The Effect of Anxiety on the Measurement of Reading Fluency and Comprehension

The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between anxiety and performance on measures of reading fluency and reading comprehension in fourth, fifth, and sixth grade students. The study found that there is a significant negative correlation between social anxiety and reading comprehension but no significant correlation between social anxiety and reading fluency. These findings further demonstrate the distinction between the cognitive processes that underlie reading fluency and reading comprehension. The results also align with the tenets of Processing Efficiency Theory in that more complex tasks that significantly tax working memory (like reading comprehension) are more likely affected by anxiety than those tasks that do not rely as heavily on working memory (such as reading fluency)

Crisis Events in K-12 Online Learning: Educator Perceptions and Preparedness

Although K–12 online learning institutions may be protected from certain school safety concerns (i.e., physical violence on a student or a teacher), physical distance does not offer protection from all potential crises that may impact individual students or the online school environment. The current survey research explored educators’ perceptions of and preparedness for the following crisis frequencies in the online learning environment: suspected child/adolescent neglect, suspected child/adolescent abuse, suspected student suicidal ideation, suspected student homicidal ideation, unexpected death of a student, unexpected death of a teacher, emotional aftermath of natural disasters, and emotional aftermath of terrorist incidents. Across the sample, the crisis events were noted as occurring at least one to two times per year by some participants. Even more striking, 80–95% of participants noted having no training for recognizing the warning signs of the various crisis events in online content, and at least 1 in 4 participants in every category indicated that they felt somewhat unprepared or very unprepared to respond based on their school’s current crisis plan

The Role of the School Psychologist in K-12 Online and Blended Learning Environments

With the appropriate preparation and training, school psychologists are uniquely suited to provide support within the K-12 online learning environment for students, teachers, administrators, and families. The preparation and training needs at the level of graduate training and professional development are highlighted. Specific emphasis is placed on the adaptation of the school psychologist’s functions in the areas of consultation, intervention, assessment, and counseling. Additionally, the development of better credentialing models for interstate service delivery and the need for empirical research related to school safety are discussed

Job Satisfaction in School Psychology Graduate Preparation: A Pilot Study

This pilot study investigated the status of job satisfaction among school psychology faculty with the hope of gaining insight in to factors that may encourage doctoral-level graduates to pursue jobs in academia. A second purpose of the study was to discover areas of improvement in job satisfaction to support current faculty members in continuing in their chosen careers. Finally, the study sought to establish the reliability of a job satisfaction instrument for use in larger-scale studies. A total of 94 school psychology faculty members in specialist-level and/or doctoral-level National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)-approved programs completed an author-designed survey. The 34-item survey was clustered into the following categories: Compensation, Role/Function, Personal Fulfillment, Colleagues, Graduate Candidates, and Administrative Support/Resources. At an item level, participants reported overall satisfaction with their jobs and satisfaction in most areas of their employment. Exploratory analyses revealed only a few significant differences in individual item satisfaction. Specifically, participants ranked as Full Professor reported significantly higher satisfaction with the tenure and research expectations than those participants who identified themselves as Assistant Professors. Additionally, participants indicated job satisfaction in four out of six categories. Cronbach’s alpha for the overall instrument was .92 with the current sample

The Continuing Professional Development of School Psychologists in Georgia: A Comparison to National Practices and Preferences

The current study investigated Georgia school psychologists’ continuing professional development (CPD) practices and preferences for comparison to a national study of school psychology professional development by Armistead, Castillo, Curtis, Chappel, and Cunningham (2013). Utilizing the same instrument as Armistead et al., a survey was emailed to 442 members of the Georgia Association of School Psychologists (GASP). Ninety-five surveys were completed at a 21.5% response rate. Both Georgia school psychologists and national school psychologists reported receiving a median of approximately 40 hours of professional development in the previous year. Georgia school psychologists differed from the national sample with a higher percentage expressing satisfaction with the amount of professional development provided by their state professional association, with lower personal costs associated with CPD, and with greater participation in online professional development opportunities

Making the Transition from Practitioner to Academic

According to recent literature, the field of school psychology is facing a major shortage of trainers at present and in the near future. Although this is not a new issue facing the field, faculty retirements are increasing, and fewer doctoral candidates in school psychology are choosing an academic path for their careers, resulting in many faculty openings going unfilled. With the obvious need for more trainers in school psychology, there is certainly opportunity for the early-, mid-, or late-career doctoral-level school psychologist in practice to make the transition into an academic career. This article provides information that should help individuals considering such a career move to prepare for a successful transition

K-12 Online Learning Environments and Training Needs for School Psychology Practioners

K–12 online learning is growing at an exponential rate in the United States and around the world. Students and teachers are entering and embracing the K–12 online learning environment. Thus, it becomes imperative for school psychologists to follow. In order to offer the most productive learning environment for all students, the services provided by the school psychologist in the traditional face-to-face school setting are still relevant and necessary within the medium of online learning. However, school psychologists must be aware, prepared, and trained to deliver those services in a new environment that both poses challenges to and offers opportunities for expansion of service delivery. This article describes the status of K–12 online learning and the training needs of practitioners to effectively address assessment, consultation, intervention, counseling, and cyberbullying prevention