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CENTRE FOR NEWFOUNDLAND STUDIES
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( innpar11lil'e A na~psi.\· f~j"A .\ .o..·essnwnl Practices '~ll::.~ducutimwl P.,yclwlot.:ists in ,\'t. Jo/111 \, Net•:fiHuulland, Cmwda, and "Ve.\·t
Hn·ex, /·.:u~:lmul: A Scltool P.\ycflo/ogy /uternship Rt)port
St. .John's
By
Dale l\1cLran. B.A. (llnns). B.Ed.
1\n Internship Report submitted to the School of GnuJm1h.' Studies in partial fulfilment of the
.requirements for the degree of Mastcr·s of Education
Faculty of Education Memorial University of Newfoundland
September J 995
Newfoundland
National L1brary of Canada
B1bliottleque nat1onale du Canada
Acquisitions and 01rect1on des JCQuis;t1ons et Bibliographic Services Branch des serv1ces b1bl1ograpt11ques
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L'AUTEUR A ACCORDE UNE LICENCF IRREVOCAllLE ET NON EXCLUSIVE PERMETT ANT A LA BIBUOTIIE<)UE NATIONAL~ DU CANADA DE REPRODUIRE, PRETER, DISTRIBUEI{ OU VENDRE DES COPIES DE SA THESE DE QUELQUE MANIERF LT SOUS QUELQUE FORME ()Ul ~ C'E SOIT POUR METTRE DES EXEMPLAIRES Dl: CETTE THESE A LA DISPOSITION DFS PERSONNE INTERESSEES.
L'AUTEUR CONSERVE LA PROPIUETE DU DROIT D'AUTEUR QUI PROTE<iE SA THESE. Nl LA THESE NJ DES EXTRAITS SUOSTANTIELS DE CEL!.ECI NE DOIVENT ETRE IMPRIMES O!J AUTREMENT REPRODUiTS SANS SON AUTORISATION.
ABSTRACT
Th~ internship pla<.:L~mcnt cumpnm:nt ofthl' i\l ash:rs PtTductti,llt (~rlt'h'l
Psyt:hl)logy) \\'as compktcd in llarhl\\. hsc:-;. 1:ngland. lh.: l"l..'p u ll Ita'> t" ' '
components: (I) a plac~:mcnt cPmponL·nt and ( 2) a 1\.'s(·an:h l:lllllpnlll'llt. . \11
on~rvic\\' of educational psychology in Bri tain (spccilically \\ 'est hscx L the intL'm's
goals and ohjcctin:s. and the internship cxpcricncc (acti\itics and lcarnin[.!.) ;uc
outlined in the placement compnncnt nf the internship n:port.
The research component consists o f a c:ompar:tli\·c ana i ~ sis of as:-:csstllL'III
practices of educational psychologists in St. .John's. Ncwlinmdlnnd and West I ;SSl''i .
England. Eight nn educational psychulogists ( li llll' l'rom each sett ing ) \\L'I'L'
intcr\'icweJ. Results indicate that educational psychologi:--.ts in hllth sl'ltin~s
reported similarities in asscssmc, 11 practices such as Cllmmon IL'aSlli\S li 11· n:k rr;tls.
llowcvcr, educational psyd10\ugists in both settings indic:tll.'d that the rl.'krral
process. assessment practices. and time spent in asscssmt.:nt acti vit ic:-. d irt i: rcd .
Limitations of Lhl' rc~carch arc also discussed.
II
Acknowledgement
'I Ill' intl'rn watd'ul ly acknowll'dgL:s tht: 1\lllo\\ ing. indi\'iduals for thcir input. cflurt
and suppnrt: I )r. W. ( '. Nl'shit ( lnh.:rnshir Supcn·isol'). Ms. Ann Ricketts. 1\tl:.;. Paula
( ' rushit.:. Ms. I khbiL: Orltlfl. the staff at the West Essl':\ Formal J\ss~.:ssmcnt and
1·:\'aluarion Ser\'icl'. Mr. Christopher Mercer. Dr. Frank Riggs. Dr. Leroy Klas. Ms.
Dorothy Joy. the l'dttcatiunal p!-'.ychologists who participated in the inh:n·ie\\·s. Dr.
!Ji;aheth Strong. 1\'lr. < ierald Smerdon. Mr. R.B. rvtcrcer. Dr. Ciknn Sheppard. l>r.
Norm< iarfic. rvtr. < ierry White. The liar low Trust Foundation. !\ 1s. Angela Wilmott.
the sral'f' and administration at thL: i\·Ialtings. Ms. Dawn 1\rk!.ean. l\rlr. J.T. 1\kl.ean
and Mrs S. Winnifi·ed 1\.lcl.e:m. ivls. It Kcan. rvls. S. Walsh. and i\ Ir. t!. Spenccly.
Abstn1ct Acknowledgement
Internship Report Table of Contents
PART 1: PLACEMENT COMPONEN1'
P·' p. ii
CHAPTER 1: DESCRIPTION OF THE INTERNSHIP SETTlNG a. Introduction p. 6 b. Educational Psychology in 1-:ssex: p. 7 c. Legislative Impetus p. 7 d. Overview of the System p. 9
c. The Educational Psychologist's Clientele p. 9 f. The Essex Stages or Assessment p.ll g. Procedures and Time-lines in Statutory Work p.I..J h. Educational Psychologists Rcsponsihil itics p.l S
in West Essex i. Skills of the Educational Psychologist in l:ssex: p.J7 .i.Summary p.IS
CHAPTER 2: GOALS AND OBJECTIVES a. Dilliculties in Defining Goah and Objectives p. 19 b. Evolution of Internship Goals and Objectives p. 20 c. Internship Goals p. 21 d. Internship Objectives p. 22
i) Independent Objectives p. 23 ii) Placement Objectives p. 24
c. Summary p. 25
CHAPTER 3: REFLECTION OF INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE a. Phases of Experiential Activities p. 26
I) Observational Phase p. 27 2) Participatory Phase p. 31 3) Independent Phase p. 32
(i) Professional Development p. 32 (ii) Visits to Special Provisions p. 32 (iii) Caseload p. 33 (iv) Activities p. 34
h. Supervision c. Fval11ation or Internship Experience
i) Critical Thinking ii) Assessment Techniques iii) Time Management iv) Professional Skills
-consultation skills -report writing -knowledoe-basc t::>
-casework planning v) Systems vi) Evaluating and Processing Learning
d. Summary
p.36 p.38 p.38 p.39 p.40 p. 41 p.41 p.42 p.42 p.43 p.43
p.45 p.46
PART II: RESEARCH COMPONENT
CHAPTER 4 A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF ASSESSMENT PRACTICES OF EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGISTS 11\J ST. JOHN'S, NEWFOUNDLAND AND WEST ESSEX, ENGLAND.
a . Introduction/ Literature RLview p . .tS b. Rational p. 52 c. Procedure p. S.t d. Sample p. 55 c. Research Findings: p. 5(l
• reasons for assessment referrals p. S(l
• assessment procedures used p. 57 I! time devoted to formalized assessment & report writing p. Mt • school board/local·~ducation authority rel'erral process p. (l2
• dctinition of success upon completion of an assessment p. 65 f. Limitations af Research p. 67
i) questionnaire p. 67 ii) ti·amework of edw.:ational psychology work p. 6N iii) questioning skills of the researcher p. 6lJ
g. Summary p. 70
REFERENCES p. 72
Appendix 1 Interview Questionnaire p. 75 Appendix 2 Consent of Educationall'sychologists to
Parf.icipatc in Research p. 76
Chapter 1 Description of The Internship Setting
INTROl>liCTION
Thl.! internship component nl'the !\·lasters nt' Fducational PsyclHlhl,L!~ (~dHHll
Psychology) at Menwrial llni\·ersity t~f Nc\\ round land h~gan on i\·ht~ I. 1 'lt>) ;md
~xtcmkd for a period or thirteen \\'~cks . Four days pcr \\'l.!ek \\1..'1"1.' SJ11.'111 at the
internship placement. The other da~ ~ach \\'l.!t.:k \\'as spent pursuing ind~.·p~nd ... · tll
research and deYeloping the rescarch project compon~.·nt or the intcrnship IL'porl.
The sctting for the internship placement \\as thc West 1-:ssex Fonnal
;\ssl!ssmcnt and l:\·aiuation Service (FAI:S) situated in llarlo\\·. hsi.'X. 1-'r1gland.
Jldon: specifically. the intem workcd \\'ith the hlucntional Psydwlogy S;.·rYicc ( FPS ).
,,·ithinthc Formal Assl!S!->Illl!nt and Ev~1luation Scr\'icc.
Supcrvision was provided hy two educational psychologists 1111 the West
Essex tc~\111 . 1\nn Ricketts and Paula Crosbie. Both supervisors an: n:gisten:d
psydwlngists in Cin~at Britain and have cxh..:nsive I.!Xpl.!ricnce \Vorking proll:ssionally
as educational psychologists in scn~ral Local hlucation Authorities withiil l·:n~land .
Supervision !'rom Memorial llnivcrsity or N~.!wlinmd land '''"~ providcd hy
l~lculty member. Dr. W.C. Nesbit. Ph.D. Professor and Chair oi'Spccial hlm:ation.
Dr. Nesbit also resided in llarlmv f{lr the Spring term. I 9<J5 ami provided a gn.:at deal
or guidance in the completion or the internship report.
EUIICArJO~AL PSYCIIOLOCY IN ESSEX
1-.so.,c;-; j.., a largL' hlucational Authority. pro\'iJing a broad education ltll'
;II most a quarter o !. a mi II it 111 chi ldn:n and young people (Kerfoot. 1 995 }. The Fssex
hlur;ttion;d l'sychnln!;!i<.:al Service (I·:PS) structure. as outlim:d hclO\\. pwYidcs the
IJicr:trchialnl~lllii!,!CillCllt ti·alllC\\!li'K of educational psydmlogical Sl:r\·kl' dcli\'cry in
the hsc:-> l.ocal hlucation :\uthority. There is a Principal Psychologist. Sue Kcrl(lOt.
\\ho has t\\o Assistant PrinLipal Fducational Psychologists \\'ith spccilic county-wide
dutiL·s. ;\mire lmich and 1\:tcr Parnes. There arc six teams that an: led by six t\rca
St:nior hlucatinll ~tl Psychnlogists. In West 1-:ssex. the :\rca Senior Psychologist is
1 k·hhic Orton. She has responsibilities as an educational psychologist and as \\'t.:ll
is ma1w~er of the team of SL'\\:n educational psychologists based at Bray's !louse.
lraccYs Road. llarlu\\.
I.E<;JSI.:\TI\'E IM PETtiS
l'hL' pr al·ticl' of I :ducational Psychology in Great Britain is closely linked\\ ith
gtl\ L'l'llllll'lltal legislatinn. The ll'amock Report ( 197X) made many l~lr·rcaching
rcctllllmcndations !'or a hroadcr ,·ie\\' or special education and argued fo:- the
inh:g.ratinn (lr children \\'ith special needs. \\'hen possible. with a greater im uh·t.:mcnt
ot' pat\'nts. F urthcr. the lf'amnck ReJJort adn,catcd a phased system or assessment.
(\\\:bst~:r. l(}l) ~). I h!.! R!.!port indicated that 2ll11 n uf B1iti~h \.·hildn:n ha\c ~pcL·ial
educational needs. ll\1\\"1.!\ cr. only 2° u ot' pupils require a Sta!L·m~.·m idL·nti I~ in~ th~.·s~.·
needs and pn)\'ision rcquiH:d to cnsun: that these needs arL' ml.'t. I hc~e "statl'lllL'Illl'd"
pupils arc considered to han! special L'duc~llinnaln!.!L'ds that arc hllth j,,li~-IL'I"Ill :111d
cnmpk;o;.
lhes~: i<.k:as stat~:d in the ll'amock 1\er,ort wen: l"tu th~:r ddin~:atl'll in the 1•>•>-1
document called the ( 'ode o/"l1mclice. This ('ode l'll\"isngc~ that 111ost children' . ..,
special needs will bt: met in the mainstn:am \\ithout stalt:nH:Jlls. <md that m:u1y othL' I
childrL'll \\"ith statements\\ ill r~:cei, ·~: their ~:dw:ation in ordinary schuuls. Parlll\.'lship
\\!th parents and ehildren.carly action. ami dos:..: intcr-ag~:ncy collaboratiol' an.· cnr~.·
and fundamental to the Coclr: l!/l 1racrice (I (N·h This Cmk ckarly identities and
delineates the process of staged assessment. Thcs~: go,·cmment documents han.: hL'L'Il
the dri\'ing rnn:e ror the de\·dopllll.'lltlll th..: pr..:sent poli(y that guides tilL: p!o\·isinn
ot" psychological s~:rvil.'~: to thL: l.'ducational sy~tcm. Thus. h:gisl;ttioll dictllll' '• the
roks and r~:sponsihiliti~:s ol' educational psych1)logists in ( irl'al Britain.
OVEnVJE\V OF TilE S\'STEM
('hi ldn:n '' ho 11 "'..: Ji rticulty in kam i ng han~ sp~.!<.:i al educational rigll ts.
l .m:al hlucational 1\uthoriti..:~ han: the n:sponsihility to itkntil~· and secure
; 1ppropri~tt..: pro\' is ion fill· chi ldrl:n's spcci lie educational ncl:ds. Further. parents ha\'e
the righl 1t1 IlL· i1n·oln~d in the decisions al'kcting the educational well-being ofthcir
children (B,dcod & Bcch1..~ . I ()<J.' }.
Wlwrc possible. special neL·ds children arc educated in t)rdinary schools.
hcarin!!, in mind that both parental inll:rests and the intcr..:sts of the other childn:n in
the sciHlolmust he considered. The Local hlucational Authorities' n:spnnsibilities
includc: drawing up a formal statement nrthe child's cducatinnal nccds. and a parallel
staiL'IllL'Illor the acti,,ns that it deems suitable fi.1r meeting those IH.:cds. Parents can
ap11L·:d to a SJ1L't:ial tribunal if' they disagrce \\ ith the pro\'ision set out in thcst:
stah:nlcnts (('ode of Practice. I 994 ). Thus. \\'orking \\ ith parents on prO\·iding the
hL·st education in the best setting fi.1r their children is an essential skill in pro fc~;sional
pl';tl'[ it:L' f'lll' ~dura\ iona( psydlOIOgiSIS.
