GUIDANCE:

Definition:
“Guidance is a process of helping every individual, through his own efforts, to
discover and develop his potentialities for his personal happiness and social
usefulness.”- Ruth Strong
“Guidance is a process through which an individual or groups of individuals are
helped to make necessary adjustment to the environment inside or outside the
schools.”-Proctor
“Guidance is assistance made available by personality qualified and adequately
trained men or women to an individual of any age to help him manage his own life
activities, developed his own point of view, make his own decisions and carry his
own burdens.”-Crow and Crow
“Guidance is process of helping individual through their own efforts to develop and
discover their potentialities for personal happiness and social usefulness.” -Ben
Monero
“Guidance is the help given by one person to another in making choices and
adjustments and in solving problems. Guidance aims at wading the recipient to grow
in his independence and ability to be responsible for himself. It is a service that is
universal not confined to the school or the family. It is found in all phases of life in
the home, in business and industry, in government. In social life, in hospitals and in
prisons indeed it is present where there are people who need help and wherever there
are people who can help.” -Arthur J. Jones
“Guidance is that enable each individual to understand his abilities and interests to
develop them as well as possible and to relate them to life goals, and finally to reads
a state of complete and mature self-guidance as a desirable member of the social
order.” -Taxler

Guidance is continuous process of helping the individual development to the

maximum of his capacity in the direction most beneficial to himself and to society.”
-E.F. Lindquist
“Guidance is the process of helping person to develop and accept an integrated and
adequate picture of himself and to his role in the world to work, to test this concept
against reality and to convert into reality with satisfaction to himself and benefit to
society.” -National Vocational Guidance Association
 “Guidance is a process of dynamic interpersonal relationships designed to influence
the attitudes and subsequent behaviour of a person.”-Good

“Guidance is that aspect of educational programme which is concerned especially

with helping the pupil to become adjusted to his present situation and to plan his
future in turn with his interests; abilities and social needs.”-Hamrin and Erickson

“Guidance is a process of helping a person to develop and accept an integrated and

adequate picture of himself and of his role in the world of work, to test this concept
against reality and to convert it into reality with satisfaction to himself and benefit
to the society.”- National Vocational Guidance Association, U.S.A:

“Guidance involves the difficult art of helping boys and girls to plan their own future
wisely in the full light of all the factors that can be mastered about themselves and
about the world in which they are to live and work.”- Secondary Education
Commission, 1954 (India)

Meaning of Guidance:

Guidance refers to the process of helping individuals understand themselves, their

abilities, interests, and problems, and assisting them in making choices and
adjustments that lead to personal and professional growth. It is a systematic and
scientific approach that aids individuals in making informed and conscious decisions
and achieving optimal growth and development.

Guidance involves personal help given by someone, it is designed to assist a person

in deciding where he wants to go, what he wants to do, or how he can best
accomplish his purposes; it assists him in solving problems that arise in his life. It
does not solve problems for the individual, but helps him to solve them. The focus
of guidance is the individual, not the problem, its purpose is to promote the growth
of the individual in self-direction. It is considered as a concept and process. Guidance
as a concept deals with the optimal development of an individual and as a process
helps an individual to evaluate oneself and helps in understanding oneself (strength,
weaknesses, limitations etc.).

Guidance is not giving directions. It is not the imposition of one person’s point of
view upon another person. It is not making decisions for an individual, which he
should make for himself. It is not carrying the burdens of another life.
Guidance is that systematic, organized phase of the educational process which helps
youth to grow in his power to give point and direction to his own life, to the end that
he may gain richer personal experience while making his own unique contribution
to our democratic society

We are social beings and require some kind of help in regulating our life at some
point or the other. This positive regulation of a person’s emotional, mental and
physical actions by some external factor – guide – is termed as GUIDANCE

Aims and Objectives of Guidance:

Like education, the guidance has various aims and objectives which draw the
attentions of teachers, educational planners and guidance workers. It is known that
without aims and objectives the entire plan, proposal and service related to guidance
become fruitless. Therefore if it barely necessary to know the aims and objectives of
the guidance clearly without any conflict and confusion.

(i) Psycho-physical aim:

The first and foremost aim of guidance is meant for development of the mental health
and physical health of student. Otherwise the individual will not be free from his
weakness and incapability so far his psycho- physical health is concerned.

