You're a New School Psychologist! Now What?

Waaay back in June, Erika over at Finding the Thyme asked my Facebook page for ideas about "...where/how to get started when you enter a new school/1st job." I blame HGTV, Food Network, and The Murph-inator for the incredible delay in posting a blog entry with all the fantastic advice!

One big, huge theme was definitely on relationship building. 

• "Bring yummy snacks for lounge with a card introducing yourself."
• "...get to know the students, teachers and how the building works."
• "Get to know [your] office and custodial staff. They truly run the school!"
• "...make a point of introducing [yourself] or "checking in" individually with all the teachers/staff prior to the start of the new school year." 
• "...don't forget to smile. For a lot of kids we work with, yours may the only smiling face they see."
• "Immerse yourself into your new school community. Attend school and community sponsored events (open house, ice cream socials, PTA meetings, etc). Get to know your students, teachers, and parents. Most importantly, make sure they know who you are."

I think getting the lay of the land, figuring out whose office is where, and the general climate of a building is paramount, and also one of the most challenging things for a new professional. It took me a year to feel like I "belonged" to my current building when I was first hired. I was learning new software, new assessments, new procedures, and more, all of top of keeping in line with state timelines, managing the daily apocalypse, and of course, typing reports like a crazy woman. 

One of my cohort mates was telling me about a new psychologist hired at her preschool program who came in guns blazing, in-your-face, the ultimate resource and problem solver... and everyone hated her. She spent no time getting to know people or the system, did not consult with teachers regarding plans she was putting in place, and had an attitude that she was an all-knowing island. Not gonna fly. Remember that you can really accomplish nothing without the understanding and support of your staff, special education teachers, administration, and students. Spend time just chatting with people, learning their needs and expectations, asking questions, and listening! Introduce yourself at a faculty meeting or with a note in everyone's mailbox/email explaining who you are personally and professionally and what the school psychologist does to help the school ("What Is A School Psychologist?" from NASP might be good for this). Come March Madness, you're going to have a lot more support... and you'll need it. :)

People also toted the importance of organization and time management.

• "...set up some times to meet with the special ed teachers you will be working with to get an idea of what triennials are due this year and what initials they may know are coming up... Find out what kiddos they may need your support with and review their files and observe."
• "...you need to set up your office, get your resources in order, get at least a primer on your district's procedures. Get phone lists for each of your buildings, get all the passwords you need for student data systems etc., get your e-mail set up, request your business cards, set up your e-mail, and download all your testing software if that's not already done."
• "Meet with your principal and ask what his/her expectations are for you, what would they really like to see done/ etc."
• "...coordinate [your] schedule with the special ed teachers and related service providers...at each school to be sure there is some overlap so you all can be available for meetings...check-in with the admin asst at the main office to see where your space will be, if you are sharing a space with anyone else, file cabinet space, etc...Try and get a map of the school or at least a list of teachers/classrooms."

You'll need a bigger Post-It.

They hit the nail on the head--you can't do your job without the essential resources. I know from my experience after getting hired that it took me over a month to have my business cards, log-ins, email account, and laptop straightened away. Without a solid organizational and resource base, you'll be scrambling. It would seem that it comes back to relationship building: it can help you figure out the right people to get important items like a schedule, phone list, etc from, will let you consult with your new staffy friends on cases and upcoming meetings, and will allow you to meet with students to get to know them and their needs.

To all of you who have just embarked upon a new position and/or new school year, or who are about to do so, good luck! I have two weeks left of summer... so I'll be over here on the couch, sitting in my sweat pants covered in puppy hair, watching Pioneer Woman. :)

PS: Check out this stellar compilation of "Musings on Survival from School Psychologists." It has a wealth of great advice from school psychologists like you! Also, consider purchasing Dr. Rebecca Branstetter's The School Psychologist's Survival Guide, because it's rather awesome.

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It's 1:20pm and I'm Losing My Mind: Mid-Day De-Stressing

Here's a question from a reader of my Facebook page... "What do you do to de-stress during your day when you feel like you are going crazy?"

Great question! A lot of times, we feel like we're stuck at the desk or in our office, dealing with crises/ issues or chained to a computer typing reports. Once we leave for the day, we can redirect ourselves, hit the gym, go home to our families... but what do you do when you can't escape during the day? I think we all need an Individual Education Plan (IEP) with "refocusing and redirection" on it!

Personally, I rarely leave the building, because my workload is such that I can't take much time away, plus there's no place to go near my school since we're not in a great neighborhood. If I do leave, I drive to a better part of the city to get Starbucks (nom nom Skinny Caramel Macchiato, Cinnamon Dolce Latte, and the new Hazelnut Macchiato). Very very occasionally, a co-worker and I will pick up lunch to bring back to the office. That being said, I have to at least get out of my office during the day if I'm starting to crack!

