InSPA New Governing Council Newsletter Jan 2015.pdf3 3 2 InSPA Newsletter Jan 2015 InSPA New Governing Council (0 1.04.2014 to 31.03.2017) President Prof. B. Mukhopadhyay, Chennai

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InSPA Newsletter Jan 2015 3

InSPA New Governing Council(01.04.2014 to 31.03.2017)

PresidentProf. B. Mukhopadhyay, ChennaiVice-PresidentsDr. R.N. Rai, ShillongDr. Baby Shari, P.A., CalicutSecretaryDr. Panch. Ramalingam, PuducherryJoint SecretariesDr. R.J. Solomon, MumbaiDr. S. Suresh, ChidambaramTreasurerDr. Surender Kumar Sia, Puducherry

From the Editor's Desk...

We take this opportunity to wish all the InSPA membersa Very Happy and Prosperous New Year. We aim to bea catalyst for the communication among the InSPAmembers by publishing this quarterly InSPA Newsletter.It is our privilege to have you as equal partners in all ourendeavors of spreading the need for and strengtheningSchool Psychology in India. You are most welcome tocontribute your novel ideas and genuine suggestions forimproving this communicative channel.

YoursDr. Suneetha J. HangalEditor, InSPA Newsletter

Email:[email protected]

Dr. Barbara Hanfstingl - InSPABest Paper Award

Dr. Barbara Hanfstingl was born in 1978 inAustria. She has Diploma in Psychology (University ofVienna), and Doctoral graduation in Psychology(University of Klagenfurt).She is presently working asSenior Assistant Professor, School of Education, Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt, Austria.

Her scientific work started during her basic studiesin Psychology. For more than 15 years she worked onresearch projects addressing developmental processesof families which kindled her interest in human motivationand personality development. Later, she laid specialemphasis on the effects of psychological constructs suchas personality, motivation and spirituality in her research..

Dr Barbara Hanfstingl delivered a Keynote addressat the 3rd InSPA National conference at NIEPMD,Chennai in November 2013 and was very muchimpressed by InSPA activities. She has instituted theInSPA Best Paper Award to be conferred annually bygenerously contributing a fixed deposit of Rs.70,000/-.

5th InSPA International Conference on School Psychology:

Life Skills and School Development(23 - 25 October, 2015)

K B P College of Arts and Commerce, Mumbai, India

Rayat Shikshan SansthaRayat Shikshan Sanstha, Satara was founded by

Late Padmabhushan Dr. Karmaveer Bhaurao Patil in1919 with the mission of taking education to the poorand downtrodden. Education to all, social justice,humanity, dignity of labour and equality are the ideologieson which Rayat Shikshan Santha works. “EducationThrough Self Help is Our Motto”. Rayat ShikshanSanstha is the largest educational institute in India withmore than 5 lac students taking education in variousschool and college. At present, Sanstha run 674 branchesincluding 41 degree colleges. Rayat Shikshan Sansthais spread across 12 districts of Maharashtra and 01district of Karnataka state.

K B P College, VashiKarmaveer Bhaurao Patil College, Vashi is one of

the most flourishing branches of Rayat Shikshan Sansthaand well reputed in Mumbai University. Since its inceptionin 1979, the college has been galloping towards academics,quality education and infrastructural accomplishment.

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InSPA Newsletter Jan 2015

Today, the college imparts quality education invarious faculties viz. Arts, Commerce, Science, B.M.S,B.B.I, B.A.F, B.Sc.IT, Biotechnology, Computer Scienceat degree level and organic, inorganic Chemistry,Microbiology, Bioanalytical Science, Computer Science,I.T. and Mathematics at P.G. Level affiliated to Universityof Mumbai. Beside these courses, the college providesthe other courses viz. B.Lib., M.LIB. and M.B.A. whichare affiliated to Yashwantrao Chavan Maharashtra OpenUniversity, Nasik.

The college has formulated a long term as well asshort-term plans for the academic, curricular, co-curricular, extra-curricular and extension activities inaccordance with holistic development of students.

Indian School Psychology Association (InSPA)

India is a multi-cultural and multilingual developingcountry in the Asian subcontinent. It has multifacetedschooling systems which cater to the needs of thechildren. In India, the schools run by the stategovernments, both in urban and rural areas differ in manyrespects from the private English-medium schools thatdraw children by and large from economically prosperousfamilies. Thus, the Indian setting today is characterizedby the existence of schools of various standards, whichmay be distinguished on the basis of a number of indicators,including teaching methods, physical infrastructuralfacilities, and policies of administration. The children ofthese schools need proper psychological guidance to learnand acquire skills and abilities. We strongly believe thatSchool Psychologists alone can provide the necessaryprofessional guidance to the children in schools. Atpresent Indian schools are badly in need of suchprofessional school psychologists to create an ambianceto teach and learn so as to provide desired high qualityschool education in the country.

In India, academic psychology is predominantlydominated by the Western concepts and principles. ThePsychology graduates mostly get training on Educational

and Clinical Psychology. School Psychology is a new areaof study and research based on International models. Thecompetency requires both knowledge and skills in aparticular domain. To provide a platform to get these inputsin School Psychology, a team of psychologists underinitiative of Dr. Panch. Ramalingam and the guidance ofProf. B. Mukhopadhyay evolved the Indian SchoolPsychology Association. The national level Association isexpected to take an initiative at the policy making levelsof the State and Central governments to introduce SchoolPsychology as a subject in the curriculum and to appointat least one trained school psychologist in each school bycreating the post of school psychologists all over thecountry to develop school education more effective. Thereis a pertinent need for school psychologists to propagatethe basic concepts of School Psychology and to impartproper training on the basis of the guidelines issued by theInternational School Psychology Association, USA andthe National Association of School Psychologists, USA.

The Indian School Psychology Association is the needof the hour to help young and energetic psychologists topromote School Psychology. To initiate the process theAssociation has been started in Puducherry on 15thAugust, 2009.

Character:The Indian School Psychology Association is a

voluntary non-profit educational service society. All itsincome is applied solely for the promotion of its aim andobjectives and no part of it is distributed to any of itsmembers.

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Aim and ObjectivesThe primary aim of the association is to develop

and promote School Psychology, human values-basededucation and training to meet the needs of society andparticularly to elevate the poor from poverty throughschool education. To realise the aim, the following arethe objectives:

To promote the use of sound psychological principleswithin the context of education, internationally.

To promote communication among professionals whoare committed to the improvement of the mentalhealth of children in schools.

To encourage the training and employment of schoolpsychologists in India.

To promote the psychological rights of all childrenthroughout the country.

To initiate and promote cooperation with otherorganizations working for causes similar to those ofInSPA in order to help children.

To establish and promote high quality SchoolPsychology Programmes and Centres to meet theneeds of specific groups, particularly the children andteachers.

The InSPA is an affiliating association of theInternational School Psychology Association, USA andIndian Academy of Applied Psychology, India.

Conference theme

Life Skills and School Development

Special Features

Keynote Speakers: Invited speakers from USA,Austria, The Netherlands, Bulgaria, Australia, and othercountries will deliver keynote presentations based on thespecific themes of the conference.Leadership Workshop

It will be held on second day of the conferencebetween 09.00 a.m and 12.00 noon. The participantsare invited members and State Presidents/Convenorsof InSPA.

Workshop on School Psychology

The purpose of workshop is to enable a practitioner,researcher, or other educational professional/teachers to

present specific new techniques, methods and tools forpsychologists from a practical point of view in relation tothe conference theme. (Three day workshop involvinginteractive and co-operative activities and discussionsamong a limited number of participants. The participantsneed to register separately in advance).

