Teacher-counsellors' and Students' views on the Effectiveness of Guidance and Counselling Services in addressing selected Psycho-social Challenges in Day Secondary Schools in North Rift Region, Kenya

Abstract

Guidane and Counseling serries was introduerd in Kenyan Seondary and Primary Schools by the Keman Government through the Ministry of Edueation with the aim of assisting in addresing stndents' and pupils' psyvcho-social cbalenges smech as poor academic performame, anxieny, stress and low self-esteem among others. However, this objective may not have been realized fulh especialy in day secondary schools in North Rijt region due to a number of Pocho-social and cuitural-related chalenges. It is against this baskdrop that the study was emrisaged The purpose of this study was to determine the teacher-counsellors' and students views on the efjfeetiveness of guidanoe and counselling services in addressing seleded pyycho-so cial challenger faced by students in day seoondary scbools in the North Rijt Region, Kenya. The study adopted the descrnptive survey design. Stratified random sampling was used to select tawenty form thre students firom 18 sampled day secondary schoobs. Purposive sampling method wus also sed 1o select on teacher-counsellor from each of the 18 sampled sobools. This gave a sample of 360 students and 18 teacher-counsellors. The research data was collected using a questionnaire. Piloting . ability of the questionnaire. The data colecded was analyzed using desriptive and inferential statistics. Statistical Package for Soaial Sciences (SPSS) Package Version 17.0 for windows was Msed io aid in dala anahysis. All tesis were done at the signifcant level of O.05. The findings revealed that significant diferene excist between teacher-cousellors' and students riews on the efectiveness of guidance and counselling servies in addressing the pycho-social chalenges of stress anxiety and low self esteem. It was concluded that teacher-counsellors seem to be haring higher expectations of guidance and counseling services lo be offered to students thus making them to under-rale the effors they have made in assisting learners address their pycho-soaial challenges. This study reaommends that guidance and counselling programmes in educational institutions should be strengthened and supported so as to facilitate identification, understanding and assistanee of students who fare pgycbological challengesparticulary in day secondary sabools in Kenya.