Sometimes, I just need a quiet place for a bit where there's no phone ringing, no kids in the office, and no co-workers, so I'll go to our meeting/group counseling room by myself to focus. Usually, I take a walk. If a stop to check my mailbox and chat with the main office clerk isn't enough, I climb the stairs and do a few laps around the building, tactically avoiding a trip past certain classrooms so I don't get dragged into something (goodness knows I can't show my face outside my door some days without something happening!). On my way, I'll check in with a few kids that I work with or chat with a teacher. If I'm still plotting to rip out my hair, I stop by the cafeteria or one of my favorite classrooms to hang out with the kids and hand out Positive Behavior Intervention Supports (PBIS) tickets to boost all our moods. It's impossible to be grumpy after spending time with the little ones. I like to observe as they learn, have them show me the literacy computer games they're doing, or sit down and work alongside them with manipulatives or a hands-on activity. My classroom of choice this year is our first grade 6:1+1 Special Class, who I did a counseling group with this fall. They are utterly precious... except for the times when they're having a massive freak-out and kicking me in the chest (that's another story).

If I can't get away from the desk or don't want to venture outside (and possibly getting dumped on :) ), I chit chat with co-workers. I share an office with three other people on a regular basis (with a few other part-timers), so there's always someone around and we typically get along well. Our favorite light-hearted, possibly inappropriate, past-times include: reading our daily "FML" calendar, making "That's What She Said" jokes (and hitting the TWSS button in my desk drawer), and dancing to "Friday" by Rebecca Black (but only on the appropriate day). Laughter is an absolute must to de-stress! I also will talk to Husband on Gmail Chat throughout the day to break up the monotony, or check Facebook, Pinterest, or play a quick game on my iPhone (anything in the "... With Friends" series does me good, or this Jetpack Joyride game that Husband downloaded).

How do you de-stress and re-boot during the day?

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The Ins and Outs of Intellectual Disabilities

Monica over at The Undergrad Tales of a Psychology Major emailed me a fantastic group of questions that set me off and running in my (probably long-winded and unnecessarily detailed) response. She had some questions about intellectual disabilities, a topic that I find pretty cool. According to New York State, "intellectual disability" is defined as:

"...significantly subaverage general intellectual functioning, existing concurrently with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested during the developmental period, that adversely affects a student's educational performance." [Part 200.1(zz7)]

If we're talking about the numbers and standard scores, a student with an intellectual disability (ID) generally has cognitive ability, academic achievement, and adaptive behavior at or below a standard score of 70. However, every child with ID looks totally different from every other one. Each has their own strengths, weaknesses, etc, and each needs to be educated in their own particular way to maximize their learning. When developing interventions for students with ID, you must go on a kid-by-kid basis. A good place to start is to modify assignments and instruction to what each child needs (i.e. fewer items, extra repetition, larger print, extra pictures/graphs, pre-taught vocabulary, re-taught material, manipulatives and hands-on learning, additional time to complete assignments, etc).

I looked through my cases over this year and found a few examples to send Monica, which I'll share here. Note that none of these five kiddos has exactly the same background, scores, profile, strengths, weaknesses, levels of services, or placement. That's why I find ID so fascinating!

For all the scores below, 90-109 is Average, with a 15 point standard deviation on either side. Also note that a classification of ID should not be taken lightly. The classifying psychologist and team need to conduct a thorough record review, social history, teacher interview, observations, medical exam, academic assessment, intellectual assessment, adaptive assessment, and in some cases, visual-motor, memory, projective, etc tests, if they so choose.

Kindergartener— 
See this blog post for background information. After a very thorough evaluation, we classified this kiddo as a student with Multiple Disabilities due to pervasive delays, ID level cognitive ability, head trauma, and Fetal Alcohol Diagnosis. He was placed in a 6:1+1 Special Class for medically fragile students outside of our building. He receives occupational therapy (OT) and speech therapy, as well as services during the summer to prevent substantial regression.

Wechsler Preschool & Primary Scales of Intelligence, 3rd Ed. – Full Scale IQ (FSIQ) = 77
Bracken-3 Self Concept Scale – School Readiness = 77
Vineland Adaptive Behavior Composite = 74

Third Grader—
This kiddo was referred by her teachers in '10-'11 and had extensive interventions by a variety of school personnel. She was classified as a student with a Learning Disability and was placed in an Integrated Co-Teaching program (one gen ed teacher, one SPED teacher). We reevaluated her this year, and at that time, she was reading 26 words per minute (goal is 110 by end of 3rd) and was unable to recognize, identify, and count numbers to 100, let alone attempt addition and subtraction. She was academically very delayed, but was socially competent. She loved coming down for chats at lunch and was always giving hugs in the hallway. She was placed in a 15:1 Special Class outside of our building and her classification was changed to ID.

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th Ed. – FSIQ = 71
Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement – Broad Reading= 73; Broad Math= 79; Broad Written Language= 86

Fifth Grader—
This kiddo is currently in a 6:1+1 Special Class for students with intense behavioral and academic needs and is classified as a student with an Other Health Impairment. He has a diagnosis of ADD, for which he is not currently medicated, and he is uber distractible. He also displays symptoms of Autism (visual self-stimulation with small toys, perseverating on topics of interest, like TV shows). He has very limited social skills and often aggravates his more advanced classmates by violating their social boundaries to be friendly. He has no concept of social cues and is a big target for physical aggression--we have a safety plan for him so he doesn’t get killed by the boys in his class with Emotional Disturbances. Academically, he is at the first grade level or lower and reads 41 words per minute (goal is 115 by end of 5th). He is highly delayed both academically and socially. We are reevaluating him now and will be having his meeting at the end of the month. We have a placement saved for him for next year at a 12-month private school providing instruction in self-care and vocational skills to students with intellectual disabilities. His classification will be changed to ID.

Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence, 2nd Ed. - FSIQ = 66
Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement – Brief Reading= 64; Brief Math= 54; Brief Written Language= 63
Vineland-II Adaptive Behavior Composite = TBD (I just finished testing him)

Fifth Grader—same classroom as above
This kiddo is also in a 6:1+1 classified as Learning Disabled. She has highly delayed daily living skills—can’t tie her shoes, has had bathroom accidents and not told anyone, can’t tell time or count coins, and has difficulty keep an orderly appearance that is socially appropriate (pulls her shirt and skirt up in class). She also tantrums in response to minor upsets and has very low frustration tolerance and coping skills. Her social skills are also impaired and she exhibits socially immature behaviors that hinder friendships. The kicker is that she’s a grade level reader at 118 words per minute and has passable writing skills, but her math is highly delayed. We reevaluated her and will be contacting the personnel in charge of the community-based life skills program within our district to evaluate her for their program.

Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th Ed. – FSIQ = 60
Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement – Broad Reading= 85; Broad Math= 61; Broad Written Language= 89
Vineland-II Adaptive Behavior Composite = 62

Seventh Grader—
This kiddo was classified as a student with a Learning Disability and is currently placed within a 15:1 Special Class. Records indicated that she suffered a few strokes at birth due to ingesting meconium during delivery, but has not had any concerns past age four. On state exams in reading and math, she scored a Level 1, which does not meet basic standard. She cannot tell time or count coins, and has very basic skills in all academic areas. She is very immature socially and has difficulty working with others, but is an absolutely pleasant, sweet girl who is always smiling. We changed her classification to ID and she remains appropriately placed.

Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence, 2nd Ed.- FSIQ = 62
Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement – Brief Reading= 83; Brief Math= 56; Brief Written Language= 71

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The One with All the Great Advice From You!

With my giveaway for "The School Psychologist's Survival Guide" concluded, I want to thank everyone who posted fantastic, thoughtful, and meaningful advice that they would include in their own survival guide for the profession. I was so pleased and overwhelmed with the response! You're all rather marvelous, you know that?

Without further ado, I bring you: 
"Musings on Survival from School Psychologists"

Musings on Positive Relationships with Children

...When questioning whether or not you can make a difference in a child's life, remember that at the very least, you can always provide the child with a positive experience with a mental health professional. That way, they will be more likely to seek help again in the future. School psychologists can "plant that seed". - AmberNicole

Make sure your office has both tissues and food at all times. Sweet and simple. - Jill Snyder 

My advice would be to never underestimate the power of modeling respect to students. I model how to be respectful to my kids and it has led to many important conversations. - Amanda Myers 

We get caught up in focusing what is "wrong" with the child, or how to "fix" them that many times the team forgets that everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE, has strengths. I find if you start with the strengths, you indicate to parents those positive aspects - then you can return to those strengths when you get to the recs to demonstrate how those skills can be used to compensate for whatever weaknesses were found. I have found in working with older kiddos that sometimes adults have never spoken to them about those strengths and have only focused on the difficulties. To see their faces light up when I tell them that they are smart and do great work - that is what keeps me coming back to work each day. :) - Tonya Gscheidle 

Sometimes, you may be the only person who cares about "that kid". Do not let them down. Show them that they can trust adults by believing in them no matter what. - Colleen Allen

You may be the only advocate a child has... - Susan Hatcher

I think the most important thing I have learned this year is to follow through on promises made. Either giving parents information or meeting with student, demonstrating to others that they can rely on you is important to building relationships. – Becky

Do not let administrators or others with control issues, mental health concerns or just plain bad energy zap your own. Too much time in schools is wasted focusing on "bad" staff members rather than on the children. Eventually, they will move on or improve. You have no control over how they act and behave, even if it's hurtful to others. All you can do is conduct yourself with respect and focus on the students. They are what matters. Humor helps, too! - Colleen Allen

Always remember confidentiality. You may have a group of girlfriends at a school you work at, but it doesn't mean it gives them special permission to hear about confidential issues. Vent to your pet! :) - Ashley Marie 

Bring and show love in all that you do! We all have strengths--find ways to help others showcase theirs. - Colleen Allen

Musings on Taking Care of YOU

...Don't forget to sanitize your WISC blocks so you dont get the funk that all the kids have :) - Heather Klingensmith Hill

A great piece of advice I received and want to share is to keep a "Favorites File," a file of thank you notes, pictures, and drawings that have made me happy at work. They are great therapy. - Beverly Whalen-Schmeller 

You can't help others until you've first helped yourself. Self-care is just as important as everything else. - Colleen Allen

My supervisor always told me that I needed to take care of myself so I could take care of others. So important to set boundaries and practice self-care. Going to spend spring break starting Monday relaxing and having some fun so I can come back refreshed and energetic! Seems like there is always more that I could do, but if I do too much I won't be any good for anyone. So it's not being selfish or failing to leave the work at school and go home at the end of the day! – Jen

Hang in there. Summer's coming! Just kidding, I love my job. But the time off is a nice perk. Lol - Kim Nichol Rich 

There will always be more work to be done, more kids to be tested, more reports to write, more staff to assist, etc., etc., etc. There are deadlines that must be met, but once you have met those, remember there will always be more to do tomorrow. Go home. :-) Take care of yourself. Take care of your family. Without doing those things, you don't stand a chance of helping your schools. - Amy Cannava 