(ii) Educational aim:

In the second situation, student faces many problems such as selection of suitable
courses, choice for essential books and problems related to class teaching, study
lessons and examinations. So that educational aim of guidance come to picture to
solve the problems in the context of educational career and progress by which
student gets maximum benefits.

(iii) Vocational aim:

The vocational aim of guidance is meant to prepare students for future vocation and
to show better efficiency in profession with much more job satisfaction. So that
school guidance service helps students providing accurate available information and
prospectus of different jobs in relation to their ability, interests, aptitudes and hidden
potentialities. At the same time it also keeps up-to-date students to have better choice
for liking occupation.
(iv)Recreational aim:
Guidance gives hints to the students regarding the utilization of leisure hours in best
possible use has become another important aim of guidance for the individual
development.

(v) Social aim:

The social aim of guidance is considered as another important aim of guidance which
is meant for social development concerning role and activities of individual students.

(vi)Personal & psychological aim:

The personal and psychological aim of guidance seems to be more important aim
relating the personal adjustment and psychological adjustment of the students both
in the family and personal situation as well as school situation. So that this aim of
guidance suggests students how to adjust better in personal life and solve problems
which occur in the psychological sphere of life.

The objectives of guidance are stated as below:

(a) To provide adequate, complete, comprehensive, reliable and necessary
meaningful information to the students about their inner abilities, interests and
potentialities.

(b) To assist adolescent boys and girls to understand themselves and to develop
insight to the solution of problems on the basis of realization of their strength and
limitations.

(c) To study the needs, interests, abilities, limitations, ambitions and parental
aspirations of younger boys and girls with much more care and attentions.

(d) To help parents to understand their off springs better by which they become able
to provide right type of education to them for their expected developments.

(e) To help teachers as well as headmasters to understand the students better as a

result of which they become able to organize curricular and co-curricular activities
for them taking demands, needs, interests and abilities of the students in-to account.

(f) To assist students to find suitable solutions to the problems according to best of
their capacities.

(g) To help pupils to take their own suitable decision in regards to their selection of
useful courses and to plan for better educational career.
(h) To help youngsters to choose, plan, prepare for a better occupation according to
their vocational interests.

(i) To enable the individuals to adjust successfully in the home as well as school
situations.

(j) To assist students to think and act better for social adjustment and social
development.

(k) To enable students to gain maximum development of their innate abilities

considering their needs, demands, interests, aptitudes and other creative talents.

In the light of above discussions, it may be concluded that providing successful

guidance is not an easy and careless job. Because it is meant for every individual of
the society at the time of his need as it is related to educational development,
vocational prosperity and personal progress including adjustment, of the individual
in different spheres of life. So that guidance draws the attention of guidance worker,
guidance planner, educationist etc.

Nature of Guidance:

(i) Guidance is Education itself:

Like education, guidance is a process which is meant to enable child or individual
to manifest innate potentialities or noble qualities for his development touching
social development as well. Education and guidance are both take utmost care for
the development of the child and man which is the real goal of life.

(ii) Guidance is a continuous process:

Human life is dynamic and world is also receiving changes in the every stage of the
age. So more or less an individual faces certain problems of life and society and tries
his best to adjust not for few days or few years rather for entire life span.

Because life is full of problems, anxieties and tensions from the point of solution of
problems, selection of choices and taking suitable decisions. Indeed, guidance is not
limited to particular period of human life but it is needed for all times to come which
proves that guidance is a continuous process.
(iii) Guidance is a bipolar process:
Previously it is pointed out that guidance is a process or service or programme where
person or persons from the two sides participate. In one hand the child or individual
plays his role, who needs guidance and on the other hand the guide or guidance
worker completes his job offering guidance or advice to the needy child or person.

Of course, in some situations group of the individuals take guidance from guidance
worker also. In-fact guidance is a bipolar process where two said sides act properly.

(iv) Guidance is universal in nature:

Guidance is necessary for every human life. Because every human life goes through
certain problems in its survival. Some need guidance to solve the problems of life
constantly while others require it occasionally in the life time. From this point of
view it can be said that guidance is universal in nature.

(v) Guidance is a help at the time of need:

The real meaning of guidance reveals that guidance is form of help, assistance or
advice offered by a senior, trained, experienced and qualified person to the needy
youngster he who lacks knowledge of facing difficulties or problems of life.

