Being flexible is important for school psychologists. Dealing with unexpected situations and being able to think on your feet will make you invaluable. And if you're flexible, you'll save yourself a lot of stress and anxiety.
"School psychology is a very diverse job," says Penny Corkum. She is an assistant professor in a school psychology program.
You need to have several skills, she adds, including problem solving and having a genuine interest in children. "But flexibility," says Corkum, "is really key."
In Corkum's area, it's quite common for school psychologists to work with 18 or 20 schools. That's because much of the area is rural.
"That means you have to be at a different place all the time," says Corkum. You may have to drive for an hour to meet with a child's parents, and they might not show up. Or you may be constantly juggling your schedule so you have time to fit your paperwork in.
School psychologists must realize they can't always help a child. And that requires flexibility, too. "You can make a difference and you can help by supporting the child at school," says Corkum. But if a child isn't being supported at home, Corkum says, "you can only do so much."
Child psychologists across Canada and the U.S. face several challenges that come with helping kids on a daily basis. Tim Hartshorne is a school psychology professor at Central Michigan University. He says in Michigan, most school psychologists would work with about three schools. The schools have more students, however, and the day-to-day duties are much the same.
"We're the mental health experts in the school," says Hartshorne. This means they help children and their parents deal with a wide variety of issues that often include learning and behavioral problems.
School psychologists can offer one-on-one counseling with a child if there's a divorce or death in the family. They administer and evaluate intelligence tests, provide social skills training, offer substance abuse intervention and even plan and evaluate school-wide programs. A school psychologist's role is to give students the best learning environment possible.
School psychologists are trained to work with children of all ages, from preschool to young adults. However, school psychologist Mike Junge works only with young children from kindergarten to Grade 6.
Junge works at an elementary school in Phoenix. This school caters to learning disabled kids. Some are emotionally disturbed, some are autistic, others are mentally handicapped and some have cerebral palsy.
Before moving to Phoenix, Junge worked as a preschool behavioral psychologist. After the child's initial assessment was done, Junge says he probably spent more time with the parents than he did with the child. "I'd give the intelligence tests and review the personality issues," explains Junge. Once that was done, he spent a lot of time helping the parents learn how to deal with their children.
Working with a child's parents as well as the child's teachers is another big part of being a school psychologist. "First and foremost, you're a consultant," says Hartshorne.
Parents must first give the OK to have their child assessed. Then they must be informed of the results. Teachers also need to be made aware if the child has any learning or behavioral disorders so they can deal with the situation in their classroom.
It's a diverse job. After working as a school psychologist for eight years, Junge admits the job is different than what he'd originally imagined. "In university, you read lots of books and study lots of theories. In graduate school, you do more assessments, which is what you do a lot of once you graduate," says Junge.
Assessing children is a big part of a school psychologist's job. And according to Corkum, it's probably the one area that people misunderstand most about school psychology.
"School psychologists do a lot of assessments," says Corkum. "It's not all counseling."
But there is a role for both, adds Corkum. "It just comes down to finding the right balance."
Although children can be assessed at any age, Junge says fewer assessments take place as children get older. By the time students reach high school, parents and teachers usually know if there is a learning or behavioral problem.
School psychologists in high schools would do more counseling and deal with different kinds of problems, says Junge. In elementary schools, however, psychologists must determine the problem, which is why assessments are more common.
Even though Junge admits he'd like to do less assessing and more "helping," he still likes the elementary school environment. "I prefer working with younger kids because I feel I can make more of a difference," says Junge. He looks for ways to help them learn and to help their parents understand what the problem really is.
"Parents are often frustrated," adds Junge. He says there are lots of numbers and facts that parents often find confusing. It's up to the psychologist to help them understand.
"I enjoy sitting in a meeting with the parents and seeing the light bulb [in their heads] come on," says Junge. In other words, he likes it when he knows they understand the problem and can see the benefit behind the solution.
"Sometimes you have to tell parents what they don't want to hear," says Junge. "But you can present bad news in a way so parents feel comfortable."