Keep work at work, and when you are home be there completely. Sometimes it is healthy to walk away from the laptop! - Julie Dwyer 

What may seem like one incredibly stressful day, week, month or year will pass. You may not see the forest through the trees until you have a higher view. Remember to enjoy calmer days so you can stock up for rocky ones. - Colleen Allen

Remember that although frustration and anger may be directed toward you it is not personal. - Sharin Palladino Green 

Humor, humor, humor...using it at work to get through tough situations is key. So much of what we do can be mentally and emotionally taxing. Finding the humor in these situations or just being able to laugh when things get rough is what helps me survive. So, find some fellow psychs to yuk things up with, watch lots of Seinfeld, read the Onion, or plaster your office with Far Side cartoons - whatever works to keep you smiling. If you're smiling, others will too. - Kim Tungate 

My advice after 32 years as a school psychologist is "Tomorrow will be a better day!" - Marcia Krell Dimetrosky 

Remember that although you may want to be superman, you can't do everything in one day. Your "to do" list will always be there, so be mindful of the things about your job that make it worthwhile. - Denise Butterfield 

Musings on Being Type-A

My key to survival is two-fold. First, an organization system that would make the OCD population swoon keeps me on top of every eval, counseling case, and "to do" item in my crazy world. Second, I don't take it home on the weekends. And when I do, I end up negotiating with myself to get it done during the week anyway. Almost impossible, but if there's a will to find time during the week then there is a way. You will make your deadlines... – Erika

When scheduling evals, be flexible...always have more than one back-up plan ;) - Ronda Norman 

Bring you calendar to every meeting. It seems that there is always another meeting that needs to be scheduled or changed and this will save you having to go back to your office and begin the email tag game. - Sirenna Brown Palici 

...one thing that I have learned to be most important is organization and time management. If you are not organized and can't manage your time then you're in big trouble when it comes to this job! - Kari Na 

...you have to be organized, have excellent time management, practice good self-care, because you can't help others if you're not helping yourself, and you need to find balance between your work life and your non-work life! - Samantha Bailey 

Be organized. Sounds simple but can make or break you. Being organized with your time by setting daily and weekly goals for yourself will make a huge difference in your productivity and may lessen the amount you have to take home. -  Tiffany Miller Powell

...I've learned to be flexible and that there are many ways to address the same problem..I've also learned the usefulness of a planner and organization skills! - LaShante Smith

Musings on Meaningful Relationships with Parents and Families

I have learned how to break bad news/evaluation data to parents. After a couple of years, of talking with parents, I have learned that a majority of them are nervous of what I may have to say to them about evaluation data. They are afraid I am going to tell them their child is incapable of learning or not average. I try to give evaluation data with a mix of funny things their child may have done while working with them, and an outline of their strengths and weaknesses. - Kim K.

It sounds super corny, but the most important piece of advice I can think of is to remember when you are writing a report about a child, you are talking about somebody's BABY. - Eliane Hack 

I quickly learned that this field is about making relationships and making people feel comfortable. The more approachable and down to earth I appear to parents the better I can communicate during a meeting. It's very important to make the effort to meet with parents before hand and talks to them about their fears and worries. That initial meeting always seems to open doors when delivering not so positive news. It always makes me feel happy when I've met a parent before a meeting and they walk into a room full of school staff, they look around the table and look directly at the people they are already familiar with. There's a sense of comfort and relief I appreciate. I always try and put myself in their shoes and validate their concerns. – pmendez1

Well, there are many! I'd have to say that forming a relationship with parents is perhaps one of the most helpful things I can do. – Andrea

When talking with parents, always remember that for them, this is new. Even if they've had other children go through special education, or you're meeting for a triennial, it's still new for them even if I have done it 1000 times. It's important to take the time, build the relationship, and always put myself in the parent's place before ever opening my mouth. – Pam

I've found it very helpful to establish a good rapport with parents. It's important to make them feel comfortable, reassuring them that you will answer their questions and concerns. This will be very beneficial during the assessment process. Conflict can be avoided when parents feel their child is important to the psych. - Norma Diaz 

…parent communication is probably the biggest thing I've learned. The more you can relate to the parent, the more comfortable they will feel. Meeting with parents before meetings is so helpful, and seems to put them more at ease, especially with initial referrals. – bt

The best advice that I learned was to focus on services when sharing news with families. The news can be hard for families to hear for the first time, so you have to be understanding and gentle. But getting everyone on the same page when talking about how to service the student goes a very long way to help put the family (and yourself) at ease. – Rob

My advice would be to put yourself in the parent's shoes and pretend you have to hear this information about your child and present in a tactful and respectful way. - Ashleigh Edwards 

Musings on Personal vs. Professional Lives

The best advice I've ever received was: don't let this job take over your life. While it can be very rewarding, this line of work can quickly become overwhelming. There is so much to do & never enough time to get everything done. If you aren't careful, you can get burned out. This is a hard thing for me to remember sometimes but over the years I've gotten better. :-) – Jenskaroo

For me the most important thing has been to learn how to balance work and personal life. We are much more effective when we take care of ourselves and not let our stress level get too high. Our job is never ending so don't ever expect to be "done". Learn to ask for help when you need it. A decade later and I still need to ask for help :) - Estella Castro 

