Abstract
Attitude is one of the important constructs for the effective undertaking of any role. This study examined secondary school teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision. The study was guided by pragmatic philosophical paradigm and adopted a concurrent embedded design with mixed-method approach. It involved 250 secondary school teachers who completed the questionnaires; 46 teachers who participated in focus group discussions and 9 heads of schools were interviewed. Qualitative data were thematically analyzed, while descriptive and inferential statistics facilitated quantitative data analysis. The descriptive results indicated that teachers had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision. Results from the independent sample t-test revealed a statistically significant difference in attitude between teachers who attended in-service counseling training [M = 83.55, SD = 14.15] and those who did not [M = 79.29, SD = 12.27] at t-value p = .02. The statistically significant difference in attitude scores was arrived at through ANOVA statistical method based on the teachers’ teaching experiences (f(6, 243) = 2, 0.07, p = .05). There was no statistically significant difference in attitude score in providing counseling services by teachers’ sex, qualifications and working experiences as school counselors. Results from interviews and focused group discussions indicated a positive attitude toward counseling service provision. The study concludes that the teacher’s attitude is essential for effective counseling service provision. Policies have a role in influencing teachers’ attitude.
Introduction
The importance of attitudes toward counseling service provision has drawn great attention in literature. For example, Ajzen (2011) considered attitude as a construct that drives an individual’s intention or willingness to perform a particular assigned role. It is about favorable or unfavorable cognitive evaluation, emotional experiences and behavioral tendencies that people constantly hold toward performing a particular behavior and the expected outcome (Fang et al., 2017). According to Eyo et al. (2010), attitude is an assessment of the worth or value of stimuli in the social world that leads to likes or dislikes. Such an evaluation may be done consciously and explicitly, unconsciously and implicitly, or both (Garcia-Santillan et al., 2012). In this regard, the attitudes held by secondary school teachers toward counseling service provision may be positive or negative, simple or complex, stable or unstable, temporary or permanent and superficial or fundamental, depending on the value assigned toward the practice (Wafula & Bota, 2017). However, the judgment of teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision should be based on adequate evidence and viewpoints to avoid misleading conclusions.
Literally, counseling is understood as a learning-oriented relationship which occurs in an interactive manner between the counselor and counselee(s) with the aim of helping a counselee to learn more about the self and the environment. Counselees may use such understanding to become effective members of the society. Effective provision of counseling services in schools is meant to enable students to develop awareness, unfold underutilized resources and realize the optimum potential for academic achievement. It is also intended to prevent shortcomings, remedy faulty development and facilitate optimum development for improved students’ well-being (Daudi et al., 2022; Nkech et al., 2016; Wambui, 2015). Fussy (2018) stresses that effective provision of guidance and counseling services improves students’ participation in the teaching and learning process and saves the money, time and energy invested by parents and the government. This helps the students in achieving their worthy through academics which could be lost upon dismissal. The teacher’s attitude toward the effective provision of counseling services is, therefore, paramount to achieving the identified goal.
Attitude plays a significant role during counseling service provision. Literature indicates that when school counselors have a negative attitude toward counseling service provision, they may not establish a good relationship with counselees, plan strategies and design programs geared toward students’ optimum development (Wafula & Bota, 2017). The fact is that attitude underlies a plan of action, guides decision-making, keenness and perseverance during undertaking of the assigned responsibility. Iyabo (2016) asserts that when school counselors have a negative attitude toward counseling service provision, they spend less time in the counseling process, and do not dedicate their time to exploring a client’s case for an appropriate intervention plan. Such school counselors may abstain from counseling appointments and display discomfort during counseling relationships (Cimsir & Carney, 2016). A negative attitude could decrease the student’s trust in a school counselor and the counseling services, leading to poor counseling outcomes. Thus, for effective counseling service provision in schools, teachers’ positive attitude is crucial.
Unfortunately, negative attitudes among secondary teachers have been reported in some countries. For instance, in Nigeria, it was noted that some counselors ignored the need for students to seek counseling services (Okoroji et al., 2015). If teachers had a positive attitude toward counseling, they could acknowledge its role in helping students and would not have ignored the students’ counseling needs. Equally, in Kenya, heads of schools with negative attitudes toward counseling service provision did not offer the necessary support needed for establishing functional counseling units (Nyamwange et al., 2012). This affects the environment for counseling service provision and the counseling process may not be as therapeutic as it ought to be. It was noted that the budget allocated for school counseling programs in Kenya would be withheld or reduced (Iyabo, 2016). Without budget support, the teachers’ motivation to provide counseling services may be low, hence, negative attitude. The evidence from studies in Nigeria and Kenya indicate that counseling as an essential service in schools is undermined and this emanates from the negative attitudes held by teachers and heads of schools toward the practice. Consequently, the role of counseling in improving students’ wellbeing is ignored.
History of School Counseling Services in Tanzania
The inception of school counseling services in Tanzania’s education system can be traced back to 1984 during the Arusha National Conference (Biswalo, 1986). The conference endorsed counseling services in the education system for remedying the diverse and increasing students’ needs and challenges. The increased students’ challenges were impelled by the introduction of Western Education, which alienated them from traditional ways of living (Sima, 2006). Specifically, students engaged in alcoholism and drug abuse, theft, bullying and developed low motivation to studies, which called for counseling service provision, among other initiatives to remedy the situation. Despite the government’s good intentions, counseling services were not evident in schools because there were no trained counselors and policies to govern its implementation. Consequently, students continued to experience challenges that impacted their academic progress and well-being in school and at home.
Considering the need and importance of school counseling services, the government through the Education and Training Policy of 1995 required career guidance and counseling course to be included in the syllabus and taught in teacher training colleges at Diploma level (Ministry of Education and Culture [MoEC], 1995). However, other important aspects of counseling in schools such as emotional, academic and social/personal components were not considered in the policy. In order to strengthen and provide comprehensive counseling services in schools, the government issued the Education Circular II of 2002 (MoEC, 2002). The Circular directs all schools to provide counseling services through the established school counseling units by selecting professional teacher(s) from the teaching staff to perform the duties of a school counselor. Upon appointment, the teacher is called a school counselor (Ministry of Education Science and Technology [MoEST], 2023; MoEC, 2002). The school counselor utilizes the counseling knowledge and skills acquired during teacher professional training program to provide counseling services. However, C. N. Mbilinyi (2024) reveals inadequacies in the counseling content taught during teacher training programs to prepare pre-service teachers for effective provision of counseling services in schools. Moreover, limited in-service counseling training to equip school counselors to undertake additional professional roles may impact on their perceived efficacy (C. Mbilinyi et al., 2020) and attitude to effectively provide counseling services.
