Special education assessment has a significant impact on the lives of children with disabilities and their families. However, traditional assessment practices have been critiqued as being deficit-based, overly focused on "labeling" students, and failing to provide a holistic understanding of the student. Assessment models such as…

Childhood trauma is a significant public health issue in the United States. The experiencing of traumatic events can result in deficiencies in developmental, social, emotional, and behavioral self-regulation, impairing academic progress. The functional core aspects or primary domains of impairment (academics, relationships, self-regulation, and…

The state of Texas is currently under a federal mandate of corrective action from the United States Department of Education (USED). Many students who were denied referral to special education services in the past are being referred in record numbers across the state. Given the historical shortage of special education assessment personnel, the…

Given the interdisciplinary influences on school psychology along with its requirement to comply with federal and state law in the United States, scientific progress in the area of cognitive assessment and specific learning disabilities (SLD) identification has experienced slow, if not stagnant, progress. Extrapolation of research from one…

Manifestation determination reviews (MDRs) are a federally mandated procedure designed to protect the rights of students with disabilities. This study sought to examine practices and perceptions of the MDR process as held by school psychologists. One hundred thirty-six practicing school psychologists responded to a nationwide survey posted on…

School psychology has heavily relied on quantitative methodology to create and sustain our knowledge of best practices regarding academic, behavioral, and mental health outcomes for students. Nevertheless, underlying assumptions of the neutrality of quantitative data have obfuscated how school psychology research has perpetuated oppressive…

The Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) offers competitive grants to institutions to provide training to prepare education personnel to work with children with disabilities. These grants have been found to improve the recruitment, training, and retention of special education personnel. This study explored the use of OSEP--personnel…

Examining school psychology trainees' perceptions regarding school psychologists' key role and function is important because inaccurate perceptions may lead to unmet professional expectations, reduced job satisfaction, and burnout. One hundred and eighty two first-year school psychology graduate students enrolled in National Association of School…

Advances in school psychology and mental health highlight the role of collaborative teacher-parent engagement to ensure optimal psychoeducational support. The objective of this South African study was to explore the views of parents and learners regarding Adelman and Taylor's Initial Assessment and Consultation (IAC) shared problem-solving…

This study investigated the Assembly Bill 114 assertion that School Psychology is considered the appropriate discipline to provide mental health services to the special education student population. The current study sought to examine School Psychologist's perceived level of mental health training they received while in their school psychology…

School psychologists (SPs) have emerged as a key agent in delivering or orchestrating evidence-based, behavioural interventions in specialist settings with students who have a disability and challenging behaviour. These trends in practice create complex tensions and ethical dilemmas for SPs. UNICEF (2017) argue that all children with disabilities…

For this 23rd article in the series reviewing recent court decisions concerning appropriate school psychology practice from both professional and legal perspectives, the topic is the substantive standard for free appropriate public education (FAPE) under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), with a focus on the classification of…

School psychologists pay a critical role in the assessment and intervention of students in special education. Within this role, they are highly likely to interact with students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), particularly in the context of school-based assessment associated with special education. Although students with IDD…

Although the accurate diagnosis and effective instruction for reading disorders through multi-tiered systems of support is one of the most foundational components of school psychology training and practice, there are significant opportunities for innovation, renewed excitement, and social justice. In this article, we identify reading assessments,…

There is a nationwide shortage of school psychologists, and while NASP has recommended ways to increase recruitment and retention, the research on recruiting and retaining school psychologists, especially in high-need areas, is limited. Teacher education researchers have begun to address teacher shortages through "grow your own" training…