(vi)Guidance is a solution for the problems:

When individual or child feels unable to face the problems of life, he starts on going
to door of guidance worker. Because guidance worker or expert suggests some of
the ways to overcome the problems faced by the needy person.

(vii) Guidance is both generalized and a specialized services:

Guidance is a generalized service as it is carried on by teachers, parents, and relatives
to assist or help the individual child when he becomes unable to solve the problems
of life. Guidance is not only a generalized service but also it is a specialized service.

Because in some particular situation and context the guidance work is done by
specially qualified and trained personnel such as counsellors, psychologists,
psychiatrists keeping in view to solve the problems of the child.

(viii) Individual is the central point of the guidance:

Really individual is the main focus of guidance as it deals with the weakness,
efficiency, needs, motives and interests of individual including his care and caution
for the problems.
(ix) Guidance is systematic and organized:
Guidance is not an incidental and haphazard business so far its working process is
concerned. Guidance can be more effective, purposive and goal achieving if it
becomes more systematic, organized and well done.

(x) Guidance is a co-operative process:

Of course guidance mainly takes two category of persons such as guide and
individual who seeks guidance. To offer guidance to the child guidance worker or
the technical personnel needs many information’s concerning observational and
interactive behaviour which may be collected from parents, teachers and relatives.

Guidance work cannot be completed and fruitful one without receiving the required
information’s regarding child from the said nearest persons. So that at the time of
guidance the technical personnel should be co-operated by parents, teachers and
relatives. Due to this reason it is uttered that guidance is a co-operative process.

(xi) Guidance is decision making:

The meaning and nature of guidance will be incomplete if we say that guidance is
related to problem of individual and its solution. Rather guidance is meant to help
the individual in solving problems and to take his own suitable decisions at the time
of need.

(xii) Guidance has wide applications in the various aspects of life:

Guidance does not cover only problems of relating few aspects of life such as
educational, vocational and personal. Rather the knowledge of guidance is widely
and popularly applied to solve the problems concerning health, social, emotional and
marital aspects of human life.

(xiii) Guidance is invited for individual as well as social development:

The development of the society depends upon the activity, adjustment and
achievement of the individual as he is the part and parcel of the society. From that
point of view guidance indirectly invites development of the society as it hopes,
aspires and helps best for the individual development to the highest extent so far his
educational career, vocational career etc. are concerned.

Scope of Guidance:

Indeed the scope of guidance is very vast and extending one as it gives much
emphasis on various aspects of human life. With due importance it does not ignore
any aspect of life. The need and importance is much more felt by every individual
as the human life getting more complex and the world undergoes through various
changes day by day. Besides that guidance is an essential help which is given to the
needy persons at any age and stage of individual life.

The scope of the guidance extends its long hand in helping needy individual the
following considerations regarding:
1. Selection of suitable courses and subjects,

2. Better choice of preferable vocations/occupations,

3. Preparation for a better job,

4. Proper placement in the world of the works,

5. Been interest for higher education and training,

6. Clear cut knowledge of applying and availing the scholarships;

7. Sure gain of the achievements in favorable field,

8. Improvement of regular study habits,

9. Maintenance of the physical health relating physical exercises, food etc.,

10. Development of the mental health,

11. Solution of the personal adjustment problems,

12. Careful and fruitful suggestions for social adjustment problems,

13. Ways to find out and gain pleasure, peace and satisfaction in both personal and
as well as social life.

Above discussions made clear about educational, vocational, social, moral, physical,
personal and vocational aspects of human life which are the great concerns of the
scope and study of guidance.
Besides this, the scope of guidance includes and provides helps and services for the
individuals of any age, sex, race, caste, colour, creed, area, labels abilities etc. The
scope of guidance does not believe in any particular form of guidance.
Rather the scope of guidance includes all forms of guidance such as informal, non-
specialist and professional.

The scope of guidance also is enriched by some of the new fields considering
adjustment in the context of ever growing society like:
(a) Socialized curriculum

(b) Co-curricular activities

(c) Community resources

(d) Physical surroundings and continuing environment

(e) Educational privileges

(f) Avocational opportunities

(g) Group life and co-operation

(h) Social contact and interactions.

(i) Research about problems relating social groups and guidance.

