ERIC Number: EJ1457232
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2025-Jan
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1532-8759
EISSN: EISSN-1545-682X
Strengths-Based Screeners for K-8 Students: A Scoping Review
Tiffany Nelson; James C. Raines
Children & Schools, v47 n1 p57-67 2025
Students are increasingly experiencing social-emotional, behavioral, and mental health challenges. Although it is necessary to pinpoint students' academic, social-emotional, and behavioral deficits, it is essential to focus on assessing the student's strengths as a central component in intervention planning to improve student outcomes. A scoping review was conducted to identify rating scales recognized as strengths-based screeners in the literature for K-8 students and examine those scales based on 12 rating scale criteria. Four online databases and standard reference books were used to identify screeners in the literature from 1997 to 2024 that met the eligibility criteria. The RAND Education Assessment Finder was used to identify gray literature. The screeners found in the literature were examined using the 12 rating scale criteria. Research of the literature resulted in 110 sources reviewed. Twenty screeners were identified from the 46 sources screened for evidence, resulting in three scales that best met the criteria for a strengths-based screener: Social--Emotional Assets and Resilience Scales, Devereux Student Strengths Assessment-Mini, and Social Skills Improvement System Social and Emotional Learning Brief Scales. Many screeners are referred to as strengths-based but focus on student deficits. This scoping review synthesizes the literature, discusses gaps in knowledge, and highlights 12 rating scale criteria as one approach to identifying strengths-based brief screening tools. As a vital member of the school-based team, school social workers can assist in selecting strength-based screeners to enhance Tier 2 interventions and student outcomes.
Descriptors: Elementary School Students, Middle School Students, Intervention, Screening Tests, Rating Scales, Social Emotional Learning, Resilience (Psychology), Interpersonal Competence, Measures (Individuals), Student Improvement
Oxford University Press. Great Clarendon Street, Oxford, OX2 6DP, UK. Tel: +44-1865-353907; Fax: +44-1865-353485; e-mail: jnls.cust.serv@oxfordjournals.org; Web site: http://cs.oxfordjournals.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Information Analyses
Education Level: Elementary Education; Junior High Schools; Middle Schools; Secondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A