What Works? A Study of Effective Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Programs

Examines factors that lead to desirable outcomes in mental health consultation programs: solid program infrastructure, highly qualified consultants, and quality support services. Analyzes targeted outcomes, measurements, and intensity of interventions

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL BELIEFS AND COMPETENCIES OF HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS IN A HIGH NEED DISTRICT: RELATIONSHIP WITH TEACHER SELF-EFFICACY

Social-emotional learning (SEL) research has focused more on SEL programming and outcomes in students, and little is known about SEL in teachers especially among high school teachers. This cross-sectional quantitative research study was undertaken to gather baseline information about SEL among 240 high school teachers from a high need district with the following hypotheses: 1) teachers’ SEL beliefs and competencies significantly vary by years of teaching, educational attainment, and professional development, 2) teachers’ SEL beliefs and competencies of school significantly vary by classroom setting, school type, and grade level teaching. and school type, and 3) teachers’ SEL beliefs and competencies significantly influence self-efficacy. Salient findings indicated that SEL beliefs and competencies of teachers varied by educational attainment and professional development. Moreover, SEL competencies but not beliefs differed by years of teaching experience. These findings confirmed hypothesis #1. In addition, teachers’ SEL beliefs and competencies varied by classroom setting and school type, but not grade level teaching. Such findings partially supported hypothesis #2. Finally, findings indicated that beyond demographic characteristics and school factors, SEL beliefs and competencies significantly influenced teachers’ self-efficacy. Thus, hypothesis #3 was confirmed. Findings were discussed in light of scientific literature. Recommendations and limitations were presented

Addressing mental health needs on college campuses: utilizing recovery principles that encourage a holistic approach, self-responsibility, strengths-based practice, cultural sensitivity, and family support

Research shows that there has been a significant increase in mental health issues within the college student population. Applying recovery-oriented principles as defined by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) may be an effective approach to creating and adapting mental health resources for college students. In the current study, literature on the following was reviewed: (a) the college culture, (b) the prevalence of mental health issues for college students, and (c) recovery-oriented principles. Then, a critical analysis of the literature was conducted based upon the following recovery-oriented principles: (a) encouraging a holistic approach, (b) self-responsibility and self-empowerment, (c) strengths-based practice, (d) cultural sensitivity), and (e) family support. Findings indicate that holistic resources highlight individual needs and creativity; programs that encourage self-responsibility underscore the importance of self-screenings; strengths-based approaches are centered around building self-esteem and increasing positive emotions; culturally sensitive resources are often group-oriented and acknowledge multiple facets of diversity, and programming that promotes family support emphasizes psychoeducation and stigma reduction. Based upon the integration of these findings, adaptations of current efforts on campus to promote these principles, as well as new ideas, are provided

Movement Interventions for Children with Autism and Developmental Disabilities: An Evidence-Based Practice Project

This review explored the following question: Are the comprehensive treatment models Makoto Therapy, Brain Gym, and Interactive Metronome effective interventions for improving occupational performance including improving executive function, academic performance, and physical coordination in children and adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)? Because current research on Interactive Metronome, Brain Gym®, and Makoto Therapy fails to address children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, presents multiple flaws in research design, and does not measure occupational outcomes such as occupational performance, we recommend that these interventions should not be used as comprehensive treatment models in occupational therapy. We recommend that more occupational-based, methodologically-sound research involving youth with ASD be conducted before implementing these interventions in occupational therapy practice

Teachers’ Perceptions Regarding Dyslexia Professional Development Training for Addressing the Social-Emotional Needs of Children With Dyslexia

Students with dyslexia simultaneously struggle with both literacy acquisition and poor selfesteem and undergo social-emotional learning difficulties. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to explore elementary general education teachers’ perceptions regarding the dyslexia training they received for addressing the social and emotional learning (SEL) needs of children with dyslexia. The conceptual framework guiding this study was the five core competencies for SEL developed by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning. The researcher used a qualitative description research design involving semistructured interviews. The population included 10 elementary general education teachers who taught in first through fourth-grade classrooms in the southeast region of Texas. The overarching themes were the following: (a) The dyslexia training is missing the five competencies: The participants reported that none of CASEL’s five core competencies for SEL were addressed in their dyslexia training; (b) Used skills learned in other professional development to address the missing competencies: The participants reported using information from other professional development training to meet their students’ needs; (c) The dyslexia training needs to be revamped: The participants explicitly said the dyslexia training needed to be changed. The participants confirmed the gap in the literature regarding their learning needs and dyslexia training provided. The researcher created a framework, based on the findings, to guide training that can effectively address CASEL’s five core competencies within several modules. Finally, the results of this study revealed the need for further research with a focus on helping teachers understand how to develop SEL skills in their students with dyslexia

Family Needs and Family Quality of Life for Taiwanese Families of Children with Intellectual Disability and Developmental Delay

This dissertation consists of four related chapters including an introductory overview of all four chapters, a report on family needs, a report on family quality of life, and a summary of implications for the conceptual framework. Chapter 1, the introductory overview, presents background information of Taiwan and describes the family quality of life conceptual framework as the context of the research. It further summarizes information in chapters 2 to 4. Using descriptive and ANOVA results from a survey study, Chapter 2 investigates family quality of life - the outcome in the conceptual framework. Chapter 3, on the other hand, addresses family needs - the input factor in the conceptual framework. Based on findings from the previous two chapters, Chapter 4 revisits the conceptual framework and discusses the relationship between family needs and outcomes