Supervision and Mentoring for Early Career School Psychologists: Availability, Access, Structure, and Implications

Author(s)

A. Silva
D. Newman
M. C. Guiney
Sarah A. Valley-Gray, Nova Southeastern UniversityFollow
C. Morsi

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2015

Publication Title

Psychology in the Schools

Volume

53

Issue/Number

6

ISSN

0033-3085

Abstract/Excerpt

This study is the first national survey of supervision and mentoring practices for early career school psychologists (ECSPs). Respondents included 700 participants, 38% of whom reported having access to professional supervision. Time, availability, and proximity to a supervisor were found to be the most common barriers to accessing supervision and mentoring; access to technology, supervisor interest, and cost were not found to be as significant. Nearly 30% of ECSPs reported feeling pressure to practice outside their boundaries of competence because they did not have access to mentoring or supervision, suggesting a potential ethical concern. Results demonstrate the need to provide more supervision and mentoring opportunities for ECSPs, particularly given the National Association of School Psychologist's requirement that first-time Nationally Certified School Psychologist renewal applicants complete a year of mentoring or supervision. Implications of the results, strategies to support the barriers to access, and future directions for research are addressed.

DOI

10.1002/pits.21921

NSUWorks Citation

Silva, A., Newman, D., Guiney, M. C., Valley-Gray, S. A., Morsi, C. (2015). Supervision and Mentoring for Early Career School Psychologists: Availability, Access, Structure, and Implications. Psychology in the Schools, 53(6).
Available at: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cps_facarticles/996