Role of School Psychology Professional Organizations in Promoting and Protecting Child Rights

This chapter examines the role of school psychology professional organizations in promoting and protecting the rights of the child. Although individual school psychologists have continuous opportunities to advocate for child rights within practice, research, training, and local policy, professional organizations have a critical role in advocacy and policy making on a broader level and are uniquely positioned to influence the regulation of school psychology and treatment of children at structural levels (local, national, regional, international). To illustrate the potential role of professional organizations that represent school psychologists, we asked leaders of the International School Psychology Association (ISPA), the School Psychology Division (Division 16) of the American Psychological Association (APA), and the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) (We selected APA-Division 16 & NASP to illustrate work by national organizations, recognizing that they only represent efforts in one country. We encourage readers across the world to ask these same questions from the leaders of their respective national organizations) to address the following questions about their respective organizations: What is your organization’s vision as it relates to promoting and protecting child rights? Currently, how is your vision for child rights integrated and respected in the following aspects of your organization’s initiatives: Ethics; Research; Professional Development & Practice; Policy; and Training, Certification & Licensure? For the future, how do you envision strengthening your organization’s commitment and support for advancing child rights within your organization’s initiatives? Is there a strategy, condition or orientation worthy of consideration for advancing child rights in the profession through organizational approaches that you consider to be of catalytic or game-changing nature? How can your organization collaborate with other professional organizations, particularly those represented in this chapter, to advance child rights through school psychology?