COUN5020 Foundations of Counseling

Description

Using APA style (7th ed.), write a 6-8 page (not including the cover, abstract page and reference list), double-spaced paper on a counseling related topic that has multiculturalism or social justice/advocacy as its foundation. See the Literature Review Guidelines.

Writing a literature review in COUN 5020 serves three purposes: a) to introduce you to the scholarly counseling literature; b) to provide a vehicle through which to learn library resources to access and obtain information; and c) to gain experience reading, integrating, and applying scholarly information to a specific problem or question. The goal of your paper should be to review and evaluate the relevant scholarly knowledge about a counseling related topic that has multiculturalism or social justice/advocacy as its foundation.

All of the below will be graded on:

APA format details to include:

• Define theme or problem
• Use of subheadings
• Use of third person and past tense
• Appropriate citation of references throughout and in reference section
• Clarity of statements, fully developed ideas
• Counseling literature used (relevance of literature used to counseling field)
• Identify relations, contradictions, gaps, and inconsistencies in the literature
• Conclusion (v summary)

Other Competency in Grad level Writing Points:

• Use of opening and closing sentences
• Grammar and punctuation
• Overall organization and following stated instructions

Tips: do not use “therapy”, use “counseling”; do not use “not only…but…”; do not use “since” unless talking about time; do not use “as well as”, use ‘and’.

Paper Format

• Title Page: a standard APA style title page.
• Abstract: a brief, comprehensive summary of contents of the paper.
• Introduction: a statement of the issue or problem under consideration and the purpose of focus of the literature review. This section should introduce the topic to the reader and give the reader an overview of what to expect in the paper.
• Body of Paper: you should organize all the relevant literature into a logical, cohesive format.
• Conclusion: include the author’s conclusions about the reviewed literature. What are the strengths and weaknesses of this body of research? What are directions for future research? Are there needs related to counselor training? Are there implications for counseling practice, etc.?
• References: APA style. Must reference a minimum of 4 peer reviewed professional counseling journals—counseling not psychology, social work, etc.

References

The paper should include as many references as is necessary to sufficiently cover the topic. A minimum of 12 references is required. The minimum 12 references must be within the past 10 years; however you may use additional references that are older. You must have at least 4 references that are peer reviewed counseling journal articles; the rest of the references may be books (scholarly books, NOT self-help books) or peer reviewed articles from non counseling journals. Magazines and newspapers are not acceptable sources of information; neither are web pages (with the exception of government or reputable mental health organizations web pages that provide reliable statistical data). If you have questions about whether you have enough references, consult the instructor early in the term. Some peer reviewed counseling journals include: Journal of Counseling and Development, Journal of Specialists in Group Work, The School Counselor, Journal of Counseling and Supervision, Journal of Mental Health Counseling, Journal of Family Therapy. The key to locating professional counseling journals is to be familiar with the ACA published journals and to read them.

Evaluation

See rubric in “additional items” section of syllabus.

Specific guidelines to follow

• Do not use first person. This is an objective review of the literature. To be a review of the literature, it will include support for the topic and views that oppose the topic.
• Include a paragraph at the beginning of the paper that defines the importance of the topic in the field of counseling.
• Also include an early paragraph that defines how the paper is organized (this will orient the reader as to what to expect).
• Use headings! These will greatly help you to organize your paper and they will help the reader comprehend the topics.
• Use proper grammar including opening sentences and closing sentences that transition the reader to the next paragraph.
• Use complete sentences and not run-on sentences.
• Remember that this paper is in essay form, not an annotated list.
• Emphasize findings of studies, not methodologies or the names of variables studied.
• Point out trends or themes in the literature that you have reviewed.
• Point out gaps in the literature. What are important things that we do not yet know?
• Point out weaknesses in the research that you are summarizing. Be critical in your reading – don’t just summarize
• Use direct quotes very sparingly, if at all.
• You should have at least one reference cited per paragraph, and often you will have more than one. Sometimes you will have numerous sentences in a row that each have a citation.

i have provided a outline with a topic attached. I am open to any ideas to add to the topic. I am also open to simple terms being used for this paper.