Lecture_2

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Lecture 2

Prepared by :

N.A

Introduction

Abdul Halim Othman (1999) , counseling services in Malaysia has been growing in line with the progress and development of social, economic, culture, education.

There are several reasons why the counseling services important in Malaysia :

Technology and developments in the field of industrial

moral situation : individualistic and materialistic

Social problems : homicide, suicide, domestic violence

industrial impact on the progress of human life

extension education program

History of Counseling services in Malaysia Guidance and counseling services begin when the

British colonialists introduced the career guidance services in schools in 1938. ( Aminah Haji Hashim, 1983)

However some are saying that the guidance and counseling actually began in 1964.( Abdul Latiff, 1984)

Guidance and counseling as part of mainstream counseling in Malaysia.

Ministry of education started to create the counseling services in the 1960s.

This effort has received support from UNESCO. Then UNESCO encouraged the government to obtain assistance from the Colombo Plan.

• A Canadian named R.K Mc Kenzie has been assigned to assist the Ministry of education to establish guidance and counseling units in Malaysian schools.

• He has trained 11 staff to conduct a career guidance services.

• Guidance became an integral part of education aimed at promoting or stimulating the gradual development of the ability to make decisions independently without undue influenced from others.

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1964 the Ministry of Education has issued a circular letter ( pekeliling KP 5209/35 (4) to appoint teacher guidance in every schools.

Finally, education and career guidance services have been established.

Education and career guidance teacher is responsible for providing educational guidance services, employment guidance, health guidance and personal guidance

Educational guidance services : enable students to receive education according to their talent and ability

Employment guidance: to help students choose the jobs that match with their skills after complete their study.

Health guidance : to fullfill phycical needs

Personal guidance : to develop student life in order to

adapt with community life

These plans were revived in the 1980s as the drug problem among youth in Malaysia escalated and the Ministry of Education announced the need for guidance and counseling teachers in the schools.

This led the secondary schools to reorganize their priorities to include guidance and counseling activities through the appointment of guidance and counseling teachers. These teachers received a reduced teaching load.

1993, the government has issued a “ Buku Panduan pelaksanaan Perkhidmatan Bimbingan dan Kaunseling” in secondary schools.

This book serve as a reference for guidance teacher to implement and planning the guidance and counseling activities

• The counseling teacher played the dual role of teacher and counselor . Finally, in March 1996 the Ministry of Education has issued a circular letter to all school principals to appoint a full-time counselor at schools in order to plan and focus on guidance and counseling services/activities .

• By 2000, every secondary school had at least one full-time counselor. The latest, in 2003, the Ministry issued a circular letter and propose one full time counselor for 500 students.

This service is more formal, neat and sophisticated

Counseling not only been introduced in schools and institutions of higher learning but also in the NGO’s , public, private, institutional rehabilitation and industrial.

Within 3 decades of its formal introduction in Malaysia, counseling has become a household word and is frequently being mentioned in the media.

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Evolution of Counseling Services

From its beginnings in the 1960’s to the 1980s, school counseling continues to be the main function of Malaysian counselors to the 1980’s. School counselors were still primarily teachers, and counseling was a function they performed in addition to their teaching responsibilities

Before 1982, school counselors often assumed their role without any training Then from 1982, there was an 8-week, inservice training requirement, as well as an opportunity to seek higher education in counselling in Malaysia or abroad. At this time, the Ministry of Education paid all educational expenses and provides the teacher with paid leave of absence. ( Scorzelli, 1987a)

In 1985, 888 teachers employed by the Ministry of Education were classified as counselors. As indicated above, the major responsibility of a school counsellor was, and often still is, teaching, and counselling is still viewed as a secondary role.

The early 1980’s saw a surge in mental health and counselling services offered in Malaysia.

Haque, (2001) reported that, in 1980, the Malaysian Psychiatrists Association and other mental health groups acknowledge the importance of counseling for mental health in Malaysian.

Impact on Malaysian society and psychiatrists started referring clients to counselors.