Children Assembly

This is a special event of the InSPA to help andmotivate the children. The children assembly will be heldon second day of the conference at 10.00 a.m. Thechildren from various places in around Mumbai regionwill assemble and interact with the School Psychologyexperts.

A new concept Memoroid will be introduced to thechildren. Maximum 120 students will admitted in thissession between the age group 14 -17 years.

Expert: Prof. V.S.R. Vijayakumar

Cultural Event

It will be arranged on the first day evening at 7.00p.m. followed by Dinner.

Social Event

A local trip to the places of interest will be anotherattraction of the conference.

School Psychology Services Award

An eminent person will be honoured with SchoolPsychology Services Award 2015 for his/her outstandingcontribution in the field of School Psychology.

School Psychology Best Performance Award isinstituted by P.K.Subbaraja Trust, Rajapalayam.Nominations of suitable persons for School PsychologyBest Performance Award 2015 will be considered fromInSPA members. The last date for submission is30.09.2015.

Dr. Barbara Hanfstingl - InSPA Best Paper Awards

Five best papers will be selected based on thesubmission of abstracts and full paper on or before 15th

September 2015. Each best paper will carry a cash awardof Rs. 500/- and a certificate.

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Proposal for Presentation

Proposals for symposia, workshops, individual paper,and poster presentations based on the main and subthemes of the conference are invited.

Papers: Papers should report on recentdevelopments in applied educational or SchoolPsychology in relation to the theme of the Conference.Twenty minutes will be alloted for each presentation ofpaper including questions from audience/participants.

Posters: The purpose is to offer a visual display ofpresentation, in an attractive way on a given poster space.Presenters should also offer additional information(leaflets, or brochures) to take away.

Symposia: One coordinator with two or moreinvited presenters will be permitted and the alloted timewould be 20 minutes for each presenter.

Submission of Papers for Oral Presentation/Publication:

Delegates are requested to submit their abstracts/papers following APA style (refer website:www.inspa.info) on any of the listed sub themes. Toensure a consistent high quality of all the presentations,participants are requested to submit the abstract in 100-200 words and full text around 5000 words can be senton or before 15th September, 2015. Abstract and fullpaper should be sent in MS-Word format only by emailto [email protected].

Important Dates

Abstract/Full Paper Submission: 15.09.2015Leadership Workshop: 24.10.2015Workshop on School Psychology :

23.10.2015 to 25.10.2014 (3 days)

Children Assembly: 24.10.2015 at 11.00am

Further queries, if any: ContactDr. R.J. SolomonChairperson, InSPA International ConferenceKarmaveer Bhaurao Patil CollegeSector 15 A , Vashi, Navi Mumbai 400703Tel. Office - 27661210Fax - 27891210Email: [email protected]

International Experts

The forthcoming Conference will have the best ofthe international and national experts.

National Invited Speakers

Prof. G.P. Thakur, New Delhi

Prof. G.P. Thakur, is the Former President of IndianSchool Psychology Association. He is the Director ofIndian Institute of School Psychology Training andResearch and has three decades of experience inteaching, research and administration. He was the Head,Psychology and Dean, faculty of Social Sciences, andScience and Technology, Mahatma Gandhi KashiVidyapith, Varanasi. He was the Director of CareerPlanning and Counselling Centre.

Prof. B. Mukhopahdyay, Chennai

Dr. B. Mukhopadhyay, Former Professor and Head,Department of Educational Management & AppliedPsychology, National Institute of Technical TeachersTraining and Research, Chennai. He is also theSecretary, IAAP; President of PPA, and InSPA andpresently the Emeritus Professor Psychology in MadrasUniversity, Chennai and is a great resourceful in areasof Psychology and Education.

Prof. P. Jeyachandran, Chennai

Prof. Jeyachandran, is the member, RehabilitationCouncil of India and resource person for SchoolPsychology training programmes. He is the President ofVijay Human Services, Chennai and an expert in thefield of mental health.

Registration

Details of the Registration fee to be remitted:

InSPA Members: Rs.2500

Non Members: Rs.3500

Student/local person Rs.1000

Training Programme (3 days) Rs.3000

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Visit to Austria

This is a brief report of my visit to Austria inNovember, 2014 to Alpen-Adria-Univesität, Klagenfurt,Austria on the invitation received on 22nd June, 2014 byDr. Barbara Hanfstingl, Institute of Instructional andSchool Development, Alpen-Adria-UniversitätKlagenfurt, Klagenfurt (Austria). I was invited to deliverguest lectures on Cross Cultural Psychology: SchoolPsychology in India from 10th to 14th November, 2014.It was an inspiring moment for me to deliver series of24 units’ guest lectures to the students and a guest lectureto the teachers of Klagenfurt University.

On 8th of November, 2014, I started my journeyfrom Chennai by Lufthansa Airways to Vienna viaFrankfort and landed in Vienna at around 1.00 pm. Ireached the Hotel Kolberg, where my stay was arrangedby Prof. Walter Renner. He met me in the hotel and wevisited St Stephan’s church, city centre, Vienna palaceand other places. On the next day morning Dr. BarbaraHanfstingl accompanied me to visit historical places inVienna and started our journey with Mr. Hans Spielmannto Klagenfurt by car at 2.45 pm. The 3 hour road journeyon a sprawling landscape mountain highway withtemperature less than 10 degree, was really anawesome one!!

We reached Hotel Sandwirth. It is situated in thecenter of Klagenfurt. The Sandwirth, has an impressivewith a historical building combined with modernarchitecture. It is a traditional hotel with 100 rooms ofthe deluxe 4 star category, seminar rooms and a ballroomfor events as well as a café, bar and restaurant. Thishotel, for over 270 years has been welcoming countlessguests from Austria and abroad, and still is a place forcelebration, enjoyment, culmination of art, culture andexchange of knowledge...

Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt(Source: http://www.uni-klu.ac.at/main/inhalt/236.htm)

The Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt (AAU) isa young, vibrant and innovative University at theintersection of three cultures. It is a leading institution ofHigher Education in Carinthia and a hub for acquisition,sharing and transfer of knowledge across the Alps-Adriatic region. Live diversity and openness make theAAU the cultural centre of the region.

On 10th November 2014, we took a five minutes’walk from the hotel to the Institute of Instructional and

School Development, Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt.It is well equipped with infrastructure. Indeed, it was anice experience to meet the faculty members in theinstitute. Dr. Hanfstingl introduced Mr. Stephan, aresearch scholar in the department who meticulouslyarranged for my classes as well other requirements inthe department.

During my Guest sessions, Dr. Hanfstingl introducedme to the students. There were six students in the classto attend my lectures. Out of nine registered for this guestlectures six turned up. These 24 units of lectures wouldgive them four credits. An abstract of the 24 units ofthese lectures are given below:

Abstract of Lectures

India is a sub-continent in Asia. It is the second largestcountry next to USA, to provide school education tochildren. More than 130 million children are in theclassrooms. The Government of India is taking severalinitiatives to educate all her children between the agegroups of 6 and 14 years by introducing an Act of Rightto Education (RTE, 2009). It has a rich tradition ofteaching and learning process since ancient times. TheSchool Psychology is an emerging area in India so as to

Indo – Austrian Initiative to School Psychology Services in IndiaDr. Panch. Ramalingam

Secretary, InSPA

Dr. Panch. Ramalingam, Dr. Barbara Hanfstingl, andProf. Walter Renner at Klagenfurt University, Austria

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promote School Psychology Services in schools. Themajor learning objectives are (i) To explore theinternational perspectives of School Psychology so as toapply it in India, (ii) To examine current research trendsin School Psychology in India, and (iii) To describe therole of professional organisations in School PsychologyServices.