Musings on Advocating for our Profession

There are so many things that come to mind, but I think the most important is make sure others know what it is that we do!! We do so many things on a day-to-day basis, beyond testing and attending meetings, and it is important that students, families, and school staff know what are training is and what we are able to provide to a school. I know that marketing ourselves might not seem to be an important job responsibility, but in these budgetary times... it is our MOST IMPORTANT TASK :) – Angie

When I went through training so many years ago....many many years ago or at least sometimes it seems that way, a professor told us not to take ownership of problems that weren't ours to own. That has been really good advice for times like when you have told another school professional for the umteempth time not to order the power hungry child because that just starts the power fight and yet on it goes. It just helps to be very clear about what you as a school psychologist can control and what you can't and just always give a situation your best. - Nancy Gregg 

Musings on Active Listening

Sometimes, you may be the only person your staff can turn to for personal support. Most of us have not been trained in adult therapy. Listen anyway. You can seek guidance if needed on referring out later on. - Colleen Allen

I have learned to take seriously my responsibility as a listener. In many cases students, staff and parents are seeking my advice but also have a genuine concern which needs to be expressed and heard. Additionally, we are all a team, including parents and need to work together to help students reach their maximum potential. You cannot change a student, but you can change an environment. I'm also a newbie and navigating the system is a challenge but I know I don't have to do it alone. - Sara Star 

My supervisor always reminds me to ask as many questions as possible and to remember that the teachers are human too! When they complain about a child it's not because they are bad people, it's because they are looking for someone to help them. Teachers really do care about their students despite what society tells us! -Dorice Moise  

… The most important and helpful key to survival for me is that I have learned to be an active listener. Instead of always contributing to the conversation, I have found that if we just let parents/teachers talk out their problems and concerns without interruptions, they can usually work out issues on their own. Sometimes, all our parents and teachers really want is someone to talk to to, someone to understand them, and someone there to provide support when they need it. Just showing that you genuinely care about what others have to say and understanding their perspective can make a world of difference when it comes to building quality relationships. – Dana Sharp

Musings on Relationships with Game Changers

My advice for a survival guide would be to remember that relationships with classified staff (secretaries, custodial staff, transportation, etc.) are just as important as relationships with certified staff. In some cases it is even more important because these staff members often literally hold the keys to the doors you need opened. - Kyle Carlin (the giveaway winner!!)

Relationships are key to creating systemic change. You can have all the policies, paperwork, and procedures in place and people won't change unless you first show trust and value in them as members of an important team. - Colleen Allen

...One of the biggest things that I learnt in my first year is the value of being within a TEAM!! Ask question after question to those in the field around you as we never stop LEARNING! Remember we are psychs but we work heavily with social workers, speech pathologists, Occupational therapists, paediatricians etc as they each have their own perspective on how they deal with a case so it is imperative we utilize our teams and other professionals to bring other perspectives in order to assist the child as best as possible!! :) - Sarah Maree 

Approach each child and adult with an open mind and an open heart. We are good about doing this for most children, but not always for the adults with whom we work. Some principals are having bad days. Some parents just lost their job. Other parents are so overwhelmed with their child's behavioral needs that they take it out on you. Then they apologize. I always thank them, because at least they are engaged enough to care. - Colleen Allen

I would say make positive relationships with everyone from parents, teachers, principals, secretaries, even janitors (they usually have the important keys!!) and also don't make assumptions about anyone or anything because there is usually a lot more to the situation, story, or circumstances you had no idea about in the first place! Oh and take time out to laugh... because if you get too caught up in the other stuff you might forget to smile from time to time. - Laura Pahls 

Find allies. It can be tough doing a job where you are usually the only one in the building. Find people who have your same vision and passion for children. They will fill your cup when it is getting low. - Colleen Allen

Musings on Interventions, Meetings, Testing, and Data

Every once in a while, as annoyed as you may be at the time (namely March-June when spring becomes a disabling condition), it IS helpful to test a kid who is NOT eligible. We tend to work mostly with low achieving or struggling kids (and in some locales, gifted) but we don't want to lose sight of what normal is. Everyone has something they're not good at. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses. Everyone has room for improvement. But that doesn't mean everyone is disabled. - Amy Cannava 

Avoid jargon and psycho-babble! I get really excited when I see a parent or teacher "take notes" while I'm presenting testing results because it means the information I'm giving them is helpful. - Kelly Backues 

Celebrate small victories. Change for adults and students does not happen overnight. I have seen the power of believing in positive growth. Those 9th grade boys labeled as "the number one behavior problem" in the school learn to change, even a little, by 10th grade. The teacher with poor classroom management generally learns some new approaches with the support of colleagues. Find at least one positive change made each day by your "toughest" student (or teacher). - Colleen Allen

Most of the time decisions are made harmoniously or a compromise is reached. Sometimes the answer is "no" - and I have learned to not take another's unpleasant reaction personally. - Cathy Gayda Tomes 

The relationship of the various subtest scores will reveal relative strengths. Explain to the parents, teachers and student how the student can use that particular (or those particular) strengths to improve performance in the area of greatest difficulty. Be creative! When creativity runs dry...look back through your PRIM manual to spark an idea. - Laura Kelley Gleichauf 

The one piece of advice that has helped me the most is "Let it go." I tend to ruminate on tough meetings, advocates' remarks, and other stressful aspects of the job. Learning to let go of the tougher aspects of the job have helped me to enjoy my job even more. – Megan C.

