School counselors can use video reflection to improve their skills, too

Moses Kulee, a school counselor at Ánimo Pat Brown Charter High School in Los Angeles, first began using video as a requirement to obtain his Pupil Personnel Services Credential from Loyola Marymount University. But he soon realized that by watching sessions with his students, he was able to gain insights for both his one on one and group counseling sessions.

We sat down with Moses to hear how he used Edthena as a powerful tool for school counselor professional development.

What advice would you give to an educator who is using video reflection for the first time?

Be authentic. It is important to recognize that the purpose of video coaching is to allow yourself to reflect on areas that you may need help. So you shouldn’t act differently because you know you’re on video. Though you may have the temptation to put on a show because you are being recorded, you really want to be able to see you being yourself in your own classroom.

So I think that authenticity is an important thing to remember because I know sometimes when I started recording myself, at first I wanted to act differently, but then you can’t really get help in the areas that you need and grow from your mistakes.

How did video reflection with Edthena accelerate your readiness to be a school counselor?

Watching videos of myself in counseling sessions with my students has allowed me to realize how skilled I am in the specific competencies that were required for my master’s program. I am able to focus on these skills during my sessions at Ánimo Pat Brown Charter High School.

Being able to go back and see the difference between my counseling sessions in the past and where I am at now has been one of the really awesome things about Edthena.

What was your personal reaction to using video observation for the first time?

Originally, I thought of Edthena as a “requirement,” but after using the platform to record both one on one and group counseling sessions, I found how beneficial and easy to use to was.  Using Edthena was very easy because it’s already programmed, once you download the app you can just open it up and it does the work for you.

Moses’ interview is the latest in our Educator Voices series. To see the previous Educator Voices installments, click here.