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Essay Instructions: Critique of Spence, Deborah L, et al, Identifying Children in Middle Childhood Who are at Risk for Reading Problems: New evidence and to analyze and access an appropriate tool for reading in elementary students using a response to intervention model, School Psychology Review 2010, Volume 39, No.2 , pp258-276


? The term paper assignment for this class requires you to select a scientific article published in a journal selected from a list of approved journals, and then critique the research methods used in that article using what you learned in this course. It is also OK in your critique to mention things about the methodology that were done right. Also, while I don?t expect you to become an expert in the subject of your chosen article, I do expect you to look at the scientific literature on that subject?and one way to do that would be to read some of the studies the authors? of your chosen article cite?and incorporate information from that literature in your paper where appropriate.

? The list of approved journals from which the article you critique may be selected is as follows: American Journal of Sociology, American Sociological Review, Social Forces, Journal of Health and Social Behavior, International Journal of Aging & Human Development, Social Problem, Sociological Perspectives, Sociological Quarterly, of Sociology of Education.

? If you want to use an article from a different journal than these, you will have to show me the article you select so that I can approve it. In that case please do NOT email me a copy of the article. Instead, print it out and show it to me before or after class or during office hours. The article must be from a scholarly scientific journal (not a magazine, etc.) and it must be a research article (not an opinion piece, etc.). I do not have to see or approve the article in advance if it is in one of the approved journals.

? The article you select must be quantitative in nature, in other words it must present numbers and statistics. Also, make sure what you have selected is an actual research article (a good indicator of that is if the article has an abstract at the beginning of it).

? To locate the articles published in those journals online, follow these steps. Go to Blackboard for the course, click on the USF Libraries tab, the select ?All USF Libraries?, then click on ?E Journals by Title?, then type in the name of one of the approved journals, then select a year for the journal, then select one of the electronic sources for articles in that journal (JSTOR, Ebcohost, etc.). The procedure may vary a little from what I have said here, so use common sense as you point and click through it. If you have any problems, one of the librarians on the first floor of the main USF library can help you, or call Academic Computing Help at 974-1222.

? Once you pull up the pdf of the article you want to use, a good idea is to download it to your computer?s desktop (or better yet a memory stick or other external storage device in case your computer crashes). Or you could just print it out, since you will have to attach a printed copy of the article to your term paper when you turn it in.

? Your paper must be typed, and you must staple a copy of the article you critiqued to the back of it. In other words, your paper will go on top, with the article underneath it and stapled to it. Do NOT turn the paper in in a plastic binder or in any form other than stapled. Make sure both your name and your U number are on your typed paper.

? The best tip I can give for doing the paper is just to take the basic points made in class and in the readings, and then see if the article violated any of those things or did them right. For example, in class we said you need to have a probability sample in order to test for statistical significance. So if the article you picked doesn?t have a probability sample but they ran significance tests anyway, that would be a critique. As another example, in class we said that a research study should include all possible variables that could affect the outcome variable. So if you can think of explanatory variables the authors didn?t include, that would be another critique. On the other hand, if your chosen article did these things right, then you could compliment the authors for that. In other words just make a list of the points about statistics we made in class and/or were mentioned in the book, and then take that list and see if your article did those things right. Remember also to take a look at some of the other studies on that topic and incorporate information from those into your paper where appropriate.

? When you critique the methods the authors used, it would be a plus if you could also suggest alternatives that would have been better. For instance if the authors did an experiment and they try to generalize from that to the society in general, you could mention that we learned in class that experiments are typically weak on generalizability and you could suggest that the authors might have been better off using a survey (if the advantages of a survey would in fact outweight those of an experiment for that particular topic).

? When you critique or praise methodology, be specific and say why the methods are good or incorrect. For example, don?t just say ?the authors shouldn?t have use tests of statistical significance?, instead give the reason (for example ?the authors shouldn?t have used tests of statistical significance because they have a nonprobability sample and we learned in class that you need to have a probability sample to properly do significance tests.?).

? For the format of the term paper as well as an example of how to do it, see the term paper example I have posted in the Course Documents section of Blackboard. The article my example paper critiques is also in the Course Documents section. The format you should use for your paper is to state the page, column, and paragraph number for each comment you want to make, and then briefly make the comment just like I did in my example. Notice in the example paper that I critiqued the methods when the authors were wrong, I complimented them when they did something well, and I discussed their study in light of what other studies on that topic show. I don?t necessarily expect your paper to be as detailed as mine (after all I?ve been doing this for years) but at least it will give you an idea of how to do the assignment.

Essay Instructions: Term Paper: We all come into the field of psychology with different expectations. What were your expectations about the field of psychology before starting General Psychology I and II? Have these expectations changed as the semester has progressed? If your expectations have changed, please explain how your thoughts about the field of psychology have changed over the past two semesters. If your ideas have not changed in any notable way, please explain how your initial expectations about the field have been supported by what you have learned in the last two semesters. It is expected that students will use information from the course to support their ideas. While you may feel compelled to regurgitate information from the textbook, this is NOT what I am looking for. Instead I am more interested in you taking the time to reflect on our classroom discussions, thinking through the question that I have posed, and using information from the textbook to support your ideas. I expect to to see a clear thesis statement that is supported throughout the essay. I also like to see clear transitions between sentences and paragraphs and a strong and satisfying conclusion.


