A look at the single parent family: Implications for the school psychologist

The purpose of this article is to: (a) review briefly the efects on parents and children of living in a single parent family, and (b) to suggest ways in which a school psychologist can aid schools and single parent families in dealing more effectively with this type of structure. School-based interventions for children and parents are presented. These include achievement and behavioral assessment, evaluation of a child's support systems, counseling groups, bibliotherapy, parent education classes, in-service training for teachers, and referrals to community agencies. Changes in administrative policies to meet the needs of single parent families are suggested.     

Inequalities in the Overlooked Associations in Urban Educational Collaborations

This study examines the relationships between families and staff from community agencies and organizations in a poverty level urban neighborhood in the Northeast. A central concern of this study is to address how the existing relationships between these groups may affect urban educational restructuring efforts that encourage collaborations of families, schools, and community institutions to support the social and academic development of children. If community agencies and organizations are to engage in successful collaborations with inner city schools, it is critical that they be able to work with the children and families affiliated with these institutions. Findings from this study suggest that though these educational collaborations may yield support for children and their families, there are reasons to proceed cautiously which stem from the existing relationships between families and staff from community agencies and organizations. The relationships between these groups often rest on inherent inequalities. These inequalities stem from inequitable structural conditions which place a large population of urban residents at an economic disadvantage and compel them to seek services. Structural conditions, accompanied by public policies embedded in assumptions regarding which family members are deserving of support, subsequently has influenced who receives services. Mothers and their children typically are recipients of services. The inequalities that are inherent to these relationships, likewise, carry through to the roles that families and staff assume with each other in their daily associations.     

SCAN: A method of community collaboration

Recent research has highlighted the complexity of the battered child syndrome. Clinical experience suggests that treatment of troubled families is a long-term process, draining financial resources of agencies and emotional resources of professionals. The need to provide support and case consultation to professionals working in the area of child abuse and neglect evolved in the establishment, in 1968, of the Suspected Child Abuse and Neglect (SCAN) Program at Children's Hospital, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This program provides an effective method of intervention through identification, consultation, referral and follow-up of at-risk families. Weekly meetings offer multi-disciplinary case coordination, treatment recommendations, and a channel of communication for representatives of community agencies. This paper traces the history and present status of the SCAN Program, as well as the role of SCAN as a force for change of community attitudes.     

The role of family preservation therapists in facilitating use of aftercare services

OBJECTIVE: The aims were to: (1) examine the process that family preservation therapists use when developing and implementing aftercare plans, and (2) examine how family preservation therapists perceive the availability and accessibility of community services that families need after short-term family preservation services. METHOD: Focus groups were conducted with therapists (n = 26) from five agencies that provide family preservation services in a large Midwest city. One agency was the local public child welfare agency, and the other four were nonprofit agencies with state contracts to provide family preservation services. RESULTS: Therapists viewed aftercare services as important and necessary, yet perceived barriers to families' use of aftercare services. Therapists undertook a number of activities to help families access and use services, though some therapists took a less active role than others did in helping families link to services. It was perceived that more follow-up was needed to ensure service use. Participants viewed certain services as especially difficult to access or unavailable, including services for men and adolescents. CONCLUSIONS: More explicit and focused attention to facilitating service use is needed. This can be accomplished by therapists focusing on service use during assessment and treatment planning. Regular follow-ups after short-term family preservation services for the purpose of helping families to productively use services may be needed. However, systemic changes are also needed to ensure that needed services are available and accessible.     

Families at risk of poor parenting: A model for service delivery,assessment, and intervention

The At Risk Parent Child Program is a multidisciplinary network agency designed for the secondary prevention of poor parenting and the extremes of child abuse and neglect. This model system of service delivery emphasizes (1) the coordination of existing community resources to access a target population of families at risk of parenting problems, (2) the provision of multiple special services in a neutral location (ambulatory pediatric clinic), and (3) the importance of intensive individual contact with a clinical professional who serves as primary therapist, social advocate and service coordinator for client families. Identification and assessment of families is best done during prenatal and perinatal periods. Both formal and informal procedures for screening for risk factors are described, and a simple set of at risk criteria for use by hospital nursing staff is provided. Preventive intervention strategies include special medical, psychological, social and developmental services, offered in an inpatient; outpatient, or in-home setting. Matching family needs to modality and setting of treatment is a major program concern. All direct services to at risk families are supplied by professionals employed within existing local agencies (hospital, public health department, state guidance center, and medical school pediatric clinic). Multiple agency involvement allows a broad-based screening capacity which allows thousands of families routine access to program services. The administrative center of the network stands as an independent, community-funded core which coordinates and monitors direct clinical services, and provides local political advocacy for families at risk of parenting problems.     

