Fraser Lauchlan

Applied psychology and the case for individual casework: some reflections on the role of the educational psychologist

The authors consider the changing role of educational psychology in the current era and emphasise the importance of casework‐based interventions not only for influencing systemic work but also for maintaining credibility within the educational marketplace. With in‐school counselling and intervention becoming more popular, the natural providers of this service should be educational psychologists but this may not be the case in many local authorities. The authors consider the possibility of the profession becoming obsolete if there is a continuation of the move away from individual interventions to a more consultative based approach.

Bilingualism in Sardinia and Scotland: Exploring the cognitive benefits of speaking a ‘minority’ language

The research reports on a study investigating the cognitive benefits of bilingualism in children who speak the minority languages of Sardinian and Scottish Gaelic, in addition to their respective ‘national’ languages of Italian and English. One hundred and twenty-one children, both bilingual and monolingual, were administered a series of standardised cognitive ability tests targeted at the four areas that have been previously shown to be advantageous to bilingual children in the literature, namely, cognitive control, problem-solving ability, metalinguistic awareness and working memory. The bilingual children significantly outperformed the monolingual children in two of the four sub-tests, and the Scottish children significantly outperformed the Sardinian children in one of the sub-tests. The differences found were largely due to the superior performance of the Scottish bilingual children who receive a formal bilingual education, in contrast to the Sardinian bilingual children who mostly only speak the minority language at home. The implications of the results are discussed.

Dynamic assessment and its potential for educational psychologists : Part 2 - the zone of next development

This article continues the discussion about dynamic assessment begun in the last edition of this journal (Elliott, et al, 1996). It extends Elliotts (1993) analysis by exploring some of the reasons why dynamic assessment has not yet become a significant part of the practice of educational psychologists. It is hoped that both articles will contribute to current professional debate about the need to broaden our existing repertoire of assessment approaches ‐indeed, our zones of next development.

Dynamic assessment and its potential for educational psychologists. Part 1: theory and practice

Summary This article comprises two parts. This part provides an introduction to dynamic assessment, and in particular the work of Feuerstein, Tzuriel and their colleagues in Israel. A case example is outlined, in which dynamic assessment materials developed by Tzuriel are used. Part 2 of this article, to be published in the next issue of this journal, discusses some of the possible reasons why dynamic assessment, despite its value, has not yet become a significant feature of educational psychologists’ practice.

The advance of research and evaluation skills by EPs: implications for training and professional development

Research and evaluation has become increasingly important in many professions, including educational psychology, particularly as the profession moves to becoming more evidence‐based in its practice. The recent move to a three year doctoral programme in England, Wales and Northern Ireland may be viewed as a positive one in developing research skills, although it is also crucial to consider what could be done to extend the research skills of those already qualified. Lessons may be learned by looking to clinical psychology and some of the health professions. Finally, some further implications for the training and professional development of Educational Psychologists (EPs) in the UK are considered.

Feeding back the results of dynamic assessment to the child

The primary objective of this research study was to investigate the perceived effects of feeding back the results of dynamic assessment to the child verbally and through the medium of video. Fourteen children, aged 6 – 11 years, and their class teachers were involved in the research. The children and teachers were interviewed prior to the DA session, and then again approximately 6 weeks after a feedback session. Thematic analysis was undertaken for coding and interpreting primary data, using both a computer software package QSR NVivo 7 and manual methods of sorting and categorizing. Results demonstrated that feeding back the results of dynamic assessment to the child led to perceptions of positive change from both teachers and children, and that using video to feedback is particularly helpful. A number of methodological strengths and weaknesses are discussed, and implications for practice are explored. Further research, building on this study, could explore the outcomes of the educational psychologist consulting with the child about their perceptions of the support they require, rather than only feeding back assessment results to them. This could lead to the child being involved at the start of the assessment and intervention cycle, leading to their greater engagement with the change process.

Promoting positive emotional health of children of transient armed forces families

The focus of this research was to promote emotional health in a small primary school (n = 180), with a highly transient pupil population of armed forces children (Service children). Negative effects of pupil mobility have been found to relate to academic attainment (Dobson, Henthorne, & Lynas, 2000; Mott, 2002), but its effect on social and emotional development is less specific. A multi-stranded approach to intervention was used, which included the delivery of pilot curricular materials on emotional literacy to two classes in the school, an educational programme (Seasons for Growth) delivered to a smaller group of pupils and the development of a specific critical incident policy in the event of a casualty notification. Post-intervention, evaluation measures did not point to increases in pupils’ emotional literacy scores but the qualitative data indicated that the emotional literacy curriculum did receive positive ratings by pupils and staff. Findings suggest the importance of an emotional health curriculum for a mobile school community and the role of parental involvement to sustain curricular interventions. Further research could investigate the extent of behavioural and emotional difficulties for mobile pupils across primary and secondary schools and the effect of a whole school approach to emotional literacy for this group of pupils. Implications for Educational Psychologists’ (EP) practice indicate an increasing role in psycho-education and integrated work with health agencies.