Examining the role and graduate preparation of bilingual school psychologists in early childhood settings.

Emergent Bilinguals (EBs) comprise nearly a third of children enrolled in early childhood classrooms across the United States. Unfortunately, EB populations are often met with barriers that limit their opportunity to thrive in the school setting. Bilingual school psychologists (BSPs) are uniquely positioned to provide culturally and linguistically responsive academic and behavioral services to these young students. However, to date, there are no empirical studies exploring the graduate preparation received by early childhood BSPs and the services provided to young EBs. The present study involved the development and administration of a national survey examining the role of BSPs in early childhood settings. A convergent mixed-methods approach was used to analyze survey results from 97 participants. The results indicated that most early childhood BSPs felt unprepared by their graduate programs, although most indicated receiving early childhood preparation and almost half indicated receiving bilingual preparation. Four qualitative themes also emerged from the data. Implications for future research and preparation are discussed.

Resilience to COVID-19 challenges: Lessons for school psychologists serving school-attending black South African youth aged 10 to 19 years old.

Several studies have highlighted the mental health challenges of children and youth during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown period, especially, in relation to an escalation of depression, anxiety, and stress. Whilst this may be the reality, it is unfortunate that most of the studies adopt a psychopathological point of departure often portraying doom and gloom. Adopting a social ecological resilience perspective the author focuses on the resilience of school-attending black South African youth during the COVID-19 lockdown period. The Child and Youth Resilience Measurement (CYRM-28) was completed by 4165 respondents in grades 4 to 12 (females = 2431, 58.4%; males = 1734, 41.6%) from the Gauteng, Mpumalanga and North-West provinces in South Africa. The findings indicate that school psychologists must consider gender, age and school levels when they design school-based resilience programmes for black South African children. Particular emphasis should be placed on contextual resilience highlighting spiritual, religious, cultural and educational factors. A major lesson for school psychologists is to ensure that school-based resiliency programmes adopt a whole school approach that includes children, their families and local communities for the successful promotion of resilience during adverse situations as postulated by the social ecological resilience model.

What do educators need to know about the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking: A comprehensive review.

One of the most important questions that educators try to answer is how to prepare new generations of students for an unpredictable future. Students need to learn several skills, such as creativity, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication (the 4 Cs). Creativity, especially, is an essential skill in a complex and unforeseeable world/era, and an important step in any effort to enhance creativity is to identify students' creative strengths and relative weaknesses. This review aims to offer school psychologists and other educators such as teachers, policymakers, and curriculum designers a comprehensive and practical guide to one of the most well-known creativity assessments-the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking (TTCT) that was developed by E. Paul Torrance in the 1960s. The paper discusses the history, components, training, psychometric properties, and uses of the TTCT. Contrary to the notion that the TTCT is only a measure of divergent thinking skills, the current article presents its other uses. It is the authors' hope that teachers, school psychologists, and other educators will find the information reported in this article useful to better understand the TTCT and use it most effectively.

Psychological state and its correlates of local college students in Wuhan during COVID-19 pandemic.

In 2020, the lockdown of Wuhan due to the outbreak of COVID-19 impacted various aspects of local college students' life and may further negatively affect their psychological state. This study was conducted among 652 Wuhan local college students during the quarantine of this city. We assessed their psychological state using Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale 21 and evaluated their living condition including diet, schedule, recreational activities, social contact, academic life, and attention paid to pandemic news. Results showed that 16.87% of the students reported stress, 28.68% with anxiety, and 35.12% had depression. According to multivariate logistic regression analysis, having a medical background was associated with higher stress levels; students who had an irregular diet and schedule were more likely to develop stress, anxiety, and depression; students with their academic life affected had a higher prevalence of anxiety and depression. By studying local students in the hardest-hit area during the pandemic, our findings can provide references for the improvement of college students' mental health in the long term.

Sense of coherence and burnout among school psychologists: The moderating role of loneliness.

School psychologist have been considered at a high risk for developing work burnout due to their multiple responsibilities, overload and engagement in caring for children, families and professionals. In line with the salutogenic approach, the aim of the current research was to investigate protective and risk factors to burnout. Research has indicated that sense of coherence (SOC) may act as a protective factor. Studies reported that loneliness has been found a risk factor that may advance burnout. The current study hypothesized that loneliness may moderate the link between SOC and burnout. In a sample of 104 Israeli school psychologists, demographic aspects such as the gender, years of experience, or type of school in which they work did not predict the burnout, focusing on the importance of emotional aspects. The analysis demonstrated that the SOC was negatively associated with burnout among low or mean levels of loneliness, but not among psychologists with high levels of loneliness. The current study provides a new insight into the burnout risk, through the focus on personal resources and social perceptions. Implications for theoretical and practices are further discussed.