Realizing such limitations for the effective provision of counseling services in schools, the government, through the Education and Training Policies, dedicated to strengthen the provision of counseling services at all levels of education and training (Ministry of Education Vocation and Training [MoEVT], 2014; MoEST, 2023). Strengthening counseling services to support the holistic students’ development is also stipulated in a Child Care, Counseling and Protection Guideline (MoEST, 2020). Despite the government’s efforts, the secondary school teachers’ attitude toward provision of the counseling services is not adequately explored, hence the need for this study.
Teachers’ Attitudes Towards Counseling Service Provision: A Literature Review
Scholars have highlighted the importance of attitude while executing any assigned role, and counseling services in particular (Ahmed et al., 2019; Darakhshan & Shameem, 2023; Martinez et al., 2020; Stone et al., 2021). It is generally held that a positive attitude enhances the effective provision of counseling services which, in turn, increases students’ access and utilization of the services while improving their wellbeing (Eremie et al., 2020; Kamonges, 2016; Özmen & Hursen, 2020). A positive attitude energizes the counselor to plan and provide counseling services, make sense of the world, and set the basis for decision-making during counseling relationships.
J. A. Smith and Davis (2024) examined the relationship between teachers’ attitudes and their preparedness to provide counseling services in schools. Smith and Davis found that teachers with a positive attitude toward counseling services feel confident in providing counseling services to support students’ mental health needs. The highlighted study indicates that a positive attitude toward counseling is important and beneficial to students. In Tanzania, the same conclusion may not be drawn since studies on teachers’ attitudes and counseling are limited.
More studies have explained the significance of teachers’ attitudes and counseling. Cimsir and Carney (2016) studied the school counselors’ training, attitudes and perceptions of preparedness to provide counseling services to students with disabilities in inclusive settings. The study by Cimsir and Carney reveals that school counselors’ attitudes significantly predict their preparedness to provide counseling services. One would assume that the counselor dealing with students with disability may develop empathy in a humanistic perspective, and thus have a positive attitude and preparedness to assist them. Similarly, J. Smith and Johnson (2023) established that teachers’ attitudes and competency in providing the counseling services are related because attitude improves attendance in comprehensive counseling training. However, this study was not conducted in Tanzania, and its focus varies from the present study.
Furthermore, other scholars have elaborated the teachers’ attitude and counseling in different perspectives. For example, Cruz et al. (2021) investigated the attitudes of teachers serving as lay counselors and found that most of them held a positive attitude toward counseling service provision. Their positive attitudes toward counseling provision served as a lens for understanding diverse students’ needs and challenges and better intervention strategies during the counseling service provision. The authors seem to insinuate that counseling training among teachers may not play a significant role in improving attitudes toward counseling provision. However, a study by C. N. Mbilinyi (2024) demonstrates a positive relationship between training and counseling provision.
Nonetheless, the findings by Cruz et al. (2021) concur with Malik and Hussain (2018), who examined the prospective teachers’ attitudes toward guidance and counseling services, and found that 77.32% of the respondents held a positive attitude. Notably, in this perspective, prospective teachers are equivalent to lay (para-professional) counselors. Essentially, both studies seem to concur that counseling services facilitate self-regulation and self-motivation. For Aziz (2016), teachers held a positive attitude toward counseling service provision because the service facilitates students’ optimum development. Generally, the authors’ views from the previous studies draw from a student-centered approach. The reviewed studies in this section did not explain the context where some school counselors may have negative attitude as it may be determined by other aspects.
Literature shows that attitude toward counseling provision is determined by many factors. For example, a study by Wafula and Bota (2017) established a direct relationship between counseling service provision and sex as female teachers held a more favorable attitude toward counseling service provision than male teachers. Nasilumbi et al. (2016) found a close relationship between positive attitude toward counseling service provision and teacher working experiences, qualifications and in-service training. In particular, teachers with long working experiences and high education levels held a more favorable attitude than their counterparts probably due to experiences and knowledge of students’ diverse needs, challenges and their possible handling techniques.
There are other factors that influence variations in attitude toward counseling. Eremie et al. (2020) revealed a variation in attitudes toward counseling service provision based on teachers’ sex, working experience, and locality. The Eremie et al. (2020) findings contradict the earlier studies that showed that less experienced teachers had a more favorable attitude than more experienced teachers (Aziz, 2016). A negative attitude toward counseling service provision among seasoned teachers could be linked to multiple reasons. It could be contributed by unclearly defined counseling roles carried out by school counselors in addition to teaching without additional remuneration (C. Mbilinyi et al., 2020; Wambu & Fisher, 2015). and a limited counseling knowledge (C. N. Mbilinyi, 2021). However, due to differences in local contexts, factors that determine development of negative or positive attitude among secondary teachers toward counseling service provision may be different from one country to another. For example, the differences in training frameworks, and practices between countries may create a big difference in terms of qualifications and experiences of the graduates or school leavers (Senyonyi et al., 2012; Wambu & Wickman, 2015). Therefore, in poor countries, qualifications for a teacher to execute the school counselors’ roles may be low due to a limited number of trained counselors. Equally, the consideration of sex and working experience as criteria may be different between countries due to the available human resources (Kamau et al., 2014). As such, exploring factors determining the teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision in Tanzania is important.