You'll always do better if you stop and think before you react to the "fires" people seek your assistance with. A calm well thought out reaction helps more than anything! Also, emphasize the positive!! - Jennifer Braden Kirkpatrick 

Musings on Making a Difference

Change does not occur overnight. Coming into a school district and creating effective change for students is a daunting task. When you are starting to feel like you are getting stuck, take a moment to reflect where things started. You will be surprised to realize how much has been accomplished-it just is a slow and gradual process! - Leigh Ann Weaver 

Persist - don't give up on the child, the teacher, the parent, the school or yourself. You can take things further, it might take years to make headway, the progress may not be what you expect... and then will take 2 steps back, but keep going. Come back and do it again, do it another way; persist. - Twin Beans 

Our work never ends and that can be overwhelming. My practicum supervisor once told me that we can never change the world in a day, but what is important is to spend every day trying to inspire those around us. This has definitely helped me to survive :) - Angela Mann 

Musings on Always Learning

Ask other colleagues when you are in doubt or need reassurance. Gather as much information as you can and then use common sense!! - Leigh Singleton Parmer 

…the one piece of advice that I have received and now share is to give yourself (new school psychologist) time and room to learn and grow. I've spent the first nine months of my job watching and listening, all the while I was treading water. ...I am already making plans of what I am going to do next year and how I am going to manage it. We often feel that after the many years of learning, training and preparation, we should drop into our new jobs and be able to function smoothly. Or at least I did. I've since learned this is not the case - it takes time to develop your own groove. For maybe the ONLY time in my working career, I am impatient for summer to come and go, because I am eager to start the new school year with all the great things that I've learned being on my own this year. – Mo

Steal! There are many, many gifted educators and clinicians in our field - don't reinvent the wheel but personalize the things others have created (always give credit, of course) and pass it on! - Amy Fortney Parks 

I'm still pretty new to the profession, but even if I wasn't, I have learned there will always be much more to learn, experience, and do. At first this was just overwhelming and at times made me feel incompetent even if I wasn't in others' views. I now try to look at it as Alzheimer's innoculation, constant opportunity to grow, never being bored, and a sign that I'm on the right track. I've also learned that I have to be willing to give others and myself a break-no one can be perfect and that should not be our goal… - Stephanie Strouse 

Something I've been learning for myself is just as we don’t expect our kiddos to get it perfect on their first try or every time we can have that same wiggle room for ourselves. Can't expect every behavior plan, intervention, meeting, etc to go on without a hitch. This has been especially important for my grad school learning curve and will help me in years to come :) - Erika Laura 

You absolutely cannot have all the answers. It's ok to say, "I'm not sure, let me look into that.” ...Melissa Roudis Potter 

Be confident. Finding the right balance of confidence (not arrogance) is crucial, especially in your first year. In order to be seen as a source of reliable information you need to approach situations confidently with both staff and parents. Of course this confidence should not be entered into blindly. If you don't know the answer to something, find someone who does. Always being prepared fosters the best type of confidence. - Tiffany Miller Powell

...the more a new professional/student learns about the profession and our best practices, the easier some of the large, seemingly daunting tasks will become. Right before starting internship and really getting out there to work, it can really feel overwhelming. It's common to feel unprepared, even if the graduate program you attended is well staffed and highly sought after. It's important for newbies to remember that the longer you work in the field, and develop your craft, the more refined and polished your professional skills will become. -Marcella Wright  

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The Tough Reality of Urban School Psychology and Making it Better

I received a question from a graduate student at CSULA on my Facebook page, which I wanted to share here as well:

 I am preparing an inservice for "Best practices in Urban School Psychology." I wanted to know what types of skills or skill set are most useful for an urban school psychologist? Also what are the most commonly faced issues?

After I responded briefly on Facebook, I got to thinking more and more, and realized what a special population I work with. While I am by no means the expert in urban school psychology, I can share some of the issues that I frequently face and what skills are helpful in my day-to-day work. 

Foster care and broken families go hand-in-hand. Many of the children I work with are not being raised by a typical family unit (i.e. mom and dad), but may be with auntie, uncle, grandma & grandpa, older sister, cousin, or another adoptive parent. There are a variety of reasons for this including, but not limited to, divorce, death of a parent, incarceration of a parent or family member, abandonment by a parent or family member, forced removal from the typical home, and the child running away.

Stemming from living in foster care or coming from a broken family, many students face issues relating to grief and loss. When a parent or family member leaves, passes away, is incarcerated, etc, it is an extremely traumatic experience for any child to deal with. Children feel all sorts of emotions that are not only difficult for them to understand, but require a great deal of support to attempt to overcome. Many kiddos always carry some kind of remnant that will never truly go away.

Atypical family units and grief can be the result of violence and abuse. There's no question that urban environments can breed a lot of bad situations and circumstances that can lead to violence and gang culture to survive. Unfortunately, innocent children are the ones metaphorically caught in the cross-hairs and affected by it, when they have the fewest coping skills. Abuse doesn't happen only in the city, but everywhere, and whether they witness it or are the one being abused, children suffer. In my building, we have had children lose siblings to gang violence, parents to domestic abuse, their homes to house fires, and their innocence to sexual abuse. These are seriously tough issues.

