Rick Jay Short

The 2002 Conference on the Future of School Psychology: Implications for Consultation, Intervention, and Prevention Services.

In November 2002, the multisite Conference on the Future of School Psychology was sponsored by major professional associations of school psychologists. Conference goals included achieving consensus on current and future demands for school, conceptualizing the practice of school psychology in the face of diminishing numbers and increasing demand for services, and developing an agenda to use school psychology resources to maximize the benefits to the children and schools. Consultation, intervention, and prevention were major themes in all conference activities. The present article provides an overview of the conference and a summary of issues and outcomes from the conference that relate to educational and psychological consultation services.

Effects of teacher assistance teams on special education referrals in elementary schools.

School-based problem-solving teams recently have received much attention as a possible support for children who are at risk for school failure and for over-referral to special education. However, no controlled studies of the effects of such teams on numbers of referrals for special education or for proportion of appropriate referrals for special education have been conducted. The lack of adequate research concerning school-based problem-solving teams, coupled with the widespread promotion of their use, suggests that further study of such teams is important. In this study, we investigated the effect of one team model, Teacher Assistance Teams, on special education referrals in elementary schools of a large urban district. To address limitations of previous research, schools with such teams were compared with those without across several years of implementation. Analysis yielded a significant decrease in referrals in both groups of schools but no significant differences between groups. These findings may be explained by the context in which both groups of schools functioned.

Follow-Up to the 2002 Futures Conference: Collaborating to Serve All Children, Families, and Schools.

Recommendations of the Thayer, Spring Hill, and Olympia conferences are examined as they relate to ways we can support and make positive contributions to students, families, and schools. In the current issue of the Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation, Hatzichristou and Lampropoulou (this issue), Meyers, Meyers, and Grogg (this issue), Nastasi (this issue), and Wizda (this issue) share important insights that can guide efforts to implement ideas discussed at the recent 2002 Futures Conference. Their ideas, along with literature on the public health model, are discussed. Points are made about the move to evidence-based interventions, as well as the use of Internet technology to facilitate collaboration and follow-up to the 2002 conference.