TilE EIHI( 'ATIONAL PS\'CIIOLO<;IST'S CLIENTELE
l·:ach ut'tht: L'dm:atiunal psychologists on the WL'st I:sscx t~am is allocated a
"palL'h" and is required to pro\'idc the fi.1ll rangc or scr\·iccs to children living in this
an~a ( Kt:rfoot. ll)l)) ). Fach "patch" typically includes t'''' ct~lllJWl'lh:nsh l' Sl'lhlPis
which would hl' comparahk tn junior and sl'nior high schnllls in Nc\\ lillllldland.
Also \\ ithin this catchment :1rca arc tl:~..·Lkr primary. int;mt and juni,1r s~.:!Hlll l s . In
addition. the cducatinnal psychologist in \\ 'est hsl':\ is l'l'Spnnsihk li11· <l Stk'L·ial
provision schonlm "unit" that caters to children with spedaledth.:atinnalne~..·ds. l ' h~..·
l'UUcational psycholt1g.ist is aiSl) rt:sponsibk t'nr nursery and prl'sdwul children that
lin: within their catchment area. Services arc also JWo\·ided tll s1Ude11ts attending out
county schools and post 16 students (Kerfoot. I l)()) ).
The educational psychologist's activities associated '' ith these educational
settings arc Clmsistcnt \\'ith the central role or the hlueational Psychology SLT\ in:.
This role is to assist the Local Education Authority meet its statutory n:sponsihiliti~..·s
for children with special educational needs hy providing advice on the educational
needs nt' children who lin: \\ithin their patch (Kt:rliHll. 1995). These statutor)
requirements an: guided by the 1993 Education t\ct '' hich pro,·idt:s a k!_!al
framework ltlr special t:ducationul needs. ·1 he ( 'ode of' Practict: ( I <J<J~) pruvidt:s
guidance on how schools and others should dc;,d with spcl'ial ed ucat ional r H.:~:d s .
bscx County Council has adopted thi s ti·amcwork fill· the asSL'ssnlcnl and support
of pupils with special educational needs and has developed the H1·se.r .\'tage.1· of
Assessment from that document.
TilE ESSEX STAGES OF ASSESSMENT
·1 he /:'ssex ,\'luge.\· of As.H'.\'SIII<!I1t is a liv<: stagt.: moJcl. The first thn.:c stages
an: related lo sdwol-hascd assessment. 1-:ach sm:ccssivc stage invol\'cs more <.ktailcd
assessment and increasingly intensive support arrangements for the pupil (Essex
( 'ounly ( 'ouncil. I 994). There an: Individual hlur.:ation Plans (11-:i's) at each stage.
Moss (I 1)')5) describes the stages as a sequence of action steps that take us from the
rdatively informal evt:ryday n:sponst: or tht: class tcacht:r to more formal
arrangt:nK·nts with im:rcasL•d specialist in\'oh·emcnt.
ST·t GE 2:
the dass or .w/~ject teacher ident(/ies or registers a child~, . . vpecial
educational needs and. conwlting with the school's ,\'/:',\' co-ordinmor
(.'./Jet'iul /:'ducafi()/llll Need,· ( 'o-ordinator) wkes initial action.
l11is results in a d!flerentiation in !he curriculum lo mee/ the
pupil's specific: ll!!!!ds.
tlte school~' Sf:',\' co-ordinator takes !he lead responsihility .fiJr
gal he ring i nfi mnat ion am/ .for co-ordinut ing l he child~,. .\peciaf
educutimwl fJ/'0\'ision \mrking ll'it!J the child's teadu•r. At this
sla,~t· £111 individual educlll iona/ plan is drc!fied with spec (fie
goals and large!.\' SfJt'L'i/ietl hy !hi! pupirv educaliona/11eedr.
leaclrers and !he SFN co-ordinator are supported hy ,,peciali.rts
.fmm oulside the s('hool (Code nl' Practice. \l)9~. p.J)
At Stage Three. the educational psychnlugist is consullcd rq;ardin!,! progn:ss
and planning related to the pupil's needs. i\tthis point. the IndiYidu~ll hlucatinn Plan
(I EJ>) is rcvicm.:d. l'vtoni tori ng of the I FP may n:sul t in three possihk cmJrS\.'S ol'
m.:tinn. Depending upon the Stage 3 JeYicw meding \Yhich in,·oh·l·s wnsultatiun
\Vith the school. parents. other agencii.:s. pupils and th~..: educational psychulogist: (I l
the pupil's needs may he deemed to have been addressed \\'ith the conscqucJH:c that
monitoring be reverted to Stage One or Two. (2) the pupil may continue on Stagg.\
or. (3) the pupil may move on to the Fourth Stage or the l:'.vsex ,\'tuges of :h',\'('.\'.\'11/('111
(Moss. 1995 ).
STAGE4:
STAGES:
1 he U~A ( l.m·a/ !:'ducal ion :Jut hori tyJ t'onsiclers I h<' need jor tt
sruturmy assessmenl. wul ((llfJJJrupriare. nutlws a multidiscijJ/inttr.r
assessme111.
the !.fA considers the 1wedjiJJ" a Statement o(.'./Jedul fo.'dumtir111al
Need,·. and ((apf,-opriate, makes a Statement and armngcs. /JJollilon·
aJUI rel'iett ·s pmrision (Code of Practice. 191>4. p.J)
Once a Stage Four assessment is initiated. all parties will he asked to sllhmit
written evidence related to the needs of the pupil. The educational psychologist
drafts the Appendix F of that document whieh audn:sses a wide range ol' betors
which may afl~ct the chikl's functioning. Such factors include I he child's cognitive
hmctioning.; communication skills: pen.:cptual skills: adaptiw. personal and social
skills: the child's approachc~ and attitudt.:s to learning.: his or her educational
attainments: and the child's sclf~ima~c. intcn:sts and behaviour (extraclr.:d li·omthc
<iuiddines li11· the completion oi"J>sychological Advice l(ll·thc Statutory Assessment
Pro. cdun: ). This psychologic<!! ad\'icc is gathered through obscrYation. <lsscssmcnt.
intcra<:tion. and cxwnination of work samples. I 1 is envisaged that a Stag~.: 4 statutory
:~sscssmcnl would only be 1•1r pupils with particularly long-term severe and complex
necds. fill· whom a multi-disciplinary assessment is required (Esscx County Council.
I 9'J4 ).
Stage Fivc rebll.:s to the issue and maintcna111..:c of'tht: "Statement of Special
hlucational Needs." J:sscntially. a Statement is a listing of all of the child' ~· special
l'lhl~<ttionalnceds and a description of the provision that is required in order to meet
these needs along with other non-t:dw.:ationalnceds. Reviews arc held p.:riodically
with the parents. school and other ag.encks depending on the unique n1x:ds of the
pupil. Further. each Statement :nust be formally revic\\'ed with parents . schools.
other ~tg.encic~ and educational psychologists participating in the process during an
:\nruwllk,·icw mcding. The purpose of the Annual Review is to integrate: n variety
of J1CI'Sfll't.:li\'l'S Oil the pupil's progress. to •:JlSUJ'C that h<.! Or she is achieving the
' I I
d~sired outl.:nmes. and. i r nec~ss:.1ry. tn amend th~ statement tn rL'Ilect ne\\ h
identified lltxds and pn)\'ision ( Co •. k of Practice. Jl)l).L p.l Oh) .
PIH)CF:Dlli~ES AND TIME LINES IN STATl iTORY WOIU~
The 1993 Edw;ation Act and the ~;ubsequent Code ol' Pradit:L' (I <)l)-t l prn,·ide
a listing or proc~.:dun:s and time scales for the ass~.:ssment proecss. Parents :HL'
informed and arc given 29 days to provide their opinion regarding the necessity (lr
proceeding with an asst!ssmcnt. Next. infimnation is collected li·om all Sllurces whu
arc able to provide ad\'icc regarding the pupil's n~cds. ;\d\'iee is collected !'rom
parents. medical personnel. speech-language therapists. social SL'r\'ices. education
(school) and the Educational Psychology Service. J\th·ice must he submitted to the
Formal Evaluation and Assessment Service within six Wl.!t:ks of obtaining the
requ~sl.
A Statcrm:nt of Special Education Needs or a parallel statement. a "Note in
lieu" is then written within two weeks by another cuucational psychologist un th~
team. "Suggested bllries" for the statement list the pupils needs and desni h~ th~
required provision based upon the information gathered !i·0111 the advict: of all
sources. These entries become the Statement or Special Educational Needs. 1\ "Note
in Lieu" is drafted when the educational psychologist writing the Sugg~.:sted I ~ ntrit:s
consiJ~.:rs that the chi I d's needs can he met from the school's usu;ll arrangemcms for
supporting children with special educatiD::ull needs and that the SlateJno.:nl i:; not
rcquin:d (cxtrw.:ll:d from Not~.:s Df Ciuidance for Pr·:paring Suggestd Entries and
Proposed Statements in accon.lance to the l·:ducation Act I 993)
'I he proposed Statemcnt or the "Note in Lieu" (depending upon tl~c child's
special cducatinnal needs) along with the advice from each source is ~cnt to the
pan:nts. TIH.:y me given 15 days to consider the educational placement of their child.
The linal St:llemcnt is then dralh:d . The process of ass~~ssmcnt is dearly de lined as
six months. Thus. the educational psychologist in Essex \\'orks within ~.tricttimc
fr<llllCS.
EIHiCATIONAL I'S\'CIIOLOGISTS RESPONSIBilfTfE~; IN WEST ESSEX
lh: responsibilities or the educational psychologist rcllect the r·~ofcssionnl
needs dil'latcd hy th<.: Fs.rex ,'-,'/ages l!fAs.n•ssmenl. The J()Jlcwing list dcpi•.:ls priority
scrrices li1r children that an: proric.h:d by tht: educational psycbologist:
• sl~ttutory asscssm~:nt work- preparing psychological advice (J\ppcnclix F):
1'1 contributing to Annual Re\'icws ol' children with Statements:
• contrihutinns to Transition Plans which draw together information
\\'ithin and beyond the school in 1.)rdcr to plan coh~n~ntly for the young
p~rson's transition to adult I iii: (Cilde of Practice. p. 117):
111 multi-agl'ncy case work:
• advisinc; on the 111.:cds of pupils whn arc pl)St !()years:
• ad\'ising on tht.: needs of pn.:sclwol childr~~n:
• :~ tage 3 work: consultation. di reel assessment and inten·L·nt i•.m:
• :~upporting and monitoring the Essex Learning Support Policy ami 1111:
Essex Stages of Assessment:
• Preparing Suggested Entries ( Kerf(Jot. I 995 ).
Educational psychologists in Wl:st 1-:ssex an: supportcd hy administratin.·
assistance and sup,.:rvisiotl. Each educarional psychologist is assignc:d <I derical
support stuiTperson wh~1 has many rcspnnsibililies. For example. <tnt:r c;tch school
visit th·: cducaliunal psychologist is responsible for documenting tlw visit in terms
ofa summary of the discussion and the m:tions agrel:tlupnn. School Visit Sumn1;u-y
:·;hccts mu~;t be typed. ~:opicd and fbnvan .. kd to the n:spe<.:tivc school within 21 days.
The clerical supp011. sta!Tcnsurc that this work is done. Bnth thc ckrical support st~df
and the Assistant 1\dmiuistrativc Ofliccr of the FJ\ES help ensure that ihl: statutory
proccs~. is following correct procedures and I ime frames.
The Essex EPS provides opportunities for the educational psychologists to
become involved in \arious projects and multidisciplinary teams. Sevcral members
of 1 he West I ·.ssc..:x tt:am work in other capacities as Specialist F.ducational
Psychologists. h11· example. Ann Ricketts is the Specialist EP in the area of
inclusion and Paul ( 'urmn. another team memhcr. is a Specialist EP in the area or
prolCssiunal devdopment as \\ell as being a tutor " ·ith the UniYersity of Fast London
hlucation;il Psychology training course. These specialist posts were (!.:signed to
optimize the skills and knowledge or team members and at the same time Jii\Wicfc
prnll.:ssionall·ontrihutions to lcllow educational psyeho'ugists in the area ofscr\'ice
dl'livery. as m:ll as in broader de\'dopments and projects associated with th~: LEA
( Kcrfl H ll. I<)<))). t·:ducational psychologists also contribute to multidisciplinary child
and J~unily supplll't te~1111s within I:sscx. One member of the West Essex team. Paula
( 'roshic. \\urks as a mcmiK·r of the Child and Famil} Consultation Ser\'ice in
addition In duties related to her "patch" within I [arlo\\'.
SKILLS OF EIHICATIONAL PSYCIIOLO<aSTS IN ESSEX
hlucational psychologists in Essex are required to ha\'c a lirst degree in
Psydwlugy and teaching qualilications with a minimum of two years teaching
L':\IK'riL'IH:L'. ,\ !\-laster's degree \vhich includes prolessionaltraining as an educational
psydwlugist is also required for FPs \Vorking with the Essex Local Educational
:\uthority li'-crl'oot. 1994: I.owenstdn. 1984 ).
Th~ educational psychologists employcd hy thl' l·'s~ :x LiH:al hllll':tti,,n
Authority haY~ many skills in areas that are essi . .'ntial li.1r gnod pr:tctict.:. TilL·~ ;m·
knowlcdgcabk in chikl and adolescent deYdopment. l'hcy at\.' skilkd in assl'SSIIIL'I\l.
proh I cm-soh·i ng. intcrn~nt ion and consu I tal ion. lnsl'l'\' ice trai ni 11):!. rcSL'<Irl'll.
counselling. monitoring and evaluating are also important skills required I(H' th~
\'arious aspects of th·~ work of an educational psychologist itt h.;sl.'x. l·:ngland
( Kcrfoct. 1994 ).
SUMMARY
The profession or educational psychology in Great Hritain is closdy linked
hl governmental h.:gislation. Further. educational psychologists' n:spnnsihilitics
within the British educational context relate closely to ensuring that children \\'ith
special educational needs have these educational n~:eds md within lmth all
appropriate and l~1cilitativc em·ironment. Th..: l:'ssex ,\'!ages uf'.- ls.H•ssll/elll providl's
guidance to parents. schools and educational psychologists as to the established
process in me..:t:ing children's special educational 11\.!clls.
Chapter 2 Goals And Objectives
This chaph:r includes a discussion ol'the dirtkultics in dcn:luping goals and
ohjt:ctiv..:s li11· the internship experience in 'Nest Essex. England. The evolution of
the linal goals and ohj~..:ctin:s adopted for the int~..:rnship cxpcricm:c is ddincat<.:d .
