Getting it right from the start: developing a service delivery model for non‐maintained early years settings

In this paper, the author explores how Educational Psychology Services might respond to the requirement that they now deliver a service to all validated Early Years settings. In doing so, current service delivery to schools is critically examined and a number of difficulties identified. Five key elements to the development of such a service are propounded, in order to avoid the inherent difficulties identified in schools. These include elements that are under the direct control of educational psychologists and others that are of a more systemic nature. The paper concludes that although following such steps should lead to the development of a much improved model of service delivery, wider elements such as the nature of private provision and the legacy of previous educational psychologist practice may represent a threat to this development. As such, these areas present much scope for further investigation.     

A developing educational psychology service work-allocation model

As UK governments continue with the economic policy of deficit reduction from 2010, many Local Authorities’ (LAs) Educational Psychology Services (EPSs) have begun to develop “traded” models of service delivery in order to maintain jobs and secure services. Nevertheless, EPSs still provide a core service delivery to schools, settings and geographical patches for statutory and pre-statutory work, which needs to be equitably distributed within the team to apportion demands and workloads. This article will discuss how a work-allocation model has developed in recent years, with reference to case studies from three diverse LAs.     

Taking research into schools: the West Lothian Action Enquiry model

This paper outlines the efforts of an Educational Psychology Service (EPS) to develop its practice in the area of research. It will argue that the Action Enquiry model of service delivery can empower teaching staff and may allow an effective means of change and improvement to take place in schools. This model steers research towards providing information about what works in context and has given teachers the impetus and ownership to evaluate their practice and the impact of their interventions. The benefits of this approach are outlined along with a few notes of caution that readers are urged to consider when negotiating research within a school.     

So far so good? A qualitative case study exploring the implementation of consultation in schools

This paper describes a small‐scale research project carried out one year after the implementation of a consultation model of service delivery within an Educational Psychology Service. Following a series of interviews held with special needs co‐ordinators, a hierarchy of development was identified, and conditions pertaining to this development isolated. Through identifying optimum conditions for the development of consultation, a number of specific recommendations are made, aimed at ensuring that all schools gain maximum benefit from this way of working.     

Reflections on the use of Critical Incident Stress Debriefing in schools

Providing support to schools following a critical incident has become an established part of service delivery for many Educational Psychology Services (EPSs) in the UK. This article offers reflections on the use of Critical Incident Stress Debriefing (CISD) in schools. A review of the literature on critical incidents, trauma, resilience and bereavement suggested that studies exploring the effectiveness of psychological debriefing in general have produced mixed findings, which may be accounted for by methodological flaws and inappropriate application of the intervention. However it is also argued that the underpinning theoretical assumptions of CISD are questionable and, as a result, that Psychological First Aid, a non-intrusive evidence-informed approach, may be more appropriate in this context.     

The Formation of Communities of Practice in a Network of Schools Serving Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students

Culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students comprise the most rapidly expanding, and among the most educationally marginalized, group in the United States. CLD students’ opportunities to learn are often diminished through service delivery models that are deficit-oriented, viewing linguistic diversity as a challenge to overcome, not a strength on which to build. Such models frequently leave CLD students clustered and segregated within underresourced schools. Moreover, schools that effectively educate CLD students frequently operate in isolation from one another. In this context, this article provides a counternarrative. It reports the formation of a network of schools transforming their service delivery model from monolingual English immersion to bilingual 2-way immersion. Through a nested case study, we examine how learning among educators within communities of practice occurs in and across networked schools. We discuss this at the network level, and highlight one school's use of courageous conversations and formative assessments to foster this learning.     

论中国教育人类学的学科主题

发展中国的教育人类学,其学科主题必然聚焦在中国教育的现代问题上.应在综合吸收国外各流派研究优势的同时,努力避免其缺陷,并依据中国特定的教育实践来确定中国教育人类学的学科主题.中国教育人类学应把学科主题确定在推动中国教育转向现代化发展上.应坚持综合性的教育人种志研究方法.     

师范院校实践性知识发展探析

教育实习是获取实践性知识的重要途径,但师范院校教育实习存在较严重的问题,实习学校难以落实,师范生实践能力不足。师范院校需科学合理增设相应实践性的课程,改进教学形式并多渠道开发实践方式。同时,师范生自身也需增强实践性知识获取的意识,主动寻找实践机会,提高自身的实践能力。     

Promoting Emotional Literacy: Emotional Literacy Improves and Increases Your Life Chances

Peter Sharp, an Educational Psychologist, explains how Daniel Goleman's best selling book focused his interest on the idea of emotional literacy; how he found that interest was shared by Southampton's Education Services Chief Inspector and that, as a result of this, emotional literacy became one of the Authority's priorities. The wide range of initiatives currently taking place in Southampton are described as the broad way in which the concerns of emotional literacy are interpreted. The Southampton approach has already created interest among other LEAs and there are plans to produce supportive materials. The paper concludes by suggesting the way in which schools might start work in this area.     

