The significance of the interculturally competent school psychologist for achieving equitable education outcomes for migrant students

Abstract

This article examines procedures and processes that result in the over-referral of migrant students to separate special education programmes and, as a consequence, their exclusion from general education. The particular focus is on the role of the school psychologist in this process. The empirical study is a comparison of Swiss teachers’ and school psychologists’ responses to the paper case of a boy with behavioural and learning difficulties whose name and ethnicity was varied so that one version identified him as from an ethnically mainstream, Swiss German background and the other as a migrant and foreign first language speaker. The results show that, compared with teachers, school psychologists’ assessments and choice of interventions demonstrated less cultural bias and higher levels of intercultural competence. These findings support the call that school psychologists have a vital role to play in the reduction of discrimination against migrant students and in the implementation of a more inclusive and equitable education system.