Poverty and homelessness are also big issues faced by the urban population. Some of my students live in "bad" neighborhoods, where they may hear gunshots next door, have to sleep on the floor with three little siblings because there is no bed, have to run the gas stove for heat, and have to count down the minutes til breakfast at school Monday morning, because they don't have food in the house. Some don't have a home at all, because they stay wherever they can--at the shelter, with auntie, in a hotel, with a friend, who knows. Going along with these issues is a lack of enrichment. When given the choice between having books in the house or dinner on the table, I know where my money would be going. Urban students often lack the exposure to things that more affluent students have, such as books, field trips, travel, art, theatre, etc. When they start school, they lack experience, which puts them even farther behind the 8-ball.

So what the heck can you do to help? First, the most important thing to realize is that you are one person, and you cannot change the environment, culture, lifestyle, or city in which your students live. Honestly, it's depressing and defeating, but it's the unfortunate reality. Although you cannot "save" them, you CAN do so much to make their lives better.

The biggest and most important skill I use with my kiddos is simply listening. There is so much going on in the lives of urban students that people don't realize, or don't care to realize. Being an attentive adult who listens to the stories, challenges, and triumphs of these students can sometimes be the smallest thing to you, but the biggest thing to them. Take an interest in them for who they are. Ask questions. Show them empathy. Make them feel validated and worthy. You may be the only person who asks them how their day was, what they had for dinner last night, what they think about an issue, what they did on Saturday, or what their dreams and aspirations are. Imagine what that means to them. Support them however you can, whether it's giving them a snack when they're hungry, putting a book in their hands, giving a hug, high-five, or a kind word, or providing enrichment opportunities like a field trip, new experience, and new way of thinking about things. They may never get these things otherwise. Teach them about things they never would have known before, or skills they need to survive. Coping skills that we use to get over minor upsets, like calm breathing and counting backwards, might be the difference in them getting out of a very bad situation safely. Social skills that help affluent children make friends might help urban kiddos fall in with the "right" group of kids and stay out of a gang.

Bottom line: I love my job.

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Making Response to Intervention More Accessible

I always have such great conversations and idea-bouncing with my email buddy, a school psychologist in Ohio. She emailed me today with a question/query/frustration that I'm sure TONS of us, including myself deal with: teacher push-back and reluctance to adopt the Response to Intervention (RTI) model. Here's some of what she had to say:

"Myself and another psych in the district are trying to create a framework and/or standard protocol model for the RtI process... [T]here is a great deal of talk about the resistance we are facing in developing an intervention framework... My frustration is trying to foster teacher buy in.... I want to move towards identifying students area of weakness, developing a student specific goal and then selecting the appropriate intervention for said deficit... Right now, the IAT type meetings {student support team meetings, I imagine} we have involve the teacher complaining, the Interv. Spec. doing a small reading group and DIBELS and in 4-6 weeks saying no progress-evaluate. UGH!"

Agreed, agreed, 100%! With RTI now the legal requirement for eligibility, the mode into special education is going to be changing a lot, potentially without a lot of support to the people who have to do and/or monitor the interventions: the teachers! No wonder they fight back... they don't have the support, training, time, or understanding of the model in order to implement RTI the way it's "supposed" to be done. It's much easier to stand by the old "test and place" or "discrepancy" models, which are not as fair to the child as RTI is.

My district is huge and there's no guidelines or mandates about how RTI should be done or what it's expected to look like, only that we have to be doing it. We have no specific intervention building staff, and some of our reading/math support staff don't work with the kids, only coach the teachers. We do have a lot of tutors come in from local colleges, and are putting before and after school tutoring/homework help in place, but it's hard to monitor.

I try to be basic with RTI for my teachers, and think about it more like differentiation than a separate intervention... I think people get scared by the term "intervention." What I've found in requiring academic RTI data is that teachers are doing way more differentiation than you and they realize, and when you're trying to scrounge things together, many things can be recorded as intervention. For instance: pre-teaching vocab, re-teaching lessons, shortened assignments, reduced items per page, graphic organizers/outlines, visual aids (i.e. a reminder card on the desk of steps for writing a paragraph), specially spaced lined paper, practice writing sight words in sentences, math manipulatives (tiles, cubes, counters, charts), etc. These are things teachers typically do in a classroom, but if only a few kids are getting it, it's an intervention. Sure, there are bigger things too, like special tutoring, small groups, individual pull-out, etc, but those are often too cumbersome, time-consuming, and disruptive for teachers to wrap their heads around.

My biggest obstacle is getting good, sold, appropriate data. I can get beautiful narratives and excellent information to fill into Individualized Education Plans (IEPs), but if I don't have the numbers, it's less than useful. We use the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELs) pretty extensively for reading assessment. Every kiddo gets a quarterly progress monitoring, and those who are at the strategic (1 year behind) or intensive (2+ years behind) level get monitoring much more often. Usually, I have to rely on DIBELs and reading program lesson tests (pre- and post-) for my data. What I found from past experiences is that you don't have to have nationally normed, well-known sources of data for it to be useful and meaningful. Using things like the Dolch word lists, Fry's high frequency words, and other DIBELs measures aside from Oral Reading Fluency (ORF) are useful too [Letter Naming Fluency (LNF), Initial Sound Fluency (ISF), Nonsense Word Fluency (NWF), and Phonemic Segmentation Fluency (PSF) are good for the little kiddos, especially to measure decoding interventions].

