In a roundtable discussion, Annis Fung, associate professor in the department of social and behavioural sciences at the City University of Hong Kong, proposed having at least one dedicated counsellor in every school on top of those existing social workers operating in them.
“Honestly, it’s tough when social workers also have to provide counseling,” she said.
“Counsellors or caseworkers are under immense pressure because they handle many long-term, high-risk cases.
But for students, seeing a counsellor at least feels different – they don’t feel like they are being stigmatised as if they are seeing a psychiatrist.
“Many young people dread that stigma.
“After a psychiatric diagnosis, they might think, ‘now I can’t be a civil servant, a police officer, or even a lawyer – my future is ruined.’
“Those fears don’t come up with counselling. To them, it’s just talking to a ‘big sister’ or a social worker, which feels much less onerous.”
For his part, lawmaker Chu Kwok-keung stressed the importance of having such practitioners, suggesting that schools unable to hire dedicated counsellors should train at least two teachers in basic skills of the art.
“When they spot students struggling emotionally, they can counsel them and help transform their negative feelings,” he said.
“These are skills that can be learned – there are proven methods and techniques.
“But the real issue is that in some schools today, there might not be a single person who even understands what proper counselling is.”
