Monitoring and Evaluating Progress

Your progress in the program - both academic and professional - is monitored and evaluated in several ways. This section of the Handbook has been developed to make these monitoring and evaluating processes explicit.

Throughout the program, you will have many discussions with instructors and your advisor. When you have meetings to discuss your performance in a class or your progress in the program, it is recommended that you take notes or audiotape the session so that you might be able to review the recommendations at a later time (e.g., you may want to review oral feedback from an instructor with your advisor). Continuous oral feedback is the primary means by which the 740 Counseling Practicum instructor and your field supervisors provide evaluative feedback. The student is expected to follow through on recommendations given in these oral sessions.

Written Feedback and Supervision

The school psychology faculty are known for the extensiveness of their written comments on papers, case studies, and portfolio integrative summaries. These commentaries should be experienced as written dialog - not a monolog - in that a dialog requires a response from you. If written feedback is provided on papers or reports in progress, for example, the faculty member expects your response through revision and/or your own written comments in return. If this is the case, you will typically be asked to submit your previous edition with the current edition of your work, and your "responsiveness to (written) supervision" may, in fact, be part of the grade for the assignment. In other cases, you may have the option to revise your products and, perhaps, receive a revised grade. In almost all cases, we expect you to generalize and apply the written supervision to your next project and product. Comments should be reviewed carefully and if you have any questions, seek oral or written clarification. Written feedback is supervision and you are expected to follow through on recommendations.

In order to document the attainment of competencies associated with coursework, the student must earn at least a "B-" (CR in Cr/NC courses) in each class with no more than a total of three grades of "B-" or lower. And, the overall GPA must be at least 3.0 ("B") to remain in good standing in the Graduate Division. The minute you think you might not be meeting these requirements, see your advisor!

Grades in graduate courses have somewhat different meanings from grades as an undergraduate:

Grades Indicating Satisfactory Progress

"A" Outstanding achievement - available only for the highest accomplishment

"B" Praiseworthy performance - competencies demonstrated - expected level of performance - most common grade in graduate courses

"B-" Minimally acceptable performance - basic competencies demonstrated - must be brought to the attention of your advisor. Students with three grades of B- or NC are subject to dismissal from the Program.

"SP" Satisfactory progress - limited to "continuous courses" where attainment of competencies is expected across more than one semester (e.g., special studies, thesis)

"CR" Competencies demonstrated - all requirements met (only a limited number of courses and experiences may be taken for CR/NC)

Other Grades

"C" Grades of "C" (or lower) must be brought to the immediate attention of your advisor.

"U" If you receive a "U" (unauthorized incomplete) it means that you appeared on a course roster but failed to attend the course. This happens when you enroll for a course and decide to withdraw, but fail to take the formal university procedures to officially withdraw. The "U" is calculated as an "F" when determining your GPA.

"I" An authorized incomplete ("I") indicates that a portion of required coursework has not been completed and evaluated in the prescribed time period due to unforeseen but fully justified reasons.

Incompletes require a departmental contract specifying justification, work completed, work remaining, and the timeline in which work is to be completed. Copies of the contract should be held by both the student and instructor, and placed in the student's program file. It is the responsibility of the student to initiate this contract and to provide a reply for the file.

The length of time allocated for removal of the incomplete is at the discretion of the instructor, but not to exceed one calendar year. If the incomplete is not removed within one year, it is automatically counted as an "F" in your GPA. It is impossible to remove an incomplete after one year! It is also impossible to remove an incomplete after you have graduated!

Avoid Incompletes at all costs!

· An incomplete in a course prerequisite to other courses is considered the same as not having taken the course! Thus, an incomplete could possible delay your program sequence as much as one year.

· Incompletes require substantial extra work on the part of the instructor. The instructor was paid to do this work in the semester of your enrollment, not in the time period in which you complete the work. This is especially important to consider when the instructor is part-time - he/she may not be paid at all when you want to do the work.

· Given the heavy loads of faculty, it is reasonable to assume that removal of your incomplete is a lower priority than other current demands. Faculty evaluation of your work may occur long after you submit it.

· More than one incomplete on your record at any one time is considered to be UNSATISFACTORY PROGRESS in the program and may be reviewed by the faculty who may require a LOA until all incompletes are removed.

· Incompletes aren't really "removed" - they stay on your transcript forever (the grade earned appears in the semester in which the grade change was reported). A record with incompletes may cause future employers to raise questions about your ability to handle deadlines (i.e., an incomplete is a professional as well as academic issue).

