Educational psychology

The following sudies provide examples of the sort of work undertaken by the Schools and Community Psychology Service (SCPS)

Case Study 1

Sasha has autism. She was in reception class when the SENCo of her primary school requested consultation with an Educational Psychologist (EP) about how to increase her inclusion in the social life of the class. During the course of the initial discussion the following needs emerged:

• A need for staff to develop further knowledge about the nature of autism and the implications of autism for learning and social development;
• A need to clearly identify Sasha's social strengths and her developmental needs;
• A need to develop a plan to support Sasha's inclusion socially across the school day.

The EP planned, prepared and ran a workshop for the SENCo, class teacher, learning support assistant and parents on autism. The outcome of the workshop was a plan that included social goals for Sasha and a series of actions to help achieve these.

Case Study 2: A Circle of Friends

Alex was in year 5. There had been concern about his progress since he was in nursery. His language was not as well developed as other pupils' and he seemed to have problems making friends. At times he could become very frustrated, hitting out at other children and calling them names. The class teacher was becoming increasingly concerned that Alex was becoming more and more unhappy and angry and that other pupils in the class seemed to be taking less and less interest in him because of this. The class teacher asked to meet with an EP to talk about Alex's situation. In the course of the consultation a number of issues emerged including that:

• Alex had difficulty understanding how to join in games, this means that he sometimes upsets the other children and arguments can arise;
• The other children had been heard to tease Alex sometimes and to tell him that he cannot play with them.

The EP and the class teacher decided, with the permission of Alex and his parents, to work together to implement a Circle of Friends for Alex. The Circle of Friends involved the EP talking to Alex's classmates about how teasing and not letting him play in their games might make Alex feel and what they might do instead. The class teacher then ran a 'friendship' circle involving Alex and five other pupils; this helped him make some friends.

Case Study 3: A Social Skills Group

A small group of pupils was referred to the SCPS when they transferred to secondary school, due to concerns regarding their friendship and interactions in the wider context. Although these pupils had settled well to lessons, staff felt they were reporting a high incidence of bullying and appeared to be having difficulties mixing with the peer group.

The EP carried out an initial consultation with key members of staff and the target pupils using a Solution Focused Brief Therapy Approach, to highlight areas of difficulty and establish ways to move forward. It was agreed to set up a small group that would support pupils with developing their social skills and therefore help them with making the transition. The group was facilitated by the EP and supported by school staff. At the end of the 6 weeks pupils evaluated their progress. Some of the comments from the pupils included:

• 'It has helped me think carefully in a situation'
• 'I'm a better person'.
• 'I found out about myself a bit more'
• 'I feel calmer in situations and think before I do it'

All of the pupils rated their friendship skills as higher than they had done originally.