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Introduction To Assessment

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Introduction To Assessment

Uploaded by

Wee Rays
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
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COGNITIVE ASSESSMENT OF CHILDREN

(GA405)

Course Introduction and Introduction to Assessment


Overview
 Course Introduction
 Introduction to Assessment
 Assessment Process
 Assessment NOT free from controversy
 Class Activity
 What is Assessment?
 Psychological Assessment
 Psychological Testing
 Types of Assessment
 Four Pillars of Assessment
Course Synopsis

 Familiarizes students in the major approaches and techniques for


intellectual assessment of children and adolescents.

 Covers:
 Principals of test construction and psychometrics
 The history of intellectual assessment
 Theories of intelligence
 Methods of intellectual assessment
Course Objective

 To attain knowledge in assessing intellectual functioning.


 To develop skills in the cognitive assessment of children and
adolescents.
 Skills of administration
 Skills of scoring
Assessment Process

 Does not begin and end with administering and interpreting tests
 Effective assessors need not only about assessment instruments, but also about:
a) Children who are normal and children with special needs
b) Institutions in which they work
c) How to communicate both orally and in writing with children, parents, teachers
and other interested parties
d) How culture and ethnicity relate to the children assessed
e) How to help children
Assessment NOT free from controversy

 Some say it is not related to how children learn.

 Some say it fails to provide intervention guidelines.


As Psychologist …
 Be mindful that assessment results and decisions reached on basis of
assessment results may be questioned by others.
 It may be legally challenged.
 Important to follow standards assessment procedures scrupulously.
 Maintain accurate and complete records & documentation.
 Follow ethical standards of the profession.
 Keep up with relevant research and clinical literature.
In Summary

 Underlying all assessments are a respect for children and


their families.

 Desire to help children.

 Thorough assessment should teach us about the children


that we cannot learn simply from talking, observing or
reviewing the child’s records.
Class Activity

 Please read the following paper:


 http://scholarlycommons.law.hofstra.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1427&context=hlr
 Case of Daniel Hoffman vs. the board of education of the city of New York
Daniel Hoffman vs. the board of education
of the city of New York
 Hoffman brought the suit in 1978 to recover damages for injuries resulting in placement in classes for the
mentally retarded.

 Deprived him of adequate speech therapy to address his diagnosed disability.

 Board of education of NY also negligent for failing or refusing to retest Hoffman.


Position of Board of Education

 Score of 74% on Standford-Binet at age 5 years, 9 months indicated placement in class for children with MR.

 Teachers judgment that retest was not warranted.

 The key sentence in the psychological report:


“Also, his intelligence should be re-evaluated within a two-year period so that a more accurate
estimation of his abilities can be made”.
In Adequate Assessment Procedures

 Psychologist who tested Hoffman in kindergarten has failed


 To interview his caretaker (mother)
 To obtain social history
 To discuss the results of the evaluation with Hoffman’s mother
Importance of this Case for Practice of
Psychology

 One of the first cases to carefully review and scrutinize psychological report and process of
special education placement.
 Psychological reports are valid documents.
 Words can be misinterpreted; reports must be written clearly, with findings and
recommendations stated as precisely as possible.
 Children’s IQ change.
 Different tests may provide different IQs.
 Interviewing parents/caretakers before conducting the assessment may provide valuable
information about child’s development.
 Battery of psychological tests and procedures should be used in the
assessment process.
 Instruments used must be appropriate.
 Review all relevant prior assessment findings before conducting the
current assessment.
 Results of the assessment should be discussed with parents/teachers.
Competent Assessor
1. Select appropriate assessment battery.
2. Evaluate the psychometric properties of tests.
3. Establish and maintain rapport with children, their parents, and their
teachers.
4. Observe, record, and evaluate behaviour.
5. Perform informal assessments
6. Interview parents, children, teachers, and relevant others.
7. Administer and score tests and other assessment tools by following
standardized procedures.
Cont..

8. Interpret assessment results and formulate hypotheses.


9. Consider relevant ethnic and cultural variables.
10.Use assessment findings to help develop interventions.
11.Communicate assessment findings both orally and in writing.
12.Collaborate effectively with other professionals.
13.Adhere to ethical standards.
What is Assessment?

 Refers to judgment of quality, importance or value of something or


someone.

 Assessment is a way of understanding a child in order to make informed


decision about the child.
Psychological Assessment

 Interpretation and integration of gathered data to come to a


conclusion regarding the psychological and physiological state of a
particular individual.

 Involves having people provide scorable information.


Psychological Testing and Psychological
Assessment
 Psychological Testing  Psychological Assessment
 Involves administering and scoring  Encompasses several clinical tools, such
tests as formal and informal tests,
observations, and interviews

 Focus is on collecting data


 Focus not only on data, but also
integrating findings, interpreting data
and synthesizing results

 Testing produces findings


 Assessment gives meaning to
findings within the context of the
child’s life
Types of Assessment

Screening Focused Diagnostic


Assessment Assessment Assessment

Counseling and Progress


Rehabilitation Evaluation Problems Solving
Assessment Assessment
1. Screening Assessment

 Brief evaluation intended to identify children

 At risk of developing certain disorders/disabilities


 Who have disorder in need of remediation
 Who may need a more comprehensive assessment
2. Focused Assessment

 Detailed evaluation of a specific area of functioning

 Assessment may address:


 A diagnostic question
 A skill question
 A etiological question
3. Diagnostic Assessment

 Detailed evaluation of a child’s strength and weaknesses in


several areas

 Such as cognition, academic, language, behavioural, and emotional


4. Counseling and Rehabilitation Assessment

 Focus on child’s ability to adjust to and successfully fulfil


daily responsibilities

 Possible responses to treatment and potential for recovery [e.g. in case of


Traumatic brain injury (TBI)]
5. Progress Evaluation Assessment

 Focus on child‘s progress over time

 Used to evaluate changes in child’s development, skills or


abilities and the effectiveness of intervention procedures
6. Problem Solving

 Focus on specific types of problem in a series of steps from


problem identification to problem analysis, intervention, and
outcome evaluation
• Provide information about child’s
knowledge, skill, behaviour or personality.

• Complement one another and provide


basis for making decisions about children.
Norm Reference Measure

Behavioural Observation

Informal Assessment
• Each procedure interpreted in its own
Interview

right, and information must be woven


together so that it is integrated,
understandable, meaningful and
consistent.

Four Pillars of Assessment


1. Norm Referenced Measure (Formal
assessment)
 Measures that standardized on a clearly defined group = NORM GROUP

 Norm group: group of individuals, representative with respect to characteristics such as age, gender,
ethnicity, SES, or geographic region, who have taken the test.

 Test instructions, wording of items, probing questions, recording of responses, time limits and scoring criteria
specified in details.

 Standard procedures to reduce effects of personal biases of examiners and to reduce extraneous sources of influence
on child’s performance.

 Provide fair and equitable comparison of children by providing objective, quantitative scores.
2. Interviews

 Gains valuable assessment information by interviewing child,


parents, teachers, and any other relevant individuals

 Unstructured; semi-structured; structured


3. Behavioural Observation

 Observing child during the formal assessment as well as in his


or her natural surroundings
4. Informal Assessment

 As a supplement to non-referenced measure

 Helpful for developing interventions

 Include reviewing:
 Referral document
 School records/class activates/medical records
 Personal documents
THANK YOU

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