Dear MS Parent/Guardians,
At ISB we care deeply about the well-being of our students. To help us meet our mission to support them in leading healthy, active, and balanced lives, students in grades 7-8 will complete the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) during Advisory on October 18 (Grade 8) and October (Grade 7).
Why is the questionnaire being administered?
The purpose of this questionnaire is to:
- Identify students who require immediate support
- Identify students who are struggling with social/emotional/behavioral issues to provide appropriate early intervention/prevention support
- Obtain an overview of the social/emotional/behavioral needs at our school to ensure that we are providing optimal support for our students
How and when will the questionnaire be administered?
The online questionnaire will be administered during your child’s Advisory and will take approximately 10 minutes to complete. The survey items are available for you to review here.
How will the results be used?
- The data collected will be managed, analyzed, and reported by a team including the school counselors, school psychologists, and the Director of Student Services following the ISB Confidentiality Policy.
- Individual student responses to the questionnaire are confidential. Any concerns raised through the survey administration process will be shared only with school personnel involved in supporting that student.
- The questionnaire administration process has been designed to identify specific students who need additional support. The survey will be conducted electronically and students’ names will be captured along with their responses. ISB counselors will meet with any student whose responses indicate a need for follow up and parents will be notified.
- School counselors, school psychologists, and administrators will analyze overall trends to help improve student support at ISB.
- In completing this questionnaire, your child will have an opportunity to privately reflect on his/her current social-emotional health and wellness. Some parents may choose to use the questionnaire as an opportunity to create dialogue related to social-emotional wellbeing topics with their child after completing the survey.
Does my child have to complete the questionnaire?
No. As a parent or guardian, you can opt out of having your child complete this questionnaire. Students will be informed that they may choose to skip any questions that they do not feel comfortable answering.
Parents/Guardians who do not want their child to take the survey should let their child’s school counselor know by phone or in writing prior to the administration of the SDQ. ISB will assume parent/guardian consent to their child participating unless the school counselor has been notified. Parents do not have to do anything unless they do not want their child to participate.
Thank you so much for your support with this important project.
The ISB Counseling Team
Middle School Counselors:
Colleen Coady (colleenc@isb.ac.th)
Kevin Nelson (kevinn@isb.ac.th)
MS and HS School Psychologist:
Ryan Ruhl (ryanr@isb.ac.th)
Director of Student Services:
Keith Collins (keithc@isb.ac.th)