School-linked and school-based health services: A renewed call for collaboration between school psychologists and medical professionals

Health care and education reform provide opportunities to build systems that promote rather than retard collaboration between school psychologists and medical professionals. School-linked and school-based health services (SLSBHS) are a family of approaches that provide medical, social, and mental health services to students through school settings. These services have potential to provide more than acute care or first-aid services. SLSBHS provide medical care to uninsured children, students with chronic medical needs, at-risk children, and the overall school population. However, there are usually not enough funds to hire new staff members in most school districts. Expanding the roles of current school staff, promoting interdisciplinary collaboration, and implementing creative fiscal strategies are necessary to develop SLSBHS. Interdisciplinary collaboration may be the largest hurdle to developing SLSBHS. As such, school psychologists and medical professionals may need to rethink their professional roles and develop new techniques of interdisciplinary consultation to fulfill the potential of SLSBHS.     

关于慈竹属和单竹属的讨论

 When F. A. McClure published the new genus Sinocalamus McClure in 1940, the 4 species he listed are S. latiflorus (Munro) McClure, S. beecheyanus (Munro) Mc- Clure, S. oldhami (Munro) McClure and S. affinis (Rendle) McClure.  After careful examination, the authors of this paper considered that the type species of McClure’s genus S. latiflorus (Munro) McClure should belong to the genus Dendrocalamus Nees, and the other species are of Bambusa Schreber.  Owing to Sinocalamus McClure is not a taxon representative of its type species, but a mixture, it must be rejected as a synonym of Dendrocalamus Nees.  In consequence then, the authors make adjustment to the taxonomic category of the 14 species and 1 variety which have ever been in Sinocalamus McClure.      As for the characters of Lingnania McClure, except that some differences exist in the vegetative parts, the structure of the spikelets is in the main the same as that of Bambusa Schreber.  Consequently, with regard to the systematic relationship, the authors consider it may be more resonable that the rank of Lingnania McClure should be alter- ed to Bambusa Schreber subg.  Lingnania (MeClure) Chia  et H. L. Fung; all the species of Lingnania McClure, except that L. tsiangii McClure should be transferred to Dendrocalamus Nees, should be assignable to Bambusa Schreber subg.  Lingnania (McClure) Chia et H. L. Fung.     

The Beginning of Statistical Inference: Comparing two Data Sets

The development of school students' understanding of comparing two data sets is explored through responses of students in individual interview settings. Eighty-eight students in grades 3 to 9 were presented with data sets in graphical form for comparison. Student responses were analysed according to a developmental cycle which was repeated in two contexts: one where the numbers of values in the data sets were the same and the other where they were different. Strategies observed within the developmental cycles were visual, numerical, or a combination of the two. The correctness of outcomes associated with using and combining these strategies varied depending upon the task and the developmental level of the response. Implications for teachers, educational planners and researchers are discussed in relation to the beginning of statistical inference during the school years. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Needs Assessment Across Disciplines

The needs assessment process, as a tool for decision making, continues to enjoy high visibility in the professional literature, especially in the area of training and human resource development. This literature review explores needs assessment in selected disciplines and provides generalizations about its application. Five needs assessment variables guided our survey of the purposes and methods of the needs assessments described in 106 articles in five general areas (applied sciences, education/technology, medicine/allied health, business/information sciences, and human/public services).     

A comparison of nonreferred,learning-disabled,and mildly mentally retarded students utilizing the social skills rating system

The assessment of social skills deficits has received wide support. Recently, the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS) has been developed to assist professionals in assessing social skills. In this study, the Social Skills Rating System was used to compare students who had already been classified as learning disabled (n = 20) and mildly mentally retarded (n = 20) with a group of nonreferred students (n = 20). The results showed that as a group students with disabilities scored significantly lower than the nonreferred group on social skills and significantly higher in problem behaviors. A discriminant analysis revealed that the SSRS was able to predict group membership broadly (e.g., handicapped versus nonhandicapped) but not specifically (e.g., learning disabled, mentally retarded). Moderate Pearson correlations between parents and teacher ratings indicated some consistencies between raters. However, low kappa coefficients showed that parents and teachers are likely to identify different students as having social skills deficits and problem behaviors. Suggestions are given for utilizing the SSRS with other techniques such as interviews and observations in the assessment and remediation of social skills problems.     

The Big-Fish–Little-Pond Effect for Academic Self-Concept, Test Anxiety, and School Grades in Gifted Children

This study reports data extending work by Marsh and colleagues on the “big-fish-little-pond effect” (BFLPE). The BFLPE hypothesizes that it is better for academic self-concept to be a big fish in a little pond (gifted student in regular reference group) than to be a small fish in a big pond (gifted student in gifted reference group). The BFLPE effect was examined with respect to academic self-concept, test anxiety, and school grades in a sample of 1020 gifted Israeli children participating in two different educational programs: (a) special homogeneous classes for the gifted and (b) regular mixed-ability classes. The central hypothesis, deduced from social comparison and reference group theory, was that academically talented students enrolled in special gifted classes will perceive their academic ability and chances for academic success less favorably compared to students in regular mixed-ability classes. These negative self-perceptions, in turn, will serve to deflate students' academic self-concept, elevate their levels of evaluative anxiety, and result in depressed school grades. A path-analytic model linking reference group, academic self-concept, evaluative anxiety, and school performance, was employed to test this conceptualization. Overall, the data lend additional support to reference group theory, with the big-fish-little-pond effect supported for all three variables tested. In addition, academic self-concept and test anxiety were observed to mediate the effects of reference group on school grades.