The Italian School Psychologists' Role: A Qualitative Study about Professional Practices and Representations.

School psychologists' relevance has been broadly affirmed. However, there is no shared definition of their professional role, and more efforts are needed to promote an organisational and whole-school approach. The present study aims to investigate practices and representations of Italian school psychologists, advance knowledge of the status and development of school psychology, and learn more about the approaches currently adopted in schools. A qualitative method was used and 11 focus groups with a total of 86 participants were carried out. Ad hoc instruments were defined. The results highlighted that school psychologists are more focused on building one-on-one relationships, whereas relationships with the organisation as a whole appear to be more difficult. However, participants reported a wide range of activities, targeted to both the individual and the organisation. Moreover, efforts to strengthen the relationships with school principals and the entire school community were described. Specific needs emerged and the necessity to better define the school psychologists' role was reported by the participants. More efforts are needed to promote an organisational approach among Italian school psychologists and specific training should be offered.

The Effect of School Psychologists and Social Workers on School Achievement and Failure: A National Multilevel Study in Chile.

School achievement and failure have become growing political and social concerns due to the negative consequences of school failure for individuals and society. The inclusive educational movement, which calls for equal access, permanence, participation, and promotion of all students worldwide, poses many challenges for schools and school systems. As a public policy strategy, some countries have provided additional funds for incorporating non-teaching professionals such as school psychologists and social workers in regular K-12 schools. However, there is lack of research on the effects of these psychosocial professionals on student outcomes. This national multilevel study explored the effect of psychologists (n = 8,469) and social workers (n = 3,524) on indicators of eighth-grade (n = 147,531) and 10th-grade (n = 106,347) students' academic achievement and dropout in Chile. A multilevel secondary analysis was performed using national records of non-teaching professionals working as school staff members, achievement scores on the national SIMCE test, and dropout rates based on official records. Results showed that after controlling for individual and school variables known to affect achievement and dropout, schools with psychologists and social workers working as staff members had lower short- and long-term dropout rates. The presence and higher number of school psychologists per school was positively associated with higher math achievement, with a reduced effect in low-SES schools. Lower-SES schools with more social workers had higher math scores. These results support policies that increase funding for school psychologists and social workers, since their incorporation partly explains better school achievement and less school failure when controlling for individual and school characteristics, but emphasize the need to further explore the mechanisms through which school achievement and failure are developed with the support of psychologists and social workers in schools. We discuss the need to regulate the type of prevention and intervention strategies from a whole-school, evidence-based approach, as well as to incorporate psychosocial training modules and comprehensive guidelines as part of professional training programs and as certified requisites for working in schools.

School-Clinic Care Coordination for Youth with ASD: A National Survey of School Psychologists.

Many youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may benefit from interdisciplinary care coordination. Communication and collaboration between the school and clinic settings is particularly important when youth with ASD are receiving both special education and clinic-based services. The responsibility of initiating coordinated care has historically been with the medical home (e.g., primary care clinicians), however, educational professionals (e.g., school psychologists) are also well positioned to assume a leadership role in care coordination. Little is known about the current state, feasibility, or effectiveness of school psychologists leading care coordination efforts. The current study utilizes a mixed-method approach to understand school psychologists' engagement in interdisciplinary collaboration across settings, a central tenet to coordinated care, in providing services to youth with ASD.

Facilitators and barriers to the implementation of motivational interviewing for bullying perpetration in school settings.

Bullying is a perplexing and persistent problem with negative consequences for all involved. Schools are assigned considerable responsibility for the management of bullying because of its prevalence amongst youth. Despite considerable efforts over decades to curtail bullying through the use of anti-bullying policies and other school-based interventions, the rates of young people who frequently bully has not decreased significantly. Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a relational and affirming conversational method that strengthens an individual's motivation and commitment to change, overcoming ambivalence toward the problem. The aim of the current study was to provide preliminary insight into the feasibility of incorporating MI into student service repertoires for addressing bullying. Ten staff participants from six secondary schools, who had roles in bullying intervention within their respective schools, were offered training in MI and invited to use and monitor this method in their practice as an intervention for students who perpetrate bullying. Results indicated a number factors which influenced the uptake of MI in schools. Facilitators enabling the use of MI included practitioner's professional background, administrative support, training and implementation of MI. Barriers to the use of MI included time pressure and administrative expectations, school roles and system limitations, and preconceptions and the stigma of bullying.

