TPC-Journal-V5-Issue1

The Professional Counselor /Volume 5, Issue 1 117 After our second counseling tape was recorded, our transcription was scored. To my surprise, I did not do well. I met with my professor who had taught me the formula at the beginning of the semester. Instead of her telling me exactly where in the formula I had gone wrong, we discussed what elements I was missing during the session and what I focused on too much. As we discussed my struggles, I kept the formula in mind. As we talked, I realized I had forgotten one of my key formula elements; I was stricken by the realization that I did not understand how to make meaning of this seemingly simplified equation. In no way is the equation simple as it is up to the counselor to do his or her part so the client can do theirs. This light bulb moment was a key part of my learning experience during my first basic clinical course. Counselor Educators A counselor educator developing a counselor training program that is culturally diverse can use cognitive mapping as a teaching tool to meet the needs of culturally diverse learners. Cognitive mapping provides counselor educators with a multicultural pedagogy which incorporates the race and ethnicity of their students during counselor training (Henriksen & Trusty, 2005). As a multicultural pedagogy, it further reduces cultural clashing by providing common, visual language (Dansereau & Dees, 2002). The cognitive map becomes the students’ tool for spoken language, as it parallels verbal thought and expression by breaking down complex thoughts into visual expression. Cognitive mapping, although an effective tool, is more likely to be effective with African Americans and Mexican Americans than Caucasians (Van Velsor & Cox, 2000). The cognitive map represents knowledge graphically; therefore, students whose initial language is not English can pictorially grasp the concepts with more ease. Just as culturally diverse students can learn using cognitive mapping, adult learners also can benefit from using this schematic tool. According to Hill (2005), cognitive mapping or concept mapping (as she refers to it) is a learning tool that is well suited to the adult learner due to greater accumulation of experiences. Adult students find cognitive mapping useful in organizing their ideas, retaining information and relating content material to other knowledge. When processing content material using cognitive mapping, meaningful learning occurs; the adult student learner engages complex cognitive structures within the brain integrating it with existing knowledge. Student Feedback Example 3. A student who is a mature adult learner and whose second language is English shared that she learns better visually and that cognitive mapping helped her comprehend the content as she followed graphically what the counselor educator was explaining. She stated the following: I am an older Hispanic student and English is my second language. Although I have excellent command of the English language, I still find myself translating from English to Spanish to better understand what the professor is saying. When the professor taught us the counseling formula in class, the methodology of how the counseling process works made sense to me. I was able to visualize in my head how the counseling process functions. From that point on, I was able to grasp the concept of what I need to do as a counselor to get clients to move toward change. Theory & Basic Skills The counseling process influences the outcome of counseling. This simple statement can easily lead to a developmental crisis as counseling students struggle with skill acquisition. According to Meier and Davis