and Mental Health Services Administration’s National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices. This step also includes considering whether an intervention can be implemented with fidelity, which means being able to deliver an intervention in your building in the same manner in which it was implemented in the research study. Key issues with fidelity include age/grade of students or number of class periods needed to fully deliver an intervention. It is important to remember that simply because an intervention proved successful in one setting does not mean it will necessarily be effective with your particular group of students. Variables such as race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and individual differences in children can impact the results of any intervention. Going back to our earlier example, our school counselor, after reviewing different interventions focused on reducing school disciplinary incidents, might choose to implement PBIS, since this researchbased intervention has been shown to be effective in reducing disciplinary problems in elementary students.
An evidence-based approach encourages us to move our practice to the next level by also identifying and applying the best information available in our professional decision-making. In shifting from anecdotal evidence to methods and practices that have been proven to be beneficial, we increase both the effectiveness of our work and the credibility of the profession. Instituting an EBP approach to school counseling may represent a paradigm shift in how school counselors structure their
work and perform their job responsibilities. Learning new skills and applying this level of rigor and honest appraisal to our work is not a necessarily easy or comfortable process. Ultimately, however, we all want to know that our work with students is effective, relevant, and meaningful. EBP provides a framework and creates an environment for us to enhance our professional practice and MA Model implementation and maximize our opportunity to create strong and positive outcomes for students. ■
Third step: Knowing if the intervention made a difference. This final piece involves evaluating the impact of a chosen intervention. School counselors must go back and re-examine the original data to determine if positive changes in student behavior have been demonstrated as a result of an intervention. The school counselor in our example would compare the number of disciplinary events both before and after delivering the PBIS curriculum to determine if there was a reduction in the number of disciplinary infractions for those students. If so, the school counselor could then decide if the curriculum should be expanded to more classrooms; if not, a different or additional intervention may need to be considered. It is noteworthy that across disciplines, the definition of evidence-based practice always includes mention of the importance of professional wisdom. A school counselor’s knowledge and expertise — about students’ needs in general and also about the unique characteristics of students in their building — are critical to making the best decisions regarding how, when, and in what ways to intervene with students. MAY 2011
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