STUDENTS' PERCEPTION OF THE ROLE OF SCHOOL COUNCELORS IN THE CHOICE OF A CAREER

ABSTRACT
The study examined students' perception of the role of school counselors in the choice of a career using the Students Perception and Attitude Questionnaire (SPAQ) as well as simple percentage, chi-square statistics. Results showed that a significant relationship exists between perception and attitudes to school counseling. While there was a general low perception which reflected on attitudes, all the variables in the study except sex were found to be significant factors that influence perception as well as attitudes towards counseling.
 
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1       Background of the Study
The he field of school based guidance and counseling programs have been designed to help students gain career awareness within the educational system. Over the years the field has been confronted with great challenges that make it more difficult to provide students with strong career guidance.  Guidance professional in many public schools are often assigned large work loads. The average US studentscounselor ratio is 479 to 1and it grows to more than 1000 to 1 in some schools (American school counselor association, 2010). This contrasts greatly with what is necessary to ensure adequate students services. The American school counselor association recommends a student counselor ratio of 250 to 1. In order to