Work-based Learning in Health: Evaluating the experience of learners,community agencies and teachers

This paper evaluates a case-study work-based learning (WBL) programme for final year health studies undergraduates, analysing key characteristics, and reporting benefits and tensions that result. It triangulates evidence from learners, community agencies and teachers. Cross-fertilisation of ideas between the academy and community agencies, and the viability of a very short term WBL programme were highlighted as positive features of the scheme, aided by clear student learning agreements. However, student confidence issues, struggles with self-directed learning and assessment of practical skills represented tensions, especially for ethnic minority and part-time learners. For community agencies, some lack of supervisor engagement, limited contribution to the taught-course curriculum and frequent structural reorganisation presented difficulties. Tensions for teachers related to reconciling academic and community enterprise goals, embracing resource pressures, fitting WBL within wider curriculum development and scaling up from small scale WBL programmes.     

Understanding practitioners' characteristics and perspectives prior to the dissemination of an evidence-based intervention

OBJECTIVES: To describe the characteristics and repertoires of community practitioners serving families involved in child physical abuse that may inform training and treatment dissemination efforts. The aims are to: (a) describe the background characteristics of these clinicians; (b) document their most common intervention techniques; (c) examine clinicians' attitudes toward manualized treatment; and (d) understand the organizational climate of community agencies. METHOD: Practitioners from nine different agencies who have worked with cases in which there was child physical abuse (n=77) completed focus group discussions and three self-report questionnaires. Qualitative and quantitative analyses were conducted in tandem. RESULTS: Practitioners reported that they most often focused on family issues and employed family therapy techniques. Although treatment manuals were important, it was difficult to determine how practitioners used or would use these materials with families. An almost equal number of concerns and benefits were raised regarding using manuals in treatment. There was moderate agreement in how practitioners perceived their work environments. Age and attainment of a graduate degree were positively related to greater caring and job satisfaction, respectively, while length of time at a given agency was positively related to greater reports of emotional exhaustion on a measure of organizational climate. CONCLUSIONS: Given the promising benefits of evidence-based treatments for child abuse, it is important that researchers begin to form partnerships with community agencies that will lead to the dissemination and evaluation of effective treatment strategies.     

Bridging research and practice: challenges and successes in implementing evidence-based preventive intervention strategies for child maltreatment

Child maltreatment has been associated with a wide range of negative developmental outcomes for children and families as well as significant economic consequences. While efficacious intervention strategies have been demonstrated to reduce symptoms of trauma and to improve behavioral and emotional functioning, these models have not been widely adopted by clinicians. The challenges associated with exporting evidence-based interventions into community settings are discussed, along with an example of a preventive intervention program for young mothers, successfully implemented through a partnership of community agencies and funders.     

Foresight analysis in research funding agencies: A UK experiment

Strategic planning and priority-setting have become inevitable for UK research funding agencies in the 1990's. But it is an activity which is viewed with some suspicion by the scientific community, in which it is an aphorism that discovery cannot be planned. There is considerable interest therefore, in the promise offoresight analysis as an alternative to conventional strategic planning. Most previous experience with foresight has been at a macro level, with a focus on national direction-setting. But what role can foresight have at amicro level; how can it help individual funding agencies develop strategies for specific scientific fields? This paper explores the problem by describing an experiment, supported jointly by three UK funding agencies, to apply foresight techniques in a review of a single field (cardiovascular research). The methodology developed for objective consultation with scientists and users is described, and preliminary results presented. Science-push and demand-pull factors emerged clearly, aa did a desire within the scientific community for a number of infrastructural changes to strengthen the future of the field. The study has shown that systematic surveys of users and researchers are capable of detecting coherent views on a number of issues that are relevant to forward planning in research funding agencies. The paper concludes by summarising the limitations of this approach to strategic planning, and presenting some general lessons that may be useful for consideration in other micro-level foresight exercises.     