In India apart from the varied socio economicconditions, the challenging aspects of multilingual,multicultural issues also influence the nature of education.Psychology plays a vital role to aid and promote educationto the children. The teaching - learning process needs tobe strengthened with the help of applying psychologicalprinciples and methods. The lecture contents may helpthe student in many ways to understand psychologicalpractices in India, researches and practices. Each unit isdesigned with illustrative figures and data. At the end ofeach unit key terms, summary of the unit for quickgrasping, objective type questions for betterunderstanding, and review questions from examinationpoint of view are incorporated. The 24 units of lecturesin five parts are focussing on the following topics:

Part I: Indian Ancient and Modern EducationScenario

1. Ancient Indian Education

2. Modern Indian Education

3. Instructional Methods in Indian SchoolEducation

4. SSA and RMSA Models: Education for All

5. Policy Perspectives and Right to Education

Part II: Best Practices and School PsychologyInitiatives in India

6. Integral Psychology

7. School Psychology Initiatives

8. Best Practices in Indian Schools

9. Teacher Education in India

10. Indian School Psychology Association (InSPA)

Part III: School Psychology Services and SchoolDevelopment

11. School Psychology Services

12. Academic Perspectives

13. Mental Health Perspectives

14. Environmental Perspectives

15. School Development

Part IV: Professional Development of Teachers

16. Professional Development Initiatives

17. Self and Personality Development

18. Learning and Teaching Skills

19. Teacher Empowerment

20. Guidance and Counselling

PartV:Initiative for Indo-Austrian Collaboration

21. International Collaboration with ISPA

22. Eastern and Western Integration

23. Futuristic Initiatives on Indo-AustrianCollaboration

24. Possible Collaboration with Austrian Teachers

The lecture sessions were supported withPowerPoint Presentation and interactive class work. Thesessions contributed for the understanding of the basicconcepts of the topics prescribed above. The sessionswere not just for delivering facts and figures in theclassroom or passing the information. These teachingsessions were designed to make the classes interestingand involved all the students in the interactive process oflearning and acquiring knowledge.

Students’ Reflections

I am very much impressed by the interest shown bythe students about my lectures. The comments given bythe students are given below:

i. Sandra Moser (E.Mail: [email protected])

Impressions: Cross Cultural Study: School Psychology inIndia:

I received good Impressions about the school systemin India (very different to our school system) and learntthat religion and spirituality are very important for the

Meeting with Prof. Peter Posch

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Indian students and teachers. I was also surprised tonote that in spite of schools without grade system,students are competitive in studies

I also got an idea what school psychologists do.How they try to help students with different problems.(In my opinion here in Austria we should also have schoolpsychologists in every school or teachers should learnmore about Psychology in their education at University).

The clippings and videos helped me to getvisualizations of the topics. Also received good supportand guidance as to how to write about the topics anddo better. The sessions offered good hints at how wecan teach so that students learn/remember better.

It was good that we were a small group of studentswhich enabled us to discuss more and share our personalexperiences and feelings related to special topics. Thishelped me in getting an idea about Indian culture as awhole( especially about marriage, etc).

However, sometimes it wasn’t easy to understandall the things…

ii. Tamara Obereder (E.Mail: [email protected])

It was very interesting to hear something about theschool system in India, because in Austria you hardlyhear something about school system in other countries.

I got a good impression of the Indian culture.

It was interesting to know about the similarities anddifferences between India and Austria in the schoolsystems. Interesting was also to hear something aboutthe differences between private school and public schoolsin India. It was great to know about the development inschool system in India especially about the oldest systemin the gurukula system.

I think it was also good, that we were such a smallwhich enabled us to get answers whenever we hadquestions. I also liked, that we had discussions. Afterthe course I would think a lot about the discussion aboutthe textbooks in the classrooms.

iii. Sebastian (Berger), Babenbergerstr, 21, door(Tur) 7, 9020 Klagenfurt, Austria

I am glad and thankful for the opportunity I got toknow and understand about Indian culture and Indianschool systems. Through the connections I got to knowabout different possibilities and chances to learn andexperience different training programmes on Indianschool traditions and culture.

Many things impressed me, such as the diversityof school traditions, new school systems, school values,teaching values and their connections of family throughcommunity sharing.

The collaborations and connections between Austriaand India in sharing knowledge and humanity -led traditionsare most welcome and I feel more connected to myself(“a bridge over troubled water”). I am associating thesymbol of openness through the area “Auroville”, whichled to my impression about India as a country which isvery open and hospitable. It made me realize that peoplemay see more similarities in humanity than diversity.

I got the chance to share my personal feelings inthe presence of a real Indian guru who supported andwidened my horizon. I am planning to come again to India,to visit friends and to enhance my experience as a personas now I got new answer to matters related to mind.

Thank you sir for your offer and calmness.. I hope,we will meet soon….

Namaste

13th November 2014 was a hectic day for me.Morning at around 8.30 am, I visited the main campus ofthe university and handled the guest lectures between10.00 am and 1.00 pm. By 3.00 pm I had an opportunityto interact with colleagues in the Institute.

Meeting with Peter Posch

I was introduced to Prof. Peter Posch, formerProfessor of Education at the University of Klagenfurt,Austria by Dr. Hanfstingl. He presented me a copy ofhis book entitled Teachers Investigate their Work whichis an introduction to action research across the professions.Based on the interaction with him, we designed a proposalfor joint book publication on Indo-Austrian Action researchon School Psychology Services and School Development.He explained the nature and scope of the action researchprogrammes in Austria.

Dr. Panch. Ramalingam and his students at KlagenfurtUniversity, Austria

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Peer Meeting

I also had an opportunity to meet and interact withthe colleagues in the department regarding the possiblecollaboration with Indian School Psychologists. BarbaraHanfstingl, who is an expert in personality research andeducational psychology, introduced her colleagues to me.The topic of discussion centred around Austrian schoolsupporting programme called “Innovations make schoolstop” (IMST). It was followed by the presentation of theaims and philosophy of the on going IMST-programmeby Prof. Konrad Krainer.

In addition, Dr. Hanfstingl reported some selectedresults from research. Based on Self-DeterminationTheory of Motivation (Deci & Ryan, 2002) the researchteam in many studies could show that the reduction ofpressure and the enhancement of support, especially thesupport of the three psychological basic needs, the feelingof autonomy, competence, and social relatedness helpsto foster and maintain motivation, especially intrinsicmotivation in a systemic way. Her current interest is howto “translate” Western European findings about schoolmotivation into Indian culture and Indian students. Thislaid a pathway to collaborate with Indian Psychologiststo enter into action research projects involving Austrianresource persons so as to provide school psychologyservices in India focussing school development and MSTprogramme. IMST is a project, but that will be sharedbetween schools, School Boards, colleges of educationand universities and other partners. In total, about 7,000people are involved in IMST year. In addition to thepartners in the framework of the network program andthe theme programs, there are other important initiativeswhich also collaborate with IMST.

Lecture on Cross Cultural Psychology

At 6.30 pm I had the opportunity to deliver a guestlecture on Cross Cultural Psychology: School Psychologyin India. I emphasized the following points:

In Indian schools, counselling psychologists orcounsellors are the primary mental health serviceproviders.

As such, there is no formal system for mental healthservice delivery and currently only a very smallnumber of schools employ counsellors andpsychologists.

While these professionals do address a variety ofpsychological problems and also provide careercounselling services, most of them do not have therequisite training for conducting psycho-educationalassessments.

