Paving the Way for Counselling? The Link between Maltese PSD Model and Counselling
Abstract
This study explored whether Personal and Social Development (PSD) teachers, school-based counsellors, and students in Maltese secondary schools perceived processing experiences as empowering to seek counselling, if and when needed. The study investigated if processing techniques within PSD methodology helped develop self-awareness. The research builds on the concept of ethical advertising - opportunity to inform and help clients arrive at courses of actions beneficial for themselves. The literature review discusses processing in the PSD Maltese model, comparing processing with overall counselling experiences. Data were collected through two questionnaires, one for professionals and one for 15 and 16-year-olds completing secondary school education. Results revealed that participants acknowledged the effectiveness of processing with regard to empowerment, information to seek counselling, and increased self-awareness. The results also indicate a need for more students’ awareness with regard to PSD teachers’ specific role, disclosure, and boundaries. Based on the findings, the authors recommend that such a methodology be encouraged in educational systems and that more training and awareness be carried out to clarify teachers’ roles with students so that small-group set-ups yield more effective results.
Author Biography
Anna, University of Maryland - College Park
Anna’s academic background spans cultural studies, sociology and internationalization of higher education. She brings three years of professional experience in International Admissions and two years of work in the field of student leadership development as a Community Coordinator and Graduate Assistant for Academic Advising in the Department of Fraternity and Sorority Life. Anna holds a Bachelor’s degree in Cultural Studies, a Master’s in Applied Cultural Sciences, and a Master’s in International Education Policy from University of Maryland - College Park.
Her research focuses on the educational experiences of international students, academic advising, co-curricular learning, comparative education, international higher education policy, digitalization of education, COIL and digital learning, and the integration of education and technology. In her PhD research she examines the ethical and equity dimensions of artificial intelligence and access to technological literacy in international education, employing qualitative and mixed-methods research approaches.
She is a Fulbright Scholar, an Erasmus+ alumna, U21 Global Scholar, with over nine years of experience in teaching, research, and university administration—particularly in roles related to the internationalization of higher education.
Anna is annually serving as a volunteer in applications selection process at CIES, NAFSA, Graduate Student Research Conference of the Washington Consortium for Comparative and International Education (WCCIET) and Fund of Education Abroad (FEA). 
