Keith J Topping, Elaine Smith, Wilma Barrow, Elizabeth Hannah, Claire Kerr. The Handbook of International School Psychology. Editor: Shane R Jimerson, Thomas D Oakland, Peter T Farrell. Sage Publications. 2007.
Context of Educational Psychology
Located on the northwestern rim of Europe, Scotland is one of four countries that make up Great Britain (along with England, Wales, and Northern Ireland). Scotland forms the northern part of the main island. Surrounded on three sides by sea, with the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west and the North Sea to the east, Scotland shares one land border, 60 miles long, with England to the south. Scotland covers an area of 31,500 square miles, is 274 miles long from north to south, and varies in breadth between 24 and 154 miles. Two thirds of the main landmass consists of mountains and high plateaus. Scotland also has 790 islands, 130 of which are inhabited. Edinburgh is the capital, and Glasgow is the largest city.
The Scots originally were Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, Germanic, and Norse peoples. Today, Scotland has a wide mix of ethnic, linguistic, and cultural groups, including Jewish, Italian, Chinese, and Afro-Caribbean people and those from the Indian subcontinent. Until 1707, Scotland was an independent country. In 1603, King James VI of Scotland succeeded to the throne of England, thereby uniting the two countries. In 1707, the union was formalized, and the Scottish Parliament dissolved. In 1997, the Scots voted in favor of devolution, and in May 1999, the Scottish Parliament was reconvened in Edinburgh. The Scottish Parliament has powers to decide matters relevant to Scotland, including education and law. The Westminster Parliament in London remains responsible for macroeconomic policy, defense, and foreign affairs. Until 1707, Scots was the official language of Scotland. However, the combined parliament decreed that English would be the official language. Thus, the use of Scots declined. Today, most Scots speak English. Around 58,500 Scots also speak Gaelic, a Celtic language similar to Irish, mainly in the north of the country and in the Western Isles.
The population of Scotland is just over 5 million, with 18% ages 16 and under, and 19% over 60. The overall population density is much lower than England’s, and most of the population is concentrated in cities. Whilst traditional heavy manufacturing industries, fishing, and agriculture have declined, other areas have seen growth, including tourism, retailing, beer and whisky production, public and service sectors, and high technology industries. Employment is at its highest level in many years. Average earnings are currently 436 (US$765) per week. The gross domestic product per capita is 16,400, or US$28,730 (Gateway to Scotland, 2005).
Number of School-Age Children and Number of Students
Preschool children. As of January 2004, the number of children in preschool programs was 160,000, representing 100% of 4-year-olds, 85% of 3-year-olds, 50% of 2-year-olds, 25% of 1-year-olds, and 13% of those under 1 year (Scottish Executive, 2004a).
School-age children. As of September 2004, 722,359 students were enrolled in local authority (school district) schools: 397,853 were in primary (elementary) schools, 317,494 in secondary (high) schools, and 7,400 in special schools. A further 30,000 were enrolled in private fee-paying schools (confusingly called “public” schools in the United Kingdom). In addition, 545 children were being educated at home, due to parental choice, and 1,300 were receiving education at home or in hospital due to ill health or other circumstances. The population is declining, due mainly to falling birth rates. By 2014, the school-age population is projected to decrease by 14% (Scottish Executive, 2004b).
Number of students with special needs. As of September 2004, approximately 33,000 students were identified as having special educational needs (i.e., 4% of the school population): 14,500 were in secondary schools, 11,000 in primary schools, and 7,400 in special schools. More students are expected to be mainstreamed in the future (Scottish Executive, 2000, 2005).
Tertiary education. Half of all school-leavers go on to further education college (specializing in vocational training) or higher education (i.e., university). More females than males (3:2) enter tertiary education, with males more likely to become employed immediately (3:2). Further education colleges currently have more than 618,000 students enrolled in full- or part-time courses, with 90,000 in vocational training and the remainder in nonvocational courses. There are 208,000 students enrolled in Scottish universities, approximately 50,000 of whom come from outside Scotland. A further 28,000 Scots attend universities in other parts of Britain. More than 50% of Scots between 18 and 30 years have a qualification from a university or are studying for one. More than a quarter of Scotland’s working population (18-64 years) has attended a university (Scottish Executive, 2004c).