The linal sections in the chapter outlines these goals and objectives.
UIFFI< 'l lLTIES IN DEFINING GOALS AND OB.JECTIVES
In March. 1995. a tentative drah or internship goals and objcct in:s was
developed. This dran was dcwlopcd to pro\'ide the West Essex Educational
Psyrhnlogy Team with the opportunity to determine irthey would he able to pro\'idc
a karning experience that was t.:onsistcnt with the gnals and objcrti\\:s outlined by
the pf'(lsrecti\'c inh:rn. Al'tcr linkage \vith the l:ssex pl!rsonncl. the draft \\as refined
and expanded in an internship propo~al submitted and approved by the Memorial
l lnivcrsity J'aculty supervisor bd"ore departure to Great Britain.
The goals and objecti\·cs \\en: dinirult to develop without a prior working
kno\\kd~e ofth.: education system in Great Britain. Thus. the goals and objectives
rdkcted h·y arL·as highlighted during the intern's earlier prarticum experience Li t the
Roman ( 'atiHllic Schnol Board in St. John's. i\s Sll(.'h. the goals and objectives were
closely tkd to consultation and standardized assessment. a comretency essential lc>r
good pra<.:tice within th~ context nr the \ lastl'I'S or hhu.:ati\lllal Ps~ chnl\ll!Y
pmgrammc ~1t ivh:mnrial l lniwrsity nr Nc\\ li.,undland. 1-'mthcr. the ~~'als \\l'I'L'
g~ncral. somc\\'hat abstract. and related to hrlHtd cat~:gorics ur intl'l'h:ntiotl. Not
knowing the cxt~:nt to which thcs~..· duties Wl:I'C consisll'nt with the rob and
n.:sponsibilitics of educational psychologists in Britain. it \\ :Is dii'Jicult to dl..'lcrminc
spcci lie activities within the British wntcx t that \\ o1ild pro\'idt• furl her ski II
development. Succinctly. it was dii'Jicult to dcscrih~: prccisdy the acti\'ities that
would h~: essential to include without a knowll:dge of psychnlogical inkrwntion
\\'ithin the cJucational system in Great Britain.
EVOLl lTION OF INTERNSHIP (;OALS ANI> OB.JECTIVES
Through discussions with the on-site supervisors in West 1-.sst:x. it became
apparent that the Jraf't or goals and ohj~:dives c..k~velopcd prior to leaving
Newfoundland was too general and lacked the spccilici ty necessary to dcvelop a plan
or action for the internship plac~:mcnt. Through observation or 1-:sscx l:dw.:atiom\1
psychologists in their roles. and Jiscussions \Vith on-si tc supervisors n:ganling thci r
responsibilities within the educational context. revised goals and objectives !111· the
internship placement became more clear. Thus. specific activities that would provide
an overview or psychological intervention and service delivery in the l·:ssex school
o.,yst~nl. \\en: decided upon through consultation. The o~jc(.;tircs were tklinct.l in
teru1s ol' l)l:ha\·ioral tasks and acti\'ities that \\otdd proYidc the intern with the
proll:ssional skills necessary to !'unction as an t:UU(.;ational psychologist \Vithin th~
Local hlucation Authority in West hscx. England.
INTEI~NSIII P (;OAI.S
The ovt:rall goal of the i ntnnship expcricm.:c was to provide an opportunity
to continue to build both proli:ssional skills and knowledge in the lidd or sdwol
psychology. Mcntoring and \mrking as a s<.:hool psychologist in West Essex would
pro,·idt: Wl opportunity to experience the full range ot' activities and rcsponsi bil itics
assm:iated \\ ith the rok of the school psydmlogist within an c:-..pansivc British
educational setting. Further. it would afford an opportunity to work indcpendenth·.
with responsibility ror case management. with guidance from British educational
psydwlo~ists .
Further. it was anticipated that the opportunity to \Vork in the school system
in West l·:ssL·x. l:ngland. wlluld pro\'idc an opportunity to compare the delivery of
psydwcdut:at innal scn·iccs by cducttional psychologist teams in Newfoundland ant!
the t lnited Kingdom. spccilit:ally West l:sscx. Variations in service delivery \Vould
pnwidl' the int1:1·n with a more comprchcnsi\'c view of approm:hcs to providing
as~istanc~ to schools. t~ach~rs. students. f~uniliL·s and other pmfl:ssi,)nal-.;.
The mnr~ sp~eitic internship goals r~lated l\l huildit1!;! runltn pn•f"L'SSillll;tl
ski Us and knt)\\ kdgt: dosdy tied to the gcnl.'ral duma ins nr (.'( lllSllltat ion. ;tSSL'SSI1lL'Ill
and intern~ntion. Skills in thcs~ areas \\·ere to he ~..·nh~mced thmu!;!hlhL· L'.\lll'riL·rttial
process or casework.
INTERNSIII P OB.JECTIVES
The objectives l'ormulall:d to achicn: th..: established g.o;ds relating. to
professional skill dcvclopment \\'ere ddineatetl into two groups : (I) independent
ohjecti\'es \\'hich could be completed without the supen·isinn or an edur;llioll;il
psyd10logist and ( 2) placement ohjecti ves that requi r~d the input and guidanrc or t hL·
educational psychologist. The placement ohjccti\'es n:quin.:d both a partici]xttur) and
imkpcnd~nt asp~d. The placement objective activitit:s wt.:rc umh.:rtakcn upu11 thL·
completion or an action plan \\'ith supervision from either or th~..: 1\\(l Wt.:st 1-:SSl.':\
educational psychologist sup~.:rvisors assigned to the inll.'rtlship.
lmll!pe mil! II I 0/~iectil•e.\·
I . To cvaluatc heha vi our management programmes 1 n an ill bnt schoo I.
primary· s~..:hool. secondary school and a spccial pro\'ision.
To t:\'aluate the interTentions l(x a student in each or the It)! lowing special
prorisions: speech and language unit. emotional and hdmvioral unit.
moderate leamillg disability unit. and an autistic unit.
.l 'In wmpktc a research component for an internship report( Assessment
Practices of l·:ducutional Psychologists in St. .John's. Newl(nmdland and
West 1-:sscx. England).
4. To dc\'L'Iop skills in interpreting the Fsscx Stages of Assessment Lmd
tiJc ('ode of' J>r:H.:ti\.:c.
5. l'o tkvdop compeh.:ncics 111 usmg the Brit.:sh Abilitks Scales (BAS)
and the \Vcchsh:r Ohjcclin: Reading Dimension (WORD)
(l. To kam about Brief Therapy (Solution-FocuseJ) and its implications 111
ps~·dwducational practice.
7. To mncasc prori.:ssinnal development growth through liaison \Vith the
llniwrsity or Fast l.nndon.
' l
Placement Ohjeclit•e.\·
l. To condud prnhlern clarification inlcn·il.'\\S resulting in a dl'sniplin·
statement or conccrns. '' ritlen in perl'ornwm:c h:nns. '' ilh I he
J'ollo,,·ing indi,·iduals:
(a) A pan.:nt
(h) 1\ class teacher/Special hlw:ational Needs Comdinator
2. To ncgotiatl' the tksign. implcm~:ntation and cvaluatiun nf an IFP f11r
the following students:
(a) An inl~111t pupil (age 5-S)
(b)/\juniorpupil (agc9-ll)
3. To n~:gotiate th~: design. implementation and evaluation o f hc!lavium
management programmes l'or the li.lllowing students:
(a) A primary student (ag~: 5-11)
(h) A secondary student (age 12-16)
-1-. To consider issues arising from an educational psychologist's invol vcmc11t
with children or ethnic minorities.
5. To co ntribute to the pn.:paration of "Psychological Advice" (Stag.c 4 and
Stage 5 Assessments).
(). ·r o develop skills in infimnal assessment (writing and reading sumplcs)
through :
(a) clas'iroom observation
(h) curriculum-based assessment
(c) interviews \Vith pan.:nts. teach~:rs. stud..:nts
7. lo ohserw and participah: in the preschool assessment process.
StJMMAIH'
The goals and ohjectivcs outlined in this chapter cYol\'cd from initial
observation and participation in the Educational Psychology Scrdcc delivery in Wcst
l·:ssc.:x. The objc.:divc.:s were.: dc.:rivcd with the.: intention of' obtaining practical
cxperiencL' and knowledge relating to the established goals f'or the internship.
Rl'lah.:d adiYitics allowed the opportunity to learn about the English education
system. and roles ami responsibilities of' educational psychologists within this
system. h1rthcr. it allowed rnr the d~:velnpmcnt o!'prefessional skills relating to the
delivery or cf'l'l:divc and efficient psychological intervention for pupil's within the
context of this cdta.:ational system.
Chapter 3 Reflections of Internship Experience
This chapter is a discussion of the intern's progn:ss in skill tkn:lopmcnt ;md
pro!i:ssional knowledge through the acti,·ities relakd to fun~:tioning. as ancdul.·atiunal
psychologist in Wi.!st Essex. England. The lirst scctinn of' the chaph:r prm·idl·s :m
m·ervicw nfthe scope of' activities and the phases of experiential \\mk carried out
during the inh:rnship placement. Supervision ol' the intern is also discussed in
n.:lation to the dcn:lopment or hoth prolcssional knowkdgc and skills. The last
sections or the chapter provide an overview or some or the intcmship learning
ex pcricnces which arc deemed essential to good practice wi thi 11 the proli:s-;ion o I'
educational psychology.
PI·IASES OF INTERNSHIP ACTIVITIES
The internship expcric.!ncc had three phases. hu.:h phase provided an
opportunity tn learn about the Eng! ish educational system. more spel:i lically. the
educational psychologist's duties and responsibilities within the context or this
system. The ohserrationa/ phase provided the intern with the oppmtunity to
accompany and observe educational psychologists in various aspects of their work .
The second phase was the partic:ipalol) ' /'lwse . During sessions with schouls and
families. various facets of work were assigned to the intern under tht: di rect
supervision of the internship supervisor. During the final. imlepemle111 JJ/wse. a
caseload was lkkgated to the intern and psychological work \\as carrii.!d out
imh:rcndcntl y.
0/1SE/l VA 1'/0NAL I'/ lASE
During our initial meeting with lkbbie Orton. Dr. Nesbit and both Memorial
llniversity interns were pnl\'itkd \vith a schcdull's of visits lix the lirst two weeks or
the illternship placement. These schedules had been drafted by several educational
psychologists on the West J:sscx team with tht: expectation that the schedule would
provide an opportunity to ohser\'c educational psychologists working with a variety
or children at dirlen:nt ag..: levels and in dirfcr~:nt school settings. J\t that time. Ms.
< )rton also pro\'ided a wpy or the ('ode of Practice( J9f)..J. l. tht..: legislation that guides
prokssionals working with pupils having special educational needs. J\s well. Ms.
( >rton outlined the organizational structure or educational psychology in Essex. This
meeting was an c:xt:dlent introduction and ov~:rview of the Edw.:ational Psychology
Scn·iec in \V..:st h;scx.
During the first two m:cks. the intern accompanied educational psychologists
on sch{lol \'isits. ivluch was learned about the education system in England and the
n1k lhat educational psychologists haYe within the context of that system. This
phase was u valuable introduction to many proll:ssional cnmp~t~JH.:iL'S L'Ss~ntial to
efll!ctivc psychological inten·cntion within any educational syst..:m. ThL· initialt\\o
weeks allmn:d th~ intern to obtain a sense or the cnntc~lol' thL· Fss~:-; edm:;tlillllal
system, the duties and responsibilities or educational psydlologists \\'ithin that
system. and the prolcssional competencies required to crtl:ctin~ly dl.'!i\·cr S~o'l'\' il'cs tn
schools and l~unilics.
The context of educational psyd10logical \\'ork rdated dnsely In crticicnl
scheduling and planning sessions with schools. F!Tedi\·c tinll' managcm~o·nt was
essential. llpon arrival at a school. an agenda for the session was rcvicm~d so that
both the head teacher and th...: educational psychologist were clear on \\'hat would he
undertaken during the session. These sessions were approx i mall: I y 3 hours i 11
duration and scheduled well in advance. The educational psychologist md with the
school concerning issues involving stud!.!nts at Stage lor students who had recL·ived
Stage 5 Statutory Assessments. On some visits. the educational psydwlogisl would
assess a pupil with the goal of writing an Appendix F (Stag!.! 4 ). The !.!dw..:ational
psychologist woL;Id then document the contents of the meeting and the ad ions agreed
upon on a S~.:hool Summary Visit Form. Th!.! needs of the school would he di sc ussed
und the educational psychologist would provide guidance on issues such as
behavioral diflicullics. individual education plans. and acaJemi~.; difficulties.
,, '
The first session that I utt~.:nded with Ann Rickett:~ im·ol\'cd meetings with the
ht.:ad tcacht.:r. the SEN-CO. am! the class teacher. ;\n observational session ofthc
child in thc classroom and a meeting with the pupil's parents to discuss statutory
assessment were also incluued. Ann \Vas very thorough and professional. dearly
delining the purpPsc and direction orthe session. The school pcrsonncl workcd with
her as a team to ensure that the school visit was both Lime and resource cnicicnt.
This and other sessinns demnnstratcd ct'lccti\'c time and rcsoun:c management
approach~:s to cducat ional psychological scr\'icc <.kl i very.
The intern observed students both at the secondary and the primary level
within the conh:xt of their classroom. Educational p~ycholog.ists \\t~rL: obscrn:d
during class intcrm:tions. using materials tl·01n the classmnm cn\'i ronmcnt to build
rapplll'l \\'ith pupils in order to obtain asscssm::nt int;mnation rt:garding srccch-
languag~: skills. L"ognitivc skills. approach to learning. and social interaction skills.
hlucational psychologists \\<crc also obscr\'ed providir'g kcdback to SEN-COs at
\·arious schools and assisting in problem-solving stfatcgy dc\'t:lopmcnt intcndcd to
bcnclitlhc child within the classroom.
Assessment in West Essex fm:uscs on information gatiH:red within the context
nr the dass. <. 'hildn:n an: nhscn·ed inll.:racting with peers ami adults within the class.
using w.:adcmic materials f<.nmd within the classroom setting. Approaches to
learning. heha\'iour. social ski1,ls. listening skills. lixussing_ skills as \\ell as a \\L'alth
of other information \H:n: Ul..!termincd by ohsen·ing and inh.:ra~ting \\ith ~hildren in
their classroom environment.
