An Exploratory study of the ways in which the guidance counsellor can support second year female students to enhance their social development in a single-sex post-primary school in Ireland.

This research explores how the guidance counsellor can support second year female students in enhancing their social development in a post-primary school. Adolescence is viewed as a period of opportunities and vulnerabilities that can have lifelong consequences for young peoples’ wellbeing (Barker 2007). It is during this time of heightened self-focus that early adolescents enter post-primary school, which makes the school environment a pivotal place to promote and support their wellbeing (Fraiser 1993; DES 2018). Using a qualitative approach, the research gathered an in-depth understanding of the participants own lived experiences. One focus group with seven second year students and one-to-one semi-structured interviews with one member of management and six staff members were conducted. Key findings identified that the school community’s negative perception of second years can impact their self-esteem and their feeling of school connectedness. Class tutors were also found to be best placed to support the social needs of students, if they have the appropriate training in how to manage the potential social issues that may arise. The research concludes by making recommendations to guidance counsellors about the importance of generating an awareness with staff, students and parents about social influences which can impact second years social development.