Reviewing and developing a psychological service’s response to managing behavioural difficulties through action research

Educational or school psychologists (EPs/SPs) can offer support with behaviour concerns at the levels of individual, group or organisation. Their practices, whilst being psychologically based, must be responsive to local contexts and needs. To explore behaviour practice in a real-world context, and to consider how development in this domain might occur during the adoption of a “part-traded” service delivery model, an empirical investigation was conducted within one English local authority (LA) educational psychology service (EPS). Using an action research model, data were gathered through a focus group with six EPs and an interview with the Principal EP (PEP). Current behaviour practices, psychological approaches and future development priorities were identified, as well as perceived facilitators and barriers to change and the EPs’ reflections on professional development through research participation. Implications for EP practice and future research are considered.     

Implementation and Outcomes of Supplemental Educational Services: The Tennessee State-Wide Evaluation Study

Supplemental Educational Services (SES), a component of the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act, provides free tutoring to economically disadvantaged children who are attending Title I schools in their 2nd or more years of school improvement. This research evaluated SES in Tennessee to determine the: (a) impacts on student achievement, and (b) perceptions of SES implementation and outcomes by teachers, district coordinators, principals/site coordinators, and parents. Using value-added methodology, statistical analyses of achievement data controlled for both student ability and teacher effects in 2 alternative models. Not surprisingly, parent reactions to SES were highly positive, whereas those by the 3 other stakeholder groups were more mixed. Achievement results from both analytical models yielded mostly small and nonsignificant provider effects. The implications of the findings for evaluating SES are discussed with regard to both research and policy issues. Recommendations are offered for broadening the evaluation of SES through smaller mixed-methods studies to examine implementation and educational outcomes in more highly controlled contexts.     

RESEARCH SECTION: Nurture groups: a large‐scale,controlled study of effects on development and academic attainment

Nurture groups have contributed to inclusive practices in primary schools in the UK for some time now and have frequently been the subject of articles in this journal. This large‐scale, controlled study of nurture groups across 32 schools in the City of Glasgow provides further evidence for their effectiveness in addressing the emotional development and behaviour problems of vulnerable children. In particular, Sue Reynolds, Principal Educational Psychologist, Maura Kearney, Senior Educational Psychologist, both working in Glasgow City Council Psychological Services, and Tommy MacKay, Professor at the University of Strathclyde and Director of Psychology Consultancy Services, suggest that is the first study to report quantitative gains in academic achievement when the progress of pupils in nurture groups is compared with that of matched children in mainstream classes. This highlights the importance of providing a nurturing context as a basis for promoting children's learning.     

School neuropsychology consultation in neurodevelopmental disorders

The role of school psychologists with training in neuropsychology is examined within the context of multitiered models of service delivery and educational reform policies. An expanded role is suggested that builds on expertise in the assessment of neurodevelopmental disorders and extends to broader tiers through consultation practice. Changes in federal legislation to allow more flexible approaches toward assessment are viewed as a catalyst toward the integration of neuropsychological practice in school‐based practice. As a set of priorities, recommendations are made for reforming assessment practice in schools, linking neuropsychological test results to academic treatment outcomes, and developing consultation practice with parents and teachers for early identification purposes and to integrate school‐based services with community mental health services. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

教育实习如何真正走进中小学——以美国和新加坡为分析对象

我国现行的教育实习存在高师院校与实习学校的合作形式松散、缺乏稳固的实习基地、现有的实习学校并不切实支持新教师实习等问题。本文基于对美国和新加坡教育实习实践经验的分析,提出我们应该在深刻认识中小学教师教育重要性的基础上,注重实习的阶段性和连续性,并重视中小学指导教师在教育实习中的突出作用。     

Evaluating risk assessment implementation in child protection: issues for consideration.

The use of systematic risk assessment models by Child Protective Services is a rapidly growing phenomenon. Despite their popularity, we know little about the effect of implementation on casework practice. This article examines some issues that agencies might consider when evaluating the impact of risk assessment implementation on service delivery. The authors recommend an approach that includes the use of qualitative and quantitative measures in a process and an outcome evaluation to determine the degree to which the model has been implemented as intended and the impact of implementation on the case work process. Though this approach is likely to provide agencies with detailed information of the impact of risk assessment implementation, caution is recommended when interpreting the results from an evaluation of a risk assessment model in a field setting.     

Integration - A Lesson from America?

Keith Pocklington, a research officer at the National Foundation for Educational Research investigating provision for children with special needs in ordinary schools, discusses contrasts in special education practice between England and the USA     

教师专业发展学校:探索、经验与启示

教师专业发展学校是实现教师职前培养与在职培训一体化的一种新的探索。它在认可中小学校对于学生发展的价值的基础上,强调学校也是教师发展的场所。教师专业发展学校不仅促进了实习教师的专业成长和中小学生的发展,而且也为大学教师和中小学在职教师提供了对话的平台。专业发展学校的发展历程为我们提供了许多有益的启示:实习教师的“临床实践”是其完成教师角色转变的必经之路;教师教育必须与学校教育改革实践紧密结合;教育理论与教育实践的沟通必须在理论主体与实践主体的“对话”中实现。     

论课程改革中“本土”的流失与重构

教育研究和教育改革应该有属于自身的独特特色,属于自身看世界、研究问题的独特视角。由于长期的自卑情结,我们习惯于迁移与移植,我们的改革总是以城市和重点学校为背景,缺乏对农村和薄弱学校的考虑。所以,当前的教育改革应当重构＂本土＂,从本土的问题出发,建构起坚实的改革土壤。