As a result, many children with learning disabilitiesand other mental health problems do not receive theinterventions and support they need.

Further, teachers do not have adequate training inidentifying and referring children who have mentalhealth problems. Very often, children withpsychological or academic problems are seen as lazy,slow or unmotivated, and are subjected to failure.

There is a tremendous need to introduce SchoolPsychology services in a country like India, wheremore than 130 million children are currently enrolledin schools.

In most State-run schools, mental health services ata school level simply do not exist. Students in Indiaface a variety of pressures in schools and colleges.

Academic success is highly valued. Parents andsociety in general, place great demands on childrenand youth to achieve academic excellence. There isfierce competition among students at all levels ofschooling.

Apart from academic pressure, students face severalother stressors such as social and economicdisadvantage, peer pressure, rapid modernization andurbanization, cultural changes as an offshoot ofglobalization, responsibilities towards the family, etc.

Psychological problems such as anxiety, depression,suicidal behaviours are common among Indianstudents, but are not addressed in a timely andeffective manner.

It is thus imperative that schools make every effortto ensure psychological well-being of all students.

The provision of School Psychology services wouldenable students to have access to mental healthprofessionals who can help students cope withproblems in a positive way, diagnose any academicor psychological problems, and collaborate withteachers and parents to develop appropriateinterventions.

School psychologists can advise on administrativeissues that affect students’ outcome, and play animportant role in organizational development.

The urgent need for School Psychology in India hasnow prompted the development of appropriatetraining programmes for school psychologists in India.

Currently, in India, academic psychology is dominatedby Western concepts and principles. School

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psychology training programmes and indeedservices, need to adapt to the local cultural contexts.

The tremendous heterogeneity of language, religion,and ethnicity makes India culturally diverse.

Thus, multicultural competence would also have tobecome part of basic School Psychology training.

There is a pertinent scope in promoting SchoolPsychology in India with the collaboration of Austrianuniversities.

It is proposed that Austrian Psychologists/Researchers/Educationists may offer their expertisefor the school development in India.

As well they can train teachers in schools forSchool Psychology services.

The research scholars should take the initiatives toconduct researches in India so as to promote theSchool Psychology research in India.

Potential Psychology departments in Austrianuniversities may offer Post-graduate programme inSchool Psychology and Diploma in SchoolPsychology for Indian students.

The funding agencies in social sciences mayencourage research projects in School Psychologyresearch areas such as bullying, learning disabilities,giftedness, etc.

It is an appeal to the Austrian psychologists andteacher educators who practise in school setting toinvolve Indian researchers in the collaborative

researches so as to strengthen the professionalactivities in Austria and India.

The InSPA in collaboration with ISPA should takean initiative to organise School Psychologyconferences/seminars /workshops / t rain ingprogrammes in India/Austria so as to meet thechallenges and opportunities in the Indian as well asAustrian Schools.

We proposed Klagenfurt University to take a leadrole to set up an Indo – Austrian Collaboration Unitby signing a MOU with InSPA for the promotion ofour professional needs.

Collaborative Areas

The following are the potential areas forcollaborative work:

Conducting cross cultural research (Example: WalterRenner, Christine Gabali & Panch. Ramalingam(2014). The Importance of Individual Differences inStudents and Teachers and their Interaction withCulture: Jung’s Personality Types, Journal of theIndian Academy of Applied Psychology, 40 (2), 177-184)

Conducting training programmes for the teachers inIndia

Exploring possible collaborative research initiativesby undertaking school development projects

Introducing innovative teaching strategies (ITS) byconducting action research

Dr. Panch. Ramalingam and faculty members of KlagenfurtUniversity, Austria

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Collaborating in research and development activitieson the areas such as teacher training, curriculumdesigning, school development, etc.

Collaborating in publication of books and articles inthe reputed journals, and participation/conduct ofseminars and conferences.

Visit to Places of Interest

From Monday to Friday, 10th to 14th November 2014,I enriched my Austrian experience by visiting variousplaces in the Klagenfurt city with the marvellous guidanceof Dr. Hanfstingl.

Stay back in Vienna

As arranged by Dr.Hanfstingl, I had travelledcomfortably by a train from Klagenfurt to Vienna, andreached the hotel Pension City and slept peacefully. Thehotel stay was very comfortable and nice. The receptionistwas very courteous and helped me in every possible way.I had a pleasant day when my son Mr. Rajarajan, studyingat Chemnitz University of Technology visited and stayedwith me at Vienna.

Return Journey

As scheduled, I departed on Sunday morning fromVienna to Chennai. I take this opportunity to profuselythank Dr. Barbara Hanfstingl, and Prof. Walter Renner

for their nice arrangements and helping to initiatecollaboration with Austrian colleagues. This wasacademically and socially very inspiring and beneficialtrip for me.

After spending fruitful eight-day stay in Austria, I learnta lot and initiated Indo-Austrian collaboration to promoteSchool Psychology services in India.

New Books 2015

School Psychology:Enhancing Psychological CompetenciesEditors:Dr. Panch. Ramalingam and Dr. Indranee P.Borooah

This volume is based on the papers presented in theInternational conference at Gauhati University,Guwahati with the help of Indian Institute of SchoolPsychology Training and Research, Puducherry. Thereare 40 selcted papers on different dimensions of thepsychological competencies for enhancing students'all round development.

Price: Rs.600/- First Edition: March 2015

Pre-publication Price: Rs.300/- on or before28.02.2015

Contact: The Director, Indian Institute of SchoolPsychology Training and Research, #17, 14th Street,Krishna Nagar, Puducherry - 605 008, India.

School Psychology:Prospects of Children with Multiple Disabilities

Editors: Dr. Panch. Ramalingam

Educational action research in Austria andits possible implementations in India.

EditorsP. Ramalingam and Barbara Hanfstingl

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A Report of the 4th Annual InSPA International Conference onSchool Psychology: Enhancing Psychological Competencies among School Students for

Overall Developmentorganized by Department of Psychology, Gauhati University, Assam

seamlessly by members of the Department. Theprogramme started with the University Anthemcomposed by the legendary Dr. Bhupen Hazarika in itslyrics and music and sung by the students of theDepartment of Psychology.

Dr. Panch.Ramalingam, Secretary of InSPAwelcomed the august gathering and it was followed bythe Presidential address by Prof. B. Mukhopadhyay,President of InSPA. Prof. G. P. Thakur, Former Presidentof InSPA, presented the inaugural Speech. The FourthAnnual InSPA International conference was inauguratedby lighting the lamp by the dignitaries on the dais andProf. Thakur declared the conference open. It wasfollowed by the presentation of Annual InSPA awardsto various dignitaries for their services as well as for thebest research papers. Dr. Suresh Kumar Nath, Registrarof Gauhati University delivered special address andreleased the Book of Abstracts of the conference.

Immediately after the inauguration, Ms. CoosjeGriffiths from Australia, who currently works as aManager, Student Support: Complex Learning and

Considering the different aspects of students’problems and to capacities of school children from anearly age, the Annual InSPA International Conference2014 was organized with the theme “SchoolPsychology: Enhancing PsychologicalCompetencies among School Students for OverallDevelopment”.

As school communities are challenged with manypsychosocial issues of children from different ethnicities,races, languages, religions, abilities, and disabilities, themain objective of the conference was to promote SchoolPsychology in India, with special focus on North EastIndia, to cater to the needs of students, parents, teachers,school administration and policy makers.

