Capstone  Project

“To  Do”  list:    Review  above  list  and  ensure  steps  are  followed.  

11.  National  Certification  Procedures  and  obtaining  the  NCSP^.    

• Interns  are  encouraged  to  seek  national  certification  (Nationally  Certified  School  Psychologist)  available   through    the  National  Association  of  School  Psychologists.    The  NCSP  Credential  reflects  that  the  individual   school  psychologist  has  met  a  nationally  recognized  standard.    In  addition  to  specific  course  and  internship   requirements  that  are  built  into  the  UTC  Program,  the  Intern  must  achieve  a  passing  score  on  the  Praxis  II   of  165  or  above.  

• Procedures  for  applying  for  the  NCSP  

Detailed information about the NCSP, the required applications, and the application process is available in the document, “Applying for the NCSP: Tips for Graduate Students” available at:

http://www.nasponline.org/students/ncsptips.pdf

The information that follows is taken from the document and details steps for applying for NCSP:

“The application process is streamlined for graduates of NASP-approved training programs, since these programs are structured to meet coursework and training standards required by the certification board.

# Confirm that NASP has received your Praxis scores by calling the NASP Certification Department and providing them with the date you took the exam (mo/date/year) and name under which the test was taken.

# Print out and complete the application pages that are listed as necessary for all applicants.

# Obtain signatures from intern supervisors and faculty supervisors immediately upon completion of internship. These can be very difficult to collect later on and can be collected even if an applicant is not ready to send in a completed application.

# After graduation, obtain an official sealed copy of you graduate transcript; making sure it includes your internship and graduation date. Sealed transcripts also may be sent directly to the NASP office from your university.

# Send the complete application package, including transcript and application fee, to the NASP office. The address is listed in the application.”

(From: http://www.nasponline.org/students/ncsptips.pdf).

 “To  Do”  list:    Review  above  list  and  ensure  steps  are  followed.  

12.    Capstone  Project  

• Each  Intern  will  be  required  to  complete  a  Capstone  Project  as  part  of  internship  requirements.    The   Capstone  is  a  Portfolio  requirement  that  is  an  applied  project  during  the  internship  that  directly   targets  needed  improvements  in  the  functioning  of  individual  and  groups  of  students  or  

improvements  within  the  internship  setting  that  can  be  expected  to  indirectly  benefit  students  or   other  clients.    As  noted  in  the  NASP  Training  Standards  (2010),  a  focus  for  internship,  in  addition  to   providing  opportunities  to  attain  skills  and  “professional  characteristics  needed  for  effective  school   psychology  service  delivery,”  is  also  to  provide  experiences  and  opportunities  for    making  

“direct,measurable, positive impact on children, families, schools, and other consumers” (NASP,

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2010, p. 7).  (Detailed  information  about  the  Capstone  Project  including  required  components  can  be   found  in  Chapter  4  of  the  School  Psychology  Program  Handbook).  

• There  are  several  “phases”  to  completing  the  Capstone  Project:        

Phase  1  (within  the  first  month  of  internship  during  the  Fall  semester)     Capstone  Prospectus    

Summary  of  idea,  including  rationale,  and  proposed  methodology  must  be  submitted  to  and  approved   by  the  internship  coordinator  prior  to  proceeding  with  the  capstone  project  .  A  capstone  committee   cannot  be  assembled  until  after  this  step  has  been  completed.  

Phase  2.      

Capstone  Proposal  (must  be  completed  AND  approved  prior  to  the  end  of  first  internship  semester)   Detailed  description  of  the  project  including  the  Literature  review/expanded  rational  and    

                                               proposed  Methodology    

                                               Phase  3.      

       Capstone  Project  and  Results  (must  be  completed  and  approved  prior  to  the  end  of  the  second              semester  of  internship)  

       Summary  completed  after  implementation  of  the  Capstone  Proposal;  written  paper                                                      including  Literature  Review,  Methodology,  Analysis  of  Results,  and  Discussion.    This  third                                                      phase  is  completed  during  EPSY  6550;    

• Development  of  the  Capstone  MUST  occur  in  the  sequence  described  below:  

a. Discuss  Capstone  topics  of  interest  with  the  Field-­‐based  Supervisor  in  the  internship  placement  and   identify  the  specific  topic  to  be  the  focus  for  the  Capstone;    

b. Obtain  any  necessary  approvals  from  field-­‐based  personnel  (e.g.,  Director  of  Schools,  School   Counsel,  etc.).    It  is  extremely  important  that  you  have  the  approval  of  school  staff  for   implementation  of  this  project!  

c. Develop  a  written  summary  in  the  form  of  a  Capstone  Prospectus.    The  Prospectus  must  include  a   general  description  of  the  problem,  rationale  to  support  the  need  for  the  project,  and  a  rationale   to  support  the  proposed  methodology.    Please  clearly  label  these  sections  in  your  paper  that   should  be  approximately  2-­‐3  pages  in  length.    Also,  include  a  References  page.  