The theoretical evidence presented in this sub-section underscore the importance of attitude toward counseling service provision, and how the attitude influences the effective provision of counseling services in schools. It also presents the factors that determine attitudes toward counseling service provision. Notably, most of the reviewed studies were not conducted in Tanzania. Available counseling studies in Tanzania focused on teachers’ understanding of school counselors’ roles (C. N. Mbilinyi, 2024), teachers perceived self-efficacy in performing school counselors’ roles (C. Mbilinyi et al., 2020) and the status of career counseling services in higher learning institutions (Amani & Sima, 2015). Additionally, studies by Nkuba and Kyaruzi (2015) and Sima (2010) investigated the school counselors’ training and challenges in providing school counseling services in secondary schools. However, these studies do not delineate the teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision; thus, the need for this study.
Since it was not known whether secondary school teachers had a positive or negative attitude toward counseling service provision, this study explored the secondary school teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision in Tanzania. Specifically, the study was guided by two questions. (1) How is the attitude of secondary school teachers toward counseling service provision. (2) Is there any difference in attitude toward counseling service provision based on teachers’ demographic characteristics? Findings from this study would contribute to the limited scholarship on teachers’ attitudes and counseling. Understanding teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision is vital for policymakers to make plans and implement strategies that may improve the teachers’ attitudes towards counseling service provision in schools that would improve the students’ holistic development and well-being.
Methods and Materials
Design and Setting
This study is informed by pragmatism philosophy which employs the positivist and interpretivist tenets to understand the phenomenon under study. Pragmatism paradigm focuses on outcomes and what best addresses the identified challenge based on society’s set standards and needs (Leavy, 2017). The paradigm was useful in this study because it enabled the researcher to employ both objective (quantitative) and subjective (qualitative) lens in understanding the teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision. Such insights were important as they helped to co-construct and/or co-create meaning through a questionnaire, interviews and focus group discussions.
The study employed a concurrent embedded design with a mixed-method approach. The design allowed the researcher to utilize potentials of the combined quantitative and qualitative techniques and datasets to gain an understanding of the phenomenon under study. During the research undertaking, qualitative and quantitative data were collected and analyzed at approximately the same time with different emphasis on each data set, as scholars of concurrent embedded design illustrate (Creswell & Creswell, 2018; Johnson & Christensen, 2017). The quantitative approach examined teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision and whether such attitudes were informed by their demographic characteristics such as sex, qualifications, working experiences as teachers and school counselors. Correspondingly, qualitative method was employed to explore the teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision for triangulating and complementing the quantitative data set.
The study involved nine secondary schools from Dar es-salaam, Iringa, and Tanga regions. The regions were purposively selected based on their involvement in a pilot training during the establishment of the school counseling program in the country (Sima, 2010). The training was done in 2003 under the auspices of the Ministry of Education and Vocation Training [MoEVT], in collaboration with local and international education agencies and non-governmental organizations [NGOs] to promote school counseling services in secondary schools (Kessler, 2012).
Participants
The key respondents in this study were secondary school teachers, including heads of schools. Secondary school teachers were involved as potential school counselors and key implementers of school counseling services. Similarly, heads of schools were important as overall overseers of school programs, including counseling services. Thus, understanding their attitudes toward counseling service provision was crucial for effective counseling services in schools. About 250 secondary school teachers from a population of 478 teachers filled out the questionnaire. The Bartlett, Kotrik and Higgins’s (2001) estimation table for continuous and categorical data in Cohen et al. (2018) guided the determination of the sample size. According to the table, the expected sample size of 478 population with a confidence level of 95% was 220. However, the present study sample size was more than 220 for some reasons. First, Cohen et al. (2018) suggest that in a study that uses categorical and continuous data, the researcher should opt for the sample size determined for categorical data, which is normally larger than the sample size for continuous data. As such, for the population ranging from 400 to 499, the determined categorical sample size is 250, which was considered in the present study. Second, since the study was conducted in three distinct regions, each region became a subgroup, which led to an increased sample size, as suggested by Ary et al. (2010) and Cohen et al. (2018).
Stratified random and simple random sampling techniques were used to select respondents for the questionnaire. The teacher’s level of education (Diploma or Degree), sex and attendance of in-service counseling training guided the stratification of teachers. After stratification, all teachers who participated in in-service counseling training were purposively included in the study because they were few. The randomization was done using identification numbers in each stratum based on the determined sample size.
From the selected sample, 120 (48%) of the respondents were drawn from Dar es Salaam, while 77 (31%) and 53 (21%) were sampled from Iringa and Tanga regions respectively. The majority of the respondents (56%) were females, while 46% were males. From the selected sample, 190 (76%) were holders of bachelor’s degree, followed by 31 (12%) holders of diploma and 29 (12%) holders of postgraduate degree. About 56 (22%) of respondents had working experiences of 16 to 20 years as teachers, followed by 53 (21%) and 49 (20%) who had working experiences of 11 to 15 and 10 years respectively. Accordingly, 21(38%) of teachers had been appointed as school counselors, and had working experiences in that particular role for 4 to 6 years. Another group was that of 19 (34%) that had served as school counselors for 1 to 3 years. From the sample, only 43(17%) had attended in-service counseling training.
Measures
Twenty closed items were used to measure secondary school teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision. Items in the attitude scale were prepared by the researcher after a thorough review of literature and sorting that involved four psychology experts from the Department of Educational Psychology and Curriculum Studies of the University of Dar es Salaam. The scale had five points on the Likert scale ranging from 1—strongly disagree to 5—strongly agree. The highest score the respondents were expected to get was 100. While the lowest score expected was 20, the mean score was 50. These calculations were done after reversing all the negatively worded items according to Field (2014). For instance, items such as “Secondary school teachers are not expected to provide counseling services in schools” and“As a professional teacher, I would not advocate for school counseling service provision” were reversed to prevent response bias and improve the reliability of the findings. Respondents who scored below 50 were considered to have negative attitudes, and those who scored above 50 were thought to have positive attitudes.
Before actual data collection, a pilot study was conducted in Iringa Municipality to ascertain the clarity of scale items, appropriateness and applicability. The pilot involved 80 secondary school teachers who were drawn from four secondary schools which were not part of this study. The Cronbach alpha was calculated from the piloted data to determine the internal consistency of the items and ensure the validity of the findings. The results indicated a Cronbach alpha coefficient of α = .76, which was greater than .70, an accepted international standard for reliability of a scale (Cohen et al., 2018; Leavy et al., 2017).
