Helping Skills Training Program Development for Guidance Designates in Region XII

Guidance Designates in Philippine public secondary schools undertake guidance-related responsibilities despite limited formal preparation in helping skills. This study developed and evaluated a needs-based Helping Skills Training Program in Region XII, Philippines. A quantitative sequential design combined needs assessment with a quasi-experimental, non-equivalent control-group study. Participants were 40 purposively selected Guidance Designates from four Department of Education divisions, assigned to treatment (n = 20) and control (n = 20) groups. A researcher-developed 25-item inventory measured communication, empathy, problem-solving, conflict resolution, and self-efficacy. Baseline results informed a module structured around Egan’s helping model: exploration, challenge, and action planning. Both groups completed pre-test, immediate post-test, and delayed post-test assessments; the final assessment occurred one month after training. Nonparametric tests examined changes and between-group differences. At baseline, participants demonstrated low helping-skill levels across all three phases. The treatment group’s overall mean increased from 1.89 at pre-test to 4.62 at immediate post-test and 4.68 at delayed post-test. The control group’s corresponding means were 1.67, 4.10, and 4.14. Between-group differences were not statistically significant at pre-test (p = .119), but were significant at immediate post-test (z = −5.434, p < .001) and delayed post-test (z = −5.421, p < .001). These results indicate improvement and one-month retention of assessed helping skills among trained participants. The findings support needs-based training as a promising professional-development strategy for Guidance Designates. However, the purposive sample, non-random group allocation, researcher-developed measure, and short follow-up limit causal inference and generalizability. Further research should assess longer-term retention, practical competencies, and learner outcomes.