Scotland’s Education System
Scotland’s education system always has been separate and different from that of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Since 1999, the first minister for Scotland and his ministers for education and enterprise and lifelong learning have been responsible for education. The Scottish Executive Education Department and the Scottish Executive Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Department are the corresponding administrative bodies. English is the main language of instruction, although Gaelic-medium education is used in some schools (Paterson, 1999).
Preschool education. Preschool education from age 3 through 5 is optional. A free nursery education is available in local authority, private, and voluntary centers for all children through the 2 years before they start primary (elementary) school (by age 5 and legally required after they reach their 5th birthday). A preschool curriculum framework guides development of key aspects of children’s development.
Compulsory full-time education. Between ages 5 and 16, children attend school for a minimum of 11 years. Children must begin primary education by the entry date after their 5th birthday. There is only one entry date each year in August. Thus, some children start school at age 4. Children move on to secondary school after 7 years in primary school (school years are named P1 through P7) and receive a minimum of 4 years in secondary education (i.e., S1 through S4), until the leaving date nearest to their 16th birthday. About 75% of Scottish students remain at school for S5 and S6 and leave when they are 17 or 18. Education is free in state schools. On average, 4% of the school-age population attends fee-paying private schools, with a higher percentage attending private schools at secondary than primary levels.
Although children usually attend their local school, parents may request another school of their choice. This practice is more common in cities than in rural areas. The majority (85%) of Scotland’s state schools are nondenominational (e.g., not religiously supported) schools. Most denominational schools are Roman Catholic. As of September 2004, there were 2,217 primary schools, 386 secondary schools, and 186 special schools/units. Typically the maximum class size was 30 in P1 though P3 classes and 33 in P4 through P7 classes. Classes composed of different ages or years generally have 25 students. By 2007, the Scottish Executive Education Department plans to reduce the class size to 25 in P1 through P3 classes and to 20 in math and English classes in S1 through S2 (Scottish Executive, 2004b).
Post-compulsory education (forages 16-18). Post-compulsory education is provided in secondary schools and in further education (vocational) colleges. Vocational training also is provided by independent trainers and on-site employers.
Tertiary education. Vocational further education, provided by more than 40 independent colleges, is funded through the Scottish Funding Council. Most students attend part-time.
Higher education takes place in 20 universities that offer undergraduate and postgraduate degrees. Study is usually full-time. Universities are funded by the Scottish Funding Council. Study through the Open University in Scotland also is possible. It currently offers distance learning courses to 15,000 students.
Origin, History, and Current Status of Educational Psychology
The terms educational psychology and educational psychologist (not school psychology and school psychologist) are commonly used in the United Kingdom. Professional educational psychology is the applied service-delivery form of academic educational psychology.
The statutory functions of educational psychology services in Scotland are unique in that they are broader than in many countries (MacKay, 1996, 1999). The functions are set out in the 1980 Education (Scotland) Act:
It shall be the duty of every education authority to provide for their area a psychological service, and the functions of that service shall include: (a) the study of children with special educational needs, (b) the giving of advice to parents and teachers as to appropriate methods of education for such children, (c) in suitable cases, provision for special educational needs of such children, and (d) the giving of advice to a local authority within the meaning of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 regarding the assessment of the needs of any child for the purposes of any of the provision of that or any other enactment. (quoted in MacKay, 1999, p. 842)
The major difference between the duties of Scottish educational psychologists and those in England and Wales is that these duties are all mandatory, not discretionary. Educational psychologists in England and Wales often carry out a broad range of tasks, but the duties required by law are narrow and limited to the assessment of children and young people in relation to special educational needs. In Scotland, the work of educational psychologists extends to children from birth through age 19 and may extend to age 24. Thus, educational psychology practices are not restricted to school-based services.