Focused Group Discussions [FGDs] and semi-structured interviews were used as techniques to collect qualitative data to complement and triangulate the quantitative data. The interviews and FGDs gathered participants’ attitudes toward counseling service provision and why they had such an attitude. To that end, the researcher used open-ended questions as emphasized by Merriam (2009). Interviews were administered to heads of schools, and lasted for 30 to 45 min. Nine FGDs were conducted with secondary school teachers, one in each school selected. Each FGD lasted for 60 to 80 min and comprised 6 to 8 teachers, making a total of 46 participants. The participants were purposively selected from members who had filled out the questionnaire based on sex, education level and attendance of in-service counseling training.
From the selected head of schools, five were males and four were females, and none of them had attended in-service counseling training. Their education levels ranged from undergraduate to postgraduate degrees. Likewise, their working experiences ranged between 3 and 16 years, while the majority had served in the capacity of head of schools for 5 years. Besides, out of the sampled teachers, 25 were females and 21 were males. In terms of academic qualifications, 31 teachers had bachelor degrees, followed by holders of postgraduate degrees and diploma. From the sample, only five participants had attended in-service counseling training. As regards to working experiences, 27 of the selected teachers had worked for 11 to 15 years, and 4 to 6 years as school counselors. However, only six teachers were reported to have served as school counselors.
Ethical Considerations
Permission to conduct this study was obtained from the responsible authorities and regions in the study settings. Before data collection, participants were informed about the purpose of the study, benefits, protection of information and how their rights could be protected. The willingness to participate and withdraw from the study at any time they wished was also granted. Written and verbal informed consent to participate in the study and record their voices during FGDs and interviews were also sought. A written consent form was attached to the questionnaire, and verbal consent was sought from participants during the interviews and FGDs.
All respondents were assured of the anonymity and confidentiality of the shared information, names and schools from which the data were collected. The pseudonym “ST” represented secondary teachers, and heads of schools were identified by the pseudonym “HS.” No space was created in the questionnaire for the respondents to write their names on it. All data collection tools were prepared in English, but during data collection, FGDs and interviews were conducted in Kiswahili, the official national language. This allowed participants to fully participate in the discussion as they could freely express in Kiswahili the phenomenon under study. The collected data was transcribed, analyzed and translated back into English for presentation. Translation was done by two different language experts (one for English, and another was a Kiswahili expert) from the University of Dar es Salaam. Notably, both experts had a relative fluency in the other language in which they were not experts. The Kiswahili language expert translated the data from Kiswahili to English. After which an English expert keenly checked correctness of the translation made. When the experts were done with translation, the researcher checked the consistency of translated transcripts with the findings.
Data Analysis
Quantitative data was coded and analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) software version 25. Similarly, the Shapiro-Wilk test was used to test the normality of data distribution. Descriptive statistical analysis methods such as means and frequencies were used to analyze the respondents’ demographic information and attitude toward counseling service provision. Differences in secondary school teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision by sex and in-service counseling training were computed using an independent sample t-test. A one-way analysis of variance [ANOVA] ascertained whether secondary teachers varied in attitudes toward counseling service provision based on their qualifications and working experiences as teachers and as school counselors.
Results from qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis to allow the researcher to interpret the gathered data and determine patterns inductively (Braun & Clarke, 2006). During the analysis, audio-recorded data were transcribed verbatim and organized to facilitate coding, creation, presentation and interpretation of themes. Before the presentation of the findings, the researcher shared the study results with the participants to ascertain authenticity. Afterward, the ascribed explicit and implicit meanings of the themes were assigned for report writing.
Results
This section presents findings on teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision. It is divided into two subsections: The first part presents findings on teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision and reasons for such attitudes. The second part presents findings regarding the relationship between teachers’ demographic characteristics and attitude toward counseling service provision.
Secondary School Teachers’ Attitude Towards Counseling Service Provision
The first question in this study was to understand secondary school teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision and why they held such attitudes. Table 1 summarizes the findings.
Secondary School Teachers’ Attitude Toward Counseling Service Provision.
As presented in Table 1, results show that 136 (54%) of the respondents had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision. These findings may imply that teachers were willing to serve as school counselors and provide counseling services to address a myriad of students’ needs and challenges. It could also suggest that teachers are aware of the roles and utility of counseling services for students’ well-being. These findings were also confirmed by qualitative data, which showed that most participants had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision.
Reasons for Positive Attitude Towards Counseling Service Provision
During discussions, participants shared their opinions on why they had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision, as outlined hereunder.
Improved Students’ Wellbeing
Participants indicated that they had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision because the service helps students to address and/or cope with diverse stressful situations and challenges which impact their well-being in school and at home. The participants further revealed that, many students were orphans, and others were from divorced and/or single-parent families. Also, there were students whose families had conflicts, financial constraints, health and many other social problems which affected them. Therefore, through the provision of counseling services, they would be assisted, as explained in the following quotation: …provision of counseling services in schools is indispensable in this era. There are students who are always stressed and unhappy due to problems they have. We have students whose families earn very low incomes, have conflicts and are not able to provide their children with basic requirements. These students are uncomfortable and lack confidence even when you look at them. They really need counseling to redefine their identities and handle the challenges they are facing (ST01 SC03).
Concurring with the preceding explanation, one head of school exemplified: These are times when counseling service provision is more important. Currently, out of 800 students, more than 70 students may have challenges in their families. If you read their profiles, you will realize the extent of the problem. We have a large number of orphaned students and those whose parents are single or divorced. When I was a student, we were 700 in the school, and I do not remember if we had an orphan or a student from a divorced family. Thus, counseling services should not be underrated in schools, given the current challenges (HS SC07).
The quotations above suggest that counseling services have become more important than before with the changing family settings and patterns which, in turn, have increased challenges that students, as children have to shoulder. Thus, counseling services in schools help to improve the students’ holistic well-being impacted by the changing family patterns, identity, and life styles.
