School Psychologists and Full-Service Schools: Partnerships with Medical, Mental Health, and Social Services

Changing Roles for Educational Psychologists within Inclusive Education in South Africa

Reform in education in a democratic South Africa has inspired commitment to a single, inclusive education system for all. The challenges related to the changing nature of education in South Africa and the relationship of these challenges to the past, and particularly to the legacy of apartheid, have forced educational psychologists to reconsider their roles in order to respond to the needs of their clients. Contextual demands have required a shift from the traditional child-de.cit, medical model towards an ecological and multi-systems paradigm, suggesting a wider scope of analysis and action. This article focuses on the response of educational psychology within support services and how this opportunity to change the face of the profession can be used in a creative and constructive way.

Youth suicide prevention: a survey of public school superintendents' acceptability of school-based programs

From a random sample of members of the 2000-2001 membership directory of the American Association of School Administrators (AASA), public school administrators' acceptability ratings of three school-based programs for the prevention of adolescent suicide were examined. A total of 210 (46%) respondents examined a description of a suicide prevention program and completed a measure designed to evaluate the acceptability of suicide prevention programs. Three suicide prevention programs were evaluated for their acceptability, and included: (a) school-wide curriculum-based programs presented to students; (b) in-service presentations to school staff; and (c) self-report screening programs for students. The results indicated that superintendents rated the staff in-service training and curriculum-based programs as significantly more acceptable than the school-wide screening program. In addition, the school-wide screening program was rated as significantly more intrusive by school psychologists than the staff in-service training or curriculum-based prevention programs. Limitations of the study and future research directions are discussed.

School psychologists: strategic allies in the contemporary practice of primary care pediatrics

Immense changes in the developmental/behavioral aspects of primary care pediatrics have resulted from revisions in special education laws, introduction of managed care, widened dissemination of information about disabilities to parents, and the changing character of American society. Challenges associated with contemporary pediatric practice can be diminished by routine collaboration with school psychologists. An alliance with school-based psychologists permits pediatricians access to children in their natural environments and potential collaboration for preventing illness and emotional/behavior problems. Further, school psychologists can provide a partner for assessing and treating both common and low-incident disorders without the constraints imposed by managed care.

Identification of elementary school children at risk for disruptive behavioral disturbance: validation of a combined screening method

OBJECTIVES

To examine the validity of the teacher-rated Inattention/Overactivity With Aggression (IOWA Conners) questionnaire followed by the Conners Abbreviated Symptom Questionnaire (CASQ) as a feasible, combined screening method to identify children at high risk for externalizing behavioral disturbance in a school setting.

METHOD

The IOWA Conners and CASQ were administered to the entire population of children, grades K through 6, in a single elementary school. Using a whole-number IOWA Conners threshold score of 18 (1.5 SD), coupled with a CASQ score of 18 (1.0 SD), a high-risk group and an age-, sex-, and classroom-matched low-risk control group were selected for comparison on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL), Teacher's Report Form (TRF), Child and Adolescent Functional Assessment Scale (CAFAS), and Diagnostic Interview for Children and Adolescents-Revised diagnoses.

RESULTS

The data showed significant intergroup differences in CBCL (p < .0002), TRF (p < .0006), and CAFAS (p < .0002) scores and higher numbers of DSM diagnoses (1.7 +/- 0.3 versus 0.1 +/- 0.3, p < .0007) between the high- and low-risk group. The positive predictive value for externalizing diagnoses for the IOWA Conners plus CASQ was 100% and negative predictive value was 70%.

CONCLUSIONS

The IOWA Conners combined with the CASQ is a useful initial screening strategy in the school setting for identification of children with disruptive behavioral difficulties.

A system of care perspective on prevention

Recent efforts to focus preventive interventions on individuals not yet manifesting disorders may have served to further isolate those who are involved with preventive interventions from those who provide clinical treatments. The effective linkage of preventive and remedial interventions requires greater participation by clinicians. Changes in public and private policies concerning the organization and financing of health care provide opportunities to relink these two constituencies. Some opportunities presented by recent developments are reviewed and their implications for expanding preventive interventions discussed.