JSA: Purposeful Planning

Concept

JSA’s “Purposeful Planning” is a student-centered assessment program that seeks to establish increased parent-child understanding of the child’s educational planning needs through individualized, 1v1 sessions. Student feedback is the primary source of data, collected through conversational, qualitative interviews conducted by JSA counselors. Every child’s story is uniquely their own and uniquely complex; we strive to empower the student to share and explore their multidimensional school experiences with us, in hopes of bringing greater, holistic awareness to the student, as well as those involved in their developmental journey. Research tells us that student perception can tell us a lot about learning outcomes, behavior, motivation and beliefs about themselves as learners - JSA is here to strengthen the voice of students all across the world and engage them in meaningful conversations about their current and future engagements as lifelong learners.

Format

6-week program that requires students to meet 2x/week - 6 sessions with one JSA counselor, 6 sessions with another. At the conclusion of the program, assessment interpretations and recommendations will be captured in the form of a written document and reported to parents and students, together, in a final, family session. Ideally, this assessment would nurture the educational planning needs of the family, and allow them to make an insightful, informed decision about their child’s future school placement, supplementary programming or individualized support. Time slots for weekday meetings will be at a mutually agreed upon time for JSA counselors and the family

Purpose

The primary objectives of the program include, but are not limited to, the following:

Evaluate whether or not a student is on a path that is appropriately meeting their needs for academic and socio-emotional development. Ultimately, are they growing into their potential?
Build introspective and self-awareness skill sets with the student, working toward a greater sense of student voice, ownership and responsibility
Create a healthy conversational space for student reflections to be heard, validated and discussed - modeling the relationship of a trusted adult
Assess students across the seven domains of “Universal Youth Needs” as determined by the Center for Youth Development and Research in collaboration with Youth Development Institute
Interpretations will provide a springboard for future decision making around educational and/or developmental needs

This program is for ANY child or family interested in engaging thoughtfully around a student’s educational planning and positive youth development.

Potential Areas of Assessment

JSA Education partners, John Silva M.A.L.S and Randi Dumont M.S. Ed., will be the two counselors responsible for overall assessment, resulting in a team consultation/interpretation of the twelve total sessions. Each counselor utilizes their individual strengths in how they build rapport and engage with kids, while also relying on their 50+ years of combined experience in various educational settings to comprehensively understand a child’s academic and socio-emotional profile. The assessment is qualitative and narrative seeking, captured through a combination of multiple in-depth interviews and oral history research methods. Here are some samples of what we aim to understand through our student-centered conversations:

*Additional areas of exploration may be developed collaboratively with parents after our initial meeting.

General Questions to Consider:

Where do we see overall strengths and weaknesses in the child’s developmental/educational profile?
What does the child’s support system look like and how does it function or what is the dynamic?
Is the child’s current academic institution appropriately serving/supporting the child’s needs? If yes, what works well? If not, what are the barriers?
Are the parent-child visions for the future aligned? How do we seek to build a sense of nurturing trust between counselor and child to help align parent and child on future goals?
What are some of the family or cultural values around educational outcomes or expectations for the child?

General Topics to Consider Exploring:

Learning environment
- Perception of teacher relationships
- Quality of instruction/effectiveness of teachers
- Peer culture
- Safety - intellectual, physical, emotional or otherwise

Learning Preferences
Social/Interpersonal
- Peer group qualities
- Engagement - peers vs adults
- Types of support
- Identify trusted adults or access to
- Sense of humor
Curiosity
Self-regulation skills
- Adaptable thinking, planning, self-monitoring, self-control, working memory, time management, and organization
Goal setting behavior
Resilience
Sense of Self/Self-perception/Self-Awareness
Responsibility/Sense of agency/Self-efficacy
Motivation
Emotional intelligence
Extracurricular/non-academic interests or sources of joy/fun

Pricing

$3500 for a 6-week, 12 session evaluation.

*Should there be a continuation of services beyond our 6-week assessment, the $3500 would be deducted from any future costs for JSA engagements. Flexible payment options are available, as we strive to make affording our services accessible to any interested family