If an Incomplete is absolutely necessary...

· Meet with the course instructor immediately (not when final projects and grades are due.)

· Be sure to complete the contract requirement (available from CSP department office) and put a copy in your program file.

· Meet with your advisor immediately.

· Complete the work ASAP.

· Check your transcript to be sure the new grade was posted, after receiving the reported change of grade form in the mail.

Grade Appeals

It is presumed that the grade assigned is correct. It is the responsibility of the student appealing an assigned grade to demonstrate otherwise. Students who believe that an appropriate grade was not assigned must first seek to resolve the matter informally with the instructor. (Remember: an honest, clerical error may have been made!) If the matter cannot be resolved informally with the instructor, you may appeal the case through the appropriate channels (see "How to Handle Concerns.")

Written evaluations by your field supervisor are completed at least once each semester. These evaluations are typically reviewed orally in a three-way meeting of supervisor, faculty member, and student. Recommendations (written or oral) are expected to be pursued by the student. The written evaluations must be included as a part of your Program Portfolio. If you disagree with the written evaluation, this should be expressed and explored in the three-way meeting. If the matter is not resolved (and the written evaluation modified), you should write a "rejoinder" to the evaluation and include that in your Portfolio as well. You are also encouraged to discuss the situation with your advisor.

During the spring semester of each year, the roster of school psychology students is distributed to all of the faculty in the Department of Counseling and School Psychology and to the faculty of other departments who teach courses in the program or specialties. Faculty are asked to evaluate both your academic and professional progress (i.e., commendable, satisfactory, concern) and to comment on their evaluation. Faculty reports are aggregated for each student, and then reviewed by the school psychology faculty. You will receive a summary of these evaluations. If there is a general concern regarding your progress, you will be asked to meet with the school psychology faculty to discuss your situation. A development plan will be initiated at that time.

All students in the spring semester of Phase III will be scheduled for an Internship Planning Conference. Students are responsible for presenting and documenting their academic and professional readiness for the internship experience and credential. They should be prepared to present a summary statement (oral) of their strengths and weaknesses, as well as professional interests and goals. Faculty recommendation for the Internship Credential is contingent upon documented evidence of academic and professional readiness. Students are encouraged to consult with their advisors prior to the planning conference.

Academic Readiness: Satisfactory completion of all Phase I, Phase II, and Phase III coursework (i.e., all grades of "B-" or better and CR in Cr/NC courses - no incompletes). Students must present, minimally, the following documentation: current transcript, documentation of any waivers, and a completed worksheet for the School Psychology Credential Requirements. Current faculty evaluations will also be included in consideration of academic readiness.

Professional Readiness: Mark Twain once commented on his wife's singing abilities, "She knows all the words but can't quite get the tune." It is possible, theoretically, to obtain satisfactory grades in all individual courses and experiences, yet not quite have it together in one professional package. The evaluation of professional readiness focuses on your development as a "whole professional." In presenting their professional readiness to the faculty, students are expected to rely heavily on their Program Portfolios and to summarize their strengths and weaknesses in each of the competency areas. They are encouraged to obtain an "early" written evaluation from their current field supervisor. Current faculty evaluations will also be included in consideration of professional readiness.

Additional Requirements by the State of California: (1) passing the CBEST (bring a copy of confirmation of passing and/or report of your most recent scores) and (2) Certificate of Clearance (bring a copy).

Because the Internship Planning Conference is usually scheduled during the spring semester, students usually receive a "conditional recommendation" for internship. The conditions for full recommendation for the internship credential will be specified (e.g., satisfactory completion of courses in progress, passing the CBEST). The student is responsible for providing the Program Director with documentation of meeting the specified conditions. The Program Director will then issue the recommendation for the internship credential. Full clearance must be received before signing an internship contract or enrolling in Phase III courses.

The school psychology faculty meet regularly to discuss their concerns about individual student progress. In these meetings, the faculty brainstorm ideas about ways to enhance the progress of the individual student of concern. Usually you will not be aware of these discussions. If our interventions prove unsuccessful, or if the concern is shared by several faculty members, you may be asked to meet with your advisor or the faculty as a whole. Such meetings are designed to enlist your participation in the development of a plan to take you "that next step." Every attempt is made to make these meetings positive, up-beat, and constructive. In many ways, these consultations and interventions parallel those conducted by school psychologists in school settings.