An Analysis of the Workforce Pipeline in School Psychology

A shortage of school psychologists in the USA jeopardizes the capacity of schools to meet the needs of struggling students. The aim of the study was to evaluate the progression of school psychologists through the professional preparation—to practice pipeline for attracting, preparing, and retaining school psychologists. Descriptive research methods were used to retrospectively track three annual cohorts of graduate students from eight school psychology programs as they progressed through key milestones in their preparation and early professional practice. The results indicate that a large percentage of students completed their graduate program and continued to work in the field 1-, 3-, and 5-year post-internship for a sample that was predominately White and female. The implications of the study reinforce previous calls for graduate programs to engage in targeted, personalized efforts for recruiting graduate students with minoritized cultural identities to better meet the needs of students from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds

Cross-cultural Adaptation of International College Students in the United States

The number of international students attending U.S. colleges and universities has increased considerably over the past decade, and the adaptation of these students is an important concern in cross-cultural research. Using survey data collected from a sample of 169 international students attending a U.S. university, this study examines the temporal patterns of students’ psychological and socio-cultural adaptation. Theresults suggest a two-phase U-curved process of psychological adaptation, with the most obvious culture shock occurring during a student’s first nine to 24 months of residence. Socio-cultural adaptation is found to increase steadily over time, without significant retreat. Interpretations, implications, and limitations of the findings are provided

Research into Factors Contributing to Discipline Use and Disproportionality in Major Urban Schools

Major urban high poverty schools frequently use exclusionary discipline (i.e., out of school suspensions) and apply these consequences disproportionately to African American students. We explored school demographic variables predicting these two outcomes using data from 433 major urban, high poverty schools. Results suggest a different set of predictors for the overall use of suspensions than for disproportionality. Specifically, four variables significantly predicted overall suspension use (office disciplinary referrals; the proportions of African American teachers, economically disadvantaged students, and African American students) whereas only one variable significantly predicted disproportionality (percentage economically disadvantaged students). Implications, limitations and future directions are provided

Rasch analysis: A primer for school psychology researchers and practitioners

In order to progress as a field, school psychology research must be informed by effective measurement techniques. One approach to address the need for careful measurement is Rasch analysis. This technique can (a) facilitate the development of instruments that provide useful data, (b) provide data that can be used confidently for both descriptive and parametric statistics, and (c) provide outcome measures that offer clinically meaningful guidance to school psychology researchers and practitioners. In this paper, we first introduce the basic principles of Rasch measurement that undergird the use of Rasch analysis in school psychology. Next, we describe several techniques that can be used to conduct a basic Rasch analysis. In doing so, we use Winsteps software to illustrate the application of these techniques with a single exemplar school psychology rating scale data set. Finally, we provide conclusions and resources to consult for further learning

The History of Inequality in Education

The purpose of this chapter is to consider a sampling of the critical events that demonstrate this history of inequity, with the understanding that they have contributed to the current status of American schools. To this end, we will explore relevant events related to the education of individuals of different racial, gender, language, and disability backgrounds. We do not intend to provide an exhaustive overview of the history of American education, nor will we provide a detailed account of the history of equity in the broader society outside of the educational sector. Rather, we will provide a cursory glimpse at some of the major issues that have emerged throughout history in an attempt to establish sufficient context for the construct of disproportionality (i.e., the overrepresentation of certain populations as recipients of special education services and disciplinary consequences) that is the focus of the remainder of the book

An Integrative Systematic Approach to Supporting Student Wellness: An Applied Case Example

As schools work toward addressing the youth mental health crisis, Student Assistance Programs (SAPs) can serve as a service delivery model to proactively offer a continuum of support. A SAP involves education and building awareness, prevention, early identification, referral, intervention, and guided support services. With the rising mental health need that was exacerbated by COVID-19, describing one district’s efforts can assist other schools in planning their own continuum of support within a SAP. This article provides a case example of one district’s efforts to create a system that integrates universal screening data and school and community support structures supporting students’ wellness. We describe the district’s continuum of support and early identification and intervention efforts, their systematic approach to integrating systems, and their teaming process. We will also report the percentages of students who are identified on wellness benchmarking and screening tools in addition to the percentage referred for additional support. We conclude by reviewing the implications for practice and future research