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The current study examined between-teacher variance in teacher ratings of student behavioral and emotional risk to identify student, teacher and classroom characteristics that predict such differences and can be considered in future research and practice. Data were taken from seven elementary schools in one school district implementing universal screening, including 1,241 students rated by 68 teachers. Students were mostly African America (68.5%) with equal gender (female 50.1%) and grade-level distributions. Teachers, mostly White (76.5%) and female (89.7%), completed both a background survey regarding their professional experiences and demographic characteristics and the Behavior Assessment System for Children (Second Edition) Behavioral and Emotional Screening System-Teacher Form for all students in their class, rating an average of 17.69 students each. Extant student data were provided by the district. Analyses followed multilevel linear model stepwise model-building procedures. We detected a significant amount of variance in teachers' ratings of students' behavioral and emotional risk at both student and teacher/classroom levels with student predictors explaining about 39% of student-level variance and teacher/classroom predictors explaining about 20% of between-teacher differences. The final model fit the data (Akaike information criterion = 8,687.709; pseudo-R2 = 0.544) significantly better than the null model (Akaike information criterion = 9,457.160). Significant predictors included student gender, race ethnicity, academic performance and disciplinary incidents, teacher gender, student-teacher gender interaction, teacher professional development in behavior screening, and classroom academic performance. Future research and practice should interpret teacher-rated universal screening of students' behavioral and emotional risk with consideration of the between-teacher variance unrelated to student behavior detected. (PsycINFO Database Record

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Schools are encouraged to take a proactive approach to mental health through the use of a tiered system of supports facilitated by universal mental health screening. However, schools may experience difficulty implementing universal screening and large‐scale systems change. The purpose of this study was to explore multilevel implementation determinants, identify strategies that aided implementation, and examine how implementation determinants and strategies impacted implementation reach for two schools adopting and initially implementing universal screening within a tiered mental health system. We used a mixed‐methods case study design where qualitative analysis of focus groups identified themes related to implementation determinants and strategies, and quantitative data compared implementation reach before and after the initial implementation of universal screening. Focus groups identified themes of broader influence, structures, school climate, personnel, and resources that enabled and obstructed the implementation process. To aid the tiered system, schools used implementation strategies of outreach and systems, screening, and intervention planning. Integrative mixed‐methods analysis identified influences of these determinants and strategies on changes in implementation reach at Tier 1; however, only minimal changes occurred at Tiers 2 and 3. Results highlight the importance of attending to implementation factors when adopting and initially implementing a tiered mental health system.

Although interest in social-emotional learning (SEL) is growing, there are few efficient measures of SEL constructs, especially those of the popular CASEL Framework.

Given the important role that teachers play in supporting student mental health, it is critical teachers feel confident in their ability to fill such roles. To inform strategies intended to improve teacher confidence in supporting student mental health, a psychometrically sound tool assessing teacher school mental health self-efficacy is needed. The current article details the initial development and psychometric functioning of the school mental health self-efficacy teacher survey (SMH-SETS). A component of the development included Rasch analysis of pilot data to provide a psychometric appraisal of the SMH-SETS functioning and initial psychometric evidence. Results suggest the SMH-SETS exhibits strong psychometric properties and can be used to measure school mental health self-efficacy, track self-efficacy over time, and inform training and professional development.

This study compared the reading growth of students with and without learning disabilities, and students with and without reading deficits in response to tier 2 reading interventions within a response-to-intervention framework. Participants were 499 second- and third-grade students in six urban schools. Students who scored at or below the 10th percentile on the fall reading screening assessment were identified as having a severe reading deficit and received a tier 2 reading intervention that was targeted to their needs. Results showed a significant effect between groups on reading growth. Students with severe reading deficits receiving targeted tier 2 intervention grew at a rate that equaled the rate of growth of students without reading deficits and was significantly higher than students who were receiving special education services for reading. Implications for practice, suggestions for future research, and study limitations are discussed.