澳大利亚大学质量保障署的跨国高等教育质量审核初探

澳大利亚大学质量保障署是一个独立于政府之外的质量保障机构,对澳大利亚跨国高等教育质量的审核起着举足轻重的作用。澳大利亚大学质量保障署跨国教育质量保障框架的构建体现了不同于我国跨国教育评估的理念和策略,有可资斟酌和借鉴之处。本文尝试对此议题进行评析,并对我国的跨国高等教育评估体系的构建提出一些建议。     

Addressing children's life changes in the early childhood curriculum

Young children may experience stress from changes in their lives. These changes may be developmental, critical, or catastrophic. Early childhood educators need to establish partnerships with parents to help families cope with all three types of changes. Teachers can facilitate children's emotional expressions, build understanding through the use of dramatic play, provide a stable routine, monitor post-traumatic play, and discuss events that affect individual children, the entire class, or the community. Teachers can also serve as a resource to families by providing books for parents and children, and building a referal file of agencies and helping professionals.     

Stakeholder Identification of Barriers and Facilitators to Sexual Health Education for Female Survivors of Violence: A Mixed Methods Study

There is a strong relationship between experiencing violence and participating in behaviors that increase the risk of contracting sexually transmitted infections. Sexual health education (SHE) tailored to the unique needs of female survivors of violence is needed. This paper presents findings from 40 surveys and 33 accompanying interviews with stakeholders representing 31 agencies in the violence advocacy community in Arkansas to investigate the feasibility, acceptability, and perceived need of a SHE program for female survivors of violence. Data also explore the role and preferences of community agencies in the design and implementation of such a program. Interviews with stakeholders revealed three themes: intervention concerns, content, and structure.     

Physical Facilities in Illinois Public Community Colleges: A Study of Rationale and Criteria in Decision Making

Abstract

This study investigates policies, procedures, guidelines, and rationale developed by various agencies in Illinois responsible for physical facilities development in community colleges. Data is assembled from surveys, documents, position papers, memoranda, and personal interviews with present and former staff of the agencies. Philosophy and purposes, preliminary construction planning, role of governmental agencies, priorities, cost analyses, and present status of construction programs are considered.

The State of Illinois funds up to 75% of community college construction costs, with local districts responsible for the remainder. Criteria developed to judge applications for funds are based on those of other states and recommendations from consulting firms.

Conclusions and recommendations are made concerning the Capital Development Board, effective utilization, space factors, efficiency standards, cost indices, transfer and reimbursement for credit, and the establishment of local priorities.     

Assessing the Transfer Function: Benchmarking best practices from state higher education agencies

State higher education agencies in the US are in a propitious position to improve the educational environment for students who transfer from one institution to another within a state. This paper reports on the results of a nationwide survey on the assessment of the transfer function by state higher education agencies. Using a benchmarking methodology, the paper suggests some 'best practices' of state higher education agencies in the organisation and use of transfer student information systems. The paper has relevance for institutional personnel and public policy makers since the number of transfer-oriented institutions and the number of transfer students are increasing across the globe.     

Beyond Compliance: Using Organizational Theory to Unleash the Potential of Assessment

This article illustrates how organizational theory can be used to support the development of authentic assessment practice among community college faculty, as well as guide research on implementation of assessment efforts. While many factors make implementing assessment difficult, the link between accreditation and assessment is a key element in distancing the practice from faculty. This dynamic arises not from the actions of accreditation agencies per se, but from the accountability narrative that has come to dominate both assessment and accreditation, the corresponding perception that assessment is “done to” faculty rather than by them, and a reliance among institutional leaders to echo this message in an effort to get assessment started. The result is implementation of assessment for compliance rather than meaningful program improvement. Understanding assessment as an innovation, and using organizational theory to guide implementation, may help community college leaders transcend this challenge and develop assessment practice that is more faculty-owned and meaningful. However, the current literature says little about how to use organizational theory to implement such assessment efforts. This article integrates Bolman and Deal’s (2008) framework on leadership and organizational change with actual examples of practice to illustrate how their model might be used to recapture the potential of assessment as well as guide research on effective implementation.     

