America Needs Mandatory Counseling for Students

Another suicide, because he didn’t know where to run; another teen pregnancy, because she needed acceptance from just one more person. Another alcoholic, another drug addict, another bully, more abuse: where will we draw the line? When will it become too much? Although some school systems have legitimate reasons as to why mandatory counseling is not crucial, recent studies have come to reveal that it is very important. It would allow a deeper level of education and relationship to take place and would be beneficial for students and faculty across the country. This required time would potentially improve GPA and testing scores across the country. Altogether, many feel that mandatory counseling for high school adolescents would be beneficial, if not essential. If mandatory counseling programs were implicated in all of the high schools across America, the standards and quality of life for most people would increase dramatically.

There are countless motives as to why this should be enforced in all schools across America. State assessment scores, GPA, and even course grades were found to be increased significantly (Boyle, J. S., & Kehoe, J. J). In a study in Illinois, suicide rates dropped by almost half after mandatory counseling was enforced (Chamberlain, 2003). Rates of bullying, violence, and depression have also been reported throughout the states who have already implemented mandatory counseling (Roaten, G. K., & Roaten, D. J., 2012). Rates of graduation and continued education have increased significantly in these schools as well (Roaten, G. K., & Roaten, D. J., 2012). A higher level of self-efficacy has also been reported.

Some experts argue that students would discover a higher level of self-efficacy in most activities ...

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