Estudo de validação da Escala de Autoeficácia para Psicólogos em Contexto Escolar / Validation of the School Psychologists Self-Efficacy Scale / Estudio de validación de la Escala de Autoeficacia para Psicólogos en Contexto Escolar

Considerando a inexistência de instrumentos de autoeficácia ocupacional direcionada aos psicólogos em contexto escolar, este estudo pretende descrever a construção e a validação de uma escala, além de apresentar as qualidades psicométricas da Escala de Autoeficácia para Psicólogos em Contexto Escolar - EAPsi. Utilizou-se como embasamento a Teoria Social Cognitiva, que explica o comportamento humano por meio da proatividade, da autorregulação e da auto-organização. Esta pesquisa contou com a participação de 205 psicólogos atuantes nos Institutos Federais de Educação, Ciência e Tecnologia. Essas instituições compõem a Rede Federal de Educação Profissional, Científica e Tecnológica que está presente em todos os estados do território nacional. Constatou-se que 80% eram do gênero feminino, com idade média de 35 anos. Os resultados da análise fatorial exploratória indicaram que a estrutura com 22 itens e três dimensões foi a mais ajustada, com alfas de Cronbach indicando boa consistência interna. As dimensões foram: autoeficácia profissional, autoeficácia relacional e autoeficácia na articulação com as famílias. Assim sendo, a validação da EAPsi contribui para preencher uma carência de instrumentos voltados aos profissionais, podendo colaborar com estudos e intervenções na área. (AU)

Considering the lack of instruments related to occupational self-efficacy directed toward psychologists in a school context, this study aimed to describe the construction and validation of a scale and to present the psychometric qualities of the Self-efficacy Scale for Psychologists in the School Context - EAPsi. Social Cognitive Theory was used to explain human behavior through proactivity, self-regulation and self-organization. This study had the participation of 205 psychologists working in the Federal Institutes of Education, Science and Technology. These institutions make up the Federal Network of Professional, Scientific and Technological Education that is present in all the states of the country. It was found that 80% of the participants were female, with an mean age of 35 years. The results of the exploratory factor analysis indicated that the structure with 22 items and 3 dimensions presented the best fit, with Cronbach's alphas indicating good internal consistency. The dimensions were: professional self-efficacy, relational self-efficacy and self-efficacy in articulation with families. Accordingly, the validation of the EAPsi contributes to fill a gap in instruments aimed at professionals and presents the possibility for use in studies and interventions in the area. (AU)

Considerando la existencia de los instrumentos de autoeficacia ocupacional direccionada a los psicólogos en contexto escolar, lo pretendido estudio busca describir la construcción y la validación de una escala, además de presentar las calidades psicométricas de la Escala de Autoeficacia para Psicólogos en Contexto Escolar - EAPsi. Se utilizó como fundamentación la Teoría Social Cognitiva, que explica el comportamiento humano por medio de la proactividad, de la autorregulación y de la autoorganización. La referida investigación abordó 205 psicólogos actuantes en los Institutos Federales de Educación, Ciencia y Tecnología. Estas instituciones componen la Red Federal de Educación Profesional, Científica y Tecnológica presente en todas las provincias del territorio nacional. Se constató que 80% de los psicólogos eran del género femenino, con edad media de 35 años. Los resultados del análisis factorial exploratorio indicaron que la estructura con 22 aspectos de análisis y tres dimensiones fue la más ajustada, con alfas de Cronbach indicando buena consistencia interna. Las dimensiones fueron: autoeficacia profesional, autoeficacia relacional y autoeficacia en colaboración con las familias. Siendo así, la validación de la EAPsi contribuye para suplir la carencia de instrumentos orientados a los profesionales, pudiendo colaborar con estudios e intervenciones en el área. (AU)

Influência do género, da família e dos serviços de psicologia e orientação na tomada de decisão de carreira / Influences of gender, family and vocational guidance services on career decision making / Influencia del género, de la familia y de los servicios de psicología y orientación en la toma de decisión de carrera

