As a parent, you may have noticed that your child is struggling at school or facing challenges with their academic performance. It can be concerning when you are unsure of the reasons behind these struggles and how to best support your child. This is where an educational assessment can be valuable in providing insights into your child's unique needs.
A cognitive assessment, such as the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, Fifth Edition (WISC-V), is a standardised test that measures a child's cognitive abilities, including verbal comprehension, perceptual reasoning, working memory, and processing speed. It provides a comprehensive profile of a child's cognitive strengths and weaknesses, which can help identify their areas of intellectual giftedness, as well as any cognitive challenges that may impact their ability to engage in the classroom and progress their academic performance.
An academic assessment, such as the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test, Third Edition (WIAT-III), is a standardised test that assesses a child's academic skills, including reading, writing, mathematics, and oral language. It provides a detailed analysis of a child's academic performance, including their grade-level proficiency, areas of strength, and areas that may require additional support or intervention.
So, what are the benefits of an educational assessment for understanding your child and their needs?
Identifying cognitive and academic strengths: cognitive and academic assessments can help identify your child's unique strengths, talents, and areas of giftedness. This information can be used to provide enrichment opportunities and tailor educational interventions to further develop and nurture these strengths.
Identifying cognitive and academic challenges: On the flip side, educational assessments can also identify any challenges your child may have. This information can help identify areas requiring additional support or intervention to help your child engage in their learning environments. This may provide insights into whether your child may present with a specific learning disorder in reading and spelling (dyslexia), writing, or mathematics (dyscalculia).
Understanding working memory and processing speed: the assessment process can provide insights into your child's preferred learning style, working memory needs, and level of processing speed. This information can help teachers and caregivers tailor their instructional approach to best match your child's learning needs, leading to improved academic performance and engagement.
Informing educational planning and intervention: The results of cognitive and academic assessments can be used to develop an individualised learning plan (ILP), which can provide accommodations and interventions to support your child's unique needs. These plans can help ensure that your child receives the appropriate support and accommodations in the classroom to help them succeed. This information can also inform a behaviour support plan (BSP) if your child experiences academic-related anxiety, task refusal, or other distress behaviours within the classroom.
Enhancing communication with educators and other professionals: The results of cognitive and academic assessments can be shared with teachers, school psychologists, and other professionals involved in your child's education. This can facilitate effective communication and collaboration, ensuring that everyone is on the same page when it comes to understanding your child's needs and providing appropriate support.
What do we recommend prior to an educational assessment?
Speak to your child's school about whether they offer small-group or one-to-one tutoring for literacy or numeracy (depending on your child's challenges). If they do, advocate for your child to engage in this program to ensure they receive a targeted academic intervention.
If your school does not offer this, consider whether you may be able to access these evidence-based interventions externally (tutor) or through online programs. Some examples are provided here: reading and spelling, writing and mathematics
What does an evidence-based intervention look like?
A phonics-based approach when teaching literacy skills. Phonics is a method of teaching reading that focuses on the relationship between letters and their corresponding sounds
A structured approach when teaching numeracy skills. This involves the structured and sequential teaching of mathematics concepts.
Research has consistently shown that evidence-based interventions for literacy and numeracy can significantly improve academic outcomes for struggling learners, including those with dyslexia or dyscalculia. These interventions are carefully planned and sequenced, following a systematic and explicit approach, to ensure that children are explicitly taught the rules, patterns, and concepts of language and math in a structured and organised manner. Evidence-based interventions for literacy and numeracy also incorporate multi-sensory techniques, such as visual, auditory, and kinaesthetic cues, to engage different learning modalities and enhance learning.
If you have concerns about a specific learning disorder (dyslexia or dyscalculia), it is important to ensure your child has accessed targeted intervention prior to an assessment. All children learn differently and the research tells us that 80% of students learn with whole-class instruction, 15% of students require small group intervention to progress their learning, and 5% of students require one-to-one intervention, individualised academic planning, and classroom accommodations (see image). If your child has accessed regular small group (tier 2 intervention) or one-to-one support (tier 1 intervention) and they are not making expected progress, this is where the assessment of a specific learning disorder may be considered. Even if your child has not accessed these interventions, you are welcome to consider an assessment to provide guidance on educational gaps to structure future learning programs for your child.
The Response to Intervention visual created by ECA Psychology, informed by academic research (Fuchs & Fuchs., 2006; Hughes & Dexter., 2011)
In conclusion, an educational assessment can provide valuable insights into your child's unique needs and help them thrive at school. It can identify their cognitive and academic strengths, weaknesses, learning style, and processing speed, which can inform educational planning, interventions, and communication with educators and professionals. If you have any questions or would like to schedule an educational assessment for your child, please feel free to contact us at ECA Psychology.
Research
Fuchs, D., & Fuchs, L. S. (2006). Introduction to response to intervention: What, why, and how valid is it?. Reading research quarterly, 41(1), 93-99.
Hughes, C. A., & Dexter, D. D. (2011). Response to intervention: A research-based summary. Theory into practice, 50(1), 4-11.
Comments