Developing a Future IT Professional’s Identity in Group Counselling: Pilot II

Merja Koivuluhta, PsyD

Helena Puhakka, EdD

Navigation towards University Studies and Working Life – counselling group

for CS beginners

Background

• Easy entrance to CS studies

• Low commitment to studies and weak motivation

• Many students interrupt and do not graduate

Goals of the Navigation group

• To clarify and strengthen the participants’ images of themselves as students and future IT professionals

• To develop students’ interaction skills and to make plans for the future

Navigation towards University Studies and Working Life – counselling group

for CS beginners

The basic

• The structured group counselling model developed by the Canadian professors Borgen, Amundson, Pollard and Westwood

• Our experiences of counselling groups and counselling of university students

Our research goals

• To find out how group counselling can be used to promote the students’ agency in relation to their studies

• To develop a model of group counselling for university beginners

Navigation towards University studies and working Life – counselling group

for CS beginners

Optional study module (2 credits)

• essential for students’ recruitment

Participants:

11 male first year students

Meetings: 5 + 1

Three hours per meeting

The Topics of the Meetings

1. Orientation to the group, expectations

Study concerns: My pathway to IT expertise

2. Exploring one’s own learning

3. Opportunities and challenges of working life from an IT expert's view

• Considering the future: Master's degree in the pocket

4. Views about entering into the IT field

• Successful experiences and transferable skills

5. Employment market’s demands: What is demanded of employees now and in the future

• Suitcase of Assets: Own resources and aims

6. Evaluation of group counselling

Orientation towards future studies: Planning the next step

Participant’s viewpoint

• Open interviews with the participants before and after the group

• Participants were among the most successful CS students

• They could use opportunities available

• The problem is how to reach those students who have more problems with their studies

• Group counselling should be a part of all students’ studies if its purpose is to reach those who are having problems with their studies

Opening the new views of the working life

• CS is a generalist science field – not leading to any explicit profession

• Students´ views of future work opportunities were unclear and they expected to get information about working life

• In the group we dealt with the many aspects of working life and employment market

• The participants considered the Navigation group helpful particularly for opening the new views of the working life

• The challenges and opportunities of working life should be an important part of all students’ studies

Studying problems

Most of the participants had difficulties in their studies• Many fails, not enough credits

Exploring one’s own learning in the Navigation group:

in order to find one's best way of studying

• Self directiveness and learning strategies

• Kolb´s learning styles and experimental learning cycle

Participants interviews: How to improve learning

• “Self-discipline, hold the book”

• “Probably kick yourself ”

• “Go through it all each day after the lectures”

• “ Read at least one page a day”

Conclusions

• Only a few could benefit from this general exploration of learning because this didn't met the daily studying problems of the participants

• They are not in dialogue

• Group counselling should be context responsive and open enough to attain the student's way of thinking

Conclusions

• Participants were satisfied with group counselling and considered the group to be helpful, although they couldn't clearly analyse what was helpful

• The group counselling strengthened interaction between the students also in daily studies

• Participants´ study situation after the group :

• 4 participants high commitment, good study results

• 2 high commitment, poor study results

• 5 low commitment, considering changing

• Counselling can not solve teaching problems or teaching arrangements

Conclusions

• The group members had diverse problems with their studies, vocational choice and motivation

• The blocks of the students´ agency in relation to their studies are diverse

• The group counselling design should be open enough in order to face and overcome different blocks of the students´ agency in relation to their studies