Date of Award

8-1-2023

Language

English

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

College/School/Department

Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology

Dissertation/Thesis Chair

Deborah K Kundert

Committee Members

Dean Spaulding

Keywords

BASC-3, BESS, Equity, MTSS, Prevention, Screening

Subject Categories

Education

Abstract

Social, emotional, and behavioral (SEB) functioning within schools has historically been considered in the context of educational impact. Currently, traditional models in education do not readily take into account changing ecological considerations for students, as they experience heightened population-wide academic and SEB concerns, increasing inequity for certain groups, and unique temporal factors like COVID-19. As a response, state and national initiatives are pushing toward earlier identification and prevention to better capture emerging ecological impacts. Prevention models utilize a Public Health Model (PHM) in schools like Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS) in promoting regular forms of assessment and linkages to leveled supports before special education referrals. The current evaluation explored the pilot implementation of the Behavior Assessment System for Children – Third Edition, Behavioral and Emotional Screening System (BASC-3 BESS) for a fifth-grade population in a large suburban district. The district primarily utilized the self-report of the BESS in Fall 2021 following the first year of COVID-19. Demographic, academic, and attendance data were analyzed with the BESS results for 318 students. Results of the BESS captured unique trends that would not be known without screening, as 25% were flagged with an elevated concern overall and 39% had an elevated score for internalizing concerns (e.g., anxiety, social isolation). Investigating demographics revealed some disproportionality for students of color, as they had higher scores for SEB concerns overall. Further visual analyses highlighted different SEB trends for not only race but also special education status, attendance, and gender. The BESS results were also used as a predictor for New York State test outcomes. The BESS contributed to the proposed models, though not to the same degree as demographics or grades; however, students were performing below expectations further reinforcing the integrated approach of prevention models. The evaluation used an improvement science lens in offering recommendations to the district that highlighted the importance of integrating various assessment types to inform leveled supports, attending to the increased population needs around SEB health, and the unique opportunity within prevention models to attend to inequity and temporal considerations through staff promotion of justice.

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