Proposed Changes in DSM-V: Interview with Micki Washburn, LPC-S and Danielle Parrish, Ph.D.

There's an old saying, "What's the fastest way to cure mental illness in an entire group of people? Get rid of the diagnosis." The proposed changes to DSM-5 get rid of some diagnoses and add others. But that's not all. If you're like me, you have lots of questions about changes to DSM-5. Read the podcast transcript or scroll down to the MP-3 link (about 20 minutes) in the transcript text.  

Anticipating Challenges: School-based Social Work Intervention Research

Authors: Mishna, F., Muskat, B., & Cook, C.
Journal: Children and Schools
Year: 2012
Abstract:  Intervention research is vital for social work, as it aims to develop practice/program approaches and provide evidence to understand which interventions are effective and for whom. Despite growing attention, little social work research exists that evaluates interventions. Among the reasons for the dearth of intervention research within social work are the challenges associated with the longitudinal, large-scale, and rigorous nature of intervention research. Further challenges face social work researchers carrying out intervention research in schools. This article reviews challenges to conducting intervention research, including building community partnerships while managing differing procedures and philosophies, and obtaining support at multiple levels; recruiting and retaining sites and participants; attaining sufficient physical space and time; providing staff training; involving staff at all levels of the research; and disseminating jargon-free results. This article includes a case study involving a research project that evaluated a school-based intervention designed to improve the self-advocacy of middle school students with learning disabilities. Using the case study, the authors discuss challenges, which were addressed both in anticipation of the specific difficulty and as they appeared. The main factors that allowed the project to continue despite barriers were the strong and enduring relationships among the partners and their commitment to the project goals.  (No active link to full article available.) 

This compendium provides researchers and prevention specialists with a set of tools to assess

violence-related beliefs, behaviors, and influences, as well as to evaluate programs to prevent youth

violence. If you are new to the field of youth violence prevention and unfamiliar with available

measures, you may find this compendium to be particularly useful. If you are an experienced researcher, this compendium may serve as a resource to identify additional measures to assess the

factors associated with violence among youths.

Although this compendium contains more than 170 measures, it is not an exhaustive listing of

available measures. A few of the more widely used measures to assess aggression in children, for

example, are copyrighted and could not be included here. Other measures being used in the field, but not known to the authors, are also not included.  Download this free 372 page resource here. 

School Discipline and Social Work Practice: Application of Research and Theory to Intervention    

Power is an intriguing, multifaceted concept. The reality is that when we effect change, compete for resources, forge consensus, utilise relationships, strengthen positions, further our team's reputation, or ask for support we are engaging in acts of power and influence.

"Power-over" is implicit in making "power-to" work. Those who take up a leadership role develop some kind of power through which to attain influence over others. Power-over is the capacity to get people to do what they don't want to do due to resources, status, expertise, reward or punishment. Power-to is the ability or potential to bring about change. Empowerment has an assumed good. Power-to recognizes that power is relational and reciprocal. Anyone at any level can exercise power and also resistance.  Full article.

Leadership Characteristics That Facilitate School Change   

Unfortunately, accompanying the calls for reform in school systems is an underlying assumption that the leadership needed to execute these changes will somehow emerge. As the reforms are implemented, the leadership skills of school administrators guiding these changes have received attention from researchers. Consensus exists on the critical role leaders play. What types of individuals are these leaders who initiate and maintain successful educational changes? Do leaders of educational change share similar characteristics? Which characteristics are unique to specific roles? . . .

The paper begins with a brief review of some key leadership concepts. Next, there is a discussion of the characteristics found to be unique or common in effective educational leaders. Finally, this synthesis concludes with a discussion of the implications of leaders' characteristics on implementing or initiating change within an educational system.   More.  

As a low-cost delinquency prevention and intervention option that capitalizes on the resources of loca communities and caring individuals, mentoring has emerged as a promising delinquency reduction strategy for at-risk or high-risk youth. In general,

the terms at-risk and high-risk refer to any youth who has a higher-than-normal probability of becoming involved in the juvenile or adult criminal justice system. . . Mentoring programs are suitable for service delivery in multiple forms ranging from popular one-to-one and group/team approaches to peer-to-peer, cross-age and e-mentoring orientations and thus can be customized to a wide range of needs and situations.  Full study. 

Early Intervention for Autism Effective    

A recent study demonstrated that a new early intervention therapy, the Early Start Denver Model, was effective in boosting language skills, cognitive thinking, and social skills in children with Autism as young as 18 months.  Read article.

The election may be over, but the fiscal cliff and consequences of sequestration loom large. It may mean up to an ~8% cut in federal funding across the board for our nation's schools. From the perspective of educational leaders, who already struggling to provide more with less, the potential impact is almost unimaginable. As Congress and the Obama Administration continue their talks in efforts to avoid going over the cliff, states and organizations are bracing for the possibility of devastating cuts. Advocacy teams at a number of LFA member organizations have put together toolkits to raise awareness about the issue and to empower their constituents to speak up on behalf of public education.

The biennial Nestlé Very Best in Youth program was created to spotlight the best in youth leadership by identifying and honoring teenagers in the United States whose community service efforts are making a profound difference in the lives of others.  Nestlé seeks to help young people who want to make a difference realize their dreams by donating $1,000 in the name of each winner to the charity of his or her choice. Nestlé also awards the winner a trip to Los Angeles, California, for the Very Best in Youth awards ceremony. More. 

NEA Foundation-Nickelodean Big Help Grant