History
In Scotland, educational psychology is rooted in the study of individual differences and the child guidance movement. Psychology first was offered as a subject in universities at the end of the 19th century. At that time, Francis Galton, who was interested in the scientific study of children, was researching individual differences, and he invited parents and teachers to bring their difficult-to-manage children for assessment and advice on treatment. In 1913, Cyril Burt, who shared Galton’s interest in individual differences and the hereditary nature of intelligence, became the first professional educational psychologist in Britain after being appointed to London County Council. He began using psychometrics to assess and possibly categorize children.
The child guidance movement started in Scotland in the 1920s (McKnight, 1978) with the appointment of a child psychologist to Jordanhill College and Glasgow City. He was responsible for training teachers to work with those with mental handicaps and as a psychological adviser to schools. Educational clinics were established by bachelor’s-level psychologists in both Edinburgh and Glasgow universities to offer advice and support to teachers and parents on the management of children. These were the first child guidance clinics, although the first to be so called was the independent Notre Dame Child Guidance Clinic, established in Glasgow in 1931; it still provides services. These clinics relied on the services provided by a psychiatrist, educational psychologist, and social worker. Their work focuses mainly on emotional and behavioral difficulties (MacKay, 1999).
Legislative Influences
In 1937, Glasgow city established the first local authority child guidance service. Several other authorities followed. The Education (Scotland) Act (Scottish Office Education Department, 1980) empowered authorities to provide child guidance services with a range of functions, including determining which children required special educational treatment. Their functions became mandatory in the Education (Scotland) Act of 1969, when the terminology was changed from special educational treatment to special education. In 1980 and 1981, additional education legislation introduced the concept of special educational needs, thereby abolishing handicap categories, and introduced the record of needs (official individual educational plan) for children and young people with pronounced, specific, or complex special educational needs of a long-term nature. The role of the educational psychologist was extended to assessor and coordinator of this process.
In 1986, legislation renamed child guidance services as psychological services. Today, each of the 32 local authorities in Scotland has its own services. Some are known as educational psychology services, others as psychological services (but none as school psychology services). In 1995, the Children (Scotland) Act (Scottish Office, 1995) further defined the work of educational psychologists by extending the rights of children to have their views considered when decisions are being made about their care and education. More recently, the Standards in Scotland’s Schools Act (Scottish Executive, 2000) espoused a “presumption of mainstreaming for all children” to promote social inclusion and raise educational attainment, thus highlighting areas where educational psychologists could make further contributions. The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act (2004), implemented in 2005, supersedes much of the 1980-1981 legislation. It replaces the term special educational needs and the Record of Needs and introduces the concept of “additional support needs.” This embraces a much larger and broader population of children and young people and requires different procedures and documentation.
The Beattie Report (Scottish Executive, 1999) reviewed the range of needs amongst young people requiring additional support to make the transition to post-school education and training or employment. It recommended the development of a post-school educational psychology service for ages 16 through 24, which would complement the assessment and advice provided by colleges and training providers, contribute to contextual assessment which is solution-focused and consistent with inclusiveness, support the transition process, contribute to strategic developments at the regional or national level, and improve the understanding, skills, and effectiveness of service providers through consultation, training, and action research.
Since 2004, 12 educational psychologists have been providing post-school psychological services as described above. Their effectiveness is being evaluated, and recommendations about the future of these services will be made in 2006. The Currie Report (Scottish Executive, 2002) also had a major influence on educational psychologists’ services. It reviewed the provision of their services in Scotland and made a number of recommendations, including those detailed in later sections of this chapter.
Educational Psychology Service Delivery
Considerable geographical differences exist within Scotland. Thus, various models of service delivery can be found. The most common is the area model wherein an educational psychologist serves a general group of educational establishments and provides all needed services. Others use a sector model in which a psychologist or team of psychologists serves a particular sector (e.g., preschool, primary, secondary, or special provision). Some educational psychologists also may be responsible for work with a particular disability (e.g., hearing impairment). In a third model, the referral model, educational psychologists work with individual referrals as they arise. This model usually operates where staffing or geography does not lend itself to providing a school-based service (Scottish Executive, 2002).
The Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists audits the profession in Scotland. (Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists, 2005a). At the time of writing, the total number of established posts was 427.2 full-time equivalents, including 65.5 principal posts, 92.4 senior posts, 254.9 main grade posts, and 14.4 additional posts; minus 46.7 that were unfilled. The age profile of the educational psychologist is weighted toward the older end; 55% are over age 50 and another 22% are between 40 and 49. The majority of younger educational psychologists are female and thus more likely to take career breaks to meet family needs. A demographic time bomb is evident. Among undergraduate students, 70% of psychology students are female, and unsurprisingly, 65% of educational psychologists are female. However, more males than females occupy principal post positions (34:29.8), slightly more females than males are in senior post positions, (46.1:43.8), and many more females than males are in main grade positions (162:48.2). Educational psychologists’ salaries range from 34,113 (US$59,900) for newly qualified persons in their first year of practice to 55,713 (US$97,836). This is similar to other local authority education officers and managers. Some educational psychologists work in private practice on a self-employed basis and can earn more.
Infrastructure of Educational Psychology
The main representative body for psychologists in the United Kingdom is the British Psychological Society. Founded in 1901, it received its Royal Charter in 1965 when it was “charged with national responsibility for the development, promotion and application of psychology for the public good” (British Psychological Society, 2005b). The Scottish Branch, one of eight regional groups within the British Psychological Society, serves all members in Scotland. In 2001, a Glasgow British Psychological Society office was opened. There is recognition that Scotland has a context distinct from the rest of the United Kingdom, with its own parliament, legislation, and public policy. The Scottish Division of Educational Psychology, one of 10 Divisions within the British Psychological Society, serves the interests of educational psychologists in Scotland. It promotes educational psychology through dissemination of information, maintenance of professional standards, postgraduate training, and monitoring induction of probationer psychologists.
Powell (2005) provides an overview of the history of regulation of psychologists in the United Kingdom. In 1987, the Royal Charter was amended, allowing for the establishment of a voluntary register of chartered psychologists. Although the British Psychological Society considered and rejected proposals for statutory regulation by the Health Professions Council, Powell notes that the Society is not opposed in principle to regulation and has developed a range of self-regulation procedures. These include procedures for admission to a register, fitness to practice and professional conduct procedures, and requirements for continuing professional development. However, a major drawback of the current system is its voluntary nature. Psychologists are not required to register. A psychologist who is removed from the register may still practice.
The generic title “Chartered Psychologist” is used by psychologists who are registered. Legitimate use of the term Chartered Educational Psychologist requires the individual to be a member of an Educational Psychology Division in one of the four United Kingdom regions. Educational psychologists are usually employed by education authorities that stipulate that they should have a postgraduate qualification in educational psychology (currently a 2-year full-time program at a master’s-degree level in Scotland) and be eligible for chartered status with the British Psychological Society. Educational psychologists are required to follow the British Psychological Society professional Code of Conduct (1985) and the British Psychological Society Ethical Principles for Conducting Research With Human Participants (1992).
The Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004, enacted in November 2005, had major implications for special education services and the practice of educational psychology in Scotland. The term additional support needs replaced the term special educational needs. Additional support needs, a broader term, refers to any young person who, for whatever reason, requires additional support for learning. Possible barriers to learning include physical, social, emotional, family, and care circumstances. The Act imposes duties on education authorities to establish systems to identify and meet the additional support needs of young people. It imposes duties on other agencies (e.g., social work services and health boards) to work with education authorities.
The majority of young people with additional support needs will have individualized educational programs. For the minority of “children or young people who have enduring, complex or multiple barriers to learning and require a range of support from different services outwith [i.e., outside or beyond] education” (Education [Additional Support for Learning] [Scotland] Act, 2004, p. 24, italics added), Coordinated Support Plans will be developed. The Act extends the rights of parents of young people with additional support needs for whom a Coordinated Support Plan is required. Those ages 16 and over have the same rights as their parents. Every education authority has a duty to provide a free independent mediation service for parents of young people with additional support needs. Independent tribunals hear formal appeals relating to Coordinated Support Plans. The Scottish Division of Educational Psychology (2005a) welcomed the new Act but raised questions pertaining to implementation. The Division proposes that assessment for additional support needs to be embedded in a staged process coordinated by school personnel and that the Coordinated Support Plan incorporate available learning and care plans, thereby improving uniformity of practice across the 32 authorities.