InaugurationThe InSPA conference was inaugurated in the

morning of 21st November, 2014, at 9.30 am at thePhanidhar Datta Seminar Hall at Gauhati University.Organized by the Department of Psychology at GauhatiUniversity, the inaugural programme was conducted

Prof. G. P. Thakur, Former President of InSPA, presenting the inaugural Speech. Dr. Panch. Ramalingam, Ms. CoosjeGriffiths, Australia, Prof. B. Mukhopadhyay, Prof. Indranee P. Borooah, and Dr. Suresh Kumar Nath.

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Wellbeing, Statewide Services in the Department ofEducation in Western Australia presented the keynoteaddress on “The role of school psychology inimproving out comes for students” .

Professor Indranee Phookan Borooah, Head, Dept.of Psychology, Gauhati University and Chairperson ofthe Local organizing Committee, proposed a vote ofthanks.

The three-day conference involved intense andinformative scientific presentations and deliberationswhich saw the participation of more than 200 delegatesin all, including university and school teachers, researchscholars, students, doctors, nurses, and members ofNGOs.

Scientific SessionsAnnual InSPA International Conference, 2014 was

organized by the Department of Psychology, GauhatiUniversity from 21st to 23rd November, 2014. The maintheme of the conference was “School Psychology:Enhancing Psychological Competencies among SchoolStudents for Overall Development”. Under the maintheme several sub themes were taken and researchpapers were distributed according to the sub themes tovarious parallel scientific sessions held in differentvenues. The first Sub-theme “Nutrition, Health andFitness; Reproductive Health, Sexual Behavior andSexuality Education; Sports and Self Defense: enhancingcompetencies for excellence was presented at the Venue1 on 21st November, which was Day 1 of the conference.In this session Dr. Panch. Ramaligngam delivered aspeech on "School Psychology is an Integral Part ofschool development". He enlightened the audience withhis vast experience in this field. The invited speakerDr. Shantanu Das, Co-ordinator Project Child, spoke onNutrition, Health and Fitness whereas another invitedspeaker Dr. Athiqul H. Laskar, Sports Psychologist,Conant Institute, spoke on "Sports and Self Defense :Enhancing competencies for Excellence".

The pre lunch, session was chaired by Prof. AnjaliGhosh, Psychology Research Unit, Indian StatisticalInstitute, Kolkata. After lunch the session was chairedby Prof. Rupali Baruah, Dept. Of Community Medicine,GMCH and Prof. Beeva Baruah, Dept. of CommunityMedicine, Barpeta, Assam. A total number of 7 paperswere presented under this sub-theme.

The second sub-theme was “Addiction: substance,internet and cell phone etc.” The Invited speaker Dr.Mridula Saikia Khanikar, Principal, Regional NursingCollege, Guwahati shared her experiences with addictedpeople and their diagnosis. She also chaired the session.In the present session a total of 9 papers were presentedin Hall No.2.

On 21st November, 2014, the third sub-theme“Relationship: Students, teachers, peers, family, co-workers and love and romance” was presented in HallNo.3. The session was chaired by Prof. DipeshBhagabati, Dept. of Psychiatry, GMCH. The invitedspeaker was Prof. N. K. Saksena and he enlightened theaudience with role of family in overall development ofschool students. He discussed about some of the unhealthyparenting styles and some tips for successful parenting.He emphasized on school- parents partnership foracademic, social and emotional development of thestudents. He gave some suggestions for the schoolpsychologists for overall development of the students.Total 6 papers were presented in this session.

The Fourth sub-theme was “Childhood disorder andPhysical Disability” and it was presented in Hall No.4and the esteemed chairperson, Dr. N. C. Das reiteratedthe focal theme of the Annual InSPA InternationalConference. He highlighted the need for overalldevelopment of school children and the role of schoolpsychologists as mental health professionals for thecurative as well as diagnostic purpose. First invited speakerMs. Pratibha Devi, Principal Nursing college, InternationalHospital, Guwahati enlightened the group about the specialneed of the disabled or differently abled children and theneed to take the perspective of parents while dealing withthe special children. Another esteemed Invited speaker,Ms. Mukta A. Daga, eminent school psychologist fromMumbai spoke on school psychology in the Indian context.She spoke about her experience with the Indian childrenin US where she went for her specialization training. Shehighlighted the practice model given by NASP – NationalAssociation of School Psychologists. A total of 8 paperswere presented in this session.

The fifth sub-theme was “Learning and teachingand school environment and curriculum design: presentand future examination”. It was presented in Hall No.5on 21st November, 2014. The session was chaired by Dr.

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Riju Sarma, Director Humanities and Social sciences,Assam Don Bosco University. The esteemed invitedspeaker was Dr. Kalpana Venugopal, RIE Mysore,NCERT. She discussed on the issue of academic guidancein schools where emphasis was on training and assistanceprogramme. She also asked for individual guidance,counseling, workshops for teachers. She also emphasizedon career planning for children and child-friendly school.In the present session total 12 papers were presented.

On 22nd November, 2014 the sixth subtheme “LifeSkill education, coping skills and resilience in the face ofadverse situation” was presented in Hall No.2. Prof.Alaka Sarmah, Head, Dept. of Political Science, GauhatiUniversity was the invited Speaker and Dr. ARadhakrishnan Nair, President, LSEA, Hyderabad, India,chaired the session. He discussed about the term LifeSkills and altogether 5 papers were presented under thistheme.

The seventh sub-theme “Moral Development: ValueEducation In Schools; Professional ethics of Schoolpersonnel; Impact of media on moral development; Moraldevelopment: role of family, peer and community andMoral development for promoting values againstcorruption” was organized in Hall No. 3 on 22nd

November, 2014. The session was chaired by Prof.Manisha Bauah , Dept of Philosophy, Gauhati Universityand Mrs. Leeta Hazarika, Child psychologist. In thepresent session there were four invited speakers and theyenlightened the audience with their experiences and deepknowledge in the area of their expertise. The Invitedspeakers Fr. Johnson Parackal, Director, Don BoscoInstitute, Guwati spoke on Moral development and valueeducation while Dr. Suneetha Hangal, Editor, InSPANewsletter, and Head of the Dept. of Psychology,S.K.Arts College, Hubli highlighted the need for andchallenges of value education in schools. Dr. DebulalDutta Roy, Psychology Research Unit, Indian Instituteof Statistics, Kolkata discussed the professional ethics inschool personnel and Mr.Pranab Bora, Editor, TheTelegraph, Guwahati presented the impact of media onmoral development. There were 9 research paperpresentations in this session.

The eighth sub-theme was “Emotional adjustmentand maturity of students; bullying” in Hall No. 4. Thissession was chaired by Dr. Sangeeta Goswami, President,Mind India. The Invited Speaker was Dr. R.J. Solomon,Joint Secretary, InSPA and Head, Dept of Psychology,KPB College, Mumbai. He presented a global view ofschool bullying in his paper “School Bullying: A CrossNational Comparison”. In this session total 8 papers werepresented.

The ninth sub-theme was “Emotional Intelligence,

achievement and failure”. The session was chaired byDr. P. Jeyachandran. The Invited speakers were Dr.R.N. Rai, Head, Centre for Distance Education, NEHU,Shillong and Dr. M. V. Sudhakaran, Tamil Nadu OpenUniversity. This session was organized at Hall 4 and atotal of 6 papers were presented.

On 23rd November, 2014, the tenth sub-theme“Vulnerability for Self harm and suicide; Abuse: sexual,physical, emotional, neglect” in Hall No.2 was presented.The session was chaired by Dr. Deepanjali Medhi, Assoc.Professor, Dept. of Psychiatry, GMCH. She also gavean invited speech on Suicide and pointed out variouspsychosocial causes which are common amongst childrenand young adolescents leading to suicide. In this sessiontotal 5 papers were presented.

