School Psychology annual journal update: Revising open science standards.

School Psychology is an outlet for research on children, youth, educators, and families that has scientific, practice, and policy implications for education and educational systems. In this editorial, annual updates are provided regarding journal impact, award winners, special topics, and editorial leadership, as well as reflections on how the journal engages in the open science process to promote transparency, rigor, and reproducibility in the science produced in the field of school psychology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Meta-analysis of skill-based and therapeutic interventions to address math anxiety.

The purpose of this meta-analysis was to examine the impact of school-based therapeutic and math skill interventions on math anxiety symptoms and math achievement among K-12 students. Potential moderators included treatment type and study quality. A systematic search yielded 17 included studies representing 1786 primary and secondary students. The results suggested that therapeutic interventions reduced math anxiety symptoms (gav = -0.51) better than math skill interventions (gav = -0.32) and math skill interventions improved math achievement (gav = 0.76) more than therapeutic interventions (gav = 0.12). Moderator analysis indicated that when accounting for study quality, the differences between intervention type were not significant for either of the outcome measures (i.e., achievement and math anxiety). Theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Review of curriculum-based measurement in mathematics: An update and extension of the literature.

The purpose of this literature review on curriculum-based measurement in mathematics (CBM-M) was to update and extend the Foegen et al. (2007) progress monitoring in mathematics review. We included 99 studies focused on at least one of the three stages of CBM research (i.e., one point in time [screening], repeatedly over time [progress monitoring], and instructional utility) in mathematics for students in preschool through Grade 12. The results of this review indicated that researchers have increased the amount of research conducted at the early mathematics and secondary levels; however, many studies focused on the stages of CBM research are still conducted at the elementary level. The results also demonstrated that most studies (k = 85; 85.9%) were focused on Stage 1, with fewer studies reporting results related to Stage 2 (k = 40; 40.4%) and Stage 3 (k = 5; 5.1%). The results of this literature review also underscore that although considerable growth has been achieved in the past 15 years in CBM-M development and reporting, next steps in research include a focus on investigating the uses of CBM-M for progress monitoring and instructional decision making.

School Psychology annual journal update.

School Psychology is an outlet for research on children, youth, educators, and families that has scientific, practice, and policy implications for education and educational systems. In this editorial, annual updates are provided regarding journal impact, special topics, and editorial leadership, as well as reflections on how the journal engages social justice and antiracism through dynamic review and revision to ensure equity, diversity, and inclusion in the editorial process. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

Growth & change in School Psychology.

School Psychology is an outlet for research on children, youth, educators, and families that has scientific, practice, and policy implications for education and educational systems. In this editorial changes and growth in the journal over the past year pertaining to current and future journal impact, special topics, and editorial leadership are described. Advancements for School Psychology in terms of equity, diversity, and inclusion in the editorial process is reflected upon. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Examining the impact of a tutoring program implemented with community support on math proficiency and growth.

The current study evaluated the impact of a math tutoring program delivered in 20 schools to students in 4th through 8th grades by community members over one academic year. Students were randomly assigned to treatment and control groups. Multi-level linear and generalized linear mixed models were used to evaluate group differences in post-test scores and the probability of attaining the spring proficiency benchmark on two increasingly distal measures of math achievement. Intent-to-treat analyses identified higher achievement scores among students assigned to treatment on a measure of fact fluency and a computer adaptive measure of overall math achievement. Students assigned to treatment also had a higher probability of reaching grade-level benchmarks on the computer adaptive test. No statistically significant effects were observed on a state proficiency test. Implications for significant and null findings are discussed within the context of intervention content and delivery.

School Psychology vision for the future.

School Psychology is an outlet for research on children, youth, educators, and families that has scientific, practice, and policy implications for education and educational systems. In this editorial, the new leadership team is introduced and the vision for the journal over the next 4 years is articulated. Current and future journal operations, special topics, and opportunities for article dissemination are provided. Promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in the editorial process is described along with considerations of the open science movement within School Psychology. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

School Psychology reflections on COVID-19, antiracism, and gender and racial disparities in publishing.

School Psychology is an outlet for research on children, youth, educators, and families that has scientific, practice, and policy implications. The novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has significantly disrupted K-12 schooling as well as university training, impacting educational attainment and highlighting longstanding inequality. Furthermore, the killing of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd has precipitated worldwide protests against antiblack racism, white supremacy, and police brutality. In this editorial, we highlight the potential impacts to our field, including prioritizing research related to educational equity, identifying new research questions related to technology, and utilizing new research methods. We also consider the impact of gender and racial disparities in publications during this time. Finally, given these events, we discuss how best our editorial team can serve the field. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Retrospect and prospect regarding school psychology scholarship: Reflections of Lightner Witmer award winners.

This article provides reflections on several key elements important for establishing and sustaining successful research trajectories and scholarship within the field. Developed by several Lightner Witmer Award recipients, the article highlights several of Lightner Witmer's experiences and pioneering contributions, including the importance of his own mentors, collaborations with interdisciplinary professionals, and his emphasis on the relevance of scientific research programs and the practical implications for helping children. In an effort to move the field forward, we discuss important elements relevant to developing and sustaining successful research programs in school psychology including the importance of mentorship, collaboration, research methodologies, replicability, extramural funding, and dissemination. Throughout, we emphasize the importance of conducting research within the school context, which is consistent with the important influence of ecological systems articulated by Conoley, Powers, and Gutkin (2020), and reflects the hallmark of school psychology scholarship as an applied science. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Academic journals can and should contribute to the future of school psychology.

