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School Psychology Information

Who Are School Psychologists

School psychologists help children and youth succeed academically, socially, and emotionally. They collaborate with educators, parents, and other professionals to create safe, healthy, and supportive learning environments for all students that strengthen connections between home and school.

School psychologists are highly trained in both psychology and education. They must complete a minimum of a post-Master’s degree program that includes a year-long internship and emphasizes preparation in mental health, child development, school organization, learning styles and processes, behavior, motivation, and effective teaching.

School psychologists must be certified and/or licensed by the state in which they work. They also may be nationally certified by the National School Psychology Certification Board (NSPCB).

What School Psychologists Do

School psychologists work to find the best solution for each student and situation and use different strategies to address student needs and to improve school and district-wide support systems.

School psychologists work with students individually and in groups. They also develop programs to train teachers and parents regarding effective teaching and learning strategies, effective techniques to manage behavior at home and in the classroom, working with students with disabilities or with special talents, abuse of drugs and other substances, and preventing and managing crises.

For additional information please visit our internet resources page.

School Psychology versus Guidance Counseling

A school psychologist plays many roles in a school such as: assessing and diagnosing psychological and educational disabilities; serving on school-based teams; counseling (individual and group); providing consultation services to teachers, administrators, students and parents; designing and implementing academic and behavioral interventions; conducting staff development workshops; and research.

Typically school psychologists work in several schools and may deal with more difficult behavioral and academic concerns than guidance counselors.  Guidance counselors tend to deal more with the general education population and with more of the typical developmental concerns.

For more information regarding the role of a school psychologist, please visit the National Association of School Psychologist’s website (National Association of School Psychologists)

**Towson does NOT offer Guidance Counseling (School Counseling) but  Loyola College and John’s Hopkins University do.  Loyola College’s web address: http://graduate.loyola.edu  & Johns Hopkins University web address: http://www.spsbe.jhu.edu/