine, with constant connectivity with parents, is separation anxiety. The School Refusal Assessment Scale-Revised is a 10-minute self-reporting questionnaire that can be administered to children aged 5 years and older (Heyne et al., 2017). The four functional conditions are (a) avoidance of stimuli provoking negative affectivity, (b) escape from aversive social and/or evaluative situations, (c) attention seeking, and (d) tangible rewards. As an early intervention, this screening tool can help schools identify possible reasons the child is avoiding school. In addition, parents can complete the parent questionnaire that identifies the frequency the child experiences emotions and behaviors related to school attendance.

With students reentering school after COVID-19 lock downs, screening tools overall can offer a great deal of insight to school leaders, teachers, and parents regarding the trauma and the emotional, mental, and academic distress students may have experienced due to the pandemic. Therefore, schools utilizing the appropriate screening tools by a trained professional such as a school counselor is critical. School counselors have been uniquely trained to provide mental health counseling by assisting with the social and emotional needs of students. Screenings that identify issues related to psychological distress could help school counselors provide more immediate interventions when possible and make the appropriate referrals to mental health professionals, which may help prevent or reduce the symptoms of anxiety and depression that could lead to suicidal ideations (Thompson et al., 2015).

Suicide

There is clear correlation between natural disasters and high suicide rates (Cousins, 2016; Pruitt et al., 2020). For example, after a 2015 earthquake in Nepal suicide rates increased 41% in the six months immediately following the natural disaster (Cousins, 2016). Pruitt et al. (2020) suggested school districts strategize suicide safety plans in advance for students at risk after returning from the pandemic.

School counselors are in an ideal position to educate students and stakeholders about risks and warning signs of suicide, influencing school culture to improve the lives of vulnerable students, and referring potentially suicidal students to additional professional help (Gallo, 2017). From 2000 to 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted a 30% increase in the overall suicide rate in the United States (Miron et al., 2019). The CDC reported suicide is the second leading cause of death of adolescents (Liu & Spirito, 2019). The suicide rate of youth aged 15 to 19 years is at its highest since 2000, rising from 8 per 100,000 adolescents to nearly 12 per 100,000 in 2016 (Miron et al., 2019). Teenage males completed suicide at a rate of nearly 18 per 100,000 adolescents. However, while adolescent male suicide rates overall are higher, female adolescent suicide rates are rising faster (Mirick et al., 2019). The CDC reported female suicide doubled from 2005 through 2015.

The National Survey on Drug Use and Health also reported the suicide rate of adolescents increased 52% from 2005 through 2017 (Twenge et al., 2018). Research suggested causes of the rising adolescent suicide rates include the unset of the popularity of social media which could cause depressive symptoms leading to suicide (Miron et al., 2019; Twenge et al., 2018). Imagine the mental health issues at schools when combining the pandemic and the new reliance on social media with impressionable adolescent students. School counselors are a factor in reducing suicide ideation in students through their training and school-wide prevention programs (Granello & Zyromski, 2018).

Technology Addiction

At the onset of the stay-at-home orders, families were “hunkered down” with basic desires for family harmony while relaxing screen time regulations and, in many cases, encouraging television and internet viewing. While youth’s video and media attention had been a growing concern, the depth and frequency has increased immensely during the pandemic, with a reported 45% increase in gaming during the initial month of the stay at home order (Gough, 2020). Similarly, a popular social media application with adolescents, TikTok, increased by 33% beginning the middle of March until the middle of April 2020 (Williamson, 2020). Another popular social media application, Snapchat, saw a 50% increase in video calls and 25% longer time with Lenses, their animation to enhance pictures and videos (Hutchison, 2020). Addiction to technology was on the rise prior to the pandemic (Hou et al., 2019), and the pandemic will cause further increase. The problems associated with these addictions will surface in school performance, academically, emotionally, and socially. Hou et al. (2019) found that addictions to social media adversely affected students’ mental health. Bahamonde (2019) shared that youth’s increased use of technology has had negative effects on their ability to cope and increase in mental health issues. School counselors are well informed to recognize the impact social media and can assist students and their families.

School Safety

Jackson-Cherry and Erford (2018) noted that “schools provide the first opportunity for intervention with children who are exhibiting behavioral problems and struggling with academics, both of which are associated with violence” (p. 193). School safety is a major concern of political and school leaders, as new policies are being formed (Berkowitz et al., 2019). Issues around COVID-19, such as masks versus no masks, have taken a political slant and tensions rise in many arenas. Agitation from the negative impact of the coronavirus can cause displaced aggression and schools may be the outlet from some youth. As stated above, students suffering from ACEs can be violent, requiring safety plans relying on collaboration of school leaders, including school counselors, and the community (Schauss et al, 2019).