Improved Teaching and Learning Environment
Many participants had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision because they believed that the service improves the teaching and learning environment, consequently improving the students’ academic performance. Participants revealed that effective school counseling services improve the students’ discipline and relationships, and enhance their sense of belonging which, in turn, improves their participation in diverse academic engagements. Emphasizing the significance of counseling, one of the teachers elaborated: The provision of counseling services helps students to achieve their academic goals and facilitates effective teaching and learning. There are students who do not know why they are in school and what they exactly need to. Through guidance and counseling services, students discipline improves, their interaction also improves and they become aware of themselves and what being a student entails (ST04 SC06).
The findings from teachers were not different from those of heads of schools, as the following quotation indicates: Provision of counseling services in schools creates a friendly teaching and learning environment. Through counseling, those who teach and those who are taught become psychologically stable. Good cooperation, interaction and communication between students, students and teachers, and students and parents promote discipline, self-fulfillment and achievement in diverse academic arena (HS SC09).
The quotes above suggest that effective provision of counseling services in schools is crucial as it helps students gain insights about themselves and their self-learning environment, which sets the basis for better academic achievement and improved well-being. Despite the importance of counseling services in schools, it is worth noting that students’ academic performance is a combination of many intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Counseling is a support service that molds students to acquire desired behaviors.
Informed Career Choice Decision
Participants established that many students did not know why they were studying, who they wanted to become, and how they would get into careers of their interest. Teachers noted that it is through guidance and counseling that students are informed about different careers in the world of work and their requirements. They are also assisted in understanding their attributes and how to make informed career choices based on their interests and aptitudes, as one of the participants elaborated below: … We might be using a lot of effort to teach and forget another critical angle that could help our students achieve their goals. In my understanding, many students do not understand why they are studying a particular subject combination and careers related to the combinations they are studying. Through career guidance and counseling, such students are assisted (ST02 SC07).
Sharing similar views with other teachers; one teacher expounded: Choosing a career is a process that requires adequate and relevant information. Such information may be offered by a school counselor through different counseling programs (ST05 SC04).
The preceding quotes indicate that provision of counseling services in schools is important as it enlightens students on what they are studying and the available careers for better career preparation, decision making and development in their lives. Limited counseling services could hinder the adequate and accurate provision of career information necessary for making informed career choices. This could affect the students as they may, in future, take up careers from which they do not derive satisfaction or may not perform as required.
Teacher Professionalism
During interviews and FGDs, participants ascertained that during teacher training, counseling was taught as a component in one of the courses to acquaint them with the knowledge and skills to offer the service. Through counseling, students are assisted in handling diverse challenges and needs that enable them to move toward fulfillment of their potential. Thus, teachers had a positive attitude because the role of providing counseling services is entrenched in their teaching profession. The following quotations support this claim: In my thinking, being a teacher is not limited to teaching only. It embraces teaching and many other roles, including counseling service provision. By the way, I have been considering counseling as one of my responsibilities and part of teaching because it helps students become fully functioning people and effective during the teaching and learning process (ST02 SC05).
In a similar vein, another teacher asserted: Teachers are parents taking care of their children. They have to make sure that students are comfortable before they start teaching. They cannot concentrate on teaching while their students are upset. They provide guidance and counseling because students can effectively learn when they are psychologically stable (ST04 SC08).
Although the other HoS supported the claim that teachers should provide counseling services as part of their teacher profession, one had a different viewpoint when he said: …teachers can provide counseling services because they are familiar with their students and the challenges they face. However, due to the limited number of teachers in our schools and the teaching workload they have, I am not sure if they have enough time to listen to students’ challenges and plan appropriate interventions. This may only happen when there are teachers fully working as counselors or relieved from teaching responsibilities to perform the roles of a school counselor full-time, which is not easy due to the limited number of teachers (HS SC01)
The preceding quotes indicate that students’ psychological stability is a prerequisite for an effective teaching and learning process. Although counseling can potentially improve students’ psychological stability and well-being, there are situations where services can be effectively offered especially when adequate time is allocated and counseling as an independent career is prioritized.
Although the findings from quantitative data showed that respondents who had positive attitudes toward counseling services provision outweighed those who held negative attitudes, during interviews and FGDs, participants with negative attitudes toward counseling service provision were many.
Reasons for Negative Attitude Towards Counseling Service Provision
When probed to understand why some teachers held negative attitudes toward counseling service provision, respondents gave such reasons as low recognition of the service, limited counseling resources, and low support from school administration and other education stakeholders.
Low Recognition of Counseling Services
Findings revealed that the majority of participants in FGDs had a negative feeling toward counseling service provision due to low recognition of the services by education stakeholders. They further added that counseling services are given less attention. Gravity is placed on the supervision of academic achievements only as one of the participants affirms: How can I have positive feelings for something that my head of school does not consider important? I do not understand why teachers are overwhelmed with responsibilities that are ignored by their education leaders. Counseling services are not valued and even supervised in schools. Quality assurers often visit our school, but they never ask anything about counseling. When they come, academic teachers and all heads of departments except school counselors are called to share the progress and challenges in their units. Would you then think that the service is important? (ST04 SC03).
Another teacher had this to share: As a school counselor, I feel that the counseling service might not be one of the priorities of the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology programs. For example, the service has no budget in schools, and when education quality assurers visit schools, they do not ask anything about it. They only focus on information about lesson plans, schemes of work, logbooks, clubs and even school projects. In this scenario, do you think I can devote my time or have a positive attitude towards providing counseling services? (ST03 SC9).
Counseling services are considered auxiliary that do not require great attention. Disregarding counseling services during important education practices such as supervision may impede its effective provision which could, in turn, impact the students’ engagement and pursuits of the academic endeavors.
Limited Counseling Resources
During the discussion, participants revealed that although they acknowledged the importance of counseling services in schools, their school environments do not support them to effectively provide the service due to limited counseling resources and facilities. One of the teachers based on her experiences explained: Before my transfer to this school, I worked as a school counselor at another school. To be honest, though I acknowledge the importance of counseling services, I do not like working as a counselor anymore. The provision of counseling services is tiresome and boring in an environment that has no resources and facilities. Imagine, I had no office, no established time scheduled for counseling service provision and funds to run counseling programs. Whatever I planned to implement, I struggled on my own. Sadly, what I see in this school is not quite different from the previous school environment I am telling you about (ST03 SC04).