During the first two weeks J attemh.:d sen.:ralmeetings rdating to thL· ,·arious
roks and responsibilities or educational psyd10logists in West l·:ssL':\ . The iuh:m
attended a psychological team meeting at the West l:sscx office. At that tillll'
preschool issues were discussed. As well. during the ohser\'ational phas~..:. I sat in un
an Initiation Panel which is a body wmpriscd of educational psyeholo!_.!ists and slaff
fi·otn the FAI:S that determines if a statutory assessment is ,,·arranh:d . t\! lhL'
meeting. cdut:ational psychologists' drafts of psychological :td\'il'e \\ere c.\alllincd
to <.h.:tcrmine if the purils' nclxls were long-term a11d complex ~md il' till' inl(>nmlion
presented \\'as sufliciL:nl to proceed with a stttulory assL·ssment.
The educational psychologists also l~H.:ilitatc SEN-('() support groups. These
,groups arc orgo1nizcd to deal with issues arising from the C'mk of Practice. Paula
Croshic and Ann Ricketts. intern supervisors, allmvcd both Memorial llnivcrsity
interns to sit in on a support group mL:cting. It was very informative. Wt: met
individuals from the schools that we would be working with concerning ( 'ode uf
Pr(/(:fi<:e issues.
PAR 1'/C/I'A TORY PI/A.\' I~·
By tht.: third Wl!l.!k. Sl!Vl!rul or the duLil!S or an ~.:ducational. psychologist were
assi;~ncd. Both supervisors continul!u to pnl\·iuc opportunities to ohscr\'e , ·arious
asp~:c 1 s or thci r cd ucat ional psychologist work. llowcvcr. in preparation. he fore
allcndi11g sl.!ssions at various s<.:hools. the intern \UIS briefed and provided \\'ith the
opportunity to complete a component or the assessment (e.g .. observation of a
pn:schoolcr}. Further. the intern participated in a class inclusion programme called
"('in: lc of' 1-'r·icnds." This programme promotes empathy and attempts to build a
support nel\\'lll'k around l.!Xcluded pupils.
Also as part ofthL' Participatory (prc-imkpcndcntl Phase. a draft of Suggested
l·:nrries \\as completed l(lr a specific pupil. This drall (previously described) is a
tentnti\'L' Statement of Special h.lucational Needs for a pupil. taking into m:count
advicL' frn111 pan:nts. school. social services. medical personnel and other health
prul':ssionals such as SJX'cch th~:rapy. physiotherapy and psychology. The document
list~ thl' pupils sp~dal L'ducational neeus and pro\'isional needs. An ohscrvation and
individual ass~ssment s~.:ssion \\en: also undertaken hy the intern for the purpose of
\\Titingan Appemli:x F. These independent pieces ofwork assigned by 1\nn Ricketts.
one or th~· l\n1 internship super\'isors. were intemkd to prepan: the intern for th~:
indepemknt phasl' or the internship experience.
!NDEPENJ)ENT P/IASE
During_ the !ina] six weeks ol" the internship placem~nt. L·duL·atilmal
psychology acti\'itics were undertaken indcpemkntly. Visits wen: made to sc\'cral
special pro\'isions within West Esst.:x and a casdnad was assign~d to the inll·rn.
(i) Professional Dcvclupmcnt
Both interns attt.:ndcd the National Conference or hlucational l'sychnlo):!iSI
Trainc~s in Cambridge. Sessions l(x:ussing Oil liuni!y issues. the ( 'irl'll" or J.'r·iL'Ilds
programme. and systems theory were ind udL"d. ThesL" sessions \\'L'I'L' c.\ I rL·ml'i y
helpful in furthering prolessional (h:velopmenl. Jn additinn. the opportunity to liaisl'
with other trainers Ji·om l·.ngland. Ireland. Wales and Scotland was a valuahk
learning experience.
(ii) Visits to Special Provisions
Visits were made to se\·cral units or special sdh,.Jis l()r pupils\\ ith special
educational needs within llarlow.
lye (in:cn School - a special schonl for child ren \\ith sc\'erc lcarnin).!
di rti<.:ultics :
Mead School- a special school f(x pupils with llHH.krate learning dil'licultics
llarlowhury Schooi-Spl!ech and Language Unit
Pupil Rdl:rrall Jnit- a unit for pupils whose behavioral and emotional needs
an: beyond the scope or the mainstream academic setting
Mcncap Nursery for preschoolers \Vith moderate and severe learning
diniculties
Visits to these provisions afl'clrdcd knowledge about the lacilitics and
resuun.:cs available to mect the educational. cognitive and socialne<:ds of the pupils
involved in the casdoaJ. lnl(mnation concerning special educational equipment.
tc<ll.:hcr-student ratio. programming. and support staff a\'ailability were important
t~u.:lors in determining pupil pl<lccmcnt. It was essential to be knowledgeable in the
area or prm·ision and sen· ices in order to work cl'll:ctiYely with schools and pmcnts
in < ircat Britain.
(iii) Cascload
British educatinnal psychology trainct.::- on their linal placement take on a
casdoad nr approximately ten cases. Through discussion and consideration or the
internship goab ~md ot~jcctivcs previously described. the supervisors provided a list
or possibk· cases. ( 'as!:s \\!:rc chosen by the intern to provide cxp~.:ricncc in working
,,·ith pupils nf various ages having a wide range of nclxls. The cascload rcllcctcd u
'' '
sam piing of the range of spccialnecd pupi Is that rcccin~ psychniPgical intcr\\.'nt it 111
'vithin the West Essex Local Education Authority. The cascload \\nrk pro,·idL·d an
opportunity for the intern to be responsibh: for the scheduling. timc lines. n:ptH't
writing and assessment. Skills in consultation and intt:r\'cntion \\crc also developed
through the experiential process or working with teachers. head h:achL'I"S. SI·:N-( '( >s
(Special Education Needs Co-ordinators). parents. students <md other agcncic.-.. .
The cascload consisted of:
• a prcschoolcr with possible spccial cducationalnccds:
• a primary pupil with learning di rtirultics:
• a primary pupil wit.h cmotional and behaviour dirtirulties:
• a secondary pupil with learning dinicuhil's:
• a secondary pupil with emotional and behavioral
d i fli cult i cs:
• a pupil with moderate learning dirticultics:
• a pupil with spec ~· h and language dirticultics:
• a pupil with a physical impairment.
{i\') Activities
Cascwork involved many a<.:tivitics that arc l"undamcntal 111 deli very of
educational psychology scrvict.:s. Th~.: expectation was that. the intern would be
responsibh.: liH· the initial contact. scheduling ami arranging visits with schools and
par~.:nts. Scheduling included developing an agenda and negotiating a plan of action
with the school starr and parents. During school \ 'isits. meetings were held with
SI·:N-COs a11d on several occasions with parents. Mel!tings with dass teachers wen:
also an important component ofc.:ase\'Vork.
Assessment of pupils' needs included classroom observation and interaction
with thl· pupil both within and outside the classroom environment. Informal and
curriculum-based ass~.:ssment skills were developed during these periods. 1·10\n:ver.
some standardi;cd assessment measures \\ere used. Two WISC-3 (Wechsler
lnll.:lligencc Scak li.1r Children-Third l:dition) and a WORD (Wechsler Objectin~
Reading Dimcnsinn) as well as some ofthc suhtests of the BAS (British 1\bilitil..!s
Scale~:) \\ere administcn.:d.
Feedback w parents and school staff concerning assessment was also the
responsibility of the intern. This approach provided an excellent opportunity to
~.·xp~ricncc furtlll·r li.tccts of the educational psychologist's role. Skills in the area of
inli.ll'lnation gathering. informal and standardized assessment. consultation.
administratitHl am[ fn)Jtm-up \\CJ'C gkaned from tht.: independent phase of' the
intemship.
Reading ami rese;m.:h in areas such as \\riling dirticulties. rL·adin~ diflicuhiL'S.
ccn:bral palsy. conduct disorder. Aspcrg.ers syndrome. and spce~.:h and lan~uag.c
dinicultics as they rdah.:J to indi,·idua[ cases. were essential in the den:h,plllL'Il! ,,r
c11cctin.: cas~.:work and in the de\'elopment of ~.:fiC:ctive ad ion plans tol'll.Sllrc !hal
propt:r pro\'ision.s wen: established.
SUPEI{VJSION
Psydwlogica[ work within the educational system \\as ~.:arricd out h~ the
interns with the following. model of supervision. The intern ohsern:d the educational
psycholngist in Yarious aspects of their work. Classroom ohsen·ations. llll'L'ting~
with Special hlucation Needs Co-ordinators. m~.:etings \\ itll class 1\.:aders. lllL'dings
with parents. attending Stage 3 reviews meetings. i\nnual Review 1111.:1.:tings and
ll:am meetings were a major compont:nt ol" the initial use ol' internship time. This
prm·ided an excellent oven·icw of the educational system. the roles of the
educational psychologist. and the prokssltlnal compdencies es~enti<tl tn cl'h:cti,·e
psychological intcrn.:ntion within schools.
Dming the linal six weeks of the internship placement. supen·isiun mcl:lings
wen: held l<H one hour each week to discuss cases and other prol\:s~ional issue~ .
These supen·ision sessions wen.: directed by the intern's needs in term or proll:ssion;d
grm\th and dc\'elopmcnt. Issues included administration issues and instruction on
administration and scoring the British Abiliti~s Scales (BAS). The supcr\'ision
mcctinJ!S \\ere ~:haired hy the intern with nne supervisor from the West l:sscx team
present to d i stuss pmgress on cases. The supcn·isinn meetings allnm.:d an
tlpplll'tunity tt' plan the upcoming m!ek in terms or visits and other administrative
dut iL'S.
Supervision pnl\'ided h~ the Wt.!st Essex EPS was t.!Xtremdy henelicial as it
allowed an opportunity to t'urtht.!r enhancl.! professional development under the
guidam:e ol· an c:oipcricJH.:ed cdut.:ational psychologist. Skills in cvaluating processes
and planning casc\\tlrk \\·erl.! de\'dopcJ under tlw supcn·ision ol'both Paula Crosbie
and t\nn Rid..elts. ()uestions such as: What do I kn~n\· about this chi ld's needs?. What
do I need to know ahnut this child's llel·ds'!. I hm· dol ohtain this inl(mnation within
the context uf the school?. and. I low do I e\·aluate the in/ormation gathered in
rl'i:Hion to thl· inl(trmation gathered from other sources'.' were dealt with in the
wntL':\1 of thL' supe1Yisory meetings. Prokssional super\'ision relating to the action
plan ;1spcl..'ls of t.:dUClliional psychology \\'Cl'e \'UJuablc in ter111S of c.kvcJoping
L'nlllpL'IL'JH:iL's in dynamic assessment. consultation with parents and schollls. and
mnst inlpPrtant. in linding the best way to meet the pupil's educational needs.
EVALUATION OF THE INTERNSHIP EXPERIENCE
The c~pcrience or \\orki ng \\ ith the \\' I.:Sl hscx hlul:at iunal Psydh l\O!!Y team
provitbl the opportunity to dewlop a \\'idc range ot· prorcssional ski lls. l'lh:
internship pl<.wcmcnt also mo\·cd philosophical and theon:tical knm\'kdgl' into tlw
realm or prm:tical knowledge. This cxpcrit.:nl:c allowed fnr the dcn~loplllcnt (lt' an
awareness or the professional skills that arc cs3cntial to ~.!.ood pract ice '' ithin the
context of pro\'iding psychological ser\'ic'~ ;:1 an educational sysh .. ·m. !'his
expcrience greatly contribull:d to thc intcrn's prokssional dc,·t.:lopnH:nL
The knowledge gained during this internship placement is cxpansi\'e. lhL'
l(llltl\dng sections comprise an own·it:\\' or the knowlt:dge g~1incd and areas or
professional development enhanced during plm:cment in WL·st hsl..'x. l·:nglaml.
Critic~al Thinking
Overall. the most signilicant skilllcarnt..:d during this inkrnship plac..:nH.:nt
was critical thinking. It provtdcd th1: opportunity to tkvdop as a "rdkctivc
practitioner." Questioning What'! Why'? I low'? WlH.:n.: '! When'! lilslers ;m approach
to all cuucational psychology \\'ork in a probh:m-sulving. Clli\Strw.:tivc and proactive
manner. This approach encourages Cll111pctcncy ami conlidcncc in one's ability as an
educational psychologist..
Assessment Techniques
lnl(mnal assc.:ssment skills were ohscrvcd and developed during the internship
plact:m~nt with the West Essex Educational Psychology Servic~ . An appreciation
lt11·thc.: massive :nmnmt of relevant inli.mnation that can be obtained by observing a
pupil within tlu: context of the classroom. interacting with peers and the teacher has
been an irnrortant learning experience. Looking at the child's approach to learning.
to approm:hing a task. to listening to instructions. und the examination of work
samples. n.:aJing samples and other conte:'\tual inl<.xmation provides important
knowledge about the pupil's strengths and needs in relation to learning.
!\ range of' assessment materials and techniques were explored .1nd used
during the int1.·rnship p!acemcnt. StanJardizcd assessnwnt procedures (WISC~3.
WORD. BAS) \Vcrc utilized in both a norm-rclerenccd and a dynamic manner.
( 'urriculum-based assessment involving reading and spelling assessment. as well as
memory and general knnwh:dgc retention. \verc also employed during the internship
pl:u:cmcnt. Checklists. ohscrvation. discussion and consultation also proved to be
important inli.mnation gathering and inli.mnal assessment techniques.
rvtw:h was learned concerning assessment. A professional approach to
cnllcctillg information com:crning pupils within the context in which they learn is
essential in the dcn:lopmcnt of an accurat~: picture of the child's strengths and needs.
' I l l
Further. the skill of developing hypotheses. collecting information and test in~ thL'SL'
hypotheses through assessment and discussion i;; essl..!ntial in the lkn~lopmL'Ill or
effective interventions. Because interventions must b~: \\'dl planned and I'L'k,·:llll. it
is important that feedback to parents. pupi Is and school stall be done in a sL·nsitiYe
manner. with the information providt.:d being relt.:vant and practical.
Time Mamtgcmcnt
lkcausc the Educational Psychology Sen'ice and the l·ormal Assessment and
Evaluation Service work within such strict time-lines l(ll· the statutory process. the
intern's time management skills became mon: highly developed during the internship
placement in West Essex. I Jowcvcr. in working with schools. one learns that
"human" dements must be factored into time management (e.g .. pupil's illness,
teacher illness). i\s a consequence. schedules arc often altered. Tht.: inll:m learned
that ti ... xibility and careful preparation arc essential for appropriate and dfl.:cti v~.:
service delivery.
