Psychoeducational Evaluation

The psychoeducational evaluation is done to help determine if a student has a disability. Do you know what's in a good one?

Dr. Margaret J. Kay does. And she tells you online what should be in a psychoeducational evaluation. Her online document, How to Prepare a Psychoeducational Evaluation Report & Testify as an Expert Witness, gives all the components of a good report.

The psychoeducational evaluation is something a parent is supposed to be given a copy of as part of the process of deciding whether their child has a disability.

There will of course be some variation from one psychoeducational evaluation to the next because, after all, kids are all different, unique. And not everyone is suspected of having the same disability. Dr. Kay calls her online document a set of "best-practice guidelines."

"When a psychoeducational evaluation is well done, it can provide a virtual blueprint for the construction of the student's Individual Educational Program (IEP). In addition, test results obtained during the psychoeducational evaluation provide an indication of how the student has progressed over time and create a baseline against which to measure future educational progress," she goes on to say.

This online document provides you with a way of deciding if the psychoeducational evaluation done on your child is complete and appropriate.

• Does it discuss the reason for your child's referral?
• Is there a history (including a medical history) and some background information on your child?
• Does the report talk about how your child acted during the testing and evaluation process?
• Is there a list of the tests that were given to your child and a clear analysis of the results?
• Is there a summary of the results and some recommendations to consider?

Dr. Kay provides insight into the different sections of a psychoeducational evaluation. Among the most valuable aspects of the document is her mention of different tests in connection to their uses so that you can understand why particular tests may have been given to your child (or wonder why they were not given).

If you are entering into the evaluation (or re-evaluation) process for special education placement, Dr. Kay's online document, How to Prepare a Psychoeducational Evaluation Report & Testify as an Expert Witness, is an excellent resource to help prepare you for discussing your child's evaluation.