Also the scope of guidance embodies certain tools and techniques to measure or
evaluate the abilities, interests, aptitudes and attitudes of the individuals such as—

1. Interview schedules

2. Observations

3. Different appropriate tests

4. Rating scales

5. Individual inventories

6. Diagnostic records

7. Sociometric techniques

8. Ancedotal records
9. Case studies

10. Cumulative record cards

11. Educational clinics

12. Required instructions

13. Study of group activities

14. Investigations and researches.

In the light of above descriptions it can be concluded that the scope of guidance is
broad as well as vast which covers entire situations and span of life of the individuals
of the present world.

A person can be guided at any point of time and this can include persons of different
age, interests, personalities or nature. Guidance should be tailored for each
individual according to his needs.

The scope of guidance spans across various dimensions of an individual's life. Key
areas include:

1. Educational Guidance:
o Helps students select appropriate courses, improve study habits, and
address academic challenges.
o Assists in setting educational goals aligned with their interests and
abilities.
2. Vocational/Career Guidance:
o Focuses on helping individuals understand their career options and
make informed occupational choices.
o Offers support in job preparation, skill development, and career
advancement.
3. Personal Guidance:
o Deals with emotional, social, and psychological issues that affect
personal well-being.
o Includes support for building self-confidence, managing relationships,
and coping with stress.
4. Social Guidance:
o Aids individuals in developing healthy interpersonal relationships and
understanding societal norms.
 oEncourages positive interaction in group settings.
5. Moral and Ethical Guidance:
o Helps individuals understand moral values and ethical principles to lead
a responsible life.

Need of Guidance:
Now a day’s guidance has become much more essential for students, administrators,
educators and for the common people as it helps them to meet various needs of life.
So that it would be worthwhile to discuss the reasons stated as below for which
guidance service is encouraged in schools and colleges of our country with a special
status of its own.

(i) Guidance is needed in helping total development of the pupils:

In general, the existing system of education takes much attempts to develop
intellectual aspect of the pupil through teaching process which goes in the school.
Only this sincere job of school does neglect other aspects of pupils which are to be
developed.

In the present schooling system the innate potentialities, abilities, interests, skills,
values of the students are not taken into considerations which do not invite total
development of the pupils. So much more attention should be paid by the teachers
or guidance personnel’s to understand the pupil first and his innate abilities and
talents then by which goals of guidance is achieved.

Without the support of guidance service in the school it is not at all possible to study,
understand, and offer attention to pupil and his hidden talents keeping in view the
individual differences among the students. That is why the need of guidance service
is highly felt for the total development of the pupils for the sake of personal and
social benefits.

(ii) Guidance is needed to enable students to proper choices of their educational

career at different stages:
Very often it is found that most of the students go on rushing to the school without
choosing a suitable course by which later on they become disappointed. Because
they become unable to have a better choice regarding educational courses and
syllabus. Naturally these students become way ward and frustrated as they do not
receive a better suited courses for their further study.
For example, after completion of the high school education a student has to keep his
feet in certain possible courses such as vocational courses, higher level of academic
courses of study to enter into the first degree classes in the college or university etc.

It is sure to say that each and every individual student is a better kind of asset for
family as well as society. So that no result or gain will be possible if any student
does not go for better choice, preference and selection of courses after completion
of ten years of high school education. In this context guidance service in the school
comes forward to enable and guide students to choose proper and suitable courses
for their future to achieve goal successfully and systematically.

At the same time school guidance services provide sufficient educational and
occupational information’s about different educational and vocational possibilities
for the students. Besides this a good guidance service makes students smart and
cautious enough to have a better choice for educational and vocational courses and
develops self-concept, self-knowledge, self-choice for job within them which shows
them real path to achieve real goal of life.

(iii) Guidance is needed to help students in choosing, preparing for, entering

into a better career:
The present society has become more complex and day by day where change IS
treated as a common characteristic of the modern society. To survive in the existing
society has become a risky job for everybody. In the continuing social set up it has
become a hard task for the student to choose and prepare himself for a suitable oc-
cupation as the existing world is dominated by rapid change in industrial set up,
changing market conditions, the change of para professional occupations and change
in many other govt., and private service set up.

So that it is not easy to find out a suitable job keeping in view the nature of job,
satisfaction in job, financial and other available facilities. In this context school
guidance service provides a package of available information’s, scope and
prospectus about the various jobs which offers satisfactory hints to achieve
occupation goal after entering in to a job by better selection and preparation for it.

