School Psychology: Program Goals, Objectives, and Competencies

To prepare effective practitioners to work with children, families, schools, and other systems, the faculty has organized doctoral training around five main goals. These goals are sub-divided into distinct objectives and competencies subsequently evaluated by a number of student skills or outcomes. These competencies are measured regularly via multiple methods, including but not limited to: annual feedback throughout student’s doctoral training; master’s exam; program of studies; praxis exam; preliminary exam; practicum evaluations; research portfolio; qualifying exam; dissertation proposal; and the dissertation defense. All of these components serve a tri-fold purpose: 1.) to assure that students are meeting competency benchmarks expected of them at their various stages of training; 2.) to inform student advisement, provide on-going feedback, and extend the faculty-student relationship that will help the student make progress and succeed in the program; and 3.) to provide data for the faculty as to whether the training students receive in the doctoral program is effective in achieving these competencies and to use this information as formative feedback for program monitoring and continual improvement.

Goal # 1: To train future school psychologists in becoming data-based decision makers in the assessment of learning, behavioral, and social-emotional difficulties of children and adolescents.

Objectives:

• Students will display entry-level competency in conducting traditional and non-traditional assessments for learning problems with diverse populations.
• Students will display entry-level competency in conducting behavioral and non-standardized assessments with diverse populations.
• Students will display entry-level competency in conducting socio-emotional assessments with diverse populations.

Competencies:

• Students will display entry-level competencies in appropriately identifying child and adolescent academic, behavioral, and social-emotional referral concerns.
  
• Students will exhibit entry-level competencies in assessing child and adolescent learning, behavioral, and socio-emotional functioning using technically-adequate instruments.

Goal #2: To train future school psychologists in delivering evidence-based interventions that promote the academic, behavioral, and social competencies of children and adolescents.

 Objectives:

• Students successfully direct both individual and group interventions that are scientifically grounded in research effectiveness.
• Students will be able to develop effective, evidence-based intervention plans via the problem-solving model across a variety of educational contexts.
• Students will use multi-method, multi-informant data to guide the selection of evidence-based interventions.

Competencies: 

• Students will develop appropriate recommendations for student programming and intervention driven by data gathered from multi-method, multi-informant assessments.
• Students will identify and implement child and adolescent evidence-based interventions for social/emotional/behavioral disorders and the symptoms of these disorders.

Goal #3: To train future school psychologists who will possess and uphold ethical and legal standards of professional and personal ethical conduct.

Objectives:

• Students will obtain knowledge of ethical, legal, and professional issues relevant to the field of psychology (both in schools and other settings).
• Students will demonstrate professional and personal behavior in their graduate, practicum, and other training settings that is consistent with ethical and legal standards of practice.

Competencies: 

• Students will have entry-level skills in describing the ethical, legal, and professional issues that pertain to the practice of psychology (in schools and in other settings).
• Students will have entry-level competence in conducting themselves in ways that meet all appropriate ethical, professional, and legal standards.
• Students will have entry-level competence in responding to ethical case vignettes that require them to use the Ethical Problem Solving Model in working through ethical dilemmas.

Goal #4: To train future school psychologists to uphold professional standards of practice with regard to communication and interpersonal skills in the effective delivery of psychological services.

Objectives:

• Students will be able to demonstrate entry-level interviewing and counseling skills when working with clients.
• Students will effectively engage in consultation-based activities via their communication and interpersonal skills.

Competencies:

• Students will demonstrate entry-level skills in interacting with students, teachers, and parents while engaged in professional practice.
• Students will have the following interpersonal abilities (including, but not limited to): listening and being empathetic to others; respecting others’ opinions, effectively communicating one’s ideas; accepting constructive criticism and being open to feedback and suggestions.
• Students will use these interpersonal and communication-based skills to work effectively with others in a consultative relationship that will ultimately improve client outcomes.

Goal #5: To train future school psychologists to work within culturally-diverse settings and to employ a social justice lens in their work as practitioners. Students will possess knowledge of culturally-appropriate assessment, intervention, and consultation techniques.

Objectives:

• Students will possess knowledge of evidence-based interventions appropriate for diverse populations.
• Students will become advocates of social justice change with regard to resolving educational inequities across disadvantaged and marginalized groups.

Competencies:

• Students will be able to discuss the potential impact of a child’s diverse background on assessment, intervention, and consultation results or processes.
• Students will be able to describe and implement appropriate interventions for diverse populations.
• Students will describe how their role as school psychologists will help facilitate systemic or individual change in remediating inequities for disadvantaged and marginalized groups.