Assessment in child abuse: An account of a system operated in the metropolitan borough of Barnsley by the N.S.P.C.C. special unit

During the course of the Special Unit's operation it became apparent that in many cases there was a demonstrable need for assessment; for a period of involvement with the family by one worker who could not only explore the background information, from parents and agencies alike, but also engage the whole family in an interventive schedule which explores their positive development by the use of a number of treatment modalities, the effectiveness of which could be evaluated in operation. Time-tabled case conferences on a weekly basis with a standing membership at the core reflecting the membership of the policy-making Area Review Committee, supplemented by other workers also involved in each case, provide the regular and consistent forum from which assessment cases are referred and for which assessment reports are prepared. The assessment process is the beginning of a long-term interventive schedule in which the clients and workers both participate. The system is, in essence and practise, a simple one but its effects have been felt not only in terms of ongoing casework with families but also at the level of policy-making in reappraisal of our traditional agency attitudes to child abuse.     

Definitions of Integration Can Be Misleading

The discussion in this paper departs from a fundamental premise: that in the foreseeable future local central agencies for Jewish education will not be receiving from their parent Federations the degree of increase in allocations which will enable them to significantly expand — let alone sustain at the current levels — the array of services which they deliver. This situation can be traced to a number of factors. To begin with, in many communities the ability of the Federation to raise funds through its annual campaign has leveled off. As a result, the total amount of money available for distribution to all Federation constituencies, including local bureaus of education, is no longer increasing in step-function fashion. Secondly, other Federation beneficiaries are staking claim with ever greater determination to their perceived share of the community dollar. Over the years most central agencies for Jewish education have become inured to this sort of competition for Federation funds from such sister agencies as the Jewish community center, the local Jewish home, and the like. But in recent years, allocations to local Jewish Day Schools have climbed to record levels, often making these institutions prime “competitors” with bureaus of Jewish education for community funds, more particularly with that portion of the total pie which has been allotted to education. This places bureaus in a difficult dilemma: On the one hand, they must support — indeed, encourage — increased funding for Jewish day school education. At the same time, bureaus are confronted with the uncomfortable fact that each community dollar allocated to day school education is a dollar which, potentially, might have been assigned to the central agency.     

Changing tactics: Embedding inclusion reforms within general education restructuring efforts

After years of research and efforts in pursuit of a greater understanding of inclusion, there is now growing certainty that inclusive reforms in special education must be pursued in terms of restructuring and improvement in general education. In this chapter three issues are raised and addressed. They are: (1) how does special education become an integral part of public schooling? (2) how will higher education, various research organizations, educational labs, institutes, and other research organizations in both general and special education need to change? (3) how should families, individual community members, community agencies, and business participate in large-scale school change?     

Clinicians and caseworkers: issues in consultation and collaboration regarding protective service clients

From a social systems and family systems perspective, this paper considers the relationships among protective service clients, caseworkers in protective service agencies and clinicians asked to provide mental health services. It argues that effective clinical services often depend on the clinician's understanding of the role of the caseworker, the caseworker's role-related stresses, and the larger system that serves as context for the caseworker-client relationship. Dynamics leading to inappropriate or collusive involvement of clinicians with families and caseworkers are discussed. Special consideration is given to four stress-related issues: issues of assessment and investigation; needs for validation; problems of responsibility and authority; and feelings towards clients. Strategies to help clinicians become more effective collaborators with caseworkers are suggested and the use of a team approach to the provision of clinical services is reviewed.     

Child abuse and neglect in American Indian communities

Child abuse and neglect have recently been found to occur among American Indians at rates comparable to other American population groups. Little is known about the clinical spectrum of Indian maltreatment, the psychodynamics and effective treatment modalities. Cultural misunderstanding, modernization, poverty, situational stress, poor parenting skills because of early break-up of Indian families, alcoholism, unusual perceptions of children, handicapped children, and divorce constitute factors associated with maltreatment in cases cited. Old solutions of removing children from families were largely inappropriate and ineffective and are being replaced by local efforts to develop foster homes, supportive family services, and legal procedures to protect children. Communication between agencies involved and mistrust of outsiders plus a lack of trained personnel and available community resources continue to pose major barriers to effective treatment and prevention efforts. Recent federal policies and laws clearly place the responsibility for child welfare in the hands of Indian tribes and tribal courts. The non-Indian health professional has an important but limited role in providing technical expertise and in aiding development of community resources, taking care to support but not usurp the emerging leadership of Indian people.