It is also observed that most of the students are first generation learners those who
are deprived of required occupational guidance due to weak family background and
lack of experienced personnel’s guidance. To overcome these problems guidance
service organized in the school comes to picture to provide sufficient information’s
to students to have a judicious selection for the suitable job in the world of works.
(iv)Guidance is needed for the vocational development of the students:
No credit will go to an individual if he simply joins somewhere in a particular job.
Because an individual has to achieve success and satisfaction through various stages
from starting point to its end. So guidance service offered in the school not only
helps to the students to know their innate abilities, interests, and efficiencies but also
it assists the students to make aware of the world of work. Availing this guidance
service in the school, students achieve vocational development in the field of
vocation utilizing the previous knowledge received in the school campus.

(v) Guidance is needed to help students for better school adjustment:

Really school is a new set-up for a fresh and new student where he has to face
different situations unlike home. So he has to tackle the situation properly which will
make him well adjusted in the school. But the question of maladjustment comes in
case of a student if he fails to know how to study, how to prepare for tests, how to
adjust with class mates and teachers etc. That is why school guidance service is
urgently needed to make students well-adjusted in the school situations.

(vi)Guidance is needed to help students for better home adjustments:

Family is the first smallest society of child which acts as the first school of the child.
Generally, it includes parents, brothers, sisters and other related members. Here the
life of the child begins and grows in the same surroundings. Also child spends most
of his times in the family where he has to adjust and cooperate properly with parents,
siblings and other members of the family.

Just after four or five years child starts on going to the school, where he gets much
scope to adjust with the new circumstances. Besides that sometimes child does not
adjust in the family situation and faces adjustment problems. Due to this reason
school guidance service helps the child how to adjust in the home and with family
members smoothly.

(vii) Guidance is needed to supplement the efforts of family:

The present society undergoes certain changes due to rapid industrialization,
political and social changes in the occupational structure, population explosion,
science and technological development, need and demands of modern life including
growing complexity of life and effect and pressure of home etc.

Being a primary institution, home takes initiative to provide all sorts of supports and
help to child. But due to rapid social changes home is not in position to offer
adequate service to the child. Because almost all the members of family generally
busy in their own work and get less time to guide the child.
On the other hand parents and other well-wishers may not be able to give adequate
guidance to child as they are ignorant about up to date information’s of new careers,
and courses in relation to occupation and education. To satisfy this purpose school
starts guidance service to supplement the efforts of home for the betterment of the
students.

(viii) Guidance is needed to reduce the mismatching between education and

employment and to help for best use of man power:
Today, as never before, thousands of youngsters with certain diplomas and degrees
are applying for employment for the purpose of their engagement. But unfortunately
they are not opting for a service which does not command any relevance to the job
specification.

At the same time the number of the applicants for service is much more in
comparison to the vacancy of the post. So it is an unnecessary wastage of time and
money that the youngsters are coming to the floor of job having no efficiency and
interest for the job. In this context school guidance service offers valuable advices
regarding well suited job and to utilize man power properly by which both the
individual and as well as society gets maximum benefits.

(ix) Guidance is needed to help students from weaker section of society for their
school and social adjustments:
In most of the cases it is observed that students from weaker sections of the society
do not adjust and cooperate with school situations and society. They are having
innumerable problems and needs relating to their socio-economic status, family
background, educational and occupational status etc.

Due to these causes they face difficulties in adjustment with peers, senior mates;
junior mates, teachers of school and social environment. Also they do not feel active
and sound in communicating, making friends, gaining knowledge from class room
teachings, participating in different co-curricular activities set by school. So that
guidance service is required to motivate and encourage these students to adjust better
in school and his environments.

(x) Guidance is needed to help students in need of special help:

In a school, we find different categories of exceptional students such as gifted,
backward and handicapped those who need special help and guidance for their
personal development. That is why the guidance service offered in the school takes
special initiative to provide special help and guidance looking to their problems and
needs.
(xi) Guidance is needed to help students to make best possible use of extra times
besides school hours:
“Time and tide wait for none” is a common saying—which gives hints is not to
mutualize time. So that every student should make best, possible use of extra times
which he gets after school hours. Really misutilization of time leads to the failure in
both academic prosperity and personal development of the students. Owing to this
reason guidance service of the school offers positive direction to the students to
utilize extra times properly.
(xii) Guidance is needed to check wastage and stagnation in the country:
At present, wastage and stagnation are two rising problems which directly injure the
educational system of the country. Of course, several obstacles are responsible for
it. At primary school stage some students leave educational campus being changed
into drop outs and some of students complete their educational ladder taking much
of time and money with lower divisions. To minimize wastage and stagnation, the
good guidance service comes forward to suggest the students for better
achievements.