The eleventh sub-theme was “Students and culturalchange: ethnicity, identity and racial discrimination;Interaction between students and community, gender andequality” . Prof. Mita Deka, Dept. of History, GU chairedthe session. The invited speakers for the session wereProf. N. G. Mahanta and Dr. Ratna Natarajan. Prof.N.G. Mahanta talked on various issues related to racialdiscrimination and ethnic identity. Dr. Natarajan opinedthat the overall development of a child is not possiblewithout all the aspects of social relationship. In this sessiontotal 3 papers were presented.

In all, there were 11scientific sessions with 78papers. The sessions were chaired by 14 Chairpersonsand there were 19 invited speaches.

School Psychology WorkshopA three days workshop on School Psychology was

conducted at Gauhati University from 22nd to 24th

November, 2014. It was one of the events conductedduring the Annual InSPA International Conference, 2014.In the presence of the resource persons from InSPA,Prof. Indranee Phookan Borooah offered a warm

Dr. Panch. Ramalingam addressing in the conference

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welcome to the resource persons, office bearers of theInSPA and the participants of the workshop. Theworkshop was inaugurated by Prof. G.P. Thakur, NewDelhi, Former President, InSPA. In his inaugural addressProf. Thakur discussed the responsibilities of teachersin shaping the behavior of children.

Purpose of the WorkshopThe purpose of the workshop was to enable a

practitioner, researcher, or other educationalprofessionals/ teachers to present specific newtechniques, methods and tools for psychologists from apractical point of view in relation to the conference themei.e.,”School Psychology: Enhancing PsychologicalCompetencies among School Students for OverallDevelopment”.Participants

The participants were School Principals,Headmasters, Assistant Teachers, School Counsellorsand Professionals from different parts of KamrupDistrict, Assam. There were 21 Principals/Headmasters/Assistant Teachers from Government Schools and 14teachers/ counselors/ Professionals from otherInstitutions.

Dr. Mala Chaliha Talukdar, Faculty, RegionalNursing College, Guwahati and Member of LOC wasthe Local Coordinator.

Resource Persons from InSPA 22nd November, 2014 (Day-1)

For the 1st session, Ms. Coosje Griffiths, Australiawas the Resource Person and she discussed differentaspects of students’ needs and problems, responsibilitiesof parents and teachers as well as the roles of schoolpsychologists.

Dr. Yogini Nath, Canada and Mukta Daga, Mumbaiwere the Resource persons for the 2nd technical sessionand the topic of discussion was "Knowing the World ofSchool Settings in India, and Counselling in Schools".

The 3rd technical Session was handled by DeepaliBatra, Delhi and she discussed on identification ofchildren at risk of learning difficulties in schools and theremedial measures.

23rd November, 2014 (Day -2)Ms. Coosje Griffiths, Australia was the Resource

Person for the 1st technical session and discussed theTheoretical Framework of School Psychology.

The 2nd technical session was handled by Prof.Ratna Natarajan, Thiruppathur. The Resource Personhighlighted on Gender Sensitization, personalitycharacteristics, self- esteem and interpersonal Skills.

For the 3rd technical session, Dr. D. Dutta Roywas Resource Person and he explained about AcademicAchievement Test Construction.

24th November, 2014 (Day -3)Prof. P. Jeyachandran, Chennai and Dr. M.V.

Sudhakaran, Chennai were the Resource Persons forthe 1st and 2nd technical sessions.

The last session involved Evaluation and feedbackon the Workshop, Valedictory address and distribution ofcertificates to the participants.

The last session was successfully concluded withspeech by Prof. Indranee Phookan Borooah,Chairperson; Dr. B. Mukhopadhyay, President, InSPAand other guests. The participants also expressed theirfeelings and shared their experiences regarding theworkshop. Dr. N.C. Das, Member of LOC proposed avote of thanks.

Outcomes AchievedThe workshop was very much interactive. Feedback

from the participants revealed that the workshop wasfruitful. The participants expressed that they gainedknowledge from the topics covered in the workshop andhad benefited a lot. They requested the organizers toarrange more workshops of this type for the teachers ofthis region.

Children AssemblyA Children Assembly was organized as a part of

InSPA International Conference, 2014 on 22nd Nov, 2014.

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The Assembly started at 11.00 am and ended at 1.00pm. A total number of 100 students from classes IIV -IX , escorted by 10 teachers(male-4 and female-6)attended the assembly from two different schools ofKamrup Metro District: 1) Jalukbasri Higher SecondarySchool: male students, and 2) Jalukbari Girls' HighSchool: 50 female students.

Prof G.P. Thakur started the Assembly by askingstudents about their likes and dislikes related to schoolenvironment, interest subjects, particularly inmathematics. He also asked about bullying, theirexperiences and feelings on bullying, how to handle, whatshould be the reaction etc. He also explained the role ofmale students against bullying.

Dr. B. Mukhopadhyay interacted with the studentsby discussing about their problems in school, class roomsituation, home, at community level and suggested theprobable causes of these problems and methods of solvingthem.

Ms. Coosje Griffiths, renowned School Psychologistfrom Australia interacted with the students by sharingher own life experiences and encouraged them to dothe same. She also encouraged the students to performtheir activity as per their interest and hobby. The mostencouraging activity was that Ms. Griffiths rewardedthe students with Kangaroo dolls when they gave quickresponses.

As these students were comfortable mainly withthe Assamese language, Dr. Alaka Bhattachayya,Dr. Jerina Begum and Dr. Bobita Baishya facilitated thesession by translating the English and Hindi conversationsto Assamese and enabled the students to activelyparticipate in the interaction.

At the end of the session Prof. G.P. Thakur askedstudents to come forward and sing an Assamese folksong. The session concluded with a song by a group of12 students. Children enjoyed the entire two hours ofthe interactions and it was followed by a delicious lunchfor the students and teachers.

The Children’s Assembly was sponsored by RastriyaMadhamic Siksha Parisad and school students andteachers were taken care by School Inspector, KamrupMetro District, Assam.

ValedictionAlthough the School Psychology Workshop carried

on till the afternoon of 24th November, 2014, thevaledictory function of the conference was held in theafternoon of 23rd November. After the conclusion of allthe scientific sessions by lunch time, all the participantsagain gathered in the Phanidhar Datta Seminar Hall ofGauhati University. The president and secretary of InSPAspoke on the events of the 3-days conference andappreciated the quality of the scientific papers presented,the logistics and the organizational competence of theDepartment of Psychology, Gauhati University. The ChiefGuest Padmashree Dr. Mukul Goswami enlightened theaudience with the articles included in the Mental HealthPolicy of India and appreciated that the Department ofPsychology, Gauhati University had selected anappropriate theme for the conference. Prof. G. P. Thakuralso spoke on the occasion in his prolific manner andwith his customary kindness. Prof. Indranee PhookanBorooah also spoke a few words. This was followed bythe vote of thanks by Prof. R. N. Rai, Vice PresidentInSPA.

The grand finale of the function was the traditionalBihu Dance of Assam known worldwide for its rhythm,grace and colour. All present joined in with the Bihu troupe,consisting of the students of Gauhati University, and madethe conference complete with its joyous end.

