The Limitations of a Psychoeducational Evaluation
It’s distressing to sit with parents after they’ve taken a long winding path, and they’re still searching for answers about their struggling child. They are frustrated and anxious. They may question the diagnosis given to their child or worry about minimal progress with tutoring or therapy. When the child had a prior psychoeducational evaluation, they say things like, “I still don’t have a full picture”.
The focus of a psychoeducational evaluation is on the assessment of intellectual functioning and academic abilities. This type of evaluation is commonly recommended when a child is showing difficulty learning at school. A selective focus on intellectual and academic abilities can be sufficient for some children. But it leaves out a lot of information.
The psychoeducational evaluation will sometimes also include assessment of other domains, but this varies a lot – such as attention, executive functioning, speech and language skills, or memory. A screening for social, emotional, and/or behavioral functioning is relatively common.
Selecting the right tests is a critical stage of the evaluation because too many tests from the same domain are not helpful, and some tests are not sensitive or specific enough to inform the findings. A test that screens for a diagnosis (e.g., ADHD) may also be problematic.
Parents can take an active role in this process! By collecting information and asking questions, you can make an informed decision.
You need to get a clear picture of your child before you pursue an evaluation. Take notes as you…
- Meet one-to-one with teachers and any therapists about your child. Ask questions about any concerns. Also ask about your child’s strengths.
- Observe your child during extracurricular activities or at school. What do you notice about their social experiences? Try to be as objective as you can.
- Talk with co-parents or other caregivers. Sometimes they have different observations. Don’t discount those differences, consider this relevant information.
- Think about a typical day during the week or weekend at home. Describe the common problems the arise between morning and bedtime.
- Start collecting school and therapy records so you have them ready to share.
Now that you’ve collected all this information, from which areas below do you have concerns about your child:
- Reading, Math, Spelling, and/or Writing
- Test taking vs. classwork vs. homework
- Attention (e.g., easily distracted, can’t concentrate, daydreaming)
- Working memory (e.g., multistep instructions)
- Executive Functioning (e.g., organizing, planning, prioritizing)
- Adaptability and flexibility (e.g., problems getting stuck)
- Learning, memory, or retention of information
- Self-regulation of emotions and/or behavior
- Mood, irritability, sadness
- Behavior problems
- Worry, fearfulness, panic symptoms
- Social functioning (e.g., maintaining age typical relationships)
- Sensory processing
- Activities of daily living expected for age (e.g., morning routines, evening routines, self-care, chores, etc)
- Others?
Now it’s time to start contacting psychologists who complete psychological evaluations in your area. Ask questions about how these areas will be evaluated before committing to an appointment. If you are pursuing a psychoeducational evaluation, be sure that your questions can be answered.
If you believe that a comprehensive evaluation is needed to explore multiple areas of concern, a neuropsychological evaluation can be very helpful. This evaluation includes assessment across multiple domains of functioning based on the questions presented. Any areas listed above could be considered, and psychoeducational assessment is included in the evaluation. Contact us to schedule a free consultation to learn more: [email protected]