(xiii) Guidance is needed to attach more importance to the school to attract the
students:
Besides school students there are many children those who are away from track of
education. To attract them school sphere and system should be better organized and
education given to the students should be meaningful and relevant for both
individual and community life. In this context the good guidance service can play
better role in making school attractive and effective by which the goals of school
and education is achieved.

(xiv) Guidance is needed to organize secondary and higher secondary education

systematically and successfully:
The existing pattern of education framed a new curriculum to be implemented in the
country which included different branches of knowledge such as social sciences, life
sciences, mathematics, languages, arts, music, work experience and other aesthetic
activities. So that the secondary and higher secondary school curriculum are
overcrowded by different subjects.

It also disappoints the students for their confusion and controversy regarding choice
of proper courses and vocational career. Due to this reason guidance service extends
its hand of cooperation in organizing secondary and higher secondary education
successfully in the country.
(xv) Guidance is needed to check indiscipline of the students:
Really discipline invites a better individual life and a cultured social life. Sometimes
it is found that students lack of sense of direction, a sense of responsibility, a sense
of integrity and a sense of fulfilment create disturbances in the school and outside
also.

So that school guidance service provides real direction to the students to utilize their
inner energy in some creative ways. As a result of which both individual as well as
society become free from the burden of indiscipline.

Above all, to achieve individual, social and national development to an optimum

level, guidance needs to be entered in to educational system with its urgent
implementation. Guidance also shows accurate path to the students for higher
courses and career considering their abilities, aspirations, interests, aptitudes etc.
Therefore, sincere, systematic and scientific guidance service should be entertained
in the school to satisfy personal interest, social interest of the individual as well as
national interests.

Importance of Guidance:

1. Self-Understanding and Awareness: Guidance helps individuals gain

insight into their personality, capabilities, and limitations, fostering self-
awareness.
2. Improved Academic Performance: Provides strategies to overcome
academic challenges.
3. Informed Decision-Making: It empowers individuals to make informed
choices in academics, careers, and personal life.
4. Enhances Potential: Guidance helps individuals realize their full potential by
identifying and nurturing their talents.
5. Improving Problem-Solving Skills: It equips individuals with strategies to
handle challenges and resolve conflicts effectively.
6. Emotional Support: Provides a safe space to address emotional and
psychological issues.
7. Adaptation and Adjustment: Guidance aids in adapting to new
environments, overcoming challenges, and achieving personal satisfaction.
8. Career Planning: It aligns an individual’s career aspirations with their skills,
interests, and job market trends.
 9. Emotional Stability: Provides a platform for dealing with stress, anxiety and
other issues and challenges.
10. Preventive Function: Helps in identifying potential problems early and
preventing them from escalating.

Now a day’s guidance occupies an important place in the human life as it

helped individual student in paying individual attention, giving special help
and instruction to exceptional children, providing scope to choose suitable
subjects of study, helping in the development of study habits, selecting proper
occupation, solving personal problems and so on.

Besides this the importance of guidance service provided in the school is

clearly known from its needs and helps which is previously elaborated.
However in the present century the importance of guidance is highly realized
due to its various needs and demands by every Indians and as well as the
people of entire humanity.

Principles of Guidance:

Guidance is to help one to adjust to the abilities, interests and needs of society. In
other words, it means helping a person to develop in the desired direction and to
orient him according to the needs and demands of changing times and Society.

