Book Review: Counseling toward solutions: A practical, solution-focused program for working with students, teachers, and parents

Abstract

Linda Metcalf’s experience and expertise as a former high school teacher, certified school counselor, supervisor of licensed professional counselors, and licensed marriage superintendent and family therapist comes across in this book as she provides practical solutions in working with students, parents, and teachers. The counseling activities illustrated are effective at reducing behavioral concerns, encouraging healthy mindsets, and providing social-emotional learning opportunities. This book consists of 10 chapters and is divided into two parts. Part 1 includes the first five chapters and presents practical problems and solutions for teachers in schools. Part 2 describes how to conceptualize concerns and implement solutions to cases of students and parents. Each chapter covers a specific topic that builds on issues and situations faced by today’s school counselors, including working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer students and those with traumatic or substance abuse experiences. Within school settings, where the day is demanding and fastpaced, short, pragmatic, and effective interventions are needed (Jones & Edwards, 2023). Using a systemic approach that involves students, Metcalf shows that students can build their solutions in a collaborative way. The case illustrations will be particularly useful for students of counseling psychology. For example, in Chapter 7, Metcalf describes step-by-step recommendations to foster grit and a desire to learn among students. Furthermore, in Chapter 8, Metcalf provides practical solutions for working with parents. In particular, she recommends assisting families in helping youth build confidence that starts at home and follows them to school. The goal is to have children and youth feel supported at home and in school. The explanations in the two parts of this book complement each other. They are written sequentially like a story in solving problems. So, readers will need to read the book’s entire contents in order to take full advantage of the advice. Notably, only successful client consultations are presented as examples of cases.We believe Metcalf could have enhanced the book by providing additional material and comparison in some unresolved or difficult cases. Each chapter is accompanied by dialogue illustrations, complete with non-test sheets and student appreciation certificates, which will be helpful for those currently practicing in schools. The ideas in this book are best geared to teachers, counselors, and parents at home. Metcalf’s approach is about respecting the good of people, the success that occurs spontaneously at any given time, and being curious about how that success occurs.