Rely to the below paragraphs and use 2 citations.

As a school counselor, how will using assessments benefit you and your students?

Assessment can be very beneficial for school counselors and students. There are three methods of assessment that are beneficial for counselors in both the school and clinical setting, which are interviews, tests, and observations (Sheperis et al., 2020). These three domains allow for assessment to be flexible to fit the needs of our students. However, the role of the school counselor has limitations in comparison to the clinical setting, so specific methods are more appropriate for the school counselor's role. When it comes to interviews and tests, I would choose the informal structure within the school counseling setting. Informal interviewing with students is very common for school counselors to assess their students and make observations. It's important that school counselors remember to interview many stakeholders in the student's life, including parents and teachers, to help them make more beneficial observations (Sheperis et al., 2020). One of the school counselor's main roles is to assess students so that proper interventions and supports can be facilitated, which is why this course is so crucial to developing our counseling practice.

How do you feel about a school-wide assessment? Examples are the SAT and ACTfor all students to take.

When it comes to school-wide assessment, I think I stand somewhat neutral. I see the logic in requiring high school students to take either the ACT or SAT so that they are prepared for a variety of post-secondary opportunities, even if they choose not to go to college. However, I can also understand a student's frustration with taking a standardized test, especially if they feel that it does not fully represent their knowledge and understanding. Though standardized testing is oftentimes a point of debate within schools, it is usually present in some capacity. Standardized tests are forms of achievement data that can be useful when making observations about students. As a school counselor, I recognize that standardized testing can be somewhat controversial and problematic, but I will try to use it as a tool to help my students overcome challenges.

Additionally, when thinking about school-wide assessment, I am curious to learn more about the equity of school-wide needs assessments. I know that many schools are adopting programs that provide needs assessments and screens students for different tiers and interventions. I would love to learn more about how those programs are developed and the standards of equity that they are held to.

Are there negative aspects to consider when assessing students?

One controversial type of assessment that I have learned about recently is threat assessments of students, specifically to predict their likelihood of being a threat to others. School counselors need a role in this process so they can advocate for student's rights to privacy and safety. We can recommend other prevention strategies that are supported by research to be effective (Stone, 2022). This way we are not labeling students before we take action to prevent the threat. Additionally, if school counselors are tasked with this heavy form of assessment, they need the opportunity to collaborate with professionals who are specifically trained in violence assessment (Stone, 2022).

Did you read any information that would challenge your Christian worldview? Please provide scripture to support this thought.

I view assessment as something that is necessary for us as humans because we fall short of the glory of God and need tools to help us understand one another. Furthermore, since we are human, some of our assessments can be unequitable. As it is said in Proverbs 21:30, "There is no wisdom or understanding or counsel against the LORD" (NIV, 2008). We must always have a reflective practice that understands we may fall short, but we will continue to persevere.