The 1980’s also saw drug abuse counselling for the community as well as schools. The Ministry of Educations assigned special officers, hospital and rehabilitation centre developed positions for drug counselors, and the Malaysian community saw the role of counseling in combating social ills (Tay, 1996).

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Tay’s (1996) research on drug abuse programmes in Malaysia describes the drug counselor’s role was, and still generally is, directly related to the country’s rehabilitation and aftercare system. The governmental programs were, and still often are, either separate facilities or units in the prisons, and they are designed to reshape drug users in all areas of their lives.

The late 1980’s and early 1990’s saw career counseling develop its own identity (Pope et. al, 2002).

Late 1990s, counseling as a profession had made expansion into most institutions, offering services in schools, in industry, in health systems and to the public.

This included training in hospitals, mental health clinics for the public, nation-wide counselling centres and information campaigns.

private and government enterprises also use counselling (mental health) services in the industrial setting. However, these services only focus on personnel selection, organisational development and employee motivation, with rather than focus on mental health needs of employees

From 1998, extensive training modules were offered to Malaysian health institutions.

Health care staffs were trained in basic counselling skills

Currently, promotion of Mental Health, with the theme ‘Healthy Lifestyle’. The campaign focus on children, adolescents, parents, working adults and the elderly.

Training in counseling

Research Division and Counseling Section was established within the Educational Planning and Research Division of the Ministry of Education and began providing training workshops to teachers , 1963.

1967, pre services teachers training in guidance and counseling were first offered to teachers ( Ministry of education, 1968)

In the 1980’s, universities and teacher training institutions started to offer guidance and counseling courses for preservice and in-service teachers. The number of counseling programs grew as the number of institutions increased

Currently, there are seven public universities and one private university offering graduate-level counseling programs. Five of the public universities also offer bachelor’s-level counseling degrees, and four of them offer postgraduate counseling degrees.

Development of Counseling Services in

Industrial/Organization

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1. Jabatan Penjara Malaysia

1978-Penjara Seremban established drugs counseling services

168 prison officers were trained by Bereau of International Nacortic Matters, USA in rehabilitation counseling.

Government-sponsored drug counseling in-service training began in the 1980s as well. However, trainees were personnel from the Ministry of Social Welfare, the Ministry of Home Affairs, and the Department of Prisons (Scorzelli, 1987).

Drug counseling was provided to persons who abused drugs and were in governmental rehabilitation programs, aftercare programs, as well as nonprofit agencies.

However, counseling in these facilities was minimal, and the counselors working in these facilities were often recovering persons who had abused drugs and lacked formal counseling training (Scorzelli, 1987).

2. Counseling services (bank)

In 1990, Bank Negara Malaysia has established a Counseling Unit and Counseling officers are placed in these organizations. ( Kamarudin Haji hassan, 1994)

Counseling undertaken dealt with cases of salary , promotion, financing, employment problem, job transfer and other aspect of career and placement.

3. Counseling services (IPT)

Counseling services were introduced in the university

since 6o’s ( Mohd Zaki Abdul Kadir, 1994)

ITM ( UITM) were the first institution to introduce

counseling services and followed by UM.

Objective Of counseling Services( IPT) :

Assist students :

academic problems

students with interpersonal problems

students with intrapersonal problems

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4. Social Welfare Department

Counseling started in 1946.

Target group : youth, the disabled, elderly, beggars, marriage couple.

Welfare officer were responsible to determine the appropriate assistance for cases management.

Counselors/psychologist officers in social work department were handle cases such as domestic violence, juvenile case, abandoned child/elderly, single-mother, and staff discipline problem.

5. Public Service Department

Initially, Counseling Unit was established to provide advisory services or consultation.

Formal Psychology and Counseling unit was established in 1992

Counseling services are open to other organizations

Objective of Counseling Psychology Unit in Public Service Department /Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam:

Provide counseling and rehabilitation services :

i. staff diciplines,

ii. motivation,

iii. staff performance

iv. staff personal problem

v. intrapersonal problem.

Jabatan Perkhidmatan Awam circulate Garis Panduan Mewujudkan Perkhidmatan Kaunseling Di Agensi Awam-pekeliling Perkhidmatan Bilangan 1 Tahun 1999.