Please use this as a background to writing this paper. . .

Prior to attending college I had no knowledge of what psychology was. My high school never offered any psy courses. I never knew what psychology really was, I would watch the Sopranos and remembered when Tony used to go to the psychiatrist and I was always interested in what psychology was all about. After graduating high school I took general psychology 1 and Abnormal psychology at Bergen Community college and they were my favorite courses. My favorite was Abnormal psychology because I learned about all the personality disorders etc... At Farleigh Dickinson(which is the school I’m attending now) I’m taking General Psychology 2 and this semester we learned about the different areas of psychology that I never knew existed. Such as the RESEARCH ONLY areas that include; cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, social psychology. And then the Research and CLINICAL PRACTICE which includes clinical psychology, counseling psychology and school psychology. We also learned about the biology of the mind that included the nervous system, central nervous system, and peripheral nervous system. I found that the biology part was kind of boring and was difficult to understand. I had a hard time understanding and memorizing all the parts of the brain and what they’re functions where: such as the brain stem, the thalamus, cerebellum etc... In this class we also talked about the psychological disorders and discussed where they were placed on the 5 Axis System of the DSM-IV-TR. I found the anxiety disorders the most interesting. I enjoyed learning about OCD and Phobias and how Exposure and Response Prevention is used as treatment.

Essay Instructions: Write a 1,050- to 1,400-word paper in which you examine clinical psychology.

Address the following items:
-Discuss the history and evolving nature of clinical psychology.
-Explain the role of research and statistics in clinical psychology.
-Discuss the differences between clinical psychology and other mental health professions, including social work, psychiatry, and school psychology.

Include a minimum of two sources from peer-reviewed publications.

Format your paper consistent with APA guidelines.

Essay Instructions: 1. Why have you selected school psychology as a profession?
2. What strengths will you bring to the program and what weaknesses will you need to improve?
Submit a double spaced, typed 2-3 page essay describing your educational and experiential background and your philosophy on leadership.

Hayward
Describe your professional goals, extent of commitment to those goals, strengths and weaknesses relative to achieving those goals.

CSUN
1. Your career goals
2. Reasons for applying
3. Brief Description of past experiences- length of time, actual jobs performed, significance of the unique experience
4. Description of background or experience relating to cultural or ethnic variances

Sacramento
Pick one of the two questions and your answer must exemplify an understanding of the school psychology profession and must exemplify appropriate written communication skills.

1. What characteristics do you believe you currently possess that will enable you to work in the school psychology program?
2. What experiences or factors have led you to your decision to apply to the school psychology program?

Humbolt
1. Why have you selected school psychology as a profession?
2. What strengths will you bring to the program and what weaknesses will you need to improve?

A description of the profession is as follows:

School Psychologists are professionals trained to work with pre-schoolers, children, adolescents, and their teachers and families. They work with all school personnel to help make education for students a positive and rewarding experience.
The training requirements to become a school psychologists are a minimum of 60 graduate semester hours plus a year-long internship. Training emphasizes preparation in mental health, child development, learning and motivation. To work as a school psychologist, one must be certified and/or licensed by the state in which services are provided. School Psychologists also may be nationally certified by the National School Psychology Certification Board (NSPCB). Each state has different requirements and not all states accept NSPCB.
What do School Psychologists Do?

Consult


Educate


Research


Assess


Intervene ? collaborate with teachers, parents, and school personnel about learning, social and behavior problems
? help others better understand child development and its relationship to learning and behavior
? strengthen working relationships between educators, parents, and the community

? provide educational programs on such topics as classroom management strategies, teaching and learning strategies, parenting skills, substance abuse, and working with students with disabilities or gifted and talented student

? evaluate the effectiveness of academic programs, behavior management procedures, and other services provided in the school setting
? conduct research to generate new knowledge to improve learning and behavior

? working closely with parents and teachers, school psychologists use a wide variety of techniques to evaluate: academic skills, learning aptitudes, social skills, self-help skills, personality and emotional development, eligibility for special service programs, school and classroom programs, career and vocational goals. . .

? work directly with students or families
? help solve conflicts and problems related to learning and adjustment
? provide counseling, social skills training, behavior management, and other interventions
? help families deal with difficult crises such as separation or loss
Where Do School Psychologists Work? public or private schools
universities
clinics
institutions
private practice
community agencies
hospitals


These are the questions which need to be answered in one personal statement of about two pages or 500 words. In addition, I will fax some previous information, letters of recs etc to get a sense of who I am. Cross cultural awareness is very important and I would like that emphasized in my essay. If these questions cannot be incorporated into a two page essay or any other requirements cannot be taken into consideration, I would ask that I not be billed and would not be in need of your services. My most recent experience is my job as a special education instructional assistant. I will fax a letter of rec from Lynn Clevenger, with whom I work. This is important to include in my statement.
Please email or call me at if there or any questions or the statement cannot be written.
Thanks,
Meghan Whitbread