The teacher’s revelations were confirmed by one of the heads of schools who said: Generally, our school lacks resources for effective teaching and learning processes and for running other school programs. Such a challenge also affects our counseling unit and perhaps even the teacher’s attitude towards counseling service provision because we do not have a counseling office, and the office that we are currently using has no furniture (HS SC05).
Although the limited counseling resources and facilities in schools could be linked with government budget constraints to facilitate the smooth running of all school plans, such inadequacy may directly impact teachers’ attitudes and students’ well-being. Teachers may develop a negative attitude toward counseling service provision and thus may not effectively provide it.
Low Support
Findings from interviews and FGDs revealed that some teachers had a negative attitude toward counseling service provision because heads of schools and some staff members provided low support to school counselors. During discussions, some participants believed that provision of counseling services is not important in addressing students’ needs and challenges. Others acknowledged its importance, although they believed that the service does not need a designated special person (school counselor) because teachers are also counselors by virtual of their training. They argued that teachers can offer the services to their students in their respective classes. The following quotations support this claim: The major problem, which is very obvious, is low support from heads of schools and other teachers. For example, the head of the school does not support the school counselor, yet he is the one who appoints. Some teachers also believe that counseling is not important and can be offered by any teacher; thus, they do not see the need for having a school counselor. Others hesitate to support the school counselor before they know the whole clients’ problem as counselors too. So, do you see how challenging the task is? (ST06 SC02).
Drawing on experiences as a member to the school guidance and counseling committee, another teacher said: I was one of the members of the school guidance and counseling committee in our school. We had many plans to help our students through guidance and counseling services. However, none of our plans were achieved because our head of school provided low support. Whatever program we shared was discarded due to lack of funds, and in other circumstances, we were told that such a program would interfere with the school teaching timetable (ST04 SC09).
The support of teachers and heads of schools to school counselors was affected by limited knowledge on what, when and how client information may be disclosed, who should offer counseling services, and disregard of the importance of collaborative practices during provision of counseling services. The low support may not only impact the attitudes of the appointed school counselors but also lead to the ineffective provision of counseling services in schools.
Respondents’ Attitude Towards Counseling Provision and Demographic Information
The second question intended to examine whether or not the attitudes of secondary school teachers toward the provision of counseling services varied by sex, education levels, working experience as teachers and school counselors and in-service training. Table 2 summarizes the results of the independent sample t-test and analysis of variance.
Differences in Teachers Attitudes by Background Information.
Significant at 5%.
Results from the independent sample t-test in Table 2 indicate no significant difference in the mean score of teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision between males [M = 78.75, SD = 13.3] and females [M = 81.02, SD = 12.06], t(248) = −1.41, p = .16. These findings imply that male and female teachers had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision. However, a slight difference in mean scores suggested that females [M = 81.02] had a more favorable attitude than male teachers [M = 78.75]. Furthermore, a statistically significant difference in attitude was found between respondents who attended in-service counseling training [M = 83.55, SD = 14.15] and those who did not [M = 79.29, SD = 12.27] at t-value p = .02. That means teachers who attended in-service counseling training had a positive attitude toward counseling service provision as opposed to those who did not attend the training.
Moreover, results from ANOVA indicated no statistically significant difference in teachers’ attitudes toward the provision of counseling services based on teachers’ qualifications [f(2, 247) = 1.79, p = .16] and working experience as school counselors [f(3, 51) = .39, p = 76). This implies that teachers’ qualifications and working experience as school counselors do not impact their attitude toward the provision of counseling services. More so, the findings indicated a statistically significant difference in attitude scores in the provision of counseling services based on teachers’ teaching experience [F(6, 243) = 2.07, p < .05]. The actual difference within groups calculated by using eta squared was 0.03, which was a small difference as proposed by Ary et al. (2010) and Cohen et al. (2018) guidelines for interpreting effect size. Such effect size suggests an insignificant difference in teachers’ attitudes toward the provision of counseling services between varied groups of working experiences. Furthermore, the post hoc comparison using the Turkey HSD test indicated that the mean score for groups 31 + years [M = 84.94, SD = 10.11] differed significantly from teachers with experience of 26–30 years [M = 81.50, SD = 8.32], 21–25 years [M = 81.16, SD = 12.11] and other working experience groups. In other words, teachers with long time working experiences had a more favorable attitude toward the provision of counseling services than teachers who had served for a short time. However, the post hoc result does not consider factors that may interfere with the attitude informed by teaching experiences. For instance, although teachers with short time working experiences were found to have negative attitude, sometimes they could be highly motivated and excited to offer counseling services indicating their positive attitudes toward counseling. On the contrary, teachers with long working experiences can feel bored to offer the service and develop negative attitude.
Discussion
The aim of this study was to investigate the secondary school teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision. Findings revealed that secondary school teachers had positive attitudes toward the provision of counseling services. These findings are consistent with previous studies that found positive attitudes toward the provision of counseling services among teachers (Boitt, 2016; Cimsir & Carney, 2016; Eremie et al., 2020; Malik & Hussain, 2018; Owino & Odera, 2014; Wafula & Bota, 2017). In a study by Choi and Doh’s (2017), participants held positive attitudes toward counseling services because it provides emotional support, and enables individuals to have self-understanding. A positive attitude reflects preparedness (J. A. Smith & Davis, 2024), enthusiasm, seriousness and persistence in the execution of a particular assigned role (Wafula & Bota, 2017). A positive attitude toward the provision of counseling services emanates from teachers’ awareness of its benefits, and suggests their intention and preparedness to offer it to improve students’ well-being. This does not imply that teachers with negative attitude are not aware of the positive outcome of counseling services.
