What do educational psychologists say they do?
Read the following four descriptions by EPs of their work. Apart from their obvious enthusiasm, what do they have in common? How many different aspects of EPsâ work are mentioned?
Use just the information in these four extracts to write a one-paragraph description of what EPs do. If possible, compare your paragraph with that produced by someone else. As you read the rest of the chapter, annotate your paragraph to reflect the further information you obtain.
EPs need to be able to multitask while simultaneously being able to prioritise their work. They need to be able to think on their feet while helping others to think through labyrinthine problems; listen carefully to what adults are saying about a child while keeping the childâs perspective in mind. There doesnât seem to be a typical day; there are some cases that are more straightforward than others, but at the heart of them all is an attempt to gain some insight in to the childâs worldview. I find my job varied, interesting and rewarding. No two days are the same and I am frequently challenged by new experiences that need researching and learning more about.
(Louise Lomas, Buckinghamshire Educational Psychology Service)
My experience reflects the role of the EP in a service that has recently begun trading their services with schools in addition to providing the local authority core offer. I feel that schools still really value the involvement of the EP in casework, particularly when they feel the need to develop a better understanding of a young person. Once involvement has been agreed, and with consultation, schools are quite open to the direction and assessment route that the EP wants to take. While some schools still hang on to the traditional role of the EP in cognitive assessment I feel schools are increasingly open to alternative approaches such as consultation, a problem-solving approach. Within schools, EPs are joint problem solvers working with staff and parents to develop a better understanding of a presenting problem in order to inform hypotheses to identify interventions or ways forward. The EP draws upon problem-solving skills from psychological theory to steer the problem solving towards an agreeable way forward. This process can occur at multiple levels: individual, group or whole school and places EPs in a unique position of working at strategic and systemic levels within schools and Local Authorities.
(Bridget Simms, South Gloucestershire Educational Psychology Service)
EPs work at multiple levels â with individual children and families, groups of students or parents/carers and at the level of the organisation. The latter may involve working at an EP service level, within a wider Local Authority (LA) structure or in a school or early years setting. While it has been recognised that the impact of applied psychology at the level of the organisation can be of significant benefit, it can sometimes prove challenging to negotiate the time and relevant brief to operate helpfully in such a context. One piece of work I am currently engaged in with senior leadership colleagues relates to raising the standard of teaching across the whole school. It is hugely exciting, and provides the opportunity to apply multiple psychological skills, including psychological theory and research on effective teamwork. I am involved in diverse work such as participating in the training of teachers in coaching models that enhance their listening, empathising and questioning skills; designing processes such as coaching contracts and supervision structures and much more. Because of the change to role and boundaries across staff in the school, it has also included reflecting together on issues such as workload management, staff health and well-being and effective work-based strategies to support motivation and engagement in high quality learning. There is no job like that of the EP, where you are privileged to enter the worlds of children, families and those who work with them. The insight afforded through the application of high quality psychology is valued across a range of stakeholders and makes a significant, measurable difference to the lives of our children and young people!
(Emma-Kate Kennedy, Child and Family Support Team Manager and
Consultant Educational Psychologist, Redriff School, London)
What does an EP do? Such a simple question but often so difficult to answer succinctly. Over the years I have come to the following response: âapplies skills and knowledge of psychology to bring about change, maybe with a child or adults or systems around a childâ. What varies from EP to EP and situation to situation is the âtype of changeâ, âthe person or people we are helping to bring about change forâ, the âhow we do itâ and increasingly the âwhereâ/ working context. For me the keys to good practice are being interested in, and good at solving, problems by thinking creatively; being able to look at yourself and reflect on your role and impact in any situation; being able to really understand, or help understand, what a person wants, how they think and feel and work with that; having a strong and wide ranging base of knowledge about different psychological and learning theories and approaches and an ability to assess the evidence base of each and being open minded and open to new ideas. The work of an EP is rarely easy or straightforward. You are often entering situations where people are stuck, frustrated, angry or upset. However, it is enormously rewarding to see such situations move forward, people to become unstuck, and resourceful enough to know what to do next and feel positive. To me the ultimate measure of success is the (unscientific and difficult to measure) âAh-haâ moment. The moment when someone says, âAh-ha, I know what I could do, I could try âŠâ or âAh-ha I can do this now!â â positive change in action!
(Rachael Green, Educational Psychologist, working
independently in a range of contexts)