Chapter 40: The Impacts of Virtual Counseling on Career Development in Education

Technology has changed everything in our society and that includes career education and counseling. Charles Handy (1990) noted that technology was one of the Great Discomforters (along with wars, economics, values and demographics) that are responsible for the relentless and unstoppable change that occurs whether we like it or not. Since the advent of the personal computer around 1982, information availability and dissemination have been revolutionized. Most of us can relate to the world of traditional classroom education. Just think of classroom technology upgrades from chalk-on-blackboard to the use of overhead transparencies to video-projected slides using Microsoft Power Point, and web-based applications like video-conferencing, streaming video, and YouTube videos. In all levels of education, “smart” classroom technology abounds. The ability of people to interact and communicate has made quantum leaps, making commonplace what was previously unimaginable (e.g., wireless connections, instant messaging, social networks, Teleseminars, smart phones, podcasts, and so on).