Outcomes Gave an exposure of stake holders in the North East

region of India to the concept and importance of SchoolPsychology

Created an awareness among school children, throughthe Student Assembly, that their aptitudes, interestsand problems are legitimate and important and thatthere are adults who value the various issues faced bythem

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InSPA New Members01.10.2014 to 31.12.2014

229/2014 Ms. Saihlupuii, Aizawl, Mizoram230/2014 Mr. Anto Varkey, Kochi, Kerala231/2014 Ms. Juliet Lalremmawii Ralte, Aizawl, Mizoram232/2014 Mr. M. Kumaresan, Coimbatore233/2014 Ms. Ritu, Jind, Haryana234/2014 Ms. Ushri Baneju, Kolkata235/2014 Dr. R.L. Bharadwaj, Agra236/2014 Ms. Aruna Sarawgi, Guwahati, Assam237/2014 Ms. Leeta Hazarika, Guwahati, Assam238/2014 Ms. Harshita Kejriwal, Guwahati, Assam.239/2014 Geeta Baishya, Guwahati, Assam240/2014 Dr. Runumi Devi, North Gauhati College, Assam241/2014 Dr.Jahnabee Lahkar Boruah, North Lakhimpur242/2014 Dr.Alaka Das, Baihata Chariate, Assam.243/2014 Dr.Utpal Kalita, Rangia, Assam244/2014 Dr. Mallika Kalita, Rangia245/2014 Ms. Arpana Nath, Kanpur, Assam246/2014 Ms. Snigha Ghosh, Jonehat, Assam .247/2014 Ms. Goteti Hima Bindu, Vizanagaram (AP)248/2014 Dr. V. Arulmurugan, Karaikal249/2014 Dr. Lalremsangi Sailo, Aizawl, Mizoram250/2014 Dr. Rinpari Ralte, Aizawl, Mizoram251/2014 Dr. Saichampuii Sailo, Aizawl, Mizoram252/2014 Ms. Lalbiakzuali, Aizawl, Mizoram253/2014 Ms. Dhritismita Bora, Guwahati254/2014 Ms. Maher Nigan Ahmed, Guwahati255/2014 Mr. Manish Sikder, North Jalukbari, Guwahati256/2014 Dr. Reena Singh, Bhopal

Reflections

Dear Prof. Ramalingam,

Congratulate you and Prof. Indranee very much for thegrand success of InSPA conference. We enjoyed thescientific sessions and the deliberations. So also the foodand local hospitality was good.

With warm regards,

Anjali Ghosh,

Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata.

We congratulate InSPA and specially, the Dept. ofPsychology for organizing such a grant conference andgiving me the opportunity to participate and present thepaper. We express our heartfelt thanks to you all.

Nabanita Sarmah

Gauhati University, Guwahati

Hello Madak,

We would like to say thank you all. It was an opportunityto broaden our minds and perspectives.

Regards from

Farida M . Shullai

Research Scholar of the Department of Education, NEHU.

Respected Sir,

It was really a great experience to share the ideas andknowledge with the eminent personalities in the area ofPsychology. Hopefully, we can expect more Internationalconferences in North-eastern region.

With Beast Regards,

Mintu Bhattacharya

Sensitized the School Principals and Teachers tothe needs of school students and how to handle themsensitively

Impressed on all participants the importance of all-round development of children to make them resilientand empowered to handle life stresses

Highlighted the importance of research in uncoveringissues important to a particular community and to aparticular region

Revealed the high quality of research related tochildren and youth being conducted in India,particularly the North East

Has set a higher bench-mark in the organizationalaspects of a conference.

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Workshop on School PsychologyThe Everest KenBridge School, Mayiladuthurai is a part

of the nationwide KenBridge Schools chain that will soon betaking district level education to new highs. Nobody takesOliver Holmes’ statement as seriously as us. Nine leading lightsof Mayiladuthurai have come together form the trust and todeliver quality education through Everest KenBridge School.

At Everest KenBridge School, it is focused on makingeducation more vivid, enjoyable and knowledgeable for yourchild. Here, it strives to create an environment that bringslessons alive for all children. Their emphasis is on learning bydoing through interactive, activity based teaching methods.The outcome is the child acquires confident, knowledgeableand smart as children from other metros. With thesebackground, InSPA ventured to train the teachers for theirprofessional development with school psychologycomponents.

Training Objectives To understand the role of school psychologists with

emphasis on preventive work as well as clinical skills

To understand the teaching-learning process in schooleducation and policies of State and CentralGovernments of India

To develop skills in constructing and conducting variouspsychological and educational assessments in schoolsetting

To understand and respect individual differences invarious socio-cultural contexts

To understand the competencies of a schoolpsychologist

To gain insight on the strategies, programmes andprocesses of mental health and well-being of children

To understand the roles of school psychologists inprevention (an International Perspective)

Based on the training objectives the following moduleshave been developed to conduct the workshops for teachers:

Workshop modulesModule I: Theoretical framework of School Psychology,

Indian Context of School Psychology Services

Module II: Knowing the world of school settings in India,Guidance and Counselling

Module III: Inclusive Education, Safe School andAdolescent Issues

Module IV: Identifying learning disabilities among children,and mental health issues

Module V: Gender Sensitization, Personality characters,Self-esteem and Interpersonal Skills.

This was another step of InSPA reaching the doorstepsof CBSE school to train their teachers on School Psychology.Dr. Panch. Ramalingam, Secretary, InSPA presented the Scopeof the workshop on School Psychology. Prof. P. Jeyachandran

delivered inaugural address and said that the SchoolPsychology training is timely needed to the school teachersfor effective teaching - learning environment.

Outcome of the Workshops Created awareness among teachers on School

Psychology and essential needs of school psychologyservices in the Indian context.

Pomoted the use of sound psychological principles inthe context of education in the Union Territory ofPuducherry taking into account national development

Promoted awareness on the wellbeing of children andthe rights of children

Provided an opportunity to understand the concept ofInclusive Education, Safe School and AdolescentIssues

Provided hands on experience for Identifying learningdisabilities among children, and mental health issues

Created awareness among teachers on specificpsychological skills such as Gender Sensitization,Personality characters, Self-esteem and InterpersonalSkills.

Feedback from the teachers: The programme organizedby InSPA is useful. Needs more training on School PsychologyServices. Practical training could be included during theworkshop sessions so as to get hands-on experience, Needmore theory based skill oriented training on School Psychology.School Psychology workshops may be arranged every year,Assessment techniques need more time to apply with thechildren.

Recommendations based on the Peer GroupInteractionThe workshop was very useful to understand the basic

concept of School Psychology services available invarious countries and the ways and means ofintroducing these services to Indian School System

Invariably all the participants recommended that SchoolPsychology services must be introduced in all schools

The School Psychology awareness programmes maybe conducted to all parents and teachers.

In conclusion, the workshops conducted for the schoolteachers have opined that the programme was found to bevery effective, useful, inspiring, and has contributed for betterknowledge, skills and techniques in School psychologyServices.

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Indian School Psychology Association (InSPA) (Regd No. 583/2009)

Minutes of the Sixth Annual General Body MeetingThe Sixth Annual General Body meeting was held on Saturday, 22nd November, 2014 at 04.00 pm atDepartment of Psychology, Gauhati University, Guwahati, Assam. Prof. Mukhopadhyay, President,InSPA presided the meeting.

