Consultation and Collaboration: Novice Educators' Reflections on Their Learning Experiences

This article describes a project to teach consultation and collaboration to high school teacher interns and school psychology students at the university level. For 4 years, students participated in a performance-based project as part of a class. Surveys were mailed to graduates to determine the impact of the experience and their current perspectives. Feedback was assessed for the relevance of the university program and for participants' views regarding collaboration and consultation in their practice. Most respondents felt confident about their skills. When teachers and school psychologists rated the frequency of their consultations and collaborations with each other, the teachers reported them as occurring less often. Parents were the teachers' primary consultees; school psychologists usually met with teachers on special education issues and used consultation more often than collaboration. The study concludes by exploring the implications of the graduates' perceptions for teachers and school psychologists and for educators at the university level.