Crow and Crow have described the principles of Guidance. Some of the basic
principles of Guidance are-

1. Principle of Continuity: Guidance is a continuous process. Guidance is

required for every individual at any stage in the process of the life cycle. It
starts from childhood and continues till death. Guidance is not a service that
begins and terminates at a specific time or place. It is a continuous process.
2. Principle of all-round development of the individual: In order to develop a
person’s personality, it is necessary to develop each and every aspect of
personality. Hence the guidance service should follow the principles in which
attention is paid towards the all-around development of the individual.
3. Principle of Individual Differences: Every individual is different in their
physical, mental, social and emotional development. Guidance services must
recognize these differences and guide each individual according to their
specific needs.
4. Principle of Self-direction: Guidance gives importance to self-direction. The
main idea of guidance is to develop the individual so that he/she no longer
finds it necessary to seek guidance. The guidance makes the individual better
adjusted to his environment and leads him to self-direction.
5. Principle of cooperation: Guidance is based on cooperation. Guidance
depends on mutual cooperation. No one can be forced to seek or offer
guidance.
6. Principle of evaluation: The guidance program should be made available in
terms of its effectiveness and improvements. Evaluation is essential for the
formation of new goals or re-drafting the existing goals.
7. Guidance is flexible: The principle of the guidance is flexible according to
individual and community needs.
8. Guidance for all: The main principle of guidance is it is not for a specific
person but it is for all or it should be all because, at every step of life, a person
needs guidance. Practically this wrong concept was developed that guidance
is to be given to only mal-adjusted persons. But due to some difficult
situations, guidance service is restricted to those people only who give up their
studies or remain unsuccessful. However, according to this principle, the
facility of guidance should be extended to a maximum number of persons.
Every member of society is to be made to feel that there is sufficient provision
of guidance for him.
9. Principle of Organized Activity: Guidance is an organized activity.
Guidance is not only an incidental activity. It has a definite purpose to achieve.
It is a systematic and well-organized activity.
10. Principle of True Function: It is the function of guidance to help a person to
formulate and accept worthwhile and attainable goals of behaviour, and to
apply these objectives in the conduct of his affairs.
11. Principle of Adjustment: Guidance touches every aspect of individual life,
it is associated with individual physical, mental and social, with his
adjustment at home, school, society and vocation.
12. Principle of Responsibility: Parents and teachers have a great responsibility
in the execution of the work of guidance. The responsibility for guidance
should be centered on a qualified and trained person, who is the head of the
guidance center.
13. Principle of Confidentiality: Ensures privacy of shared information.
14. Ethical Practice: Follows moral and professional standards in delivering
guidance.
Bases of Guidance:
(i) Philosophical Basis of Guidance:
Education acts as the best panacea for development of the innate potentialities of the
individuals. So proper care of education for the individual should be taken into
considerations. Keeping this in view our constitution has declared “Fundamental
Rights” to provide due respect and dignity to the individual. On the same
line “Rights of the Child” have been announced by the UNESCO which gives
hopes and aspirations for children of the world.
In our constitution “Right of Education” receives special status and position so far
Fundamental Rights are concerned. Hence every individual would be able to attain
self-direction, self-growth and self-realization if he is provided suitable education
starting from primary to university education with full freedom and proper
educational opportunities. Freedom implies awareness of various alternatives to
choose better one in the field of education or vocation according to one’s strength
and weaknesses, abilities and aspirations; efficiency and goals.

The constitutional promise like equality of opportunity means creating equal oppor-
tunities and providing equal facilities in the sphere of education to get the highest
development of individual potentialities by which one would be able get job of his
own liking and abilities.

This would be possible if we take initiative for guidance programmes in all most all
schools of the country. Being an integral part of education guidance helps individual
to understand himself and his surroundings. At the same time guidance also helps
individual to take his own appropriate decisions and solve his own problems wisely.
Besides this guidance helps a lot in identifying individual’s interests and capacities
and to gain the educational privileges given by nation or social set-up.

Actually the philosophical basis of guidance is as old as our civilization is. The same
is proved especially in India through several examples of mythology and ancient
“Puranas” For example, Srikrishna was guiding or advising Arjun keeping certain
better objectives in the mind in the sacred battle of Mahabharata at Kurukshetra
which proved the philosophical basis of guidance very clearly.

In western countries guidance service in schools and other formal and informal
agencies of education takes proper care about the individual, his educational and
vocational rights and freedom, respect and status or dignity of the individual which
gives clear hints about the philosophical basis of guidance.
(ii) Psychological Basis of Guidance:
Without any controversy and confusion it is pointed out that no two individuals are
alike so far the psychological evidence is concerned. It is also widely known that
each and every individual is unique and one differs from another in all aspects like
physical, mental, emotional, personal aspects etc. It is most urgent to say that
education should be provided to the individual child considering individual
difference including both inter individual differences and intra individual
differences.