The main professional journals read by educational psychologists are The British Journal of Educational Psychology (published by the British Psychological Society), Educational Psychology in Practice (Carfax Publishing), Educational and Child Psychology (produced by the Division of Educational and Child Psychology and published by the British Psychological Society), Educational Psychology in Scotland (produced by the Scottish Division of Educational Psychology and published by the British Psychological Society), The Psychologist (published by the British Psychological Society), and Debate (produced by the Division of Educational and Child Psychology and published by the British Psychological Society).
Preparation of Educational Psychologists
Two full-time 2-year professional training programs prepare educational psychologists (i.e., certify their fitness to practice) at the universities of Dundee and Strathclyde. Both programs are accredited by the British Psychological Society and are delivered in partnership with Scottish local authority psychological services, which provide practical placements. These programs admit and graduate in alternate years. Minimum requirements for entry are an undergraduate honors degree in psychology which meets the criteria for the Graduate Basis for Registration as defined by the British Psychological Society, at least 2 years experience working with children and young people, and high competence in the English language.
Training is firmly rooted within study of the discipline of psychology. Effective application of this to educational issues at child, class, family, school, community, school district, and national levels is necessary for competent practice. Training is underpinned by the scientist-practitioner and reflective-practitioner models. Practitioners are encouraged to be critical, self-aware, and reflective in their practices. The British Psychological Society Code of Conduct and Ethical Principles (British Psychological Society, 1985, 1992) also inform training. A philosophy emphasizing equality of opportunity and the celebration of human diversity underpins a collaborative problem-solving approach.
The two graduate programs integrate academic study, practice-based learning, and research components, and are delivered at a postgraduate master’s level. The curriculum promotes the development of attitudes, skills, and knowledge in relation to (a) normal and exceptional child development, (b) assessment and intervention methods, both at individual and systemic levels, (c) the range of contexts and systems within which children and young people function, (d) research and evaluation methodologies, and (e) transferable andinterpersonal skills. Although a range of theories is introduced, social-interactive, ecological, organizational, and systemic theories predominate.
Local educational psychology services provide supervised practice placements for students. The weekly pattern involves 2 days of academic work at the university, 2 days of practical placement, and 1 day of independent study. Practice learning is supplemented through additional full-time but short-term placements in psychological services. These programs lead to professional qualification as an educational psychologist with a master’s degree in educational psychology. They also lead to eligibility for registration as a chartered psychologist after a probationary year of supervised practice in employment. Currently, 27 trainees are in the Dundee program (http://www.dundee.ac.uk/fedsoc/mscedpsy/), and 24 are in the Strathclyde program. Students who will subsequently work in Scotland receive financial support from the central Scottish government during training, covering university tuition fees and living expenses. The number of funded places and level of funding provided have increased progressively over the years in response to demographic projections of an aging profession, the extension of services to age 24, and recognition of the importance of the work done by educational psychologists.
The British Psychological Society Subject Benchmarks in Educational Psychology (2005a) delineate the required core competencies in knowledge, understanding, and professional skills for practice in the United Kingdom. The training committee of the Scottish Division of Educational Psychology monitors quality and standards of training in Scotland and has developed a core developmental curriculum for training programs (Scottish Division of Educational Psychology, 2005b). It includes the following:
- Promote effective communication and interpersonal skills (e.g., consultation, negotiation and interpersonal skills with a range of young people and adults in a variety of contexts, and skills to manage and contribute to meetings, including delivering presentations and working collaboratively).
- Promote development within contexts (e.g., understanding the impact of barriers to learning across a range of contexts together with knowledge and understanding of local and national policy and legislation).
- Facilitate change via assessment and intervention (e.g., knowledge and skills in utilizing problem-solving models in a collaborative manner to facilitate change, with an understanding of a range of assessment and intervention approaches and their effectiveness mediated by contexts, and an ability to gather and synthesize needs assessment information, and plan, execute, and evaluate interventions).
