UNIT 1 : UNDERSTANDING GUIDANCE

The term guidance means to direct or provide an Assistant or

guidance to someone who needs help. Guidance is provided at all levels
to human beings during their whole life by an experienced person to an
individual who needs guidance or help. Guidance can solve personal,
vocational and educational or any other problems for a person unable to
solve his own.
The synonyms of ‘to guide’ are to lead, to conduct, to regulate, to
direct, to steer, to show, to channel and to point.
Guidance involves personal help given by someone who is
experienced in a particular field, it is designed to assist a person in
where he wants to go, what he wants to do or how he can best
accomplish his purpose. 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.

DEFINITIONS
According to Skinner: “Guidance is a process of helping young
persons learn to adjust, to self, to others and to circumstances.”
According to Morris: “Guidance is the process of helping individuals
through their own efforts to discover and develop their potential for
personal happiness and social usefulness”.
According to Ruth Strang-Guidance is a process of helping every
individual, through his own efforts, to discover and develop his potential
for personal happiness and social usefulness.

According to John Brewer– Guidance is a process through which an

individual is able to solve his problems and pursue a path suited to his
abilities and aspirations.

According to Woodworth– Guidance helps an individual to develop his

personality and enables him to serve society to the best of his
capabilities and talents.

NATURE AND CHARACTERISTICS OF GUIDANCE

● Guidance is a process: It enables an individual to discover

himself in the most satisfying and positive manner. It provides
direction to enable an individual to control his potentialities,
abilities, interests and aptitudes.
● Guidance is education itself: It aims to educate individuals to
understand themselves, unfolding their potentialities to their
maximum so that they may eventually prove themselves to be
adjusted and programmatic members of the community. Guidance,
therefore, is a significant education procedure. It is in short
education itself
● Holistic Development of an Individual: Guidance aims at the
all-round development of an Individual. Its aim is not just to
achieve academic excellence for an individual. It focuses on social,
physical, Mental, Emotional etc. aspects of the development of an
individual.
● Guidance is a continuous process: Guidance is a dynamic and
non-stop process. Individuals need guidance from birth to death in
different aspects to understand themselves and learn to use
maximum his own capabilities, interests and other abilities.
● Guidance based on Individual difference: Guidance is based on
the principle that every individual is different from each other and
every person is unique in their abilities. It emphasizes the fact that
every person needs to show respect as the dignity of an individual
is supreme. The respect and dignity of a person should not be
affected by factors like Age, Gender, Caste and Class of an
Individual.
● Guidance is based on cooperation: The individual who needs
help must cooperate with the person who provides help for the best
results. Guidance cannot be forcefully inculcated into any person.
In addition, if guidance is forced upon someone, the person may
not cooperate and may even become stubborn
● Guidance based on Individual Behavioral Process: Guidance
affects the behavior of an individual and enables a person to better
 control his behavior in terms of like, dislike, weakness and so on.
According to Carter V. Good- Guidance is a process of dynamic
interpersonal relationship design to influence the attitudes and
subsequent behavior of a person.
● The universality of Guidance: Guidance is for all. Every person
needs guidance at all stages of life from childhood to old age. A
person needs guidance for solving problems to adjust with family
members as well as in society.
● Guidance related to Life: It contributes formally and informally
to life because the life experiences both formal and informal
occasions. A person gets informal guidance from his friends,
family members, and relatives while formal guidance sought from
organized school guidance services and other organized guidance
services
● Helpful in Adjustment: Guidance helps the person in the
adjustment in different situations. This process allows learners to
adjust to their different types of problems. In this way, The nature
of Guidance is to provide new energy to the demoralized person by
adjusting himself to different problematic situations through the
process of guidance.
AIMS OF GUIDANCE

● Guidance aims to help the students to choose the curriculum

according to their abilities, interests and future needs.
● It enables students to develop work and study habits which guide
them towards success.
● It encourages students to understand the purpose and the function
of the school in fulfilling their needs.
● Guidance aims to help students in finding out what the school has
to offer in terms of study plans.
● It facilitates the students to identify the schools that they may want
to attend to acquire higher education.
● It aims to help the students to select and try out the various courses
that they may be interested in.
● It aims to help the students in developing leadership qualities by
allowing them to participate in various school activities.
● It aims to help the students to develop and maintain fitness levels
that can help them to continue their studies.
● Guidance enables students to develop an attitude to continue their
studies in the chosen educational institution.
● The aims of guidance can, thus, be summarized as follows:
● Guidance aims to help the individual in realizing his potential and
to make maximum contribution towards the society.
 ● It aims to help the individual to solve his problems and make
proper choice and adjustment.
● It provides help to the individual to lay a permanent foundation for
sound and mature adjustment.
● To help the individual to live a well-balanced life in all aspects—
physical, mental, emotional and social.

OBJECTIVES OF GUIDANCE

● It promotes self-understanding and self-direction.

