Social Justice Perspective: My Role As A School Counselor

Maintaining a social justice perspective would be an important component to the different roles I would play on a day-to-day basis as a school counselor. What’s most important is that I use my background in sociology to help me distinguish issues at my work, specifically concerning the students. As a counselor, my main goal will be assisting the students with succeeding in their educational careers and personal goals. To do this, I will embrace a social justice approach by keeping an open mind, eliminating bias, and looking at different situations from all perspectives.
One role that a school counselor plays on a daily basis is being a mediator between a student, parent, and teacher. In this role, it would be important that I take a social justice approach in my handling of the situation because I would need to see each side and evaluate this from every angle. Having an understanding of the types of discrimination that are often found in our country, I would need to use this knowledge on a case-by-case basis in order to distinguish if there were any lines being overstepped between teachers and students, whether it be based on race, gender, sexual identity, religious affiliation, and so on. This could go either way, with the teacher showing bias toward the student, or vice versa. However, it would be important for me to also recognize that, no
matter what, the teacher would hold a certain level of authority over the student, and I would need to assess this in my evaluation of the situation as well.
On the other end of the spectrum, handling cases between two or more students would require additional observation and understanding of the dynamics of those involved.
Incorporating a social justice approach to counseling means making sure that everyone has a voice and feels like they are being heard. It would be important to make this possible for students by talking one-on-one with them, or with the other students they’re having issues with, in a civil manner. This way, I can lead a facilitated discussions that will hopefully bring about the root of the problem so that we can assess things further and begin to resolve
it.
On that note, social justice would also play an important role in what I, as a counselor, could teach to the students. This would include having discussions with students, either one-on-one or for entire classrooms, about different types of prejudice and discrimination that are evident in everyday life. It would be my job to educate the students on having respect for all peers and teachers, no matter race, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, etc.
I would personally love to be able work with students on social justice issues because, in retrospect, these are the great minds of our future. Being an educator is all about making this next generation of scholars as strong and prepared for the real world as possible, and what better way to do that then by introducing and discussing real-world issues? It is never too early to start educating young minds about the importance of tolerance, acceptance, and equality. However, young people also need to be taught the reality of the world we live in; that there are very real and harsh realities out there that they will have to face. I want to be an educator who can ignite passion in these future generations of students to work towards a world where these issues can be eradicated and harmony can be found once and for all.