Basic Concepts of Learner Guidance and Counseling

BASIC CONCEPTS OF LEARNER GUIDANCE AND COUNSELING Background. The number of phenomena and cases involving teenagers lately has made the education mecca really focus on the decline in the moral and ethical quality of the younger generation. Lack of attention and supervision from parents causes children's freedom in behavior, causing many moral and ethical deviations of adolescents. Guidance and counseling is one of the components of our education, considering that guidance and counseling is an activity of assistance and guidance given to individuals in general and students in particular at school in order to improve their quality. Guidance and counseling even plays a very important role in our education system today. This is proven by the inclusion of guidance and counseling in the curriculum. Guidance and counseling are needed because guidance itself can be interpreted as a process of providing assistance to individuals carried out on an ongoing basis, so that the individual can understand himself. So that he is able to direct himself and can act reasonably. In accordance with the demands and circumstances of the school environment, family, community, and life in general. Furthermore, with this guidance and counseling, the process of providing assistance carried out by an expert to a person or several individuals, both children, adolescents, and adults; so that the person being guided can develop his own abilities and be independent; in the sense that he can take advantage of individual strengths and existing facilities and can be developed based on applicable norms. DISCUSSION A. Definition of Guidance and Counseling Basically, guidance and counseling services are carried out from humans, by humans, and for humans. The guidance and counseling process involves humans and their humanity which involves all their potentials and tendencies, their development, the dynamics of their lives, their problems, and the dynamic interaction between various elements. 1. Definition of Guidance Guidance was initiated by Frank Parson in 1908, since then there have been various formulations of guidance in accordance with the development of the guidance service itself. Frank Prason (in Prayitno & Amti, 2004) suggests that guidance is assistance given to individuals to be able to choose, prepare themselves, and hold a position and get progress in the chosen position. According to Bernard & Fullmer (in Prayitno & Amti, 2004) guidance is all activities aimed at increasing the personal realization of each individual. Guidance is assistance given to individuals in making wise choices and adjustments. This assistance is based on the principle of democracy, which is the duty and right of each individual to choose his own way of life as far as it does not interfere with the rights of others. The ability to make such choices is not inherited, but must be developed. (Jones, Staffire, & Stewart, in Prayitno & Amti, 2004). Based on several definitions according to experts, it can be concluded that guidance is a process that provides assistance to individuals to be able to make choices in their lives wisely and also helps individuals in increasing self-development in order to become a useful person. 2. Definition of Counseling Etymologically, counseling comes from Latin, namely "consilium" which means "with" or "together" coupled with "receive" or "understand". While in the Anglo-Saxon language, the term counseling comes from "sellan" which means "to hand over" or "to convey". According to Jones (in Prayitno & Amti, 2004) counseling is an activity in which all facts are collected and all student experiences are focused on a particular problem to be overcome by the person concerned, where he is given personal and direct assistance in solving that problem. The counselor does not solve problems for the client. Counseling should be aimed at the progressive development of the individual to solve his own problems without assistance. Mc Daniel (in Prayitno & Amti, 2004) argues that counseling is a series of direct meetings with individuals aimed at providing assistance to him to be able to adjust himself more effectively with himself and with his environment. Counseling includes understanding and relating to individuals to reveal the unique needs, motivations, and potentials of the individual and helping the individual concerned to appreciate these three hl. (Bernard & Fullmer, in Prayitno & Amti, 2004). It can be concluded that counseling is an activity that includes understanding and individual relationships carried out face-to-face directly to provide assistance in solving problems faced by individuals by carrying out progressive self-development. B. Purpose of Guidance and Counseling Along with the development of the conception of guidance and counseling, the purpose of guidance and counseling aims to help individuals make choices, adjustments, and interpretations in relation to certain situations. While Bradshow (in Prayitno & Amti, 2004) argues that the purpose of guidance and counseling is to strengthen educational functions. Tiedeman (in Prayitno & Amti, 2004) said that guidance and counseling aims to help people become useful human beings, not just follow useful activities. From this opinion, the main objectives of guidance and counseling can be formulated, namely: ● Helping individuals make choices, adjustments, and interpretations. ● Strengthening educational function ● Reconstructing school culture. ● Helping people to become useful human beings ● Providing support to individuals. ● Provides new insights, views, understandings, skills and alternatives. ● Develops self-acceptance. ● Engaging in problem solving. ● Making decisions, developing awareness, and personal development. The general purpose of guidance and counseling is to help individuals develop themselves optimally in accordance with their developmental stages and predispositions (basic abilities and talents), various existing backgrounds (family background, education, socio-economic status), and in accordance with the positive demands of their environment. In this case, guidance and counseling helps individuals to become useful people in their lives. C. Functions of Guidance and Counseling 1. The function of understanding, which is about gaining understanding from Guidance and Counseling activities in accordance with the interests of learner development. The understanding includes: a) Understanding of the learners' self, especially the learners, parents, teachers, and counselors. b) Understanding of the learner's environment, namely the family and school environment c) Understanding of the 'wider' environment, including education information, job/career information, and social and cultural information/values. 