- Promote research and evaluation (e.g., skills in conducting research and in using research critically to inform practice and policy in an evidence-based manner).
- Acknowledge frameworks for professional practice (e.g., skills and frameworks for working within and across many interfacing contexts, drawing on psychological theories, legislation, and an understanding of organizations and consultation models).
- Prepare providers to display autonomy in the delivery of core elements.
Existing programs differ somewhat in their learning and teaching approaches and emphases. For example, the Dundee program adopts a problem-based learning approach and places more emphasis on a research thesis.
Three routes exist for optional extension of training to the doctoral level, two of which are available by distance learning and research. They offer full- or part-time study. They do not certify fitness to practice as an educational psychologist.
These include a professional doctorate in educational psychology (http://www.dundee.ac.uk/fedsoc/research/degrees/DEdPsy/), an accelerated or regular doctorate in educational psychology (http://www.dundee.ac.uk/fedsoc/research/degrees/PhDEdPsy/), and a continuation doctorate in educational psychology for those completing the 2-year master’s programs in Scotland.
Roles, Functions, and Responsibilities of Educational Psychologists
Educational psychology services in Scotland constantly face new opportunities and challenges. Legislative and policy developments reflect an underlying philosophical shift from a deficit model to one of rights and entitlement, resulting in significant impacts on the role of educational psychologists. Key developments influencing their practice are listed here.
Integrated or “joined-up” working. Attempts are made to coordinate service delivery across agencies working with children and young people, enabling planning for and delivering holistic assessments and interventions whilst minimizing the intrusion in the lives of children and their families.
Promotion of social inclusion in education. Educational psychologists have a key role in supporting and developing inclusive approaches to the education of all children and young people.
Development of post-school psychological services. Educational psychologists assist vulnerable young people to make successful transitions into adulthood.
Consultation with children and young people and their parents. Educational psychologists endeavor to help these client groups participate actively in bureaucratic and legalistic decision making regarding their own futures.
Nationally, information on the roles, functions, and responsibilities of educational psychologists were set out in the Review of Provision of Educational Psychology Services in Scotland (Currie Report; Scottish Executive, 2002). Educational psychologists operate at various systemic levels: the individual and family, the school or other establishment (e.g., community family centre), and the wider local authority. Within each level, educational psychologists have five core functions—assessment, intervention, training, consultation, and research—in which they operate at the levels of child and family, school or establishment, and local authority (school district). In practice these overlap, as in the following examples: (a) consultation at the level of child or family (e.g., home visit to parents or other domestic carers) to discuss supporting a child’s learning at home; (b) intervention at the level of school or establishment (e.g., contribution to an entire school peer-support initiative); and (c) research at the level of local authority or council (e.g., design, implement, and evaluate a systemwide initiative on thinking skills).
Local authority psychology services differ in the range of functions they perform and the extent to which they operate at all levels. Some services emphasize entire schoolwide or authority-wide practice. Others emphasize work with individuals and families. Differences also exist in the degree of professional autonomy afforded to individual psychologists—qualities that also contribute to variety in practice. The following section discusses how some core functions of psychologists work in practice.
Assessment
Educational psychologists are involved in assessing learning, behavior, and social/emotional functioning. Historically, psychometric approaches have been emphasized. However, ecological and social-constructivist theories now inform assessment. An increasing number of educational psychologists use approaches such as dynamic assessment (the child’s learning in response to adult mediation is assessed; e.g., Lidz, 1987), play-based assessment, curriculum-based assessment, and direct observation. The Additional Support for Learning Act (2004) gives parents the right to request psychological assessment. The Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists has produced assessment guidance (Association of Scottish Principal Educational Psychologists, 2005b) in an effort to encourage a more coherent approach to such requests. This allows for a variety of approaches but emphasizes that assessment should be contextualized, minimally intrusive, able to inform intervention, and take into account the views of the child or young person.
