Psychoeducational Assessment ?
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Psychoeducational Assessment ?
| Tue, 05-24-2005 - 6:47pm |
I used to post here sometime back, but haven't been around in a long while.
| Tue, 05-24-2005 - 6:47pm |
I used to post here sometime back, but haven't been around in a long while.
Well, schools rarely do a "complete psychoeducational assessment," IMHO, but I'll give you my thoughts on what it should contain. I am a PHD in psych, but I worked mostly in early intervention and research settings. In the academic world, we work with "ideal" situations more than public schools do.
A complete psychoeducational assessment for a child who is suspected of having an autistic spectrum disorder probably should contain the following:
1) Multiple checklist type measures, such as the Child Behavior Checklist, filled out by parents and teachers.
2) At least one behavioral observation measure that looks specifically at autistic spectrum tendencies, such as the ADOS (Autism Diagnostic Observation Scale) or the FEAS (Functional Emotional Assessment Scale). It is ideal to observe the child in more than one setting and especially in settings that are comfortable for the child (not lab settings). Sometimes detailed notes on the child's behavior across several settings or a case study can provide enough information to provide this info, but it is always preferable to have a normative behavioral measure to go by.
3) An IQ test administered by a school psychologist (this can detect other types of learning problems, like learning disabilities). Children under 3 and lower functioning kids should be tested using developmental assessments, like the Hawaii Early Learning Scale (HELP) or the Bayley Scales of Infant Development.
4) An academic achievement test usually administered by a school psychologist should be used to detect academic delays and strengths. Such tests may also provide evidence of learning disabilities.
5) A language assessement done by a speech language pathologist, if the child is believed to have any type of delay, even a pragmatic one.
6) A sensory profile filled out by the child's parent and interpreted by an occupational therapist.
7) A complete occupational therapy assessment, especially if fine motor and/or motor planning deficits are suspected.
8) A full audiology exam to rule out hearing deficits (if the child already has normal or above average language development, this may not be necessary, but sometimes it is done anyway for children who demonstrate poor attention habits, such as failure to orient to speakers in their environments).
It is my opinion that a diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder should be given by a psychologist (including school psychologists), psychiatrist, neurologist, neuropsychologist, or developmental pediatrician. Occupational therapists can give diagnoses of Sensory Integration Dysfunction. Speech Language Pathologists can give language delay diagnoses. Teachers and most school officials are not qualified to pin any real diagnostic labels on children, although their observations of children are usually important in the diagnostic process. School counselors are typically not trained in diagnosis, although they can be good at interpreting and compiling the results of tests. General pediatricians, while they can be good at pointing out that the child is atypical, usually are not qualified to give a specific diagnosis, except in a speculative way.
Suzi
He had prior to the evaluations had hearing exams performed so they did not repeat them (and it was noted in the file that was why it was not repeated)
Thank you so much for outlining all the information for me.

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