d.          Submit  the  Prospectus  (described  above)  to  the  Internship  Coordinator  for  approval  and  to                          determine  next    steps  for  Capstone  Committee  assembly.  

e.          Develop  the  Capstone  Prospectus  into  the  Capstone  Proposal  by  completing  a  thorough    

                                           Proposal  must  be  completed  and  approved  by  the  Capstone  Committee  by  the  established  due                                                        date    in  order  to  receive  a  grade  for  Epsy  6500.      

f.  The  Capstone  Proposal  must  be  approved  by  the  Capstone  Committee  during  Epsy  6500:  Internship                  I.    Failure  to  submit  a  completed  proposal  and  to  obtain  Committee  approval  of  the  proposal  by  the                    due  date  PRIOR  TO  THE  CONCLUSION  OF  INTERNSHIP  I  WILL  result  in  a  delay  in  the  intern        

         being  able  to  implement  the  project.  This  delay  would  likely,  in  turn,  delay  the  Intern’s  eventual                    graduation.    

                               g.    Implement  the  Capstone  as  described  in  the  Capstone  Proposal  during  Epsy  6550.  

                                                   The  Capstone  Project  and  Results  must  be  successfully  completed  and  approved  by  the                                                          Intern’s    Capstone    Committee  before  a  final  grade  for  Epsy  6550:  Internship  II,  can  be                                                          assigned.    

               h.    PRIOR  TO  THE  COLLECTION  OF  ANY  DATA  DURING  THE  SECOND  SEMESTER  OF                  INTERNSHIP,  THE  INTERN  MUST  COMPLETE  AN  INSTITUTIONAL  REVIEW  BOARD                  FORM  A  (STUDENT  PROJECTS),  SUBMIT  TO  THE  UNIVERSITY-­‐BASED  SUPERVISOR,          AND  GAIN  APPROVAL  TO  PROCEED  WITH  THE  DATA  COLLECTION.    THIS  STEP        MUST  OCCUR  PRIOR  TO    ANY  DATA  BEING  COLLECTED.  

• This  description  of  the  Capstone  is  intended  as  an  overview.    Complete  requirements  of  the  Capstone   Project  are  detailed  in  the  School  Psychology  Program  Handbook,  Chapter  4.  

• In  summary,  note  the  following  points  regarding  the  Capstone  Project:  

" The  Capstone  Project  is  developed,  implemented,  and  summarized  over  the  course  of  the   internship  experience.  

" The  Capstone  Project  is  developed,  implemented,  and  summarized  with  ongoing  input  and   approval  from  the  field-­‐based  supervisor,  the  university-­‐based  supervisor,  and/or  Capstone   Committee  (composed  of  the  university-­‐based  supervisor  and  one  other  school  psychology   faculty  member).    Input  and  approval  from  field-­‐based  school  staff  must  also  be  obtained.  

" Written  summaries  of  the  Capstone  Project  (e.g.,  Prospectus,  Proposal,  Final  Paper)  should  be   viewed  as  drafts  when  submitted;  that  is,  EXPECT  that  you  will  get  feedback  from  the  University-­‐

based  supervisor  and/or  Committee  member  that  will  require  that  you  revise  sections  of  the   paper,  etc.    Expect  that  multiple  revisions  will  be  required  during  all  Phases  of  Project   implementation.  

" The  Capstone  Project  development,  implementation,  and  summarization  must  follow  the   sequence  specified  above.  

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" During  the  first  semester  of  internship,  the  Intern  must  complete  the  following:      

1)  Identify  a  topic  with  relevance  to  the  internship  setting  

               2)  develop  the  Capstone  Prospectus,  a  2-­‐3  page  description  of  the  idea  underlying  the  Capstone                              project  and  supporting  references  and  submit  to  the  university-­‐based  supervisor  for  approval                                                                      3)elaborate  on  the  Capstone  Prospectus  through  the  development  of  a  Capstone  Proposal  that                                                                                MUST  be  submitted  AND  approved  PRIOR  to  the  end  of  first  internship  semester.  

" During  the  second  semester  of  internship,  the  Capstone  is  implemented;  thus  specific  data  are   collected  to  answer  the  questions  identified  in  the  Capstone  Proposal.  

" The  Intern  summarizes  Capstone  Project  results  in  a  comprehensive  paper  written  professionally   and  in  accordance  with  APA  Guidelines  that  includes  the  following  four  sections:  

! Introduction/Literature  Review  (note  that  this  heading  is  not  included  in  the  actual  paper)  

! Methods  (description  of  participants,  procedures,  and  measures)  

! Results-­‐  a  description  of  results  presented  in  statistical  format  

! Discussion-­‐  a  summary  of  project  premises,  questions  asked,  results,  and  implications  of   results.    Ideas  for  future  research  are  also  summarized  here  as  are  limitations  to  obtained   results.  

“To  Do”  list:  Establish  self-­‐imposed  timelines  across  both  internship  semesters  for  each  phase  of  the  Capstone   Project.    Also  note,  course  deadlines  for  submission  and  approval.