Other management skills acquired related to effective usc of' time during
sessions with schools. In West Essex. the r~ducational psychologist plans sessions
that last approximately three hours. The agenda is set and the purpose ami prm:css
of the visit is agreed upon before the session. Tht.!rci(Jrc, the educational
psychologist is ahlc to efficien11y complete many essential acti,·itit:s such as Annual
Rcvil:WS, assl:'iSllll:llt of specific children. ami consultation with parents. teachers and
school starr ') ime management is critical if this is to he eiTcctiw.
t•rufcssiun.al Skills
i) ( 'onsultution ,r....'kilfs
( 'onsultalion skills come. to some degree. with experience in the role of Wl
educational psychologist. llowe\'cr. during this internship placemenL there \\'L'rc
opportunities to participate and independently consult with school personnel (e.g ..
Special h!ucatiomll Necds Co-ordinators. class teachers. head tcad1L'J'S). parents and
other prokssionals (L'.g .. spL-ech-langu.lgc therapists). Given the high kvcl of
support and Sllj11.:r\'ision ti·om the E PS. much was learned about ciTcctivc con~uhati vc
prm:csses and tedmiqucs to incrcast• the likelihood that a consultation session will
he succcssi"ul.
Skills in rdating to parents concerning thl!ir child's special educational needs
1s a fundamental cnmponent or e!Tccti\·e consultatiLm. The importance of being
din:t:tin·. yet at the same time non~ctmlrontational and supp011ivc. is a skill that was
conscinusly dcn~lopcd and c\'aluatcd during the internship.
'. I
i i ) R c:J )()r/ 1/'r i 1 i ng ,C...'k i /Is
Closely tied to the skills that are essential li.H· efl\:cti\·e ~onsultation an.: thL'
skills required to write psyehologi~:al reports. It is essential tll \\TilL' replll'ts that arL·
dear. spccili<.: and knmYiedge-hascd yet tempen:d '' ith sensiti\·ity WIH:ernin~ the
pupil's special educational needs and the subsequent prorision. 1·: fkd in: rl.'PI'fl
writing is. in many respects. applying ~:onsultation skills in a m·itten l(ll'luat.
iii) A'nmrlet~~e-/Jase
As part ofthe internship. a wide variety of casework \\as sampll.'d. The Citscs
n:latcd to \'arious spc<.:ial cdm:ational needs: cerebral palsy. spccili~.: ll.'arning.
disabilities. emotional and behavioral dirticulties. dcvdopmental th:lay. ami speech
am! language dil'ficultics. The casework provided an opportunity to do resl.'arch and
rend in these areas in preparation l'or related activities. Further. casev.ork n:scan:lt
t:mphasi;.cd th~.: importancl.! of having a good knowledge-has<: !'rom whi<.:h to draw
when working with children who have spct:ial educational needs. Knowledge and
understanding ofspcdal educational needs is essential in developing cr<:dibility with
parents. with the pupil and with other professionals. Suct:inctly. knowledge is
essential for the educational psychologist to be e!Tecti vt:.
i v) ( 'o.H'Imrk fllmming
J\nothl!r "good practicl!" that dl!vcloped during thl! internship placement in
W..:st 1-:sst.::-.; was cffl:ctin: cascwork planning. For e;..;amplc. prior to calling a schnol
~111d sclH:duling a session in rdation to a particular stw .. knt. the pupil 's lile would he
read allll notes taken to pn.:ciscly d~:termim: th~: purpose of the \·isit: that is. \\·hat
infimnation haJ been gatht.:rcd and what inf(mnation needed to he gathered. This
idcntiJication oJ"needs is essential when planning a school visit. J\ tentati\'e schedule
must be drafted with an agemla J{JI· the meeting and related m:ti\'itie.s. Not only does
this approm:IJ proYide an opportllnity to de\'elOp a clear understanding of purpose.
it also l"acilitatcs the de\·elopment of professional conlidencc. Further. it helps
establish pruli:ssional credibility with the school personnel \\"ith whom the
educational psychnlngist \\oJ"ks. Case\\nrk planning constitutes a n:ry el"ll:ctin: use
ol" tilllC and I"L'SOlln.:es.
hlucationa I Psyelllllugy practice in ( ircal Britain is n:ry much a "systems"
approach to SL'J"\'ice deli \·cry. In order to understand a pupi J's educational needs. it
is llmdamenwl to examine and have an awareness of the systems which impact upon
him 'lwr and of whil:h he/she is a part. To illustrate. the family. church and
neighbourhood gwuping an: all legitimate components in a comprdt~nsi' L' s~ stl'lllS
approach. The system ti·om a ll:gislati\'e \'ie\\ indlllks the ( '(lc/l· o/l'ral"fh'l '. tilL'
/:'duel II ion .·kl and the ( 'lu'ldrens .let which ar~ essential suun:es ul' l·dh l\\ kd~L· as
they help to guide the system in working\\ ith children in ( ircat Britain ll·om ;1 k:g;d
point or\·ie\\.
As noted. the "system" is not limited to pmti:ssionalentities. It i11eludcs the
child as a member. It aiTec.:ts th~ pupil's opportunities to learn-- past. prL'Sl'llt and
li.1ture. lsslll:s sueh as the school's understanding and approach to the 1-.'sse.r ,\'tugl'.'
(~/.·ls.H•ssmem. the strengths and needs oi'the Special Educational Necth < 'o-mdinatur
and the class teacher working with the pupil. the politics of the prm·ision. and tilL·
a\'ailahle funding \Yithinthe system all impact upon the pupil's oppmtunit~ to rcecin·
di n~rentiatcd and appropriate educational pro\'ision.
Thus. to work eflici~.:ntly within a s~·st~.:m. an understanding. ol' th~.: dyn:unics
and underlying guiding principles of the syst~.:m is essential. In mdcr Ill \\.lll'k
dTecti\·cly with the child, the school stall. the parents and outside agem:ics. a
syst~ms apprnach seems a n:quisite.
The initial introduction to the systems approach arli ll'tlcd by the i ntcrnsh i p is
\·ieweJ hy the intern as a base-line on which to build. Working <.:ompetcm:c within
a system's approal'i1 would require rurther experience. and as well. l'urtl11..:r academic
and th~.:urdical underpinning. Nevertheless. the experience pnwidcd numerous
insi!lhls.
Evalm1tin~ And J•roccssing Learning
During the internship. a support network was developed to assist 111
proccssmg nc\\' knomcdgc and to litcilitatc an understanding of the English
educational system through discussion of casework acti\·ities. Discussi(111S with both
supervisory educational psychologists and a l'cllow Memorial University intern
placed with the West hsex team. pro\·ided an opportunity to den.:lop creative
problcm·soh·ing tL·chniquL's. critical thinking skills. solution-focus~d skills and skills
in action planning. ;\s a group. during intern supervision meetings. cases were
discussed and action plans were dcn:lopcd. Both Paula Crosbie and Ann Ricketts
J11'"vidcd li:t:dhaek and prt:st:nh:d th~.: opportunity to develop skills in ~.:valuating
systems and individuals within systems. Feedback nn written reports was
constrm:tivc. It pro,·idcd an opportunity to pro~ess the experience and learning that
\\Cill Oil L'<H: h day . This approach proved valuable in terms or prol'cssional
dr\·c ll lpmrnt.
it ·
SliM MARY
The intcrnshir cxpcricm:c in \\'est J:sscx. J:ngl~md pnn·idcd an cx~.:cllcnt
opportunity for pro!cssionnl growth and skill dcn~lopmcnt. Tit~.· a~.·ti,· iti~.·s in,·olwd
in casc\\'ork \Vcrc Yaried and required the tkvclopmcnt of an understanding ,,[' th~.·
English educational system and the prm:ess of prodding I.:!Tc~.· ti,·c cdu~.:atiunal
psychology service delivery to sdhlols.
Skills were developed in the area or cognition in\'olving prohlcm-sulving i11
a solution-!'llcuscd manner. Professional skills in assessment. consultation. n..·port
writing. anJ action plan dcn~lopml.!nt began to emerge ami the importance or such
skills became more e\·ident as casework became the n:sponsihility ol'the intl' l'll. An
H\\i.H'encss or systems work. time management and the importance ol' evaluating and
processing learning were some ol'the many learning experiences glcatH.:d l'rotll th~.·
internship placement in Spring term I 995 in W...:st hsex. 1-:ngland.
Chapter 4 Comparative Analysis of the
Assessment Practices of Educational
Psychologists in St. John's, Newfoundland and
West Essex, England
INTROIHICTiON
Thl: relationship hct\\·ccn school psychology and ass~ssmenl is one that is
built into the historical tradition of tht.: profession (Shinn. Rost:nlidd & Knutson.
1989). ;\primary responsibility of a school psyd:ologist is tu provide asscssm~nt
s~..:n·ices. (Jruduatc training programmes in school psychology continue to prolllote
assessment as an important function of the profess innal devdupmcnt and ski II s
rcquir~d within the tlcld (Gutkin & Conolcy. 1990). Further. lhc w.:tivitics associated
with assessment form th~..: basis of contemporary research in school psychology
(Gutkin & Conolcy. 1990). Thus. assessment practices an; a core clement in
educational psychology training. research and practice.
Interest in assessment procedures used within schools has grown as a result
of the legal requirements for comprehensive ami fair assessment ofstudenls in thL.:
' . ' 1 :nitt:d Stall:S (I hurlma,· & Yssddykc. I9X2 ). Further. it is hccoming more common
lhal p<m:nts art: hcllcr a hie to adn)C<I!L' li>r their children's educational rights to ensure
!h<1t t:duc<Jtionalnccds arc met. Accountahility has increasingly become a concern
lilr cdtH.::ttional psychologists. In line with this. the utility and dTccti\·eness or
standarJi;cd asscssmcnt is hcing questioned by researchers. school p~:rsonnel and
pan.:nls. Shinn ( I!J~t)) r~:ports that o\'L'r the past 20 years. assessment practices ha\'C
cume unJer intense scrutiny and criticism. The purpose and ct'll:cti\·en~:ss ol'
;tssessmcnt pr~lcticcs has emerged as a key issue in the litcratun.:.
;\sa consequence. the assessment roles and responsibilities o:· t:ducational
psyehologisto..; arc hl'ing rcdl'lincd. Throughout Canada and North America. we arc
witnessing. tn.:nds that arc tkparting from the historical notion or the school
psyclwlnt!ist solely as ~~ psydmmctrician ( Sdmol Psychology in Ne\\'I(Jundlund and
l.ahrador. Pt 1l ic~ Document. p.2 ). The prat.:tice uf school psychology as a prolcssildl
has e:-;pandcd and di\'crsilicd ll·nm its historical role of assessing spcdal educational
lll'L'ds t.:ltildn:n llll' the purpose or placement (School Psychology in Newfoundland
and I .ahrador. Policy Dm:umcnt. p.:n Educational psychology assessment practices
cont i nuc tu C\'~li\'C. F n:-n though. educational psychologists art: no longer \'icwcd as
ps~ dwmctriL·ians. ass::..;smcnt practil.:cs remain as a li.mdamcntal component or their
prn li:ssional role.
i\1ost psychologists \·i~\\ the prnk'ssinn as ha\'ing adli~·,·ed Pnl~ a shadP\\ 111'
its pot~ntial. Visions uf what sehoul psycholug~ slwuld he and l:uuld h~· iii'L' nnt
congnt~·:nt with th~: rl.!ality nf ''hat school psyclwlugy has l'lllll~' tu h~· ((1utl-.in &
Conoley. 1990 ). One or th~..· grcat~:st di rticulti~:s lliC i ng the prnli:ssillll is tlw JK' II.."L' i H'd
indlccti\·~:n~.:ss of many ol'thL" psychologic~ll in!l.:n L'nti11ns rm·s~..·ntl~ us~..·d \\ithin tlw
school system.
On:r the last SL"\'L'ral years there has dl.'\'t:lopl.:'d substantial dissatist:1ction "ith
the use or nonn-n:lcrenced. standardiz~.:"d tests ltll' e\'alu;lting til~.· acatkmir
perrormanc~.: n r students (Shapiro. I 1>94 ). The assessm<.:nl method r~..·quir~..·d is on~.·
that pro\'iU<.:S inii.mnation which is of \'a lUI.! in determining students tk\ L'loplllL'IItal
and instructinnal levels. in e\'aluating curriculum placentL'Ilt and tlllllliturin).!
academic progress or students. This kind or inii.mnation is consit.krL"d to he IIlllCh
more practically hased and is pen.:<.:ived as tH:cess\lry in mcl'lin!-'. students' needs
within the school cm·imnmcnt. TeaciH:rs report that an inli.mnal approach to
assessment is more bcnclicial to instructional planning li.ll· stutknts. In contrast.
some research indicates that school psychologists continue to l(t\'olll' standardi;.~..·d
tests almost to the exclusion or all other types of" data (Shapirn & Ldcrt. J<J<).J:
Thurlov .. ·• Rosenfield. & Knutson. 19X9). Thus. it appears that educational
psychologists and teachers view the t.:flc~.:tivcncss of' existing as~cssment pr<tcti t:L''>
dii"IC:n:n!ly.
Rcganllcss oJ' the Jimnat or assessment practices. educational psychologists
devnll: approx i mall:ly 5()<!,;, ol" their time to assessment (II utton & Dubes. 1992 ).
t\sse~SI1lt:lll i~ not clearly deli ned or delineated in much or thl! literature. Rcscan.:h
into the t:!"li:ctivcness of the \'aJ"iOUS asSCSSI1lent practicl!S ot' educational
psycliolng.ists is \\-al-rantcd. Research mnccrning effective assessment methods and
pmcticcs is impuriant in terms of promoting accountability and increasing the sw.:cess
rate nl' psycholng1cal intern:ntions within sehools.
