The place of the school in community mental health services for children: A necessary interdependence

Outcomes of children with emotional disturbance in residential treatment for educational purposes

“…Education has a central role to play in these research activities. Schools can become major epidemiological centers for longitudinal research on children with multiple mental health needs (Knoff & Batsch, 1990). Investigations of residential treatment and innovative alternatives, including school-based mental health services and time-limited residential services, particularly with a focus on outcome effectiveness, will be especially important areas in which to build a sound research base on behalf of children and families.…”

An exploration of the current involvement of school psychologists in prevention programming

“…Schools offer the perfect intervention site for a variety of educational and social problems (Cole, 1996). Outside of offering the optimal setting for intervention and treatment, schools are the most significant settings in children's and adolescents' lives (Knoff & Batsche, 1990;Knoff, 1996). Schools represent a primary socialization system, where personality development is shaped (Biber, 1961;Zaki & Partok-Engel, 1984).…”

“…Within the school setting, students are presented with various opportunities to develop academic, social and personal competencies, which result in schools being one of the "most potentially protective environments" for children and adolescents (Doll & Lyon , 1998). In addition, Knoff and Batsche (1990) argue that school-based intervention, prevention, alternative education strategies, and parent training and outreach have been shown to have clear clinical benefits for children with mental health concerns, while also being sensible, accessible, and cost effective venues for programming and services (Power & Heathfield, 1999;NASP 2003).…”

“…Such practitioner to student ratios, also referred to as service ratios, highlight the gap or discrepancy that exists between the current mental health needs of school-age students and the services provided. Knoff and Batsche (1990) concluded that students with social and emotional disorders "represent one of the most inadequately and underserved populations in the schools," citing research that indicates that only 57% of this disability population get identified as receiving services (U.S. Department of Education, 1988/ Similarly, Mclnenery, Kane, andPelavin (1992) reported 16% of students with emotional and behavioral disorders receive services through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Within that same population, Knitzer (1993) reported as few as a "third of all children or adolescents with emotional or behavioral disorders are receiving appropriate services within the mental health system."…”

“…Various issues and obstacles have been identified as contributing to the discrepancy that exists between student needs and available mental health services. In reviewing the literature, numerous authors have pointed to problems related to a lack of communication and collaboration between school-and community-based mental health service providers (Knoff & Batsche, 1990;Friedman & Duchnowski, 1990;Nafpaktitis & Perlmutter, 1998;Shrag, 1996;Doll, 1999;Adelman & Taylor, 1998. Collaboration and coordination of services are critical when addressing the needs of students with social, emotional, or behavioral disorders.…”