What types of psycho-educational assessments do you offer?
Every child, and every situation, is unique, and as such, we offer a number of options for psychological assessments.
If you are unsure as to which assessment is right for your child, please contact me for a free phone consultation to discuss.
Psycho-educational Assessment
A psycho-educational assessment may be appropriate if you suspect that your child has a learning disability (reading, writing or math), intellectual disability, anxiety, ADHD, or other social, emotional or behavioural needs, or you simply would like to gain insight into your child’s cognitive and academic profile. We offer a thorough and comprehensive team approach which includes Registered Psychologists, Registered Provisional Psychologists, and highly qualified psychometrists who assist with the testing process. A psychometrist is a highly trained professional with specialized skills in administering and scoring psychological assessments. A full psychoeducational assessment includes:
- Initial intake interview with parents
- Questionnaires and rating scales completed by parents/teachers/child
- Cognitive assessment (WPPSI-IV, WISC-V or WAIS-IV)
- Academic assessment (WIAT-III and any other specific testing as required)
- Other assessment components as required (social, emotional and behavioural, fine motor, attention, executive functioning, and so on)
- Final feedback session with parents to discuss results
- Comprehensive written report including results and individualized recommendations to help support your child both at home and school
Any additional work that is requested to be completed, such as school observation, will be discussed in advance and is billed at an hourly rate.
Gifted Assessments
A gifted assessment may be appropriate if you are applying to a specific program, such as Westmount Charter School or the Gifted and Talented Education program (GATE) offered by the Calgary Board of Education, as they require recent intelligence testing as part of the admissions process.
Westmount Application
The Westmount Charter School application process requires students to have undergone recent intelligence testing (also called an IQ test or cognitive assessment), and submission of a psychological assessment report that contains the full scale intelligence quotient (FSIQ) and general ability index (GAI) scores obtained during testing. *NEW* Westmount has recently announced a new pilot project and are suggesting that an Expanded General Ability Index (EGAI) and Verbal Expanded Crystallized Index (VECI) also be conducted and included within the report. These additional tests are not required, however if you would like them to be included please let us know at the time of booking. Additional fees for extra testing and report writing will apply.
The assessment includes the following:
- Questionnaires completed by parents online
- Initial intake interview with parents
- Cognitive assessment (WPPSI-IV, WISC-V or WAIS-IV)
- Final feedback session with parents to discuss results
*If your child meets the criteria for giftedness (FSIQ and/or GAI of 130 +/-5), you will also be provided with a comprehensive written report including results and individualized recommendations to help support your child both at home and school. An additional fee will apply.
GATE Application
As part of the Calgary Board of Education’s application process to the Gifted and Talented Education program (GATE), an assessment is required that includes both cognitive and academic testing.
The GATE assessment includes the following:
- Initial intake interview with parents
- Questionnaires completed by parents/teachers/self-report
- Cognitive assessment (WPPSI-IV, WISC-V or WAIS-IV)
- Academic assessment (WIAT-III)
- Final feedback with parents to discuss results
- Comprehensive written report including results and individualized recommendations to help support your child both at home and school
What is involved in a psycho-educational assessment?
A comprehensive psycho-educational assessment involves a number of different steps.
1. Initial intake meeting
During the initial intake meeting, parents meet with the psychologist or provisional psychologist to provide a background and history about the child, and discuss areas of concern that have led to the decision to complete an assessment. Parents may be asked for report cards, IPPs or ILPs if available, work samples, relevant medical documentation, and any previous assessments or reports. This meeting is also an opportunity to talk about the assessment process and ask any questions that may be had at this time.
2. Assessment
Assessment typically occurs over one or two in-person sessions, depending on the nature of the inquiry, with each testing session approximately 2 hours in length. Assessments are conducted using the latest test versions and technology, and for older children many of the tasks are completed on iPads which can make the experience more engaging and enjoyable for the individual. To ensure that we provide thorough and accurate psychoeducational assessments and the best possible experience for your child, our team includes highly qualified psychologists, provisional psychologists and psychometrists who assist with the testing process. Our psychometrists are trained professionals with specialized skills in administering and scoring psychological assessments. They work under the direct supervision of a registered psychologist, who oversees the entire assessment and is responsible for interpreting the results. This teamwork allows us to offer comprehensive evaluations while maintaining the highest standards of care and attention to your child’s unique needs. During these assessment sessions, your child will also be asked questions about their learning, what they feel their strengths and weaknesses are, what strategies they have found to be helpful, not so helpful, and so on. You can help your child prepare for the assessment sessions by ensuring they are well rested, not suffering from a cold or illness that might impact their performance, take all prescribed medications they would typically take during the day, and encouraging them to bring along a snack and water bottle.
3. Parent and teacher questionnaires
Parents will be asked to complete a background questionnaire about their child prior to the initial intake meeting. You also may be asked to complete additional questionnaires and rating scales during the assessment process, depending on the purpose of the assessment. Where possible, a teacher or school staff member who is familiar with your child may also be asked to complete questionnaires and/or rating scales to help provide additional information about your child in multiple environments.
4. Written Psychological Report
Once the assessment sessions with your child are completed, and all rating scales and questionnaires have been returned, the psychologist will review all of the provided documentation, as well as results and scores from the assessments. At this time, all of the sources of information come together to form an in-depth picture of your child’s cognitive and learning profile, as well as language, attention, behaviour, social, emotional and adaptive functioning as applicable. This information will be put together in a report, which you will receive during the final feedback meeting.
5. Feedback meeting
The results of the assessment will be presented in a feedback meeting and report. This information, along with any diagnosis that may come from the assessment, may help parents/guardians, school staff, community agencies and other health professionals to help develop strategies, supports, and accommodations or adaptations that can be used to improve your child’s learning and their ability to meet their own personal level of success at home, school and in their community. Results from the assessment may also help to make appropriate programming or placement decisions, and may provide access to additional funding, benefits and supports. These decisions are made at the discretion of the school and/or agency.
During this meeting, parents have an opportunity to ask questions and make suggestions regarding the final report. An original copy of the final written report is shared with the parent(s) or legal guardians only, and parents/guardians may choose to make copies to provide to your child’s school or other health care professionals.
School Meeting and Consultation
Parents can request for the psychologist to arrange and meet with school staff. This would be outside of the scope of the standard assessment and subject to an additional fee