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Assessment Options
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Child Provider Service Options
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Intelligence (IQ) Testing (5 & older)
There are few times when intelligence is, or should be, assessed in isolation. This is of value only in determining “giftedness” or “mental retardation.” If mental retardation is identified, more comprehensive testing, including adaptive behavior measures and academic achievement levels, would be justified.
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Developmental Evaluations (birth to 3)
At times in the development of an infant or toddler, benchmarks for typical development do not progress as expected. A developmental evaluation surveys the development of the language, motor, and visual systems, as well as the development of early social and interpersonal skills.
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Intelligence and Academic Achievement Testing (5 & older)
This evaluation option makes sense only for those situations in which it is perceived that there is a discrepancy between a child’s academic skill levels and intelligence (i.e.,the child who appears to be “not learning up to his/her potential”). This option falls short of providing the required information to have a child considered for special programming within a public or private school. It is often selected as a “re-evaluation” to assess progress for students already receiving remedial/special education services.
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Psychoeducational Evaluation (5 & older)
This evaluation includes IQ and achievement measures, a comprehensive psychosocial history, interviews and behavioral rating scales completed by teachers and parents, as well as a survey of the specific skill areas associated with efficient learning (language, auditory processing, visual-spatial processing, processing speed, and fine-motor/visual-motor integration skills). In addition, brief measures of personality functioning are included in order to determine if “emotional and/or behavioral” variables may be contaminating the learning process. This evaluation provides the clinical information necessary to generate a diagnosis based on the DSM-IV, provide specialized programming within a school arena, and design remediation strategies independent of school.
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School Neuropsychological Evaluation (3 & older)
This evaluation includes all of the above diagnostic assessment, as well as an in depth measure of attention and executive function, receptive and expressive vocabulary skills, auditory processing skills, visual perception skills, fine-motor skills, visual-motor integration skills, and memory skills. More comprehensive interviews and rating scales with teachers and parents and more detailed personality assessment are also characteristic of this option. This evaluation is optimal when a highly prescriptive remediation plan is desired.
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Multidisciplinary Neuropsychological Evalution (3 & older)
Occasionally, it becomes clear in the early stages of the evaluation process that severe issues in the auditory, somatosensory, or visual systems are present. In an effort to save time that may be critical to the intervention process, related professionals typically referred to upon evaluation completion are instead integrated into the evaluation process. These professionals provide diagnostic sophistication in their specific areas of training and participate in the testing, report preparation, and review processes. Specialists may include speech-language pathologists, audiologists, occupational therapists, physical therapists and/or behaviorists.
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Specialty Options in the Diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorders (2 & older)
The diagnosis of Autism is a complex process. Parents, as well as most professionals, are often concerned and confused about the lack of specificity in the diagnostic process. In recent years, the following state of the art measures for the assessment of Autism have been developed: The Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS) and the Autism Diagnostic Interview (ADI). We offer this diagnostic option. NOTE: An ADOS/ADI Evaluation does not take the place of or replicate the information gained from a thorough neuropsychological evaluation and will not sufficiently provide the necessary formal evaluation information required to gain entrance into public school programs. |
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