What Is A School Psychologist Powerpoint

For undergraduate students

1. What Is a School Psychologist?
A Guide for A Guide for
Undergraduate StudentsUndergraduate Students
Presented by
Mac I. Barnett
School Psychologist
© 2006 National Association of School Psychologists,
4340 East West Highway, Suite 402, Bethesda, MD 20814 – 301-657-0270

2. School Psychologists link mental health to
learning and behavior to promote:
•High academic achievement.
•Positive social skills and behavior.
•Healthy relationships and connectedness.
•Tolerance and respect for others.
•Competence, self-esteem, and resiliency.

3. What Is the Role of a School Psychologist?
•Assessment.
•Consultation.
•Prevention.
•Intervention.
•Staff, parent, and student education.
•Research and program development.
•Mental health care.
•Advocacy.
•Systems change.

4. When Do Children Need a School
Psychologist?
•Learning difficulties.
•Behavioral concerns.
•Attention problems.
•Problems at home or with peers.
•Fears about war, violence, and terrorism.
•Depression and other mental health issues.
•Coping with crisis and trauma.
•Poverty, violence, or life changing events.
•Advocacy of their learning and mental health needs.

5. When Should Teachers Collaborate With
School Psychologists?
•Tackling challenging academic or behavioral
situations.
•Implementing effective individualized instruction.
•Providing evidence-based practices and interventions
(in accordance with new laws) to address students’
learning needs.
•Evaluating student progress towards individual goals
and state standards.
•Advocating for resources within the school and
community for all students and their families.

6. Assessment
School psychologists work with children, parents, and
staff to help determine a child’s:
•Academic skills.
•Instructional level.
•Learning aptitudes, strengths, and weaknesses.
•Personality and emotional development.
•Social skills and behavioral concerns.
•Learning environment.
•School climate.
•Special education eligibility.

7. Assessment continued …
School psychologists use:
•Observations.
•Interviews.
•Standardized measures.
•Curriculum-based measurement (CBM).
•Curriculum-based assessment (CBA).

8. School psychologists evaluate the origin
and degree of a student’s strengths and
weaknesses and monitor progress toward
reaching academic goals.

9. Consultation: Child-Centered
School psychologists:
•Provide knowledge to help improve student learning
and mental health outcomes.
•Implement and manage academic and behavioral
interventions.
•Help teachers, parents, and other professionals
understand a child’s development and learning.
•Meet or communicate with others involved with a
child to determine the best way of managing or
improving a particular concern.

10. Consultation: Consultee-Centered
School psychologists:
•Collaborate with teachers to help them identify
classroom-based problems and implement data-
based interventions.
•Support implementation of effective instruction and
behavior management at the classroom level.
•Assist parents to develop skills to help their children
succeed at home and in school.
•Collaborate with the principal and other school
personnel to identify systemic concerns and promote
systems-level change.

11. School psychologists and teachers can
collaborate when presented with
challenging students, classrooms, or
situations.

12. Prevention
School psychologists:
•Implement programs to build positive connections
between students and adults.
•Support early identification of potential academic
skill deficits and/or learning difficulties.
•Design and implement programs for at-risk children.
•Foster tolerance and appreciation of diversity.
•Create safe, supportive learning environments.

13. Teachers know their students best.
Teachers can help school psychologists
with prevention efforts by identifying
students at-risk and systemic concerns
in the classroom, school, and
community.

14. Intervention
School psychologists:
•Work directly with children, teachers,
administrators, and families.
•Develop individualized, classroom, and school-
wide interventions for learning and adjustment.
•Design and implement crisis response plans.
•Provide counseling, social skills training, and
academic and behavioral interventions.
•Develop strategies for modifying instruction to
optimize student progress.

15. School psychologists can help teachers
select, implement, and evaluate
interventions that work for children with
diverse needs.