Neste estudo analisa-se a influência do género, da família e dos Serviços de Orientação Vocacional na decisão de carreira. Participaram deste estudo 1930 alunos do 10º ao 12º anos, de escolas portuguesas, respondendo ao Questionário de Dificuldades de Tomada de Decisão e a outro de recolha de dados escolares e familiares. Mais de metade apresenta indecisão vocacional. Os resultados indicam uma influência positiva da família na tomada de decisão, e da Orientação Vocacional na prontidão da decisão. Os rapazes consideram a orientação vocacional mais útil, apresentam maior confiança mas menos prontidão na decisão, recorrem menos aos pais, familiares e amigos, sendo mais influenciáveis. As raparigas apresentam-se mais inseguras e menos informadas. A partir dos resultados, apresentam-se recomendações para as práticas de orientação vocacional.(AU)

This study analyzes the influence of gender, family and career guidance services in career decision making. The participants were 1930 students attending the 10th to 12th grades in Portuguese schools. They answered the Difficulties in Decision Making Questionnaire and a school and family data questionnaire. More than half of the students showed vocational indecision. Family was seen to have a positive influence on career decision-making, and vocational guidance in the readiness of decision. As compared to the girls, the boys seem to consider the career guidance services more useful, show higher confidence, but greater lack of readiness in deciding, rely less on parents, family and friends, and seem to be more sensitive to influence. The girls seem to be more insecure and less informed. Results implications for vocational guidance practices are discussed.(AU)

En este estudio se analiza la influencia del género, de la familia y de los Servicios de Orientación Vocacional en la decisión de carrera. Participaron en este estudio 1930 alumnos del 10º al 12º año, de escuelas portuguesas, respondiendo al Cuestionario de Dificultades de Toma de Decisión y a otro de recolección de datos escolares y familiares. Más de la mitad presenta indecisión vocacional. Los resultados indican una influencia positiva de la familia en la toma de decisión y de la Orientación Vocacional en la rapidez de la decisión. Los jóvenes consideran la orientación vocacional más útil, presentan mayor confianza pero menos rapidez en la decisión, recurren menos a los padres, familiares y amigos, y son más influenciables. Las jóvenes se presentan más inseguras y menos informadas. A partir de los resultados se presentan recomendaciones para las prácticas de orientación vocacional.(AU)

Influência do género, da família e dos serviços de psicologia e orientação na tomada de decisão de carreira / Influences of gender, family and vocational guidance services on career decision making / Influencia del género, de la familia y de los servicios de psicología y orientación en la toma de decisión de carrera

Neste estudo analisa-se a influência do género, da família e dos Serviços de Orientação Vocacional na decisão de carreira. Participaram deste estudo 1930 alunos do 10º ao 12º anos, de escolas portuguesas, respondendo ao Questionário de Dificuldades de Tomada de Decisão e a outro de recolha de dados escolares e familiares. Mais de metade apresenta indecisão vocacional. Os resultados indicam uma influência positiva da família na tomada de decisão, e da Orientação Vocacional na prontidão da decisão. Os rapazes consideram a orientação vocacional mais útil, apresentam maior confiança mas menos prontidão na decisão, recorrem menos aos pais, familiares e amigos, sendo mais influenciáveis. As raparigas apresentam-se mais inseguras e menos informadas. A partir dos resultados, apresentam-se recomendações para as práticas de orientação vocacional.

This study analyzes the influence of gender, family and career guidance services in career decision making. The participants were 1930 students attending the 10th to 12th grades in Portuguese schools. They answered the Difficulties in Decision Making Questionnaire and a school and family data questionnaire. More than half of the students showed vocational indecision. Family was seen to have a positive influence on career decision-making, and vocational guidance in the readiness of decision. As compared to the girls, the boys seem to consider the career guidance services more useful, show higher confidence, but greater lack of readiness in deciding, rely less on parents, family and friends, and seem to be more sensitive to influence. The girls seem to be more insecure and less informed. Results implications for vocational guidance practices are discussed.

En este estudio se analiza la influencia del género, de la familia y de los Servicios de Orientación Vocacional en la decisión de carrera. Participaron en este estudio 1930 alumnos del 10º al 12º año, de escuelas portuguesas, respondiendo al Cuestionario de Dificultades de Toma de Decisión y a otro de recolección de datos escolares y familiares. Más de la mitad presenta indecisión vocacional. Los resultados indican una influencia positiva de la familia en la toma de decisión y de la Orientación Vocacional en la rapidez de la decisión. Los jóvenes consideran la orientación vocacional más útil, presentan mayor confianza pero menos rapidez en la decisión, recurren menos a los padres, familiares y amigos, y son más influenciables. Las jóvenes se presentan más inseguras y menos informadas. A partir de los resultados se presentan recomendaciones para las prácticas de orientación vocacional.