In short, I try to remember that teachers are limited in their time, resources, and ability to conduct interventions. Make it as simple yet effective as possible for them and give them easy data tracking ideas. Meet them where they are. Remind them of all the differentiation they actually do, and find away to quantify it.

Readers, please share how your school/district manages RTI! How do you get teachers to "buy in"? What do you do to help/field/alleviate their frustrations? What sources of data have you found to be easy yet effective to implement?

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So You Wanted Some Interview Questions

A recent discussion about interviewing for school psychologist positions brought about this blog post. A reader of the Notes from the School Psychologist blog posted on Dr. Branstetter's Facebook page for advice for an upcoming interview. I offered to send interview questions that I was asked to anyone interested, so here is the list! This is compiled from three different interviews.

• Tell us about your background and why you would like to work in this district.
• How do you view the role of the school psychologist? Why do you want to work in this profession?
• What did you like and dislike from your internship?
• What role does the school psychologist have in counseling, in a district that has a school counselor?
• What has been your most difficult experience thus far? How did you handle it? What do you wish you could have done differently?
• What is the role of a school psychologist in RTI? Describe your experience with RTI.
• How does the role of the school psychologist change at the elementary, middle, and high school level?
• Is there anything else about your experiences or personal attributes you want to share?
•  Describe your counseling experience, both group and individual.
• Describe your experience with students with severe emotional and/or behavioral problems.
• What is the role of the school psychologist in conducting and implementing FBAs and BIPs?
• What battery would you use to classify a student with a suspected learning disability?
• How would you classify a student as emotionally disturbed?
• Describe your organizational skills.
• Why should we hire you?   
• Describe your assessment skills, specifically how they relate to high schoolers. How does assessment differ between elementary and high school students?
• What is your experience with Brief Solution Focused Therapy? 
• What do you believe the role of the psychologist on a child study team is?
• How you would utilize RTI at the high school level. 
• What would you do to advocate for and support special education and self-contained students within general education?
• Describe any student crisis cases you have been involved in, and how you handled them.
• You are doing a reevaluation for a student who is classified LD, but who tests in the MR range. Previous testing results are congruent with an MR classification. In talking with the psychologist who conducted the previous evaluation, he reveals that the parent resisted an MR classification. How would you proceed?
• A parent calls you with concerns that their child’s testing modifications are not being implemented properly, and that their special education teacher is not adhering to their IEP. How would you proceed?
• When conducting an initial referral on a student with a suspected learning disability, your testing shows that the student does not qualify. Testing done at an outside agency reveals the same scores, and the psychologist there says the student does qualify. How do you proceed?
• A teacher comes to you with a referral for a student who has not received any RTI. How to you respond to the teacher?
• Writing Sample: Write a letter to parents at the high school. Describe your background and experiences. Tell them what you can offer them and their children and how you can be useful.   

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Question from a Student Reader

I got a question at my Facebook page, and I wanted to share my response for any other undergraduate students considering graduate school and a career in school psychology. Please share your own experiences as those who survived graduate school and found a successful career!

May I ask what it is that initially drew you to the field as an undergraduate student and how you went about securing yourself a place in a grad program? - Monica

My response:

I majored in psychology and sociology as an undergraduate and I always knew I wanted to work with children. My godmother is a school psychologist, so she made me aware of the field (because God knows no one really knows what we do unless they know a school psych). I knew I didn't have the patience to be a teacher, and didn't want to be a school counselor and do counseling/career involvement, so school psychology sounded like a great way to put my enjoyment of working with children and my love of psychology and the field of education together.

During my undergrad, I was a "psychology scholar" (honor given to 2 freshman every year, who then help professors with research and receive a small stipend for the duration of undergrad), secretary of Psi Chi, and a TA for three years for the statistics & research methods class. Any kind of stuff like that shows an involvement in and appreciation for the field will be great for a resume. I also did two semester long internships. My first one was with a social worker at an alternative school, for students who either had dropped out or who couldn't make it at the public high school and were there to get a GED. There, I did academic tutoring, individual counseling, and group social skills/life planning work. My second internship was with a school psychologist at a middle & high school. I got to do academic Response to Intervention (RTI) work with kindergarten classes using the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS), do screening tests for incoming students to the school, sit in on CSE meetings, observe students and gather behavioral data for intervention planning, and do a small group intervention on academic/organizational skills. Between the two of them, I got a great taste of the work that professionals can do to help students struggling in the classroom. I graduated a semester early from my undergrad program, and during the semester in between my graduation and when I started grad school, I continued working with kids at the local library, particularly with preschoolers.

I interviewed at a handful of graduate programs in the area, and I think that the fact that I had experience working with kids, had done research, understood the demands and expectations of a teacher (from my time as a TA, which was even discussed at my internship interviews), and understood the field all were factors that helped me get in. As a graduate student, I was on the interview panel in my 2nd and 3rd years to help choose the incoming 1st year graduate students. I can't remember exactly what our criteria were, but I know we looked at some of the following things in our candidates: experience with children, research experience/interests, why they want to be a school psychologist, knowledge about the field, and knowledge about education.

What drew you to the field of school psychology? How did you get into a graduate program? What advice do you have for students considering the field?

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