A negative attitude toward the provision of counseling services in this study may be attributable to many factors. This includes inadequate counseling training whereby the training increases knowledge which consequently improves attitudes (Cimsir & Carney, 2016; C. N. Mbilinyi, 2021). Moreover, counseling as a profession is still new in Tanzania; thus, lacks clear policies and professional boards to ensure ethical standards, regulations, and a high level of competence in the practice. Although the government’s education Circular, Policy, and guidelines empower and designate teachers with the responsibility of counseling service provision in schools (MoEC, 2002; MoEST, 2020; MoEVT, 2014), the roles of school counselors and the lawsuits for malpractice during counseling service provision are not clearly defined. This presents a dilemma as the status quo of counselors is dual-faceted in Tanzania (C. N. Mbilinyi, 2024). For instance, it is not clear as to whether they would be sued as teachers or counselors. Such a dilemma may have significant contributions to their attitudes toward provision of counseling services. Teachers could have a positive attitude toward provision of counseling services in schools when their roles are clearly defined, and there is a policy guiding their practices.
It is also revealed that negative or positive teachers’ attitude toward the provision of counseling services is largely ascribed by the teachers’ teaching experiences and attendance of in-service counseling training. Indeed, in the present study, teachers with long teaching experiences had a more favorable attitude than their counterparts who had worked for a short time. The findings are supported by previous studies which also reported a significant relationship between teaching experiences and attitude toward the provision of counseling services (Aziz, 2016; Nasilumbi et al., 2016). Despite the relationship between attitude toward the provision of counseling services and teaching experiences, the provision of counseling services is not analogous to teaching. Specifically, counseling is a unique profession with its theories, methods and ethical guidelines. Thus, for it to be effectively provided in schools, teachers should have adequate counseling knowledge and skills. Teaching experiences equip teachers with knowledge of students’ behaviors, challenges and their plausible mitigating measures.
More so, it was expected that teachers who attended in-service counseling training could have a more favorable attitude than those who did not. The fact is in-service counseling training empowers teachers with evolving counseling knowledge, guarantees and develops the counseling positive attitudes among school counselors. This is also supported by Cimsir and Carney’s (2016) study, which established a significant relationship between counseling knowledge and a positive attitude in providing counseling services. In Namibia, in-service counseling training is for school counselors’ appointees to equip them with knowledge and skills to execute the additional professional responsibility (Nasilumbi et al., 2016). In principle, when a school counselor has a limited counseling knowledge, the outcome of the counseling process may be ineffective. This is justified by Wako (2016) in Ethiopia who argued that a limited in-service counseling training prevents the school counselors from handling clients’ cases effectively. Although in-service counseling training is crucial for improving teachers’ attitudes, when not well organized, it may not have a significant impact on the intended set goals. The findings from this study and other scholars seem to underestimate the impact of the lay counselors and prospective teachers who, even without adequate counseling training had a positive attitude toward the counseling service provision (Eremie et al., 2020; Malik & Hussain, 2018).
There may not be a strong relationship between qualifications, gender and the counseling services provision. However, for the case of the present study, a slight difference in attitudes between male and female teachers was established with the latter exhibiting a positive attitude. More favorable attitudes among female teachers may be ascribed to the fact that female teachers are naturally more helpful and generous in offering assistance and emotional support (Nasilumbi et al., 2016). Similarly, females have more nurturing and assistive attributes than men, as they can build rapport and easily empathize with clients during counseling relationships (Kok, 2013). For instance, Wafula and Bota (2017) reported a significant difference in attitude toward provision of counseling services between female and male teachers. Scholars’ views are inclined toward the inherent characteristics of men and women which are quite often based on society’s values and stereotypes. On the contrary, Aziz (2016) found no relationship between school counselors’ gender, qualifications and attitude toward providing counseling services. Although Aziz’s study disputes existence of the relationship between inherent gender characteristics and attitude toward counseling provision, it is also worth noting that nurturing plays a great role in shaping an attitude. For that reason, male and female teachers could have favorable attitudes toward the counseling service provision when their inherent and acquired attributes are nurtured because development of an attitude is attributed by many factors.
Some of the school counselors, just like regular teachers, had a negative attitude toward the provision of counseling services. Under normal circumstances, one would expect school counselors to have a more favorable attitude due to their constant interactions with students and experiences in handling diverse students’ challenges. Nonetheless, explanations for their negative attitudes toward the provision of counseling services may include dual roles undertaking and limited training in counseling (C. N. Mbilinyi, 2024), limited perceived self-efficacy (C. Mbilinyi et al., 2020) and unclear counseling policies to govern the counseling practice (Amani & Sima, 2015). Again, upon the appointment of school counselors, limited in-service counseling training is conducted to equip them with the competencies to provide counseling services (Sima, 2010). Impliedly, teachers do not acquire adequate training to develop positive attitudes toward counseling service provision.
Improved students’ well-being is the chore for the provision of counseling services in schools as was found in this study. Previous studies, including Daudi et al. (2023), Rushau (2022), and Fussy (2018), support this study finding that provision of counseling services in schools reduces countless behavioral, psychosocial and academic challenges that would adversely affect the students’ well-being. Similarly, the government of Tanzania declared counseling services as one of the tools for managing and improving students’ well-being (MoEC, 2002; MoEST, 2020, 2023). Despite the established importance of the service, Magdalene et al. (2019) report negative attitudes toward the provision of counseling services among teachers because they were skeptical about its utility in improving students’ well-being. The teachers’ skepticism indicates inadequate counseling training because, through training, the role of counseling in improving students’ well-being ought to be emphasized. As Wambu and Wickman (2015) and Murphy et al. (2020) reported, the provision of counseling services can only improve students’ well-being if the service is provided by qualified personnel and without conditions. Thus, since counseling is taught as one of the components during preparation of professional teachers, all teachers are para-professional counselors and are expected to have a positive attitude toward counseling provision for improving the students’ wellbeing.
Moreover, the study noted that teachers had positive attitudes toward the provision of counseling services because the service facilitates students’ informed career choices. Consistent with this study, Keshf and Khanum (2021) and Shah et al. (2021) established that providing career counseling services in schools helps students to have enough occupational information, which serves as a foundation for career exploration and choices. Appropriate career choices require school counselors’ understanding of career opportunities available in the world of work, and assisting students in identifying their interests, abilities, and perceived self-efficacy, and matching such attributes with available career opportunities (C. N. Mbilinyi, 2012). Such understanding is important because when students are not provided with adequate and accurate career information, they may end up hunting for careers, and not choosing it (Amani, 2016). Joining a career without adequate and useful information may lead to job dissatisfaction, poor performance and, sometimes, frequent career change (Amani, 2022). Therefore, without comprehensive counseling services to enlighten students on different careers, their requirements and the fulfilment of counseling needs, their future career development may be hazy.
