Educational psychologists: A professional role in the traded world using research skills

Abstract

In a time when change is constant, the question of how the profession demonstrates its effectiveness and significance in promoting positive outcomes for children, young people and their families can be seen as an on-going task for educational psychology. One hundred years since the employment of the first local authority educational psychologist, now is the time for the profession to be confident about its role. With the review of the SEN Code of Practice and the traded world that is becoming a reality within the education sector, educational psychologists (EPs) must have confidence in their profession’s credibility and in what it can offer. Doctoral training has positioned EPs as a professional group with core skills in research and evaluation; this article will argue that encouraging other support services to commission such evaluation work is one way of defining the professional role. This article uses Activity Theory to structure a reflection on the authors’ experience of delivering a commissioned evaluation of an intervention led by another support service within the local authority (LA). The distinctive contribution of EPs from the commissioner’s perspective is also considered. The conclusion will outline key factors in the commissioning process, which need to be considered to ensure successful implementation of research and evaluation projects within educational psychology services. The article showcases ‘diversity, scientific specialism, effectiveness and flexibility’ influencing policy at a LA strategic level, as promoted by Fallon et al. (2010, p.17).