Learning Disabilities in Edmonton | Assessing Learning Disabilities in Children in Edmonton and Area
Hi there! My name is Dr. Kelly Clark, and I want to talk about psycho-educational assessments today. These assessments are vital, because they can help diagnose various learning disabilities in Edmonton.
What is a Psycho-Educational Assessment?
A psycho-educational assessment is a process where we use standardized measures to evaluate various components that influence a student’s learning. These components include intelligence, academic skills, emotional, behavioral, and social factors. Getting a learning disability diagnosis for children in Edmonton is important to help them have a fulfilling time in school.
When Are Psycho-Educational Assessments Introduced?
Typically, assessments start in kindergarten. As soon as children begin kindergarten, teachers, especially in the Edmonton area, use something called the Early Years Evaluation Teacher Assessment (EYETA) tool. This tool can help teachers understand the child’s current level of functionality, and is used to discover if the child has any learning disabilities in Edmonton.
This tool examines five areas of functioning:
– Awareness of self and environment
– Social skills and approaches to learning
– Cognitive skills
– Language and communication
– Physical development
Teachers are experts in observing children’s behaviors and development, particularly academically. However, they also pay attention to emotional and behavioral features. At this point, psychologists are not involved. The first introduction to an assessment happens early on in kindergarten.
Identifying Difficulties and Interventions
If a student starts to have difficulties, teachers will use the EYETA tool to identify these issues. They will then speak to the parents and discuss areas where the student might be struggling. If the difficulties are extreme, other specialists such as speech or language pathologists, occupational therapists, or behavioral consultants may be brought in to assist the student. Once the EYETA tool is used, and there is a learning disability diagnosis for children in Edmonton, treatments and skills can be taught immediately to children to help them navigate any challenges that arise.
The Role of Psychologists
A psychologist is introduced if, after about a year in kindergarten, the targeted interventions have not remedied the challenges. The school may then call on a psychologist to conduct a psycho-educational assessment to discover if the child has any learning disabilities in Edmonton. This assessment examines academic skills and intelligence, and sometimes includes behavioral evaluations.
H2: The Timing of Assessments
Psycho-educational assessments for Learning Disabilities in Edmonton can start as early as kindergarten if the issues are severe. However, more commonly, they begin in late grade two or grade three. This delay is to rule out other factors such as lack of exposure to schooling, frequent absences, or other external factors like a pandemic, which might affect the student’s learning.
The Importance of Intelligence Testing
One common question is why we need to do intelligence assessments. An IQ test measures a person’s ability to think, reason, and manage the conceptual demands of an educational program. It helps rule out intelligence as a factor contributing to academic delays. If a student is struggling with reading, writing, or math, but their IQ is average to above average, we can rule out intelligence as the reason for their academic struggles. We want to find out of the child has any learning disabilities in Edmonton early on, so they are not struggling for years into their academic career.
Understanding Academic Skills
After the IQ assessment, we evaluate academic skills, focusing on reading, writing, and math. If a student struggles in math but has an average or above-average IQ, we might investigate if there is a learning disability in mathematics. The academic portion of the assessment also looks at a person’s ability to blend sounds, articulate words, and understand phonetic structures. It is important to note that a high IQ does not rule out a learning disability diagnosis for children in Edmonton.
The Role of Academic Evaluations
You may notice, in consultation with your child’s teacher, difficulties in blending sounds, rhyming, or associating letter sounds. These skills are typically developed in kindergarten. If delays persist into grade one or two, we consider if there might be an academic learning disability. The purpose of the academic evaluation is to pinpoint the learning challenges and determine if they are due to a learning disabilities in Edmonton.
Emotional and Behavioral Evaluations
The last area assessed in psycho-educational assessments, especially in early school years, is emotional and behavioral evaluations. This is crucial if a student exhibits severe behavioral issues both at home and in school.
Identifying Behavioral Challenges
Behaviors such as defiance, refusal to comply, and aggression can be signs of severe behavioral difficulties. In such cases, the assessment includes input from both parents and teachers to provide a comprehensive picture of the child’s behavior. Some behavioral issues can be from neurodivergence, or even learning disabilities, so getting a learning disability diagnosis for children in Edmonton can help parents as well as teachers understand the underlying causes of their child’s behavior – and help parents, teachers and children learn the tools that can help them succeed in the face of their differences, instead of just punishing them.
ADHD and Other Behavioral Factors
We also consider ADHD in cases where children have severe difficulties with attention, concentration, impulsivity, or hyperactivity. Additionally, emotional factors like anxiety, depression, and self-esteem are evaluated. While ADHD is not considered learning disabilities in Edmonton, this diagnosis of this neurodivergence can help find solutions for the struggling child.
Putting It All Together
A psycho-educational assessment typically examines three main areas:
– Cognition or intellectual ability
– Academic skills
– Behavioral and emotional factors
– Post-Assessment Process
After gathering all the information, the results are compiled into a psychological report. This report is then shared with both the school and the parents during a conference. Based on the assessment results, there may be a diagnosis of a learning disability or behavioral challenges such as ADHD.
The school will then create an Individual Program Plan (IPP) to target these areas and support the student’s needs. The IPP is implemented both in school and at home, with ongoing monitoring and adjustments as needed.
In summary, a psycho-educational assessment is a comprehensive evaluation that helps identify and address the various factors affecting a student’s learning and development.
I’m Dr. Kelly Clark, and you can reach me at www.drkellyclark.com.