Many educational psychologists no longer use psychometric tests at all, and many more use them very sparingly in conjunction with observational and other ecologically valid and dynamic forms of assessment. Tests of achievement are more likely to be given by teachers than psychologists, and they include group and individual norm-referenced tests of reading, spelling, and mathematics (e.g., Neale Reading Test, National Foundation for Educational Research [NFER] 5-16 Group Reading Test). General intellectual tests administered individually by psychologists include the British Abilities Scale and the Wechsler Intelligence Scales. Personality tests have rarely been used. A variety of behavior and social skills checklists are used (e.g., Spence social skills checklist), but these are mostly criterion-referenced rather than standardized.
Approaches to Intervention
Some services use consultation as the main model of service delivery (Wagner, 2000), with the goal to provide the most efficient, effective, and least intrusive methods for deploying scarce psychological resources. This targets support for those closest to the child or young person. There is debate about the place of individual therapeutic intervention. Some educational psychologists would like to do more but systemic or other administrative work pressures (the Currie Report; Scottish Executive, 2002) discourage engagement in therapeutic services. Interest in approaches that identify and build skills and strengths has grown, including solution-focused brief therapy (de Shazer, 1988), person-centered planning (Mount, 1992), and video interactive guidance (http://www.cpdeducation.co.uk/veroc/). These can be used at individual and systemic levels. Practice also can develop to reflect local needs or contexts (e.g., the use of eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, developed following the specialist training of a small group of psychologists in the aftermath of a critical incident in a primary school in Dunblane (O’Connor, 1999).
Research
The need to further develop the research role of educational psychologists has been well documented (MacKay, 2002). A national program funded by the Scottish central government supports groups of psychologists to conduct research relevant to the profession (e.g., on resilience; see http://www.ltscotland.com/pdp). A number of services now employ research assistants and operate bounded research and development projects to ensure that time and resources are protected for this purpose.
Supervision of Educational Psychologists
There is no single model of supervision. Supervision can be formal and/or informal, peer based, and/or hierarchical. Psychologists trained in particular techniques, such as video interactive guidance, receive additional specific supervision.
Current Issues Impacting Educational Psychology
Many interesting issues await future clarification. These include whether the latest round of legislation will consume more or less psychological time in procedural or administrative work concerning special needs, rather than direct service delivery; whether the specialty will move to doctoral preservice training, and if it does, whether this will this be cost-effective; and whether doctoral preparation and any increased focus on administrative tasks are in conflict.
Educational psychologists wrestle with other questions. As boundaries between children with and without special needs blur, given an inclusive mainstreamed environment, will educational psychologists be effective in promoting educational attainment and enhance social competence for all children? Major national curriculum reviews are under way in both Scotland and England. One wonders to what extent educational psychologists are contributing to these efforts. Issues include how educational psychologists can meet the challenges of delivering effective services for 16- to 24-year-olds, what are the needs of such clients, and what are the most relevant applied psychology services.
What is the unique added value of educational psychologists, and what distinguishes their services from those provided by other applied psychologists and indeed from other professions? Are they experts who can inform clients what to do (and if so on what evidential basis?), or are they postmodern facilitators of change (if so, how do they differ from other facilitators)? What assessments should be used for what purposes in the light of conflicting views on the reliability, validity, impact on practice and policy, and cost-effectiveness of different forms of assessment?
Given that educational psychologists are few in number, how should their time be allocated to the needy and less needy and to different systemic levels of service? Does equal opportunity imply offering an equal service or ensuring equal and effective outcomes from services? These and other issues merit rigorous scholarship, not merely opinionated debate.
However, there are other, more outward-looking research questions needing answers. What are the most effective ways of raising achievement and enhancing social competence for different populations and contexts? For these, to what extent are interventions linked with positive outcomes? What interventions have a durable impact under less than ideal circumstances? What evidence of cost-effectiveness is there?
Although psychological services may not be able to mount research on all or many topics, they need to be persistent and critical consumers and disseminators of research gathered systematically rather than haphazardly or selectively. However, research and other forms of scholarship are only the beginning. Knowledge transfer to many other stakeholders in ways that impact practice and policy also is needed. How to effectively apply social psychology for this purpose also merits further study.