\\'hat is assessment'! Assessment is broadly defined in the l'rilrdples_liw
Fair .\'tudt'llt .·ls.\t:SSIIH'IIf ( 1993) as "thc process or collecting and interpreting
infnrmation that can he used to inl\11m studmts and their parents/guardians wh<.:rl!
applicable ahllllt the progress that thl'Y an.: making toward attaining the knowledge.
ski lis and att it udcs and behaviours to he learned or a~.:quircd and to in form various
personnel \\·ho make educational dedsi ~)l1" (instructional. diagnostic. placement.
promotion. graduation. ~urriculum planning. programme development. policy) about
studcnts"(p . .1 ). Thus. ass~ssment includes information gathering. collation. analysis.
synthesis. l'\'alu:1tion and the subsequent actions d<.:h.:rmined by this process.
lh·search is emerging that indicates that informal or more curriculum -based
asscssment is a \'iablc allernatiw to norm-rcferenc<.:d, standardized assessment
nroc.:cdurc.:s. There arc SC.:\'c.:rul nwdds nr curriculum-based ass~ssnh.'nl ( l'BA ). Fac.:h
modd is grounded on the premise that a din:ct link PlUs! c.::-.ist hct\\ecn instructional
intc.:r\'cntions and assessment prac.:tic.:es (Shapiro & l·:rkL·rt. \lJlJ.l). :\ Sllr\L')"
conducted by Shapiro and Erkcrt indicates that ..J.M-~~ or sc.:hool psyc.:hologists arc
using some rorm or CBJ\. In another survey. the same authors n~Jhntcd that
curriculum-based assessment was significantly and consish:ntly rated as nllH"L'
acceptable than standardized tcsts hy school psychologists (Shapiro & l·:rkerl. fl)l)..j,
p. I 76).
HATIONALE
During the Winter 1995. the writer compkted a:?. day pt:r \\eek pradicum
with the Roman Catholk School Board in St. John's. Newl(lllndland. During. that
placement. the student was c:-.:post:d to the practices or t:ducational psychologists
within that educational jurisdiction. During Spring I <)l)5 thl.! \\Titer obtained l"urthc.:r
practical professional development during a thn.:c month internship placement \vith
the West Essex Educational Psychology Team. A research mmponent was required
to be completed within the context or the British internship plm:elllellt. lk<.:t.tliSl'
assessment is a core comJXHll.!nt of educational psychology in North Arneri<.:<~. a
comparative analysis of the assessment prm.:ticcs or educational psychologists in St.
John's \Vith the rr~u.:tice~ ol" educational psychologists in \Vest Essex seemed
appropriate as it provided an opportunily to compare service deli\'cry model., of
psychnlogical intcrvcnl ions in tm> educational systems. This comparison woultl
provide valuable insights into tht: practices 0 r educational psychologists in both
sctlings. 1-'ltrtiH:r, it provitl~.:d an opportunity to glean ti·om both experiences the most
ht:nclicial assessment practices for pupils and for o\·crall delivery or educational
ps~ dh>logy services.
Increasingly. the assessment practices of educational psychologists arc being
n:searched and are now more open to debate ami criticism. Although stundanlizcd
ksts do not din:<:tly provide the information ncccssary for instructional decisions.
there is little inl'ormation available on the t.!xtent to which teachers' reports and
ohser\'ational data can bc used succ~:s~,rully to plan instructional programs. Furl her.
~.-dul'ational psychnlogisls within the United Kingdom huve nwvcd ~teadily away
!'rom an emphasis upon the "within child" explanations for succcss anti l~1ilurc in
karning to a more "systems oriented" approaches that concentrate upon evaluating
thl: llltal conll:xt in which learning is ~:xpcctcd to occur (Burden. I 978 ). r ssues that
l.'ducational p~ychologists in Great Britain address ollcn relate to classroom
managL·mcnt and curriculum assessment rather than the constructs of in tell igcncc and
achicn.·mcnt. In ClHllrast. the purpose of assessment in North America is ollen the
identilication of an underlying constructor disability that inh:rti.:n:s \\ ith Ilk· student's
academic achievement (Knutsnn & Shinn. Jl)l) I).
Because or the ditTerences in the ltlCllS or cdw.:aliotwl psycholo!,!.y. both in
scope and orientation. bdwcen the Roman Catholic School Buard 111 St. John's.
Newfoundland and West Essex. England. much was learned 1 hrough the t..'XpL·ri~:IH.:c
or working in both settings. Further. intcr\'iC\\'S with indi,·idual educational
p:-;ychnlogists n:garding their assessment practic~.:s wer~.: \·aluahh:. The ~1sscssmcnl
practices of educational psychologists in St. John's Ncwlimndlam1 and West 1-:sscx.
England comprise the focus of this comparative analysis.
PROCEDURE
The research project had two phases. Phase I was carried nul i11 St. .luhn's.
Newfoundland and the second phase was cnnductcd at Brays !louse. Tracey's Road.
llarlow. !\semi-structured interview l'ormul was dcvdoplxl (Appendix A). The
questionnaire l(lcuscd on the assessment process and th~: asse;-;srn :nt practices ol'
educational psychologists. More specilically. questions relating to the reasons ll11·
assessment reterrals, the types of practices used in asst:ssmcnts. lime mwwgcmcnl
issues and the rclcrn.d process were posed during the interviews and became the basis
of the comparative analysis.
In lntal. eight educational psychologists wen.: inter\'ie\\ed li.>r this research
projecl. l·.ach interviewee signed a written consent agreeing to he inter,·iewed. to he
audio-taped. and l(>r the suhst:qut:nt information to he analyzed aml quoted in this
report (Appendix B). Permission to interview \\'as also ohtaim:c..l ti·om the employing
institutions. ·r h<.: intnvi<.:ws \\We approximatdy twenty minutes in length. l·:ach
inter\'i<.:wec was presented with a stand<u·d set of questions during the intcr\'ic\\'.
1-:trch int<.:rTicw was audio-taped and the contents \H:re latl'r transcribed to form a
data-base li>r this I'L'SL'arch projL·ct.
SAMPLE
Fight educational psychologists presently employed in an educational setting
\\WC i nt<.:r\' ic\\'t:d-- four ill St. .John's. four in llarlow. Each (1 f tht: four registered
psychologists at the Roman Catholic Sclwol Board in St. .John's m:re inh:r'\'icwcd.
One inter\'iL'\\'ec ti·om this sample was the Co-ordinator l'or <iuidanc<.: and
Psychology Scn·iccs with the Roman Catholic Sdwol Boan.J. This psychologist has
a casdoad of pupils with SL' \'crc ~:motional and behavioral difficulties as well.
Till' West l:ssex sample \\'as sdectcd based upon contact that the intern had
\\ith thL' intcrvic\\·ccs \\·ithin professional setting. Both English internship
supL'n·isor.'psyc..:hologi.sts wc..:n: inter\'iewed. Another educational psychologist \Vas
An:a Senior Psychologist \\liS abP inten· i~w~d as matwg~r nt' thL· \\ 'l.:st FssL'\. 1\.'alll,
a parallel position to the Co-nrdinatnr in St. John's .
In oruer to protect IlK· identities or all int~n·ic\\~L'S . the sampk !'rom
Newfoundland were gin~n the desniptiws Psydwlogists I . .2 • . \ and -L I h~
educational psychologists from the \Vest 1-:sscx tL·am \\~re gin:n the dc~>niplin:s
Psy~.:l10logists A. B. C and D.
RESEARCH FINDINGS
R easmH For A.\·.\·es.mwnt.\· lleferm/s
hlucational psy~.:hologists at the Roman Catholic School Board in St. John's
anti in the West Essex l:ducational Psyd10logy Servil:c in Britain r~ported Cllllllllllll
reasons fiH· psydlOlogical assessment rdi.:rrals. II a I for I he cducal ion:tl psycliolol:!ish
reporll.:d that beha\'ioral and learn i nghu.:adem ic d i flicuhics were the primar) n::1so11
for asscssmem n.:li.:rral. Both an educutional psychologist li·om the J{oman ( 'atholic
School Board in St. John's and the West Essex hlucational l'sydwlogy Service
repm1cd that schools come to them for advice regarding pupils needs (Psydwlugist
H) and \\·hen ~counsellors) arl! stumped and want a mon.: indepth assessment
(J>sycholngist 2). Psychologist (' adJed that rdl:rrals are re~.:cived \vhen "th~:
schools fel.:llhat thl.:y'vt: done sunicient work and are looking for something di!Ter~nt
f(,r the pupils with spec.:iaiiH.:cus." l'syclwlogist 2 with the Roman Catholi~.: School
Board in St. .fohn's aduitionally n.:portc<..l that he is responsible.: !'or all Fren~:h
Immersion pupils as well as pupils with neurological difli~.:ultics.
h.lm:ational psydwlogists in both st:tting.s are b<.:ed \\'ith similar t) pes ot'
cdw.:alional dil'ficullics allllnecds in terms of their caseload and <.:ascwork. School
personnel ami parents require their c~pcrtisc in the areas of learning and behavioral
dini~.:ultics. llmwvt:r. the adi\·itics associated with tktcnnining the pur,d~ needs and
thl' subsequent m:tions associatcll with meeting these needs Yary in terms of
assessment procedures. time managenh:nt and per~.:cptions ot' successful cuucational
psychology \\'ork.
1'ftl! ,-h.H'.\'.\'1111!111 Procedurt'.\' Used
Three of the educational psychologists at the Roman Cat hoi ic School BoarJ
111 Sl. .John's. Ne\\ t{nmtlland reported that they usc both informal and formal
assessment procedures.
Psydwlugist 2 "standardiz~:d assessment is a gi vt:n. I r they want an assessment. a large component is standardizt:d .. . beyontl that scope depending on what I'm looking lilr it could hl· sl;mdardizcd nr informal."
Ps)'chulogist _." inl(mnal assessment is initially used to collect information and from th.:re i I rl..'ally depends on the issue as ... tn the format of assessment I'll use."
.. ,
l)sychologi~t 1 "I usually try tn talk to the parents and int~ .. ·n·ie\\ th~,.· stulknts and teachers to lind out what the teacher is saying about tilL· child. ThL'Il tb~..·rl' arL'
intelligence or ability h:··ls. I usually use sume kind ul" an inll·lligence ,ll. ahilit~ t~..·st
\\·hen I doing a l(lrnwl assessment and I al\\ays use SPI11L' hind or an aL"hic\ ~..· m~..·nt
h.:st."
l·~ducational psychologists' assessment reports at till' Roman ( 'atholic SdHHll
Board in St. John's olkn require standardi:ted or normed-rct'erenccd ;1sscssmcnt
measures such as an intdligenr.:e test and an achie\'ement h:st. Psychologist 2 raisL·d
an important point with n.:gards to his reasoning !"or rd~ ing upon st;11tdardi1ed
measures. lie cxplainct.lthat he is \'cry wml(>rtahlc with his inli11·nwl assessment
skills but you "still do :standan.Jizcd tests: to protect yoursdC' Further. educational
psychology assessment work in St. John's is tkpendent upon the results or initi;d
standardized assessment. There is no plannetlli.JI'Inat at the outsl't of the asscs~nlcnt
Wsycholngist J ). Both Psychologist 2 and .t reported similar appro;u:hc:s to
assessment procedures.
In contrast, to th1.· approaches of the above psychologists. Psychulu_gisl ~
reponed that she uses informal assessment proc~.:dun.:s. ": Ilcr) role: is to bring
school pcrsonnel. .. thc counsdlor .. . thc special education teacher. and people from
outside the school setting ... Department of Social Services and the Community I kalth
Dcpurtmcnt...antl take all the inlili'I11Ution and pull it together to dt:dde on what tht:
more demanding needs of that child arc with respect to an euuc<~tional programmc:."
'I hu-.. int(mnal assessml.'nt :mJ inf'mlllatiun gathering pro«.:cuun:s are important to
l'syclwlo~ist 3's cuw.:ational psycht~logy work.
ln~:ontrasl. thn:e of' the eJueational psychologists intcrvicm.:d in \Vest Essex
reported that they rl.'ly hea\'ily upon inlimnal assessment tedmiques in assessing the
nel..'ds of pupils. Fmmal assessment reports (Appendix!-') \\'hich are often written by
~:ducational psydmlogists arc based completely upon inli.mnal assessment measures.
·1 hcse in li ll'mal assessm~:nt measures include such things as structured observation
within the dassroom. information gathering from teachers. and obtaini11g teachers'.
parents' and students' J'll:rsp~:din~s (Psychologist A). Psycfwlugist B added that
looking at the t:hild's \\'ork. speaking to children about their pen:eptions of school
and \\'hat they think their diflintltil:s arc. and rdating this to what :she. the
psyclwlugist l SCl'S in their sdwol work and what their teacher tells (her l are
import:1111 mmponcnts. Then till' psychologist puts all of this togl!lher. analyzes and
L'omcs up with l'L't:ommcndations related to the child's needs. in contrust.
Psydwlngisc I) reported that he uses standardized assessment practices in his work.
in terms ofhasil' lih.:racy and numcracy.
These di!Tcrences in ass~:ssmcnt practices can be explained to some degree
lw the ~li!'li:rcncL'S in training uricntation in North America and Great Britain.
1-'ducatillll:tl psychnlngists in (ir~:at Britain arc highly trained in informal asscssm~:nt
' '
measun:s. In contrast. North Am~rican training r~li~s much mmc hcaYily upun
standardizcd assc.:ssmcnt. 1·::\pcrktH.:c.: and ~o:nmfort in using assL'ssmcnt lL'dmiqucs
(cithc.:r formal or inl'c.mnal) didall: their usc by indi\'idual psyclwlogists. In 1.:ad1
selling. 3 oftht.: .f psyd1ologists intcr\'iC.:\\C.:d rclic.:d h~m·ily unonc type ul· assl'SSilll'lll
proc..:cJurc and in each setting. therc \\US one psychologists that cmployl·d a dillcrl'tlt
philosophy and approach to asscs~,mcnt.
Time Del•otetl To f'ormali';.etl As.\e.\'.\'lllt!llf Ami Report Writiug
Educational psychologists at the Roman Catholic Schon! Bo:ml in St. John's.
Ncwl(nmdland reported that the.: time they spend asscssillg pupils vmics. Till·
contrast. Ps}·clwlogist 3 reported that 901Y.l of the time is invol\'ed in conducting
infnrmal assessment. This psychologist docs not employ limnali:t.ed assessment dm:
to the nature of her position. Standardized assessmcnl is completed hcl'on: she
n.:cci\·cs tht.: referral \Vhich initiates her invol\'cment.
l n West Essex. formal izcd assessment take up much less or the ~:ducat ion: II
psychologists' time. On average. I O'.Y.1 (range 5% to 15'Yrl) or time management is
devoted to assessment. I'S)'chologist C included consultation time and observation
time anJ conduth:J thatS0°/.1 of' overall time in tkvotcd to assessment both i11fiJrmal
and l i m11 a I in na lllre.
