Children First

1
Children First

• Division 16
• No Child Left Behind

2
School Psychology

• Paradox
• Specialty very clearly tied to schools and
  childrens achievement
• BUT
• Typical purveyors of an assessment paradigm that
  is not consistent with NCLB

3
Strengths

• Deep understanding of classroom contexts
• Consultation skills to work with educators
• Familiarity with childrens barriers to learning
  (internal/external)
• Familiarity with school system policies, culture
• On site access to teachers, parents, and students

4
Challenges

• Transform assessment practice to standards based
  and instructional relevance
• Make teacher consultation key element of service
• Increase instructional/learning expertise
• Offer meaningful program evaluation services to
  schools

5
Optimal Future

• Psychologists as partners in facilitating
  childrens learning
• Psychologists as disseminators of evidence based
  approaches
• Psychologists as links to important community
  supports for children, families, and educators