The transition into kindergarten is important because it sets the foundation for future academic achievement. Identifying a child’s readiness at school entry and intervening appropriately facilitates positive academic outcomes. The Kindergarten Student Entrance Profile (KSEP) is a school district developed universal screening measure used to assess children’s readiness for school. This action research study reports on the psychometric proprieties of the KSEP, including its prediction of academic achievement through grade 2. Results suggest promising psychometric characteristics. Discussion focuses on uses of the KSEP for school readiness evaluations and future research.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the extent that reading performance (as measured by curriculum-based measures [CBM] of oral reading fluency [ORF] and Maze reading comprehension), is related to math performance (as measured by CBM math computation and applied math). Additionally, this study examined which of the two reading measures was a better predictor of applied math performance. Results of multiple hierarchical regression analyses indicated that math computation was the best predictor of applied math performance, followed by the Maze task. Also, results indicated that ORF did not significantly predict applied math test scores above and beyond math computation and Maze. Thus, from these results it appears that for fourth and fifth grade students, reading comprehension as measured by the Maze plays a more important role in predicting applied math performance than oral reading fluency.
The inclusion of English Language Learners as a subgroup in the No Child Left Behind legislation has leant additional importance to the need for valid and efficient measures of reading for students whose first language is not English. This study examines the use of Curriculum-Based Measurement (CBM) reading fluency as a predictor of later reading performance on state accountability tests for fifth grade ELL students. The findings of this study indicate that CBM is a significant predictor of later performance on tests for accountability for ELL students as a whole, and for the individual language groups of Spanish, Hmong, and Somali. Implications for these findings are discussed.
In an effort to understand how schools are coping with incidents of peer victimization, this study explored the types of related interventions currently being offered by public schools in Northern California. School psychologists’ perceptions of the importance of the available interventions were also examined ( N = 96). The interventions reported to be the most widely available were a) whole-school no tolerance policies and b) school to home communication. Generally, the endorsed availability of interventions decreased as the intensity level of intervention increased. Interventions endorsed as most important were a) the whole-school no tolerance policy; b) general school climate interventions; c) school to home communication; and d) education of school personnel about bullying. Analyses examining the relative use of primary, secondary, and tertiary interventions revealed that school psychologists report primary intervention as most important for reducing levels of bullying at their schools. Analyses also revealed that the differences between psychologists’ ratings on each of the levels of the intervention hierarchy were significant. Implications for further scholarship and practice are discussed.
Universal screening is one strategy to enhance the early identification of behavioral and emotional problems among youth. Although it appears to be effective, it is unclear if universal screening is more or less effective than current teacher referral practices. Thus, the purpose of this study was to compare the effectiveness of a teacher-rated, universal screener and typical teacher-referral methods in identifying youth at risk for emotional and behavioral problems. Results indicated that of the 24 students identified as at-risk by the universal screening measure, only 11 were previously identified through current teacher referral practices — highlighting the potential benefit of universal screening to enhance early identification. Furthermore, results indicated that academic achievement and student engagement outcomes were significantly correlated with at-risk status by identification method. The strengths and limitations of this study, as well as implications for practice, are discussed.
Resilience and other positive psychological constructs are gaining attention among school psychologists. Theoretically, external assets (e.g., support from caring adults, participation in meaningful activities) help to meet youths’ basic developmental needs, which, in turn, promote the growth of internal assets (e.g., ability to problem solve, empathize with others). Despite this knowledge, existing measures of resilience-building assets are underutilized. With the aim of facilitating broader access to and use of one strengths-based assessment tool, the current article attempts to further examine and increase the applicability of the Resilience Youth Development Module (RYDM) of the California Healthy Kids Survey (CHKS) for practicing school psychologists. The authors provide normative data on the internal assets and school-focused external resources subscales of the RYDM, while examining grade, ethnicity, and gender patterns.
The increasing emphasis on school-based mental health services is likely to increase the demand for school psychologists to provide counseling with students. Providing counseling in the school context can be challenging, especially given time constraints and limited number of sessions. Solution-focused brief counseling (SFBC) is an approach that warrants consideration for use with children at school. This synthesis provides a brief overview of the extant scholarship regarding SFBC, describes the guidelines for implementing this approach, explores considerations and implications for school psychologists who use this approach to provide counseling services, and recommends future directions for scholarship. Lessons learned through a university and school collaboration to provide student support services are also included.
The development of social and emotional competence is crucial for students. Second Step is a curriculum designed to promote prosocial development and prevent violence. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing one unit of the Second Step curriculum (Impulse Control and Problem Solving). A controlled, repeated measures design was utilized to assess the level of change in knowledge of social-emotional skills. Results indicated that change was evident from pre- to post-test for third and fourth grade students (N=149). Third grade students receiving the intervention demonstrated significantly more knowledge growth than third grade control students. Notably, fourth grade students receiving the intervention demonstrated a similar level of knowledge growth as the fourth-grade control students. Discussion, limitations, and implications related to these findings are addressed.
The current migration of Latino/as into the United States has many schools struggling to meet the unique academic needs of this particular group of students. Previous research suggests level of acculturation and perceived social support impact mathematics achievement amongst Latino/a students. The current study employed hierarchical and simultaneous multiple regression analyses to evaluate the effect perceived social support and level of acculturation reported by a sample of Latino/a students (ages 14–18) had on their mathematics achievement. The results revealed that one’s level of acculturation did not impact her or his mathematics achievement, while positive correlations between teacher and peer support and mathematics achievement were noted, with teacher support being the dominant factor. Limitations and implications of the findings for the field of school psychology are discussed.
Universal screening of emotional and behavioral problems among students warrants further consideration by school professionals. School-based universal screening may provide opportunities for early identification and intervention, ultimately preventing the development of more severe problems and promoting more positive outcomes in the future. The Behavioral and Emotional Screening System (BESS) is a contemporary screening instrument that may be used to identify risk for emotional and behavioral problems in students from preschool to high school. The purpose of the present study was to examine the concurrent validity of the BESS in elementary school settings. Specifically, this study examined the relation between BESS ratings and report-card outcomes (i.e., academic, behavioral, and engagement marks). The results supported the hypotheses that students’ risk-level classifications were significantly related to school-based outcome criterions and that school-based outcome criterions were deemed to be effective discriminators of students’ risk-level classification. Limitations, future directions for research, and implications for practice are discussed herein.
The positive psychology movement seeks to understand student strengths that may facilitate success or promote resilience. However, a positive psychology view is not intended to completely ignore negative factors that may be affecting children, so traditional assessments of mental illness remain important. As methods of assessment improve and enhance our understanding of student development, it is crucial to understand the interrelationship among strength-based and traditional — problem-based — measures. Utilizing a sample of third- and fourth-grade students, the current study examined the interrelationships between three measures of positive functioning, examining hope, life satisfaction, and school connectedness, and their relationship with a traditional, problem-based measure. Results demonstrated that the measures assessing positive constructs were significantly positively correlated with each other and negatively correlated with a measure of problem behaviors. Future directions for research, limitations, and implications for practice are discussed.