·1 hus. it is logil.:al that the number of 1\mmllized assessments with reports
completed each year is drastically diflen:nt lill· educational psychologists in West
l·.sscx and St. .fohn's. Ne\vlinmdland. hlucational psydmlogists in St. John's
wmplciL' on average 50-7 5 assessments with reports each year. In West Essex. the
educational psychologists reported a significantly lower number or l<mnal
ass~.:ssmcnts (Appendix Fl. On average. the psydwlogists \\'ithin the West Essex
h.:am complete (l l(mnalizcd assessments \Vith reports each year. In Essex.
cducat ional psychologists work with the schools to meet pupi Is' special cducati on
needs. llo\\C\'cr .. -;pccial educ<ttillnal ncetls are met \Yithout the reliance upon
standardized and l(lJm:d asscssmL·nts. Ncc<.ls arc addressed through consultation with
parents and starr and through obser\'ation and interaction with the pupil within the
Cllllh:~ I of I he dassroom.
This lmwr numher of reports compkted by the West Essex teum is t:onsistent
\Yith the Warnock lkport ( Jl)7X) which stated that only 2% of pupils with special
edlll:atinnal needs in l:ngland require a "Statement of Special Educational Needs."
Further. the mandate and framework of educational psychology work in Britain
d i l'krs signi ll..:ant ly li·om that in North Ameri<.:a.
Sclloo/ Bmmi/Loca/ Education A utlwrity Referral l'roL'e.'\.\'
Educationul psychologists in StJohn's. Ncwti.nmdland and< ir~al Britain
\\'ork within v~:ry different fi·ameworks in terms ofstrm.:turc and process. In (ircat
Britain. educational psychology work is dictated by the /1)1)-1 c 'ud, · o/ l'ructicl'.
Under this Code. educational psychology work is do~cly til.·d to the swtutory
rcq uircments of idcnti liention aml pro\'ision liJI' special L'ducat innal neL·ds.
Educational p~ychology work in St. .I ohn's has c\'olved di ITcn:ntly. It is not guidl.'d
by legislative directives. Work in Newl(mndland is closely tied to the mandate and
needs as dctcrmim:d by the employing sclmol board. hlt~~..:ational psychologists with
the Roman Catholic School Board of St. .John's work within a t'ramn'vork li>r
accepting retcrrals l(>r assessment. In St. .John's Psydwlogist J. ( 'o-ordinator ti>r
Guidance and Psychology Services tkscribed the prm:css as:
"When children first present themselves as having dirticulties with the standard programme ... at the lcvd or the classroom h.:achcr. he or she will try to address the problem through consultation with other tl·achers at a gr:tdc level mccting .. . consultation with the parent and the teacher would have takt:n placl! and.
depending upon the child's necds .... consultation with the specitll education teacher as welL to suggest ways of dealing with the problem. Once th~.: ~·c things have ht:t:n tried. and i r the decision is--that there has not been progrcs~; . it would gll to the principal. The principal would then call a Programrm: Planning Team(PPT) rm:eting or a STAT meeting. most ollcn the school counsdlor is involved. It may ht: dt:cidcd at that point whether informal hut a more l<>cuscd assl·ssmcnt is done. lookill!! a! work samples of the child .... conducting more interviews with outsidt: agcnr..: i~.:s
possibly. At that level. the educational psychologist. might he invDlwd.
f..
Psychologist I wntinm:d to descrihl.! the rdcrral process: "The school must
invill: the educational psychologist to a PPT ml:eting or to review the minutes of the
PPl mcding including the parental consent anJ the compktcd parental
questionnaire. A I'PT rcll:rrai ltlf'lll ll·01n the school must be completed and sent to
the cdtlcational psychologist." Psychologist 2 added that he requires the school to
send l'ulllilc inl(xmation. lie then goes on to check medical information. "To do a
decent (assessment), you need all those l'lmns completed and he certain that process
has taken place." Psychologist I reported that the standard relcrral form states what
has hccn done already. what the child's problems arc. what his needs arc. what his
stn:ngths arc .. . grmh:s repeated. and if he has had therapy or psychological
assessnwnt. 'I'IH:rcfon:. in or<.ll.:r to obtain psychological assessmi.!nt in this setting.
in~imnation must he collected and collated by the school personnel. llo\\'cvcr.
Psyl'lwlu~ist 4 reported that this process is ollen bypassed. I !c is more intl:rl!stcd in
ohtainin~ anecdotal inli.mnation by talking and note takmg rather than by utilizing
the rckrral !(Hm which is primarily a checklist. At times referrals arc not accepted
dUL' (O lack of illflll'lllation.
In contrast. e<~ch educational psychologist at West Essex provided a very
similllr description of the relcrral process that is employed by the Educational
Psychology Scn·ice in Essex. Th~,..· wles and responsibilities uf educ:llitHlal
psychologists within this setting arc dictah:d by the Fducation .·let ( I1)Xl)). th~· ( ·o,/,·
(?!Praclice ( 1994) and the l:'ssex Stages r?f'.·ls.H'SS/1/l'lll ( 199-t).
The referral process employed by the Wcst Essex lcam is bridly oullinl..'d ..
"We have a staged assessment prOl:t:dure which has IK't:ll laid down irtthc ('ode or Practice. There are live stages. Stage 1 and 2 arc rt:ally sdwol based st<tg~...·s whc11...' the rcsponsioilitics arc with the dass sul*ct teachers and special needs m-onlillatms working with pan:nts to ensure that the programmes an: appropriate. t\l Sla~~...· .\ ... llw
educational psychologist is most likely to he directly involn:d. although at any sta~c the psydwlogist can be consulted. At Stage 3. thcrc would bc a discussion. lout.. in~ at the school's records and then I would do some observation in the classroom and that would initially be fairly loose ... seeing how the child is managing .... IHl\\ adults respond to child .. .. There is a process or ongoing assessment and rcvicws and the li·cquency or linvolvementl would depend on the case and thc targl'ls ... sd. 1:or
some children you may go forward to a statutory assessment. In which case nothing terribly di ITcrcnt happens .. . hccausc you have done a lot o I' work hL'I'nre that stage i 11
order to come up \Vith that decision" (Psychologist A).
Stage 3 revie\v information regarding particular pupils is f(,rwanlcd to the
cducationnl psychologist assigned to that particular school. I ~ducal it lila I
psychologists arc consulted during school visits ahout thc pupil's educational
prngress and needs in relation to the review process. Psychologi~t ( · explained that
\\hen
"a kiddie is Jirsl placed on Stage 3.1 would say let's look at the documentation .. .. lei's look at what you've done at Stage I and 2 .. . \Vhat have the reviews said'.' what an: the parents views'? .. the IEP and how has it hecn monitored '? Oth:n my invol verm:nt i~
to tell them what they could he doing further .. . J fthey have done wlwt you want 1hc.:Jn to do at Stagl! 3 and there is still minimal progress. I might he involved in lcrn1s ol" doing some class observation. It \Vould dcpentl on what the purposl: of the re fe rral
i~ . might look at their hooks. seeing. where the IEP is appropriate ... problemsolving with the teacher. .. possihly working ,,·ith the youngsh:r ... in a solutionl;•cuscd manner. II" after some time. ami I'm still concerned. the school is still concerned and the parents arc sti II eom:erned that the : pupill is still not making progress at Stage J anu the programmes arc appropriate then there might be a consideration that we nr~cd to go on to Stage 4 or not. Similarly. if they nrc making progress on the programnH.:s .. encourage some active thinking about mm·ing back to
stage 2.
hlucational psydwlog.ists in (in:at Britain work within a l'ramework which
phtccs a J:!rcat th:al or responsibility upon the personnel that work directly with the
pupil. Further. the rrame\\'ork pn)\'iJes thl! cJucational psychologist with a
nwnagcahle k\'L'I or casework and protects tiH.: EPS system li·llm being overwhelmed
\\ ith rl'ferrals. The process ror assessment is much longer than that employed in
Ncwl(nmdland in terms of ongoing assessment. n.:\·icws. c\·aluation. mo11itoring and
general in\'ol\'cmcnt. Nevertheless. the British system attempts to pro\'ide all
children with special needs with the professional and educational services necessary.
in a manm·r that hl:stmects their special educational needs.
/Jt:{initiout~l .S'ucces.•• Upon Completion Of Au Assessment
Fdul:ational psychologists in SL John's. Newfoundland and West Essex.
1:ngfand li1cus upon dill\:n:nt aspects of their \\ork in ddining success. Two of the
l'ducatillllal psychnlogists in St. Job:•\ dclincJ success in terms of accurately
lkscrihing the ~hild su that tllL·ir lindings "conlirm \\·hat the teacher feels"
(llsycholo~ist I). Further. Psycholn~ist 2 added that it is alsll re\\arding hi hL' "abk
to pinpoint something that SOI11l.!lli1C has 0\'CI'Iooked." l\\'ll nr tilL' L'dw.::IIi\lll;tl
psychologists ddined sw.:ecss in terms o!'pussihk lHIIconi~:s 1ll' po~•sihk action as a
result of an assessment. Psyclwlo~ist 3 ddim:d success as "tilL' idL·ntilication of an
approach for th~: child that is arriwd at through the inn1h·~:mcnt of parcnls .. . thal till'
child has a new sense that there is a caring concern and genuine cl'l'orl Ill addn:ss his
needs and his cxpcricm:c of school is a litth: mnn.: posit in: nne."
Educational psychologists in \Vcst Essex n.:port that sun:css is closely tied
with identi (ying pupi Is' needs ami idl.!nti rying appropriate prO\' iS iun to L'llSlii'C I lll'SL'
needs arc met. (Psycholo~ist A and l'sycholn~ist C). Psycholo~ist B adtkd that
in on.h:r to be successfuL "the pupils arc able to make progress at a level that is
appropriate l()r them and that the people working \\ith the child li.:cl that they know
what they arc Joing .. and the pari!nts ll:i!l happy about the pro,·isiun that has been
made."
Educational psychology work in West Essex goes beyond the level of
iden ti !ication. Not only are needs identi lil.!d in this system. hut the sial utory and
legislative mandate is that educational psychology service delivery he provided.
This legislative provision outlines how educational needs as idcnli!icd hy tilt:
psychologist arc to be met. Then! is a legal rl.!quin.:mcnt to t:nsure that these n~.:l.!ds
' " '
arc met. In contrast, educational psychologists at the Roman Catholic School Board
in St. John's, Ncwli>undland. itknti f)· ~.:ducationalnceds. however. subsequent action
regarding provision fi>r these nccds is dependent upon the availability of the school's
pmfi:ssional and financial resources.
LJMITATIONS OF TilE J{ESEAnCH
There arc Sl'Vcral significant limitations in this research prt~jccl. Dif!icultics
with the questionnaire formal. la~.:k or experiential knowledge concerning the
educat i( mal system in l·:ngland. as wei I as other issues are described.
Queslitmlwire
The f(u.:us or this research was assessment practices of educational
psychologists within two different educational settings. The questionnaire was
dc\'clopcd during thl· \\•'inter Term 1995. At that time. the format for lJlll!Stiuns was
drawn from pradi<.:um t.:xperiencc at tht.: Roman Catholic School Board in St. John's.
Ne\\"l(nmdland. J\t that point. very little was known concerning the British
educational system. TIH:rct"ore. the research information gathering process drew
heavily upllll th~-.· prim practicum experience. Thus. during the interview process in
Fng.hmd. il ht:l'am~.: appar~.:nt that somt.: of"tht.: interview qul.!stions were not applicable
,. t·\ ·
and that others were not dTcctivc in terms or obtaining rcle\·anl inliumat i\111 ahnut
issues relating to assessment practices within that ~.:ducat ional setting. For L':\<l lllplc.
educational psychologists in Great Britain \\'ork \rith pupils \\ith special educatinnal
needs only. Thus. the first question about reasons for assessment n:li..·rrals \\as
irrelevant. Further. in England. it is the cdw.:ational psychologist himsdl/hcr:-;dr
decides that a child should mm·c on to Stage 4 (a statutory assessment). Thus. 111 l
one in th<.: educational system n:fcrs pupils for psychologit:al assessment in the
manner that rcli:rrals arc made inN cwl(nmd land. In !:!'sex. pupi Is needs may rcq11 i rc
an educational psychologist's input but this docs not necessarily n:suh !'rom a rcli:rral
for assessment.
Framework of Etluctltionall\rcholo~:,r Work
Thcs~: differences in assessment practices an.: the result of dil'li:n.:nt
frameworks of orientation. Educational psychology work in <ln.:at Britain is mostly
dictated by the ('ode ojPractice (I <JCJ.JJ. Educational roles and n:~:ponsi hili tics arc
clearly outlined hy the mandate 0 r this governmental legislation . In COil trast. there
arc no provincial guidelines in lerms or kgislation to dderminc and lllllllitor
educational psychology in Newfoundland. There is. hm\'l!Ver. a dran dm:umcnt
called ,\'dum{ P,,y(.·/wlogy in Neu:finuuffmul am/l,ahrador l'ul h:y. Uuiddines and
. ' ' '
l'rofessirmal ,C..'tanclard,·. This document outlines the roles ancl responsibilities of
govcrmm:nl. st.:hool hoard. st.:hool persmmd and tlw educational psyehologist \\'ithin
a service ddin:ry li·;une\\ork. llowc\'<:r. this document is not a polit:) manuul and
docs not pro\·idL' precise directions to guide educalionul psydwlogy prat.:tice. At
times. duri11g the analysis of illll'l'\'il'\\S and the drawing tJ·om personal I.!XperieJKCS
during both praeticum and internship. it \\·as Jifllcult to compare assessment
pral:lict.:s because the settings \\'ere SO \'LIStJy diffi:rcnt in h.:rms of support and
structurL'.
Que.\·tioniug .\.kill.\· t~(tlle Re.n'urdter
The lirst set or intcr\'il'\\S \n:re conducting. in April. 1995. The second St.:t or
intcn·it.:\\S \\l:I'C conducted in June and July. 1995. During this time span. much
knowkdge \\~ls gained about assl.!ssment practices and the edw:ational psychology
proti:ssillll. A knowledge-base developed during the inten·cning time. Thus.
questions asked during the sl:cond setuf inh:r\'ie\\S (in (in:at Britain) were more
highly dL·\·eloped than those utili~:ed in the intl!r\'icws in St. John's. Further. sewral
ufthe inten·ie\\·e~..·s ti·om both sl:ttings interprdcd the questions in a somewhat unitjUC
manner. rcspunding. rwm a pt'rsnnal perspectin.:. in retrospect. not pro\'iding
int'urmation on issues rdat i w to the resl:arch subjl:ct. For e:-;ampk. one psychologist
from St. John's did not dl.'strihe tht: assL'SSillL'Ill pr~H.:lit:L'S !hat \\L'l"L' L'll1pln~L·d durin~
educational psychology work. Sl-.ills tn int~n· k\\ in~ ~md qu~:st inning .._•,·nhL'll
through tim~ and with e:xp~ricncc .
