Assessing the Learning Environment

Abstract

School psychology has a history of struggle with the barriers imposed by the limitations of diagnostic methods and instruments. As new directions in psychological service to schools emerge, new diagnostic methods are needed to obtain the information necessary for intervention. Conversely, as new diagnostic methods and instruments have become available, the services provided by school psychologists can be expanded. In the early days of school psychology the services provided by school psychologists were derived from clinical psychology (Cutts, 1955). Tests of intelligence and personality were adopted with little adaptation for the particular problems referred by school personnel. As a consequence, the reports which were provided for teachers tended to be of limited value and were rightly criticized for not being relevant to the problems faced by teachers.