A positive school climate is cultivated by school counselors’ trusting relationships with students, staff, and administration. Such trust opens communication in the event of threats of violence. Studies have shown children and youth are more successful if they feel a sense of belonging in their social settings (Lapan et al., 2014). Connected school environments and responsive school counseling programs were the strongest protective factors in positive youth outcomes; including, increased academics, attendance, and test scores, and decreased the negative effects of risk factors. With the increase of student difficulties, trauma, crisis, and violence, schools must be a safe and secure environment. School counselors assist with mental health in schools by providing discussions to increase awareness and empathy, which can reduce negative experience and increase positive school climate. School counselor education programs include crisis training relevant to school counselors’ roles and responsibilities to prepare for unimaginable situations such as COVID-19 (Springer et al., 2020).

The standardized assessment protocol, that school counselors are trained to implement, can be an effective tool in identifying individuals early enough to prevent violence in the schools (Amman et al., 2017). In a study of 18 cases of school shooters from 1996 to 2012, researchers examined variables such as individual factors and behaviors, family dynamics and triggering events (Lenhardt et al., 2018). Data revealed 94% of the shooters had demonstrated a lack of self-confidence and resilience. Additionally, 67% of the shooters studied experienced alienation and bullying, or had issued a violent threat previously. Paolini (2015) suggested school counseling interventions to mitigate violence such as breaking down he codes of silence, conducting mental health evaluations, promoting safe learning environments, using threat/risk assessments, collaborating with mental health agencies, and teaching student’s self-regulation and conflict resolution.

The school shootings at Columbine and Stoneman Douglas are two examples of student mental health issues affecting school safety. Individual and small group counseling with students suffering from depression and bullying by school counselor could identify potential at risk behavior preventing further school shootings (Crepeau-Hobson et al., 2005). Austin et al. (2016) noted that a positive school climate promotes school safety by school counselors collaborating with school principals to identify students suffering from mental health illness.

School Counselors Are Trained in Mental Health

While nothing has prepared educators for this pandemic situation, the issues resulting from COVID-19 will affect students, staff, and communities when schools return to normal attendance in school buildings. This pandemic is truly a crisis, and school counselors are trained in dealing with crises systematically and individually (Brown, 2018). School counselors are trained for the mass of current and rising concerns that will be exaggerated after a crisis such as COVID-19, specifically to meet standards set by the ASCA, Council of Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP), Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination, and Council of Accreditation of Education Programs. Similar to mental health programs, school counselors from CACREP accredited school counseling programs are instructed in many of the same courses such as human growth and development, multicultural, assessments for diagnostic and intervention, group counseling, and theories and techniques (CACREP, 2016, Section 2.f). School counselors have unique training to address all students’ academic, career, and social/emotional development needs and make a positive impact on student achievement, attendance, and behavior (ASCA, 2019).

Subsequently, school counselors work effectively with students on a variety of social and emotional issues from “ . . . substance abuse, mental health, and family and school violence,” continuing on with “ . . . gangs, suicide, divorce, pregnancy, poverty, and homelessness to the growing list of concerns that affect student achievement,” and “the additional concerns of marginalized students including immigrants; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning youth; and students subjected to cyberbullying” (Wilder, 2018, p. 60). While no one knows with certainty the degree this pandemic will affect students when they reenter school, school counselors will be able to mitigate the aforementioned issues and address the individual needs of affected students.

Though school counselors have historically been left out of education decisions, their unique and extensive training of 48 to 60 credit hours from CACREP accredited program, makes their voices vital in educational decisions promoting student academic, social/emotional, and career and college readiness. While decreased funding demands that administrators review line items, they must recognize the important role school counselors play in attending to students’ social/emotional needs and retain them to assist students, staff, families, and the community in this time of crisis.

The Role of the School Counselor

During and after the pandemic, school counselors may be the only source of mental health counseling in school buildings, assisting students with their social emotional needs (ASCA, 2016; Donohue et al., 2015; Springer et al., 2020). The school counselor is often the only mental health provider identifying, managing, and providing interventions for students at risk and can communicate with multiple districts, parents, and mental health stakeholders (Donohue et al., 2015; Springer et al., 2020). Generally, even in nonpandemic times, school staff notice mental health issues before families since students normally spend most of their time at school (ASCA, 2016; Gallo, 2017). The ASCA noted in the fourth edition of the ASCA National Model that during a crisis, such as the return from the Coronavirus, schools should have an organized response in collaboration with administrators and school counselors to ensure student mental health needs are considered (ASCA, 2019).

