Understanding the Assessment Process for Students

Lori Anselmo, MA, CAGS, NCSP Lauren Schnare Mahoney, EdS, NCSP

Assessment begins with the referral Referral is a request for evaluation

Parent School Staff (i.e. STAT) Outside provider (e.g. physician, therapist, early intervention) Private School

A student may be referred for an evaluation by a parent or any person in a caregiving or professional position concerned with the student s development.

Why is the student being referred? What are the concerns for the child?

The referral question helps us answer other questions, such as What areas of functioning should be assessed? What types of assessments should we use? Based on the referral question, we generate the evaluation consent form May include OT, PT, SLP Usually includes Academic Achievement

When discussing a referral with the school psychologist, whether it was a parent referral or not, we want to hear your concerns Don t hold back! You know your child better than anyone. Share what you know about him/her.

Often includes cognitive assessment May include: Social/emotional/behavioral assessment Attention and executive functioning assessment

Observation Record review Interviews Direct assessment Rating scales Work samples Grades Classroom based assessments Standardized assessments such as MCAS Private evaluations

Cognition: the mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses. Intelligence Information Processing

Working memory Verbal reasoning/comprehension Fluid reasoning Visual processing Processing speed Long-term memory

WISC-V WAIS-IV WPPSI-III WJ-IV SB-5 UNIT TONI KABC-II

Brain functions that activate, organize, and manage other functions

Impulse control Shifting attention Emotional control Initiation Working memory Organizing materials Planning Self-monitoring

DKEFS NEPSY-2 BRIEF BASC-2

Emotional Well-Being Social Skills Externalizing and Internalizing Problems Adaptive Behavior

Rating Scales BASC-2 SSIS SCARED Piers-Harris Projectives TAT Roberts Sentence Completion Rorschach Human Figure Drawings Adaptive Behavior Vineland-II

Referral information Record Review Observation Interviews A wider battery may be chosen even when the concern is narrow Patterns of strengths and weaknesses emerge Give us a sense of where to delve deeper

1-on-1, Interactive During school day May miss class Coordinated with teachers

Examiner introduces herself Gives a developmentally appropriate explanation of the process Confidentiality is discussed A Key Point: The student is NOT expected to know every answer!

We are trying to get best performance from students To that end, we try to create a relaxed, friendly atmosphere It is OK for examinees to ask questions We look for signs of fatigue or distress and offer breaks or discontinue testing as needed Developmentally appropriate reinforcers may be given

Working with manipulatives (e.g. blocks, puzzles, tangrams) Answering oral questions Repeating information back to the examiner Analyzing picture problems Timed tasks Completing rating scales Projective measures

Academic Speech and Language Occupational Therapy

Reports sent two days in advance of eligibility meeting Psychologists will offer to speak to parents about the report advance of meeting Reporting on findings at meeting

Disability classification and description Accommodations and modifications Related services Service Delivery Objectives Placement

Lori Anselmo 978-779-0539 ext 3050 Bethany Bressette 978-779-0539 ext 3052 Sally Martin 978-779-0539 ext 3043 Michael Pease 978-779-0539 ext 3053 Lauren Schnare Mahoney 978-779-2257 ext 4273 http://www.nrsd.net/staff_directory/special_ education/