In this Perspective, Rich Gilman and Robin Codding (the current and outgoing editors of School Psychology) respond to Conoley, Power, and Gutkin's views of the role of academic journals to advance professional paradigm shifts. Based on both historical trends and current readership data, the authors provide several reasons that academic journals have and will continue to be a primary forum for discourse on how school psychology should evolve as a discipline. Nonetheless, academic journals have inherent limitations that hinder this discourse. The paper concludes with several recommendations that could enhance the contributions of academic journals to these discussions. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

CBM Reading, Mathematics, and Written Expression at the Secondary Level: Examining Latent Composite Relations Among Indices and Unique Predictions With a State Achievement Test.

A paucity of research has examined the utility of curriculum-based measurement (CBM) for data-based decision making at the secondary level. As schools move to multitiered systems of service delivery, it is conceivable that multiple screening measures will be used that address various academic subject areas. The value of including different CBM indices measures is not well understood. The purpose of this study was to (a) examine the relationship among a variety of reading, writing, and mathematics CBM indices administered to 249 seventh-grade students; (b) investigate amount and patterns of growth; and (c) examine predictive validity to a high-stakes state test using latent factor analysis and multiple indicator growth models. Results indicated strong correspondence among CBM types for fall static scores but weak relationships among slopes. Different patterns of growth were yielded for CBM writing than for CBM reading and mathematics. Findings from this study suggested that although reading, mathematics, and writing CBM were independently and moderately related to both English Language Arts and Math test scores, reading was the strongest predictor when all 3 CBM constructs were considered jointly.

Evaluating the impact of feedback on elementary aged students' fluency growth in written expression: a randomized controlled trial.

The purpose of this randomized controlled trial was to evaluate elementary-aged students' writing fluency growth in response to (a) instructional practices, (b) sex differences, and (c) student's initial level of writing fluency. Third-grade students (n=133) in three urban elementary schools were randomly assigned to either an individualized performance feedback condition (n=46), a practice-only condition (i.e., weekly writing practice; n=39), or an instructional control condition (n=48) for 8weeks. Findings included support for use of performance feedback as an instructional component in general education classrooms (Hedges' g=0.66), whereas simple practice with curriculum-based measurement in written expression did not produce growth significantly greater than standard instructional practices. The hypothesis that girls write significantly more than boys was supported. However, girls and boys did not differ in their rate of growth. Finally, students' initial risk status in writing fluency did not differentially predict growth in writing fluency over the course of the study. Implications for incorporating feedback as a basic component of intervention in writing are discussed.

Implementation science and school psychology.

The APA Division 16 Working Group on Translating Science to Practice contends that implementation science is essential to the process of translating evidence-based interventions (EBIs) into the unique context of the schools, and that increasing attention to implementation will lead to the improvement of school psychological services and school learning environments. Key elements of implementation and implementation science are described. Four critical issues for implementation science in school psychology are presented: barriers to implementation, improving intervention fidelity and identifying core intervention components, implementation with diverse client populations, and implementation in diverse settings. What is known and what researchers need to investigate for each set of issues is addressed. A discussion of implementation science methods and measures is included. Finally, implications for research, training and practice are presented.

Using performance feedback to improve treatment integrity of classwide behavior plans: an investigation of observer reactivity.

The current study replicated the positive effects of performance feedback on treatment integrity and extended previous work by examining reactivity using a multiple baseline design with alternating treatments for observer-present and observer-absent conditions on teachers' implementation of a classwide behavior plan. No differences were found between conditions, and treatment integrity improved across all teachers, suggesting that performance feedback, rather than observer reactivity, was responsible for reported behavior changes.

Symptoms of ADHD and academic concerns in college students with and without ADHD diagnoses.

OBJECTIVE: Previous research has found ADHD symptoms to be common in the general population but has not compared endorsement of symptoms between ADHD and non-ADHD groups. This study examines self-reported ADHD symptoms and academic complaints in college students. METHOD: Students without (n = 496) and with ADHD (n = 38) completed a questionnaire covering the 18 ADHD symptoms in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and academic and test-taking concerns. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: Students with ADHD diagnoses reported significantly more ADHD symptoms and academic concerns, but none of the 18 symptoms or 6 concerns proved to be both sensitive and specific to ADHD. Poor specificity of symptoms and academic complaints casts doubt on the utility of this self-reported information in diagnosis, particularly if used alone and without regard to severity or extent of impairment.

Effects of immediate performance feedback on implementation of behavior support plans.

Research has focused on increasing the treatment integrity of school-based interventions by utilizing performance feedback. The purpose of this study was to extend this literature by increasing special education teachers' treatment integrity for implementing antecedent and consequence procedures in an ongoing behavior support plan. A multiple baseline across teacher-student dyads (for two classrooms) design was used to evaluate the effects of performance feedback on the percentage of antecedent and consequence components implemented correctly during 1-hr observation sessions. Performance feedback was provided every other week for 8 to 22 weeks after a stable or decreasing trend in the percentage of antecedent or consequence components implemented correctly. Results suggested that performance feedback increased the treatment integrity of antecedent components for 4 of 5 teachers and consequence components for all 5 teachers. These results were maintained following feedback for all teachers across antecedent and consequence components. Teachers rated performance feedback favorably with respect to the purpose, procedures, and outcome, as indicated by a social validity rating measure.