Jackson-Cherry and Erford (2018) summarized the role of the school counseling in a crisis:

During times of crisis, the role of the professional counselor is critical. Counselors are expected to provide counseling for students, coordinate all counseling activities, communicate with faculty and parents, seek support from the crisis team, and contact neighboring schools. Counselors provide direct counseling services during intervention and postvention phases of the crisis. They are expected to serve students and personnel during times of crisis by providing individual and group interventions; to consult with administrators, faculty, parents, and professionals; and to coordinate services with the school and the community. (p. 409)

Due to the COVID-19 crisis, administrators and school counselors should meet to discuss plans supporting students in overcoming the barriers and obstacles of mental and physical health issues and the low academic retention rate following the 6 to 9 months without normal schooling (Brat et al., 2016). School counselors were trained to handle such crises in their master’s programs (Havlik et al., 2019), so their designated tasks should be fully related to school counseling activities, including focusing on the mental health and social emotional needs of their student clients.

According to Wilder (2018), many school counselors are unable to adequately serve their students and schools effectively because they are performing noncounseling tasks. The noncounseling duties that could hamper school counselors from assisting and advocating for students in crisis include test coordination, discipline, substitute teaching, lunch or bus duty, data entry, and “coordinating school-wide individual education plans, student study teams, response to intervention plans, Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS), and school attendance review boards” (ASCA, 2019, p. 67). However, while school counselors should not be leading academic teams and reviews, such as MTSS, they must be intentional in the collaborating with teachers and staff to support and advocate for students to receive all needed accommodations (Ziomek-Daigle et al., 2016). Considering the high mental health and behavioral needs of returning students from the isolation of COVID-19 lockdowns, school counselors are going to be on call assisting students returning to school. For example, Wilder (2018) cited Rock et al. (2017) who noted proper collaboration between school counselors and principals helped to improve school climate, student achievement, and respect between faculty and students. Indeed, noncounseling tasks take away valuable time school counselors need to complete their actual school counseling services (Rose, 2019).

The ASCA National Model lists appropriate duties for school counselors that will be helpful as students return to school after the long absence. This list includes providing counseling to students who are tardy or exhibiting behavior problems, providing short-term individual and small group mental health counseling, social emotional classroom lessons for promoting coping skills, and the previously noted consultations with administrators, teachers, parents, families, and community stakeholders (2019). The ASCA recommends that school counseling preparation programs emphasize the need for inclusion on school leadership teams, collaboration with stakeholders, and serving as educational leaders. According to Rose (2019), many principals do not know the complete training that school counselors receive in their master’s degree programs.

ASCA (2019) posits that school counselors design and deliver a comprehensive program that addresses the developmental needs of all students. ASCA recommends 80% of a school counselor’s time is spent on providing direct and indirect services to students. School counseling programs that follow this ASCA model assist the school by creating and delivering classroom lessons and providing individual and group counseling (Randick et al., 2018), while focusing students’ mental health and academic success after suffering from months of a crisis. School counselors can develop action plans aligning with the ASCA Mindsets & Behaviors standards and include an evaluation to ensure effectiveness (ASCA, 2019; Dack & Merlin-Knoblich, 2019).

School counselors can also provide children with the tools they need to help regulate their emotions during difficult and challenging times. “Group work with children and adolescents were effective in decreasing bullying behaviors, increasing self-esteem for children of alcoholics, decreasing trauma-related anxiety in young survivors of natural disasters, and decreasing levels of anxiety and increasing academic performance for children” (Corey et al., 2018, p. 343). On many levels, leadership roles for school counselors for social and emotional development for students is critically essential. School counselors have the skills promoting confidence and unity among students proactively instead of reactively to eliminating mental health crisis’ after life altering events such as returning to school from a pandemic.

Practical Applications and Direct Student Services

Jackson-Cherry and Erford (2018) listed several ways in which school counselors use their expertise in crisis management to facilitate a safe learning environment. School counselors collaborate and consult with various stakeholders such as administrators, teachers, parents, families, and their communities to create prevention and intervention programs for crisis response. While school counselors are not expected to provide long-term therapy, there are various counseling theories they can apply in a school setting to offer individual counseling to those directly affected, group counseling to aid those who have been exposed to crisis situations, and activities in the classroom to teach coping and prevention programs.

Fein et al. (2008) noted school counselors are trained in forms of person-centered, narrative, and family systems’ counseling that could assist students struggling when dealing with COVID-19 issues. Person-centered counseling provides the foundation for an empathetic and safe environment for students. Narrative theory allows students to “to ventilate some of their feelings in a safe environment” (Fein, 2003, p. 89). Family theory helps students with their situations at home and in the school community (Fein et al., 2008). Additionally, other theories and specific techniques that are implemented by school counselors to promote students’ social and emotional development. These include but are not limited to solution-focused brief counseling, reality therapy, and cognitive behavior therapy (CBT).