● It promotes optimal development of an individual.
● It helps an individual solve different problems.
● It helps in academic growth and development.
● It helps in making vocational choices.
● It promotes social as well as personal adjustment of an individual.
● It promotes better family life.
● It promotes optimal use of resources.
● It promotes national development.
● To provide information to the individual regarding his
potentialities.
● To help the individual to gain experiences which will help him in
making free and wise choices.
● To help the individual in self direction, i.e. that is to develop in the
individual the abilities and skills to solve problems for himself
● To assist the individual to understand, accept and utilize his talent.
● To help the individual to develop value sense and to recognize his
aspirations in the light of reality with reference to his strength and
weaknesses.
● To help the individual to choose educational programmes best
suited to him.
● To assist the individual in developing his potentialities to their
maximum extent, so that he may become what he is capable of
becoming.
● To help the individual to solve his personal problems.
● To help the individual to make adjustments to the different life
needs.
● To help the individual to choose educational programmes best
suited to him.
● To help the individual to choose the right vocation (occupation)
suited to his ability, interest, taste and temperament.
● To help the individual to make successful adjustments to the
environment and to lead a happy and worthy life.
● To help the individual to make successful social adjustments.
● To provide necessary information about various occupations and
their requirements.
● To help the individual to solve his emotional problems and to keep
himself mentally stable.
PRINCIPLES OF GUIDANCE

● Principle of all-round development: According to this principle,

guidance must take into consideration the overall development of
an individual, when it aims to bring about developmental
adjustment in the individual.
● Principle of human uniqueness: According to this principle,
guidance takes into consideration the fact that every individual is
unique and his distinct characteristics facilitate his development.
Guidance, therefore, meets the developmental and help needs of
each individual in a different manner.
● Principle of holistic development: Guidance must focus on the
total development of the personality of an individual. Guidance
must take into consideration every aspect of the personality of an
individual that affects his development.
● Principle of cooperation: According to this principle, no
individual can be forced into guidance. To be guided, the consent
and cooperation of the person seeking guidance is must.
● Principle of continuity: According to this principle, guidance
must be provided to an individual needing help in all stages of life
and, therefore, is a continuous process.
● Principle of extension: According to this principle, guidance is
not limited to only children who are studying in schools. In fact,
guidance must be provided to people of all ages especially those
who need it. The principle of extension says that guidance must be
provided to all people who can benefit from it directly or
indirectly.
● Principle of elaboration: This principle states that when
guidance is provided as an integral part of education, the
curriculum and teaching techniques must be elaborated in such a
manner that guidance can turn out to be an effective process.
● Principle of adjustment: This principle states that guidance must
aim at helping an individual adjust to his physical, mental and
social needs and environment.
● Principle of individual needs: According to this principle, the
needs of every individual are different and so guidance must be
provided in accordance with these needs and demands. Guidance
must enable an individual to make decisions that meet his needs.
● Principle of expert opinion: According to this principle, serious
problems related to guidance must be directed at people who are
experts and can help an individual with their opinion.
● Principle of evaluation: This principle states that guidance
programmes must be evaluated for their effectiveness. If a
 guidance programme is not effective, improvements must be
brought about to make it effective and efficient.
● Principle of responsibility: According to this principle, guidance
is the responsibility of qualified professionals who offer their
services to help others.
● Principle of periodic appraisal: According to this principle,
guidance programmes must be appraised at periodic intervals so
that these can be improved for them to be effective and work in a
proper manner.

FUNCTIONS OF GUIDANCE

Adjustmental:They help the student in making the best possible

adjustment to the current situation in the educational institution in the
home and the community. It enables the student to accept the things
which they cannot change in life and differentiate what they can change
and cannot change in life.

Orientation:They orient the student in the problem of cancer planning,

educational programming and direction towards long term personal aims
and values.

Developmental:It is concerned with helping the people to achieve self

development and self realization.
TYPES OF GUIDANCE

There are several types of guidance that can be provided in different

contexts, such as Educational, Vocational, Social and Personal Guidance.

1. Educational Guidance: This type of guidance is designed to help

students succeed academically. Educational guidance can
include assistance with course selection, study strategies, time
management, exam preparation, and career planning.
Educational guidance can also include specialized support for
students with learning disabilities, those who are struggling
academically, or those who are transitioning from one level of
education to another.
2. Vocational Guidance: This type of guidance helps individuals
make informed decisions about their career or job choices.
Vocational guidance can include assistance with identifying
career goals, exploring different career paths, developing
job-search skills, creating resumes and cover letters, and
preparing for job interviews. Vocational guidance may also
involve identifying and addressing any gaps in a person’s skillset
or education that may be preventing them from achieving their
career goals.
3. Social Guidance: This type of guidance focuses on developing
healthy social relationships. Social guidance can include
 assistance with developing communication skills, building
healthy interpersonal relationships, developing empathy and
emotional intelligence, and conflict resolution. Social guidance
may be particularly important for individuals who are struggling
with anxiety, depression, or other mental health issues that may
be impacting their ability to connect with others.
4. Personal Guidance: This type of guidance focuses on helping
individuals develop a better understanding of themselves and
their goals. Personal guidance can include assistance with
self-reflection, identifying personal values and priorities,
developing mindfulness, and setting goals for personal growth.
Personal guidance may also include counseling or therapy for
individuals who are struggling with mental health issues or
emotional challenges.

Overall, guidance can be an essential aspect of personal and professional

development, and seeking guidance can help individuals achieve their
goals and navigate challenges effectively.