What teachers and administrators need is a clear and concise way to evaluate claims made about teaching and learning before teachers are asked to implement “research findings” in their classrooms.
Picture a group of teachers at a professional development session. The speaker, a hired consultant who flew in for the presentation that morning, shows the teachers a graphic of what he calls the “Learning Pyramid.”
According to the most recent data from American College Testing, 31% of all freshmen enrolled in American colleges and universities drop out before their sophomore year. The causes for this appalling statistic have been researched extensively, and they fall into four categories: poor academic preparation, inadequate financial support, lack of campus engagement, and low educational motivation.
I am an academic, a member of Divisions 17, 45, and 51, and an Asian American counseling psychologist who cares deeply about using our science and our understanding of our communities to promote justice and well-being. I have been training graduate students on the importance of producing and translating knowledge that may influence practice and policy.
According to a recent Inside Higher Ed article, the Sunshine State has launched its second gubernatorial torpedo at psychology in less than four months.
After nearly five years of hard work, frustration, setbacks, and anxiety, I completed the final requirement to earning my PhD by defending my dissertation in July 2014.
We have trained hundreds of psychologists and psychology students to meet with policymakers on Capitol Hill and advocate on behalf of the discipline of psychology. To stay informed of when the best time is to weigh in on policy issues impacting psychology, you can join our Federal Action Network and send your own message to your congressional delegation on a range of science, education or public interest issues. Don’t know where to start? A Psychologist’s Guide to Federal Advocacy is a valuable resource that provides an overview of the legislative process, APA’s federal advocacy efforts and how you can get involved.
You can learn more about the federal legislative process and how APA works to pursue our advocacy goals through the PsycAdvocate® training modules, which were designed to provide psychologists and psychology students/trainees the skills to become effective public policy advocates at the federal, state and local level.
Module one begins with an introduction to advocacy and includes an overview of the APA Government Relations Offices, how APA determines its federal legislative and policy priorities, and how psychologists and psychology students can get involved.
Module two provides a review of the structure of the U.S. federal government and explains the responsibilities of each of the three separate governing bodies: the executive, the legislative and the judicial branches of government.
Module three focuses on the federal legislative process, including the authorizing and the budget and appropriations processes. This module also discusses the regulatory process and provides tips and tools to locate federal legislation, laws and regulations.
Module four presents the essential elements needed for any successful legislative strategy. It also identifies factors that can motivate legislators and how the psychology community can use these to best inform and influence the legislative process.
The module concludes with tips for communicating effectively with policymakers. Module five, the last in the series, provides an overview of the role of advocacy at the state and local levels, as well as a discussion of the importance and value of participating in political activities.
Psychologists and psychological scientists have a rich history of being engaged in federal education policy development that the American Psychological Association continues to pursue across our advocacy.
An estimated 194,000 toddlers and preschoolers (age 2-5 years) in the United States have been diagnosed with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and about 1 in 2 of them is not receiving the recommended treatment according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Yes, that is correct – about half of the young children diagnosed with ADHD are not receiving the appropriate treatment.