Solution-focused brief counseling focuses on what an individual would like to see happen, rather than on the perceived problem. This approach is applicable with elementary as well as secondary aged students. Reality therapy promotes the importance self-responsibility and is rather prevalent with middle and high school students, but can be used with younger children (Studer, 2016). cognitive behavior therapy focuses on using coping statements and hands-on strategies to help increase positive thinking and behaviors by minimizing irrational thoughts that lead to unhealthy outcomes. This is a well-known counseling method that is often used with children and adolescents, specifically, in treating anxiety disorders (Yeo et al., 2016). All of these approaches can be applied to individual and small group counseling, and in some cases, classroom instruction.

In a study of children suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder after “Hurricane Katrina,” Salloum and Overstreet (2008) found counseling in elementary schools improved the mental health of affected children. The intervention used either group or individual counseling for 10 weeks with “three overlapping phases: resilience and safety, restorative retelling, and reconnecting. Techniques from cognitive behavioral therapy and narrative therapy were combined to address trauma and losses” (p. 497). School counselors using similar techniques could be beneficial in mitigating trauma associated with the impact of COVID-19 as students return to school.

School counselors could also assist in addressing the mental health concerns by developing a comprehensive school counseling program along with offering a MTSS (King-White, 2019) through the “deliver” component of the ASCA model via providing direct student services at three different levels. The “deliver” component consists of instruction, appraisal and advisement, and counseling. Appraisal and advisement are key elements to ensure that students are guided appropriately in their academic and postsecondary planning, and are often the main tasks of school counselors; however, classroom instruction and counseling, which are typically done less at the high school level, will be essential in addressing the social and emotional needs of post-COVID-19.

According to Fabiano and Evans (2019), as cited by King-White (2019), a multitiered support system consists of three levels of intervention designed to provide mental health support. For example, tier one focuses on providing prevention and intervention information for the entire faculty and student body, tier two takes it a step further providing services to identified at-risk students, while tier three hones in on those students who may need even more intensified attention. In considering the return to school after COVID-19, school counselors could use this multitiered approach as follows:

In Tier 1, school counselors can provide professional develop to faculty and staff offering trauma-informed care and ACE awareness and strategies. Mental screening, which is another role of the school counselor, could also be done at this level, as was shown in a high school study by Erickson and Abel (2013). They used the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale-Second edition to screen for depression and mental illness in school high health classes. The school counselors followed the screening with classroom guidance lessons teaching the signs of depression and mental illness and the steps to receive any needed assistance. Additionally, they contacted mental health stakeholders in the community to speak to the student body about assistance opportunities.

In Tier 2, school counselors collaborate with teachers, administrators, and parents to identify students who exhibit behavioral issues possibly due to the results of COVID-19. School counselors conduct various small group counseling sessions providing more in-depth activities and lessons on depression, mental illness, stress, and coping strategies. These small groups would also serve as a support system for students experiencing similar issues. Individual counseling could be offered at this tier for students with more specific needs.

In Tier 3, school counselors assess and make appropriate referrals to other service agencies such as mental health and the department of social services, for example, to assist in ensuring students dealing with more severe cases receive the appropriate wraparound care out of the scope of the school or the school counselor.

By creating a comprehensive school counseling program and aligning its concepts with multitiered programs such as positive behavioral interventions and supports and MTSS teams within the building, school counselors will be able to assist in enhancing student success; socially, academically, and behaviorally (Goodman-Scott & Grothaus, 2018). Moreover, such school-wide programs aid in the perception of safer schools (Betters-Bubonet al., 2016; Goodman-Scott & Grothaus, 2018) as well as other positive perceptions of school climate and the overall health of a school (Goodman-Scott et al., 2015).

Summary

During the global pandemic, many youth and adolescents are encountering trauma due to social isolation and adverse and childhood experiences causing an increase in mental health issues. If unaddressed, cases related to suicidality, technology addition, and school safety may continue to rise. Consequently, schools will need to be prepared not only to address the academic deficiencies resulting from the COVID-19 quarantine, but they must also develop and employ interventions to assist students with their emotional and social development. School counselors are trained in the areas of human growth and development, group counseling, and counseling theories and techniques; therefore, they have the capability to effectively offer and conduct short-term mental health services to those students in need.

Moreover, school counselors have also been taught how to serve as leaders, to advocate, and to collaborate to promote systemic change. Thus, as administrators reach out to their teachers to devise a plan for getting students back on track academically, they must also recognize that school counselors are uniquely trained and highly qualified to serve as key players in the success of the “whole child,” and utilize their unique skill-sets appropriately.