The following members attended the meeting:1. Dr. G.P. Thakur Past President

2. Dr. B. Mukhopadhyay President

3. Dr. Panch. Ramalingam Secretary

4. Dr. R.J. Solomon Joint Secretary

5. Prof. R.N. Rai Vice-President

6. Dr. Shah Alam State Convenor

7. Dr. N.V.S. Suryanarayana State Convenor, Andhra Pradesh

8. Dr. Suneetha Hangal Newsletter Editor

9. Dr. V. Job Kuruvilla State President, Kerala

10. Ms. Deepali Batra State Convenor, Uttar Pradesh

11. Dr. M.V. Sudhakaran State Convenor, Chennai

12. Dr. Deepa Ghosh State Convenor

13. Dr. Anjali Rai State Convenor, West Bengal

14. Dr. Indranee Phookan Borooah State Convenor, Assam

InSPA Members:

15.Prof. N.K. Saksena

16. Dr. R.L. Bharadwaj

17. Prof. P. Jeyachandran

18. Dr. Ratna Natarajan

19. Dr. D. Dutta Roy

20. Ms. Harshita Kijriwal

21. Ms. Aruna Sarangi

22. Ms. Yogni Nath

23. Ms. Mukta Daga

24. Dr. Nimai Charan Das

25. Ms. Lopamudre Sana

26. Dr. Rita Rani Talukdar

27. Dr. Mlanipa Poaruah

28. Dr. Pradtibha Ranjan

29. Prof. Madhu Anand

30. Ms. Ritu Goyat

InSPA President Prof. B, Mukhopadhyay, welcomed all the members and briefed them about the recentactivities and developments of the InSPA. It was followed by the discussion and consideration of various items

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and the following resolutions were passed:

01/2014 To note the activities of InSPA during the year 2013-14

Dr. Panch. Ramalingam, Secretary, InSPA presented the annual report of the year 2013-14. It wasnoted and recorded.

02/2014 To approve the statement of income and expenditure accounts for the year 2013-14

The statement of income and expenditure presented by the Secretary, InSPA was noted and recorded.

03/2014 To approve the newly nominated State Presidents for the period up to 31.03.2017

The members approved the nomination of State Presidents for the period 22.11.2014 to 31.3.2017

The newly nominated State Presidents are as follows:

1. NC of Delhi - Prof. G. Upadhyay

2. Kerala - Dr. V. Job Kuruvilla

3. Tamil Nadu - Dr. S. Renuka Devi

4. Gujarat - Dr. Navin Patil

5. Haryana - Dr. Madhu Anand

6. West Bengal - Prof. Anjali Rai

7. North East States - Prof. Indranee Phookan Borooah

8. Utter Pradesh - Prof. Shamin Ansari

9. Karnataka - Prof. G. Venkatesh Kumar

10. Himachal Pradesh - Prof. R.S. Pirta

11. Puducherry - Dr. J. Arawindhan

04/2014 To approve the proposal for the conduct of 5th InSPA International Conference at KBPCollege, Mumbai on 23-25 October, 2015

1. The proposal by Dr. R.J. Solomon was unanimously approved for the conduct of 5th InSPAInternational Conference at KBP College, Mumbai from 23rd to 25th October, 2015. Dr. R.J. Solomonwas nominated as Chairman of the Local Organising Committee.

2. It was decided that the LOC has to deposit Rs.25,000/- as conference fee to conduct the conferencealong with other formalities of submission of required forms.

3. The LOC must take care of the special events such as (i) Leadership workshop for InSPA members,(ii) Workshop on School Psychology for Psychologists and teachers, (iii) Children Assembly focussingon memory techniques and analytical skills in addition to counselling, (iv) Symposia based on theconference theme, (v) Cultural programme highlighting local culture and resources, and (vi) Workshopon Learning Disabilities.

4. Dr. R.J. Solomon was authorised to associate with other organisations for effectively conduct theconference

05/2014 To ratify the School Psychology Services Awards, and Best Performance Awards for theyear 2014The conferment of the School Psychology Services Award 2014 for the following dignitaries wasapproved:

1. Dr. Neeradha Chandramohan, Director, NIEPMD, Chennai

2. Dr. Ratna Natarajan, Thiruppathur,

School Psychology Best Performance Award 2014 instituted by Shri Venkatarama Raja, Rajapalayam

3. Dr. M.V. Sudhakaran, Tamil Nadu Open University, Chennai

4. Dr. R.J. Solomon, Mumbai

5. Dr. Suneetha Hangal, Hubli, Karnataka

6. Ms. Deepali Batra, New Delhi

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06/2014 To approve the Barbara Hanfstingl – InSPA Best Paper Awards for the year 2014The following papers were approved for the “Barbara Hanfstingl – InSPA Best Paper Awards 2014":

1. Internet Usage and Health Concerns among Urban Adolescents by Ritu Karamvir Singh(Research Scholar) and Madhu Anand, Department of Psychology, M.D. University, Rohtak,Haryana.

2. Inclusive Approach in Schools: Current practices and Basic Competencies for Overall Developmentamong Children with Disabilities by Mintu Bhattacharya, Faculty, Gauhati University.

3. A Study of Special Teaching Programme adopted by Government Secondary Schools for SlowLearners in Nagaon District by Sikha Bhagawati, Department of Education, Dhing College, Assamand Tarali Devi,Department of Education, Nonoi College, Assam.

4. Prevalence and pattern of Substance Use among Adolescents living in Slums of Guwahati byTanusri Bardhan, Anku Moni Saikia, and Rupali Baruah, Department of Community Medicine,Gauhati Medical College, Guwahati, Assam.

5. Role of Folktales in Inculcating Moral Values in Children by Sampurna Baruah, Joyshree Borah,Jyotshna Konwar and Samiksha Snehil Dubey, Centre for Behavioural Studies, Dibrugarh University,Dibrugarh, Assam.

07/2014 To consider Indo-Austrian collaboration on School Psychology related ProjectsThe members considered, approved and appreciated the initiatives taken by Dr. Panch. Ramalingamfor the prospective collaboration in conducting projects in School Psychology with the faculty membersof Klagenfurt University, Austria.

08/2014 Any other item with the permission of the Chair1. Resolved to approve the establishment of Indian Institute of School Psychology Training and

Research to conduct School Psychology courses as well as to conduct training programmes. Prof.G.P. Thakur would be the First Director of the Institute. It was also decided that the arrangementswould be made to run the Institute by registering under the Trust Act.

2. Henceforth, the Institute will conduct workshops and training programmes on School Psychology.

3. Resolved to approve the proposal submitted by Dr. V. Job Kuruvilla for stating a special school inKerala with the support of InSPA and launching School Psychology programmes.

4. Resolved to appreciate Prof. Ratna Natarajan, Thiruppathur for conducting school psychologyprogramme in various schools in Tamil Nadu

5. Resolved to publish the following books titled

(i) “School Psychology: Enhancing Psychological Competencies” based on the papers presentedin the International conference at Gauhati University, Guwahati, with the help of Indian Instituteof School Psychology Training and Researchand Dr. Panch. Ramalingam and Dr. Indranee P.Borooah would be the first and second editors respectively of the book.

(ii) It was also decided to publish another volume “School Psychology: Prospects of Childrenwith Multiple Disabilities”of the papers submitted during the 3rd InSPA Conference 2013held in Chennai with the help of Cambridge Scholars Publishers, United Kingdom.

(iii) The third book will be on Educational action research in Austria and its possibleimplementations in India by the Editors: P. Ramalingam and Barbara Hanfstingl thoughSage Publishers, New Delhi

The General Body meeting came to an end with proposing thanks to the Chair.

Prof. B. Mukhopadhyay Dr. Panch. Ramalingam

President, InSPA Secretary, InSPA

Documents

InSPA New Governing Council Newsletter Jan 2015.pdf3 3 2 InSPA Newsletter Jan 2015 InSPA New Governing Council (0 1.04.2014 to 31.03.2017) President Prof. B. Mukhopadhyay, Chennai