Cth : Kementerian Kesihatan Malaysia, Lembaga Penduduk dan Pembangunan Keluarga Negara, Jabatan Kebajikan

Early 2000 counselors with psychologists /counseling background were appointed. The beginning of recognition .

Every years -the numbers of psychology officer/counselors increased.

Community Counseling : Current Practice and Future Trends

Community counseling services began in Malaysia through a variety of nonprofit organizations that were often faith-based, for example, Talian Nur, Agape Counseling Center, Buddhist Gem Fellowship, and PT Foundation (previously known as Pink Triangle). Most of these agencies first began offering telephone counseling services.

The focus of community agencies appears to be on providing child and adult mental health needs and marketing wellness and social skills training. There is a demand for educational psychologists, child psychologists, play therapists, and music therapists to work with various stakeholders on issues related to children.

There is also an increased need for community counselors to provide or be involved in gifted children management, intellectual ability development, social and emotional learning of children, and psychological testing and assessment.

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The types of community counseling services available in Malaysia are telephone counseling, face to face counseling and support groups.

despite increased family and relationship problems in the country, there remains a serious lack of practitioners in family, couples, and marital counseling and substance abuse/addiction counseling in the community settings (Ng, 2003; Ng & Stevens, 2001). This seems to reflect the lack of curricular emphasis in these areas in existing training programs.

Malaysian Counseling Association

1989-Persatuan Kaunselor Malaysia has been changed to Persatuan Kaunseling Malaysia ( Malaysian Counseling Association) - (PERKAMA)

The objective :

To increase the counseling knowledge through conference, seminars and other activities .

Associations that related to counseling Persatuan Psikologi malaysia ( PSIMA)

PEMADAM

Women’s Aid Organization

Malaysia Mental Health Association

Lembaga Kaunselor Malaysia/ Malaysian Board of Counselors (1998)

Were placed under Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development

Implement the Counselor Act 508

To improved and recognized the quality and profesionalism of counselors. ( counselor registered and licencure)

Role of Lembaga Kaunselor Malaysia

assess the need of counseling services in Malaysia To supervises and assess the implementation of

Counseling programmes in IPT

supervise and evaluate counseling services,

monitor counselors’ training and determined the type and level of counseling

determined the minimum qualification for registration of a counselor

fixed the standard for training program

make suggestion to the government on standards for counseling services, registration of qualified counselors

supervise and monitor the conduct of the counseling profession, including a set code of ethics for the profession of counseling

To ensure the quality of supervision training

consider developing guidelines that define the standards and scope of training and practice of supervision.

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monitor the fees that can be charged by a counselor for his services.

appoint its members to any other board, committee or a body established for any purpose related to counseling.

Scenario Counseling in

Malaysia: Currently

E-counseling

Cyber –counseling

Email

Phone

Challenges and Obstacles

Counseling services almost 40 years in Malaysia.

Nowadays the services were accepted and

recognized by the other organizations not only in

education settings but welfare, rehabilitation centre,

hospital, and private sector.

However, there are still some weaknesses and

challenging.

There are several obstacle faced in order to

implement the services :

- Acceptation of target group

- Lack of professionalism

- Training problem

- Needs for the theory in Malaysia context

Counseling in Malaysia has come a long way,

although the growth has been slow. Some crucial

groundwork and important milestones have been laid

for the profession to transition from infancy to

pubescence, but many challenges remain.

For the next few years, efforts must be made to

ensure that counselors have the competencies to

provide effective counseling services leading to

specialization, such as drugs/HIV counseling, sexual

minority counseling, mental health counseling, and

marriage and family counseling.

Conclusion Malaysia is relatively a small country, and there are

not many mental health professionals. Counselors

and other mental health professionals should

continue their collaborative efforts to advocate for

mental health access for all Malaysians as well as for

mental health professionals across disciplines.

Continued collaboration among mental health

professionals in Malaysia coupled with assistance

from overseas professionals will be needed to help

meet the challenges and maximize the opportunities.