SllMMARV
Educational psyd10lngists in holh West Fss~:-:. l·:ngland and St. John's.
Nl.!\\{oundland rl.!pnrtcd common n.:asons l\1r asscssnwnt rdl.·rTals. hlucatinnal
psychologists in St. John's rc.:porh:d that th~y rdy on hot h inli li'Jnal and li ll'llltll
asscssmelll proc~:durcs. In contrast. c.:ducati\1nal psycho I og ists in \V ~sl l·:ssL':\ rd y
almost ~::-.:clusi\'ely on inli.mnal ass~ssmcnt pron:dures in their \\ot'k. In each s~:llinl,!. .
there \\'as an educational psychologist whosl.! assl.!ssnwnt practk~:s \\ere dissimilar
to that ol'his/hcr collc.:agues. Educational psychnlug.ists de\ oil: much more ti111c lu
assessment and report \\'riting in Newl(nmdland than do their Fng.l ish wtrrlkrparls.
This dil'lcrcnn: can be ~:xplaincJ to sum~: degree by the dii'IL:rcm:cs in slructurc ami
din.:ctinn of educational psychology services ddivcry as Jictaleu hy legislation in
Great Britain.
Di f'Ji.:rcnccs in time management arc also apparent in the rl'fl:rral proccs~
employed hy each group. The \~\:st 1-:ssc:-.: t~:am has a ckar mandate r~:garding_ their
in\'ol\'cmcnt in intcn·cntion \\·ithin the school svsl\:111. In St. John\. cJw.: ational
psychology is kss slrucrureJ and is J ictated to a greater Jegrcc hy the school hoard
and scht H ,J administrators. I :Jucationul psychology \\'Ork in St. .John's is determined
hy the appwachcs that psychologists' dcYdop lo aiiO\\' them to individually work
JJI!lSt cnicicntly \\ ith schools.
l·:duc:ttional ps)chologists tn cach setting l.kline succcss dil'l\:n.:ntly.
hluc<tlional psychologists in Ncwli.lundlanJ define success in terms nr accurately
describing the student's educational functioning. An asscssml.!nt is considcrcu
sueccssl'ul when n..:mcdiation ol'pmbh.:ms(s) is fi.tcilitatcd becausl.! of'assessmcnl. In
contrast. l.!ducational psyd10logists in \\'est Essex .:onsidl.!r an assessment stH.:ccssful
\\ hL'Il a pupils' lll.!eds ha,·e hccn i Ul.!tlli tied and appropriate fJI'ot·ision has he en
de/aminc'd. Because tlH~ pnl\'isiun for nl.!eds is a British legislativl.! mandatl.!.
dlildren's educational lll'~ds arc addrl.!ssed beyond the t.klinition of needs level. lhl.!
cdttcational psychologist is re~ponsihk to monitor the process. In Nc\\'li.nltldlanJ.
the pnl\'isionof spl.!ci,-.1 educational needs is the responsibility of the school and is
sllhjl-l't to n:snun:c allot:ation.
! .imitations became oh\'ious in the inli..mnation galhering process linked to
inll'r\'iL'\\ ing in both St. John's and \\'est Fsscx. England. Although asscssml.!nt
praeti~o:es inthesL' sl.!ltings di flcr in scope and orientation. hoth sdtings stri\'e to tnCl.!t
childt"\.'ll's needs in the best way possible. within the l.!Xisling ti·amc\\"tlrk.
REFERENCES
Bukock. .1 .. & Beebe. l'vl. ( 1993). Jhc llarlo\\' handhnok: 1·\cr\'lhing onL' needs [(l
know. Sl. John's. NF: i\.fcnwriall l nin~rsity.
Bun.kn. R.I .. ( 197H ). Schools' systems analysis: A projc:ct-L'L'IIIrL·d appwach. In \\ .. Gillham (!:d.}. Reconstructing hlucatinnal Psychologv. l.ondnn : (imom llc:lm.
Burden. R. L .. & Fraser. ILl. ( Jl)I)J ). ll sc or the dassroom cn\'i ron me111 assessments in s~:hool psychology : 1\ British perspcctiH:. Psychnlogv in thL' Schnnls. }0(3 ). 232-240.
Gutkin. T.IL & Conoky . .l .C. ( 19()0). Rewnc.:eptuali:t.ing. sdmol psycholu!:!y !'rom a scr\'ice l.klivery pL'rspectivc: Implications !ill' practice. training and rcsc:1n.:h . Journal or School Psn:hologv. 2X(3 ). 203-223 .
I Iutton . . I. B .. & Dub~:s. R. ( 1992). Assessment practices ol'school psychologists: l'c11 years later. School J>svchology Review. 21 (2 ). 271-2!-:4.
Kc1fnnt. S.R. (I t)94). hlucational psvchology in Essex: 1\ guide fill· schools. Chclmsf(mJ. England : Essex County Council.
Kerf(lol. S.R. ( Jl>95). Fducational psvchologv in !·:sse;.;- 1\ guide f(u· uupliranls . Chelm::;l(m.J. England: Essex County Council.
Kcrf(HH. S.R. ( Jl)l)5}. Fsse~ psychologist'.' Managing a ICmnal assessment and C\'aluation scn·icc. h.lucational Psvcholo~v in Pmctice. _I _I ( l l. I <>-21.
Knutson. N .. & Shinn. fvt.R. ( 1991 ). Curriculum-based measurement:< 'onccptual underpinnings and intcgratiou into problem sol ving assessment. .lournal or School Psvchologv. 29(4). 371-W3.
Lo\\'cnsll:in. L.F. ( 19S4 ). School psyd10logy 111 t ircat Britain. Contcmporm v
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:V1oss. ( i. (I 91J4 ). The Code or Practit:c Stage 3. Managing spet:ial needs 111
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Norwi~.:h. B. (I 1)!)) ) . Statutory assessment and statcmenting: Some challenges and
implil:atiol~" or cdul:ational psyt:hologists. Educational Psvcholo~v in Practit:c. _II (I ). 29-35.
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---( IIJO:'l l·:ssc:x stages or assessment: lldpin~ children with special educat ional needs: A gllide for parent..;. Chdmsl(n·J. England: Essex County Council.
I ' I
--·-( 1994) Cluidclines for the l:lllllpktion nr ps'\'chnlogical :!Lh'icL' ltlt" stalllll11'1,
assessment procl·durcs. Chdmsfon.l. England: !·:sse:-:. l·:dw:atitll1al Psycht1h1~y Sen·il:es (F J\ES).
---( 1 994 }Notes of ~uidance fix preparin~ suggesll.'d entriL·s and proposed stah:nwnts in acconlance with the Fducation Ad 1991 Chelmsliml. l ·: ngland: ! ·:sse~
Fducational Psydmlogy Ser\'ice ( Ft\ES).
---( 1993) Principles for l(tir student assessment practices l(lr educ~tt iun in ( '<.mada.
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---School psychology in Ne\vi(Jundland and l.~tbmdor: Polic\', guidelines :md professional practice standards. DRAFT.
AJ>PENDIX A Internship l{escarch Component:
Comparative Analysis of Assessment Practices used by Educational Psychologists in St .. John's, Newfoundland
and West Essex, England. lnten,iew Que.\·tions
('JJENTELE
• In your optmon. what are the most common reasons l'or retcrmls for ;tsscssmcnt'!
Who can he rckrred '? What types of problems can be rclcrrcd'!
SERVICE J>ELIVEU.V
• What arc the assessment pr·occdun:s that you most commonly usc in your work'! (Informal. Formal)
• What activities an: in·;u!v..:d in completing assessments'? • I low much 1imc in hours dn you spend each week deYoteJ to assessments'? • I low numy limnalized assessments \Vith reports do you complete each ycur'? • What do you consider a suceessrul outcome after you have completed an
asscssrn en!'!
REFEUI~AL PIU>CESS
• Could you outlinL' the rdcrrnl process within this school board/local L'dm:ation authority.
EVA I .llATI()N
• Wha1 is your ~\'aluatinn of thi!i referral !iystcm employed by your school board/ !neal education authority?
• ,\ny comrm:nts related to the assessment procedures employed within the context of your roles and n.!sponsi hi I itics as an educational p~yc hologist?
' t•
APPENDIX B Consent of Educatiun:tl Ps)·clwln~ists tn t•artidpah.' in ncscarch
LETTER- ST .JOliN'S
Dear Educational Psychologist. We an: Educational Psychology Gradunte students in the F;u;ulty of him: at ion at l\kmnn;tl
University ofNcwfotmdland. With the Faculty of Education's approval. \\'C arc conduct in!! rc~~.·an.:h concerning l:ducntional Psychologist's experience in the areas ofa~sc-;sm..:nl<md comuhatint1. l'ltl' data colkctcd will be used in comparntivc analysis rcscardt components or onr rcspc~.:liw lnll'rnship reports.
Central to our research is the gathering Educational Psychologist's views cnm:ernlllg asse.~smenl and consultation. To do this. we wish to interview four (·I) ~.·ducational psydltllo~i"h in St.John's. Newfoundland. and four ( 4) educational psychologists in llarlow. Fss~:,, l:n!!land. l 'ill' interview, approximately 25-35 minutes in length. will pet·tain to such thing~ as: tlu: tok and
responsibilities of the school psychologist in St. John's and llarlow. and a~sc~smcnt and nmsultal ion as it n:lntcs to the educational psychologist. Upon completion of this research. we will include o111
findings in our respective internship rcpm1s. It is expected that such a comparative analysi~ nr thl' Newfoundland and Briti~h Education system will bt:nefit pra~.:titioncrs by pre~enting inlimnation th at they may not personally have access to .
The inf'ormation gathered in this interview will not reference any school or ~.ludl'llh within the school board. The interviewer do. however, sl!ek permission of the inkrvieWI!L'S to idcntil'y anti qnnte said participants. WL· also request permission to audio- I ape each interview tu cn~ttll' accurate transcriptions 0 r the intcrvil.!w informal ion.
This l~:tter is to ask you to participate in an interview. We would appreciaiL' you help. hut you <n·e certainly under no obligation to giw your consent. The re~ult•; of'thi\ ~tudy will hL· made available upon request. If you arc in agrccmenl with being interviewed. pkaw ~ign below and rL·turn one copy to the interviewers ( the other copy is yours). lfyou have any quc~tiuns or concern~. pk·;t\c do not hl!sitate to contact us.
Thank you for your consideration of thi s request.
Sincerely,
Dale McLean
Chrbtophcr Mercer
(. _ ____ ___ . - ·-- _ . . h~:rcby agrc~..: to be imervicwcd for the n:~cardt projc~.;t 011 cthH:at ionil l psychological assessment and C(lnstdtationundcrta kcn by Dale Mcl.can and Chri'-ttoph~..:l Mnu:r. I unders tand that pnrticipation is voluntary, and I can withdra w Hom lht: interv iew at any tim~: No individuals (except the interviewee) or sdl\lob will be idt:nlilicd. and l ~ivc p~..:rmh\ion to he audiotupc and quoted in any rcsc<~rch arlit:lc produc~:d.
DalL' --·-· . .. __ --.. ··- ·- .. _ . lnterview~..:e's Signature
I. ETTEI~-WEST ESSEX
1-.du~.:ational P ... ychnlogi't Formal A~:-.e:-.o,;mcllt and Evaluation Se, vice II <~rlow. We:-.t bw~.
M'>. Dale Mcl.ean. J·:uucationall''>ychology Intern Mr. Chri~topher Mercer, hlucationall\ychology Intern Mcnwriall J n ive1sity of Newfound land. II arlo\\' Campus The M;1hings, Old llarh,w 1 ·: ~:-.cx,
Dear
( (
Please ~onsidcr our rc<JlH.:st to interview you as one (I) of four (4) Educational Psychologists with the Fomwl A~\es:-.mcnt and !-:valuation Service. Brays llousc, Tracey's Road.llarlow, Essex. < >u r research i:-. de~igned to he a qua I itativc com parativc amtlysis of the Assessment ami Consu ltativc pract icc> of I :uucational Psychologists in St. John's ;md llarfow. Essex. The in formation collcclcd tlll"llllgh intcl";iew~ will limn the basis of the research components for out respective final Maslcrs of l:dtKillional Psydmlogy lntern~hip Rcporb, required f(Jr the lllllihnent of our Masters programmes. 'I h~ ~,;ompletc interview time is from 30-·10 m inutcs. and will be corH.Iuctcd at Br·ay's llou~c.
As our research is qualitative. we are requc~ting that each interviell'cc agree lo he iuentilied hy name anu quoted in th.: final rcsl·arch document. To ensure accuracy and cfllciently. we arc abo rcque~ting permission to audit•tapl: the inh:rvi c\\'S lilr detailed analy~is . Any rl:fen·nce~ iLh.:nti1Ying individual students. parcnh.tcachcrs, administrative ~tart: or individual schools wi ll be omitted. You arc under no obligation to panicipatc. ami can w itl1uraw your suppm1 at any time. Copi~:s or the final report will h1.· made available to you. the other inrcrvic\<.'ccs and the Local Educ<ltion Authority.
Interviews wnductcd in /\priii9!J5 with Educational Psychologist~ in St. John's arc in the pn ,ccs' or tr<tnsc1iplinn and analysis. We arc planning to have our respective tina I reports completed by St:ph:mb~.·r lst,l995. Copies ofthcqucstionnairc arc included in your files . lf you havcany l'llllccnls nr queries. please conlilct us ar 0279-430266. Tojitdlilule the sdwdulinK ofi/1/eiTiews. ll'L'
<ll't' u.,Amg tlwtyou.fi/1 in t1m (:!J possible illleiTiL'll'/imes at/lie hottomofthis pup,e./mm whidlll't-' t ·an II!',I!.Oitcllt · II.I'!'J.I'/11/7. l'h•ctst•./i II'Wurdyour resp1111.1'l' to either IJa/ e or Chris. Thank you for your considc1at i1 m oi' 1111r rt:quesl.
Sim:~:1dy.
I )ak r.1d .1.:an Christopher Mercer
Altcrnalin.• lnh·n·it•w AI'Jlnintmcnt