A Michigan school district established a districtwide reading board as a different but necessary alternative to a response to intervention model. The reading board sought a new way to acknowledge the depth and breadth of individualized diagnoses, instructional needs, and social justice in their school district. In addition, the reading board…

The purpose of this dissertation is to describe a doctoral research study that comprehensively investigated school psychologists' record review practices. Record reviews are part of the psychoeducational evaluation process, and there is relatively little previous research literature on this topic. The current study aimed to investigate the…

Sustainable and innovative programs to support students in their transition to university and improve student progress rates and retention are in high demand and short supply. An institution-wide model was established for an online Embedded Tutor Program. The program supports commencing undergraduate students and is sustainable post-pandemic.…

Race-based over-representation in special education, or disproportionality, is a pervasive equity issue correlated with poorer educational outcomes. While racial disproportionality is described widely in literature as a persistent and significant problem, few studies suggest ways to positively disrupt this pattern. This study aimed to test whether…

Although behavioral threat assessment and management (often shortened to "threat assessment") has become widely used in US schools, no studies have systematically examined how frequently schools conduct threat assessments and how threat assessment rates vary as a function of student and school demographics. Of particular concern is that…

Externalizing problems are common in children ages 6-14, can have lifelong consequences, and may pose a particular risk when combined with other risk factors and symptoms (like depression and anxiety). Schools are uniquely positioned to assess and address these types of behavioral health concerns, but many school-based assessments do not focus on…

School work is designed to challenge students and help them meet grade-level academic standards. Students with disabilities have the right to learn and participate in the general education curriculum. Public school districts must provide these students with the services, accommodations, and modifications that they need to learn the same material…

Special education service provision depends upon referral for evaluation, corresponding evaluation procedures, and resulting eligibility decisions. However, how school districts and decision-makers (e.g., school psychologists) apply special education evaluation procedural rules is largely unknown. Through a survey of practicing school…

Children of color are disproportionately referred for discipline in schools and subsequently receive harsher punishments than their peers. Teachers' implicit bias has been identified as a possible source of these disparities, particularly for Black boys. However, teachers' social--emotional competence (SEC) may mitigate biased responses to Black…

This paper provides an analysis of one state's Response to Intervention (RTI) model, bringing to light two predicaments that plague efforts to address disproportionality and support learning: (1) That RTI may continue to perpetuate disproportionality, both in the model's tiers of support as well as in the placement of students in special…

The purpose of this study was to determine the impact of a brief training on the cultural competence and perceived self-efficacy of school psychologists without formal training in working with deaf and hard-of-hearing (d/Dhh) students. Participants were trained on Deaf culture and best practices in the assessment of d/Dhh individuals. In Phase…

Data from multiple school sources, including informant ratings, systematic direct observations (SDOs), and school wide data (e.g., office disciplinary referrals [ODRs]) are routinely used to guide decision making in the delivery of evidence based practices for students with externalizing and internalizing behavior problems. Over 50 years of…

Social and emotional development is an important area for children, which includes social-emotional learning skills. It is necessary to know that the development and clarification processes of social-emotional learning require an efficacious assessment process. This study aims to reveal how social emotional learning methods of preschool children…

Despite not having specific special education laws, Norway's "Lov om grunnskolen og den vidaregåande opplaeringa" (Act Relating to Primary and Secondary Education and Training) law provides individualized instruction to students who qualify for special education services after an extensive evaluation process. Improvements are recommended…

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a school's poverty level on oral reading fluency (ORF) reported for students identified as having a specific learning disability (SLD) versus those who have been referred for SLD assessment but were not identified as having an SLD during the special education eligibility process. The ORF…