The Use of Assessment Instruments in School Social Work: Looking Beyond Grades,

Discipline Referrals and Attendance

Developed by Faculty and Staff of:The University of MarylandSchool of MedicineDepartment of PsychiatryCenter for School Mental Health

Rational for Using Assessment Instruments

Qualitative Quantitative

Eligibility for Services

School Based– Enrolment– Discharge

Community Based– Non Public– Residential

Assessment

DSM Disorders– Mood Disorders– Disruptive Behavior Disorders– Language Based Learning Disabilities– Cognitive Ability

Treatment Planning– Data Driven– Specific, Realistic, Quantifiable Goals

Progress– Pre/Post Testing– Treatment Planning

Progress

Re-Assessment– Set Intervals

Treatment Planning

Interdisciplinary Communication

Treatment and Program Evaluation

Pre/Post Testing– Group Protocols– Individual Protocols

Aggregates of Client Progress Overtime– Program Sustainability– Investment of Team Members to Collaborate

Response to Intervention (RTI)

Useful in “Three Tier” Model– Early Mental Health Intervention– Targeted Intervention Services– Identify Individuals “Who Require Intensive Support”

Supports the Ecological and Systemic Models– Biopsychosocial Needs Assessment– Identifies Protective and Risk Factors in Client’s Environment– Evaluates “student progress specific to behavioral, emotional, and mental

health concerns and the effect on academic progress.

Team Collaboration– Data Driven Guide to Decision Making– Aides in Team Understanding of Identification and Chosen Interventions

Challenges

Cost

Time

Missing Data

Integrity of Instruments

Culture Competency

Confidentiality

Challenges Continued

Unethical Usage or “Pigeon Holing”

Difference in Educational and Psychological Coding

Abandoning Traditional Qualitative Interviewing Assessment

Knowledge and Comfort

How to Select an Instrument

Purpose

– Functionality

– Symptomology

– Risk

– Climate

– Program Evaluation

Credentials

– Licensed Clinical Psychologist

– Master’s Degree in Mental Health/Health FieldUnder Supervision if Unlicensed

– No Educational Prerequisites

Certification

Site Licensure

Train the Trainer

One Time Training With Periodic Boosters

One time Training

None

Cost

Introduction Packet ($99 - $500)

Individual Packets of 25 ($25 - $125)

Individual Scoring Sheets of 25 ($25 - $125)

Clinician Instruction Manual With Reprintable Forms ($25 - $130)

Public Domain Free Assessments Including Tool and Scoring Instructions

Instrument Integrity

Reliability– Speaks to the stability of the test and/or

administrator Test Retest - Same data each time Interrater – Two administrators will score similarly Internal Consistency – Divided into parts, there is still a

likeness in responses

– (.70) and Above Optimal

Validity– Does the Instrument Measure What it Claim

Face - Looks as though is measures the construct

Criterion - Correlates well with present or future results

Construct - When compared to other instruments deemed valid it correlates as expected

– Convergent - Strong correlation with instrument measuring the same construct

– Discriminant - Less Strong correlation with an instrument measuring a different construct

– (.60) an Above Optimal

Integrity Continued

Integrity Continued

Norms– The Numbers of Participants and Population

Tested

Standardized– Giving the Same Instrument, the Same Way, in

the Same Conditions

Resources

Buros Institute– http://buros.unl.edu/buros/jsp/search.jsp

– Test in Print (TIP)

– Mental Measurements Year Book (MMY)

Center or School Mental Health (CSMH)– www.Schoolmentalhealth.org– www.csmh.org

Locate Instruments and Information For a Fee ($15)

Overview of Instruments

Functionality

Risk

Symptomology

Climate

Program Evaluation

Functionality

Child and Adolescent Functionality Assessment Scale (CAFAS)

– Emotional, Behavioral, Psychological, Psychiatric, Substance Abuse Home, Community, School, Relationships, Justice System

– Separate Caregiver Scale– Ages 6 -17 (PECFAS for younger clients)– Reliability .73+, Validity reported as acceptable– Train the Trainer Model and Boosters (Fee)– Materials (Fee)– 15 Minutes – Kay Hodges, Author

hodges@provide.net

Functionality Continued

Child and Adolescent Needs and Strengths Assessment (CANS)– Six Areas of Functioning

Problem Presentation Risk Functioning Care Intensity Caregiver Capacity Strengths

– Certification Training and Booster (Fee)– Materials (Unknown)– 35 Minutes– John S. Lyons, Ph.D.

JSL329@northwestern.edu

Risk

Global Clinical Impairment Scales (CGI)– Administered at Set Intervals

– Response Client Clinician Parent Teacher

Symptomology

Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for Children (CES-DC)

– Client Response– 20 Items– Range From 0 - 60– Ages 6 -17– Cut off score of 15– Public Domain (Free)

Spence Children Anxiety Scale (SCAS)– Client response– 45 Items– Ages 7 – 18– Public Domain (Free)

Symptomology Continued

NIHQ Vanderbilt Assessment Scales – ADHD and Oppositional Symptoms– 55 items– Ages 6 - 12– Response

Parent Teacher

Climate

School as a Caring Community Profile – II (SCCP-II)

– 42 Items– Response

Students Adults

Let’s Practice!

Questions and Comments

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