TEACHER CONSULTATION - IMPACT ON TEACHERS EFFECTIVENESS AND STUDENTS COGNITIVE COMPETENCE AND ACHIEVEMENT

Teachers from six ethnically diverse inner-city schools participated i n weekly mental health consultation for more than two years. Using a q uasi-experimental design, a longitudinal sample of 91 teachers and 209 students was assessed periodically through multiple standardized meas ures. Results indicate that a low-cost, indirect intervention had a di rect impact on teachers' sense of professional competence and was link ed to positive changes in students' sense of cognitive competence and their academic achievement.