By means of this important consideration the interests, abilities, strength, weak-

nesses, tastes and temperaments, efficiency and skills would be taken in to account
for given courses and occupations. For this reason an individual child or youngster
becomes satisfied in his educational and vocational careers showing highest
efficiency in his own liking courses or occupations which invites personal and social
developments simultaneously.

Hence the teacher or guidance personnel has prominent role to play in this regard.
Education becomes effective, fruitful and goal receiving if guidance should be
offered to the individual based on his psychological needs, characteristics and
capacities. In this context the main task of teacher and guidance worker is to plan
and prepare required curricular and co-curricular programmes through guidance ser-
vices in the school judging the psychological needs, characteristics, health and
abilities by which the goal of guidance is achieved easily.

(iii) Sociological Basis of Guidance:

The present world is in flux as various changes, and developments such as rapid
industrialization, unexpected population explosion, quick knowledge explosion,
new technological development, molecule societal structure, various needs and
demands of the people are taking place in the human society.

In this context an up-to-date man receives more benefits and becomes successful in
achieving peace and pleasure adjusting himself in the different fields such as science,
arts, religion literature, commerce, health, and mass media and so on. But in case of
common and ignorant man, it becomes a difficult and impossible task to adjust in
the complex society which is not desirable so far present survival of the individual
is concerned. Therefore, the need and importance of guidance is urgently felt by the
individual to overcome the problems of the modern and changing society in day to
day life.
Because guidance acts as power house of man to help him to keep proper pace with
the dynamic and ever growing society and to provide due accommodation to the
personal and social adjustments of human life which enables man to gain maximum
satisfactions in the today’s world.

(iv) Pedagogical Basis of Guidance:

Now a day’s pedagogy occupies an important place as it deals with teaching or
teacher’s behaviour in relation to the development of learners. To make teaching
more interesting and fruitful the teacher has to apply suitable methods of teaching
considering several factors such as psychology of the students, their needs, interests,
attitudes, skills and aptitudes.

So that an ideal teacher should be more particular and careful in this regard.
Simultaneously problems like large class teaching, high drop outs, defective class
management, class having equipment problems, present trends of evaluation
problematic administration and supervision of class rooms have become current
issues for teachers and researchers.

That is why it is the task of the teacher to find out the real cause of problem which
arises in the teaching learning situation. Keeping these causes in the mind teacher
has to go further step to tackle the faced problems. At the same time students become
active to experience new problems. Therefore guidance should be offered to the
individual taking pedagogical basis in to the account at present.

So that school guidance service provides real direction to the students to utilize their
inner energy in some creative ways. As a result of which both individual as well as
society become free from the burden of indiscipline.

Above all, to achieve individual, social and national development to an optimum

level, guidance needs to be entered in to educational system with its urgent
implementation. Guidance also shows accurate path to the students for higher
courses and career considering their abilities, aspirations, interests, aptitudes etc.
Therefore, sincere, systematic and scientific guidance service should be entertained
in the school to satisfy personal interest, social interest of the individual as well as
national interests.

Functions of Guidance:
(i) It helps guidance worker or guide to collect, analyze and use of the personal,
social and psychological data about students for whom guidance is needed.
(ii) It helps student to have a better and suitable choice in the life so far his
educational, vocational and personal field are concerned.

(iii) It helps student to utilize available resources through proper channelization of

his energy to get maximum benefit for both personal as well as social life.

(iv)It helps student to understand himself and to direct for his personal development.

(v) It helps student to provide planning, placement and follow up programmes for
suitable selection and proper utilization of the facilities available in the world of
work and occupation.

(vi)It helps student to provide adequate response at the problem so far his personal
adjustment is concerned.

(vii) It helps student to solve the problems of career planning and educational
programmes.

(viii) It helps student to overcome the problems of new situations, new institutions
and new accepted activities of life.

(ix) It helps student to check his emergence and maladjustments by which self-
development and self-realization of student is achieved.

(x) It helps student to think rationally for society, co-operate and act profitably and
sincerely for social welfare and better community life by which both the personal
development as well as social development of student can be possible easily.

Guidance plays a crucial role in personal and societal development. By addressing

individuals' educational, vocational, and personal needs, it lays the foundation for a
well-adjusted and productive life. Through continuous support and counseling,
guidance fosters growth, improves decision-making, and ensures individuals
contribute meaningfully to society.