Additionally, the current study illuminates that providing counseling services entrenches teachers’ professionalism. This is consistent with other studies that acknowledged teachers for undertaking the roles of school counselors for different reasons (Aziz, 2016; Haruna, 2015; Iyabo, 2016; MoEST, 2020; Senyonyi et al., 2012; Wafula & Bota, 2017). In a study by Crawford and Johns (2018), teachers were trusted to offer counseling services because they had clear boundaries and lines of referral; and could build rapport during the counseling process. Similarly, Wako (2016) established that teachers’, particularly with a Bachelor of Education in Psychology degree can execute the roles of school counselors because they study more counseling courses than teaching professional courses. However, Levy and Lemberger-Truelove (2021) assert that performing dual professional roles (teaching and counseling) is professionally unethical and may adversely affect clients and the counseling profession. Dual roles may also have an impact on teachers’ attitudes toward the provision of counseling services due to overwhelming teaching responsibilities (Sima, 2010). Although school counselors are familiar with the school environment; and can integrate themselves and the counseling programs in a complex education system, if their teaching workload is not reduced, they may not perform effectively their counseling roles.
Equally, this study found that participants had negative attitudes toward the provision of counseling services due to low support from heads of schools and other education stakeholders. These findings align with other studies that reported that school counselors did not receive sufficient support from school administrators and teachers to enable them render quality services (Boitt, 2016; Mushaandja et al., 2013). According to Iyabo (2016), HoS who did not support the school counseling services withheld the budget allocated for school counseling program. Similarly, teachers who did not support school counselors and the offered counseling services showed false impressions, low cooperation and frustrated any program initiated by school counselors (Eremie et al., 2020). Low support; thus, contributes to negative attitude toward counseling services and impacts its effective provision in schools. Generally, the success of any program in a school, including counseling, depends on the support from HoS and other teachers as potential counselors. In particular, HoS are responsible for planning, appraising and interpreting various school activities and programs, including counseling. Therefore, for effective provision of counseling services in schools, HoS support is imperative.
Despite the low support provided by HoS and other teachers to school counselors, the present study reported the presence of low recognition of counseling services. This finding supports the previous studies from other countries (Luyando, 2015; Ojeme, 2019; Wako, 2016). For example, in Zambia, Luyando (2015) established that counseling services were not monitored and supervised in schools because they were not recognized by educational officials in the district province. The same is observed in Nigeria by Fareo (2020) who reports that counseling service are not given the recognition they deserve in schools and are hence, considered a superfluous service. Disregarding counseling services during supervision of other school programs not only limits school counselors in identifying areas that need improvement during the undertaking of different counseling roles but also creates uncertainties about whether what they are doing is correct or even important. Consequently, teachers’ attitudes toward counseling services provision may become negative leading to ineffective counseling service provision. Indeed, effectiveness of any program is determined by proper planning, implementation, supervision and evaluation.
Limited counseling resources also contribute to teachers’ negative attitudes toward the provision of counseling services. According to Iyabo (2016) and Boitt (2016), the effective provision of counseling services in any school depends on the availability of necessary resources. Specifically, the presence of qualified school counselors without appropriate counseling resources and facilities cannot facilitate the effective provision of counseling services (Ojeme, 2019). Thus, for effective provision of counseling services, schools should have accurate and adequate resources, including equipped confidential counseling rooms, scheduled time in the school timetable and funds.
Conclusion and Recommendations
Attitude is an important construct for the effective provision of counseling services in schools. A positive attitude toward provision of counseling services revealed in the present study suggests that secondary school teachers understand the importance of counseling services in schools, and are/or would effectively provide the services to improve the students’ well-being upon appointment as school counselors. In order to improve teachers’ attitudes for effective provision of counseling services the following recommendations are significant.
First, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology should strengthen and support provision of counseling services in schools through adequate and accurate provision of counseling resources and supervision to ascertain its effectiveness. Second, training of school counselors should be organized to equip them with counseling knowledge and skills that would improve their attitude toward effective provision of counseling services. Third, policymakers should prepare a counseling policy framework clearly stating the roles of counselors, their qualifications, ethical guidelines and procedures in counseling practices to reduce dilemmas; thus, improve the teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision.
Limitations and Future Studies
This study examined the attitudes of secondary school teachers toward provision of counseling services in Tanzanian secondary schools. Provision of counseling services is one of the primary roles school counselors perform in addition to teaching. However, counseling service provision is not a stand-alone role but rather, a multifaceted role. Thus, findings on teachers’ attitudes toward counseling services provision may have provided a wider picture of teachers’ attitudes toward execution of the roles of school counselors, including assessment, consultation, coordination and advocacy. For that matter, teachers’ attitude toward the provision of counseling services may represent their attitudes to the performance of multiple roles of a school counselor.
Although the present study used a concurrent mixed method approach to gain deeper understanding of the teachers’ attitudes toward the provision of counseling services in Tanzania, findings may not be generalized. This is because the participants were secondary school teachers drawn from public secondary schools only. The present study’s findings may only be generalized to a population with similar characteristics. Therefore, for a holistic understanding of secondary school teachers’ attitudes toward counseling service provision, an examination of teachers’ attitudes from public and private schools is required. It would enable shedding light on other factors that further determine counselors’ attitudes toward counseling services, as the supportive structures and context in the different school systems also differ. For generalization purposes, examining public and private secondary teachers’ attitude toward counseling service provision is further required. Regardless of limitations, this study contributes to the scholarship on counseling and teachers’ attitudes that has received limited attention in the context of Tanzania. It illuminates on how attitudes affect the provision of counseling services ultimately impacting the students’ well-being.
Footnotes
Acknowledgements
I thank all secondary school teachers who participated in this study.
Declaration of Conflicting Interests
The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Ethical Approval
The ethical research clearance was provided by the University of Dar es Salaam which is empowered to provide research clearance to students, staff and researchers on behalf of the Tanzanian Commission for Science and Technology.
Data Availability
The data for this analysis will be available from the author upon request