2. Prevention function, which is an effort to prevent or avoid students from all possible problems that will hinder or harm the development of students. 3. The alleviation function, namely the resolution of a problem experienced by students. 4. Maintenance and development function, which is to produce various potentials and positive conditions of students that are maintained and developed in the context of maximum and sustainable self-development. In each Guidance and Counseling activity, it must refer to each of these functions, this is intended so that the results that will or have been achieved for students can be clearly identified. So that it can be identified whether the achievement is good or bad and to evaluate what are the shortcomings or things that need to be changed, added, improved, and others. D. Principles of Guidance and Counseling In every guidance and counseling service activity, it must always be guided by the principles of guidance and counseling. These principles have a role as a direction in every implementation of guidance and counseling so that the services provided will have an impact on students in a sustainable manner. Here are some principles that need to be applied according to (Prayitno, 1983: 12 and 2004; 114-120): 1. The Principle of Confidentiality. Directed to the confidentiality of all student problems (in this case the supervising teacher is fully obliged to maintain and maintain all data and information about the problem so that its confidentiality is truly guaranteed). 2. The principle of voluntariness. If the principle of confidentiality is truly embedded in students, it can be expected that those who experience problems will voluntarily bring their problems to the mentor for guidance. 3. Principle of Openness. Students and counselors must be open. This openness does not just mean that they are willing to accept suggestions from outside but in this case it is more important that each person concerned is willing to open themselves for the sake of problem solving. 4. The Principle of Contemporary. The present principle also implies that the counselor should not delay providing assistance. He must put the client's interests ahead of others. 5. The Principle of Independence. In providing services, the counselor should always revive independence in the person being guided, not to let the person being guided become dependent on others, especially the mentors. 6. Activity Principle. The efforts of guidance and counseling services will provide meaningless fruit, if the individual being guided does not carry out activities in achieving guidance goals. The results of guidance efforts are not created by themselves but must be achieved by the individual concerned. 7. The principle of dynamism. It is hoped that there will be changes in the guided students, namely changes in behavior in a better direction, changes that always lead to a renewal of something more advanced. 8. Principle of Integrity Guidance and counseling services integrate various aspects of the individual being guided, as it is known that the individual being guided has various aspects if the situation is not mutually harmonious and integrated it will cause problems. 9. Normative Principle. Guidance and counseling activities should not conflict with prevailing norms, whether in terms of religious norms, customary norms, legal / state norms, scientific norms or daily habits. This normative principle is applied to the content and process of guidance and counseling. 10. Principle of Expertise. Guidance and counseling service activities must be organized, systematic and by using adequate techniques and tools. In order to achieve success in providing services. 11. Handover Principle. A guidance and counseling officer has exerted all his abilities to help students who have not been helped as expected, then this officer provides referrals for students to other officers or agencies that are more expert. E. Guidance and Counseling Principles In every action of guidance and counseling services, it must pay attention to the principles that exist to become the basic principles of how this service runs. So that the goals, objectives, and activities can run smoothly. The following are the principles that need to be considered from guidance and counselling. 1) Principles regarding the target of the service. a) Guidance and counseling serves all individuals regardless of age, gender, ethnicity religion and socio-economic status. b) Guidance and counseling deals with the unique and dynamic personality and behavior of individuals. c) Guidance and counseling pay full attention to the stages and various aspects of individual development. Guidance and counseling gives primary attention to individual differences which become the main orientation of services. 2) Principles regarding individual problems. a) Guidance and counseling deals with matters concerning the influence of the individual's mental/physical condition on his/her adjustment at home, at school, as well as in relation to social contracts, work and vice versa the influence of the environment on the individual's mental and physical condition. b) Social, economic and cultural disparities are factors in the development of problems in individuals, all of which are the main concern of guidance and counseling services. 3) Principles regarding service programs. a) Guidance and counseling is an integral part of educational efforts and individual development, therefore guidance and counseling programs must be aligned and integrated with educational programs and the development of students b) The guidance and counseling program must be flexible tailored to the needs of individuals, communities and conditions of the institution guidance and counseling programs are prepared on an ongoing basis from the lowest to the highest level of educators c) The content and implementation of the guidance and counseling program needs to be directed regularly and purposefully. 4) Principles regarding the purpose and implementation of services a) Guidance and counseling should be directed to the development of individuals who are ultimately able to guide themselves in dealing with problem. b) In the process of guidance and counseling decisions taken and will be implemented by the individual should be on the individual's own ability not because of the will or insistence of the mentor or other parties c) Individual problems must be handled by experts in the field relevant to the problems faced d) Cooperation between the supervising teacher, other teachers and parents will determine the results of guidance e) The development of guidance and counseling service programs is pursued through maximum utilization of the results of measurement and assessment of individuals involved in the service process and the guidance and counseling program itself.