Individual Family and Psycho-Social Issues - Essay Example

Teachers tend to select boys more often for special services. There is little information about the effect of family SES on the selection process and it is contradictory. More parental involvement and student engagement have a positive effect on the selection process.
The study included 441 girls and 465 boys all in the sixth grade. Teachers and students filled out questionnaires in the classroom. The teachers reported the students’ need for services. They also filled out a Teachers Report Form which reported students’ behavior and psychological problems. Additionally, they assessed the parents’ interest and their cooperation with parents. The students reported how satisfied they were with their academic achievement and interest in school. They reported their family SES by the occupation of their parents and whether they had been unemployed in the past six months.
The results showed that there was a gap between the need for and access to the services. The gap was largest in remedial instruction and smallest in psychological counseling. The only difference according to gender was in the remedial instruction where more boys had not received this remedial instruction and this was because of budget cuts. Only in psychological counseling were their reasons besides budget cuts for the lack of access to the services.
In general, the study showed the factors that affected each type of service. These were in remedial instruction- lower family SES, lower parental involvement, and lower student engagement all predicted a higher need for services; for Special Ed. services- male gender, lower family SES, lower parental involvement, internalizing symptoms, and lower student engagement all predicted a higher need for services; and for psychological counseling- male gender, lower student engagement, and below average academic achievement all predicted a higher need for services.

Yet the factors that influenced selection for services were for remedial instruction – higher SES, male gender, and above average academic achieved all improved access; for special ed. services- higher student engagement and higher SES improved access to services; and for psychological counseling- the most significant result was that the more internalizing problems displayed the less access the student had.
The authors summarized that the need for services was generally associated with personal and family services. They concluded that a large number of students need services but they found that the selection process might be biased. Most striking was the fact although the teachers themselves identified internalizing symptoms, these students were less likely to be referred for services. This might be more because of personal and family refusal to accept counseling. In general for educational services the teachers selected mainly girls, and students who came from higher socio-economic or more favorable backgrounds.
This study significantly adds to the body of knowledge on how socio-economic status affects families and access to services, including educational services. It also emphasizes the connection between the psychological aspects of development and the learning process. The gender issue continues to be one of interest and research must continue on its wide and varied effect on aspects of human behavior. The importance of psychological counseling in schools is evident yet the reluctance to make use of these services is still a stumbling block. Read More