16. Education
School psychologists provide teachers and parents
training in:
•Teaching and learning strategies and
interventions.
•Parenting and disciplining techniques.
•Classroom and behavior management
techniques.
•Working with exceptional students.
•Strategies to address substance abuse, risky
behaviors, or mental illnesses that affect
students.
•Crisis prevention and response.

17. School psychologists teach students,
teachers, parents, and other
professionals problem-solving strategies
to address issues related to academic,
behavioral, and psychological problems.

18. Research and Program Development
School psychologists:
•Recommend and implement evidence-based
programs and strategies.
•Conduct school-based research to inform practice.
•Evaluate effectiveness of programs and
interventions independently and as part of a
school-based evaluation team.
•Contribute to school-wide reform and
restructuring.

19. School psychologists can help teachers,
parents, and other professionals use
data-based decision making to improve
student and systemic outcomes.

20. Mental Health Services
School psychologists:
•Deliver school-based mental health services such
as group, individual, and crisis counseling.
•Coordinate with community resources and health
care providers to provide students with complete,
seamless services.
•Partner with parents and teachers to create
healthy school environments.
•Promote mental health in the school setting.

21. School psychologists can help teachers
understand and accommodate the
unique needs of students with mental
health problems in the classroom.

22. Advocacy
NASP and state professional associations are
dedicated to advocacy. School psychologists
encourage and sponsor:
•Appropriate educational placements.
•Education reform.
•Legislative involvement.
•Community services and programs.
•Funding for adequate resources.
•Employment of highly qualified school personnel.

23. School psychologists and teachers can
work together to advocate for the needs
of students at the school, local, state, and
national level.

24. Some More Specific Examples …
School psychologists work with
diverse populations and diverse needs!

25. Family Problems
The teacher noticed that Carla, an able student, had
stopped participating in class discussions and had
difficulty paying attention. He asked the school
psychologist to explore why Carla’s behavior had
changed so much. After discovering that her parents
were divorcing, the school psychologist provided
counseling for Carla and gave her parents and teacher
suggestions to help her during this difficult time.
Carla’s behavior and self-esteem improved, and she
felt more secure about her relationship with her
parents.

26. School psychologists can be trusted to
help with delicate personal and family
situations that interfere with schooling.

27. Reading Problems
Tommy’s parents were concerned about his difficulty in
reading. They feared that he would fall behind and lose
confidence in himself. In school the teacher noticed that
Tommy understood what was presented in verbal form
but that he needed help from his classmates to do
written work. After observing Tommy and gathering
information about his reading and writing skills, the
school psychologist collaborated with his parents and
teachers to develop an intervention to improve his
reading and writing. The plan worked and both
Tommy’s reading and his self-esteem improved.

28. School psychologists can help prevent
future problems when they intervene
with learning problems early on.

29. A Potential Dropout
David was a high school student who often skipped
class. He had very poor behavior and had been
suspended from school on various occasions for
fighting. After establishing a relationship with David,
the school psychologist taught him simple techniques
to relax and to control his aggressive behavior. David’s
mother and his teacher worked together on a plan
designed with the school psychologist to establish
limits and to improve communication.

30. School psychologists recognize that
changes in the school environment and
at home can improve the quality of life
for children and their families.

31. For More Information, Contact:
National Association of
School Psychologists
[phone] www.nasponline.org
*****************************************************************************************
Mac I. Barnett at
[email protected]
716-807-3855

32. QUESTIONS?

33. Special thanks to the 2005–06 NASP Student Leader Outreach
Committee for initiating this outreach effort, and to committee
member Stacy Bjorkman for her assistance with this
presentation.
Staff Contributors
Summer 2003
Kathy Cowan
Meaghan Curran
Ted Feinberg
Mary Beth Klotz
Linda Morgan
Libby Nealis
Staff Contributors
Winter 2006
Kathy Cowan
Ted Feinberg
Linda Morgan
Mary Beth Klotz
Myriah Rosengarten
Arlene Silva
© 2006 National Association of School Psychologists,
4340 East West Highway, Suite 402, Bethesda, MD 20814 – 301-657-0270