Improving Counseling Skills for Pre-Practicum

Summary

The Department of Addictions and Rehabilitation Studies at East Carolina University has developed an asynchronous, immersive learning experience focusing on foundational mental health counseling skills. Led by Dr. Dominiquie M. Clemmons-James, an Associate Professor and Director of the MS in Clinical Counseling program with extensive clinical expertise, the program leverages Wonda to create interactive, AI-powered conversational chatbot simulations. The current hub is composed of several conversational simulations where learners practice core microskills, conduct first-time counseling sessions, and move clients through the five stages of a counseling session.

Objective

The immediate purpose of this simulation program is to increase student confidence and skill in therapeutic communication and clinical interviewing. This initiative is part of a larger 4-year FIPSE-SP grant to support ECU in exploring AI technology for augmenting teaching and learning practices across multiple disciplines.

For the immersive learning component specifically, the intention was to give learners an opportunity to better understand the complexity of counseling by:

• Practicing positive introductions, establishing an empathic relationship, and clearly stating confidentiality and its exceptions.
• Demonstrating appropriate attending skills, such as using verbal and non-verbal cues to show they are fully present and engaged.
• Conducting meaningful observation, tracking the interview flow, and keeping the focus in the present moment.
• Applying the "5 Stages of Counseling Skills" (Opening Session, Story and Strengths Exploration, Goal Setting, Restorying, and Action Planning) to help clients develop new narratives and actionable coping strategies.

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Solution

The team designed a comprehensive training hub featuring interconnected simulations that represent different client personas and clinical counseling objectives:

• Matt (Attending Behaviors and Microskills): Learners interact with Matt, a 43-year-old school teacher facing burnout and stress due to personal life and a poor economy. Students practice introducing themselves, explaining confidentiality boundaries, and utilizing observation and tracking skills.
• Tess (First Session & Positive Introduction): Learners speak with Tess, a 30-year-old driven African American female struggling with work-life balance. Students practice articulating their professional background, personal style, and collaborative philosophy to build rapport during a first-time meeting.
• Sandy (5 Stages of Counseling Skills): Learners guide Sandy, a 35-year-old perfectionist project manager who is overworking to care for her aging parents. Students practice moving through a complete therapeutic session framework, from opening the session and exploring her strengths, to confronting incongruities (restorying) and developing a clear plan of action.

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Assessment Criteria Student progress is evaluated using detailed rubrics built directly into the AI platform, which provide structured, individualized feedback on the learner's approach.

The primary assessment focus areas include:

• Setting the Stage: Delivering a positive introduction, sharing professional experience, and explicitly clarifying the exceptions to confidentiality (e.g., court orders, threat to self/others, abuse).
• Attending & Observation: Maintaining focused attention, tracking the interview effectively, and using non-verbal/verbal cues without missing the client's emotional signals.
• Clinical Framework Application: Successfully navigating goal setting, restorying (exploring alternatives), and action planning to empower the client.

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Outcome

The "Dr. CJ Counselor's Hub" pilot has seen high engagement among students, generating nearly 500 total sessions across its various simulations (including 196 sessions with Matt and 150 sessions with Tess). By offering a safe, nonjudgmental space to learn, this program opens up new opportunities to prepare ECU counseling students to provide compassionate, person-centered support and professional reasoning in real-world clinical settings.

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More coming soon.

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