Children & Assessments

Assessment For Specific Learning Disorders / Difficulties (Educational Assessment)(Unable to provide due to staff shortages/check back at a later date)

Is your child truly fulfilling their learning potential?

Perhaps your child is struggling with reading, writing, spelling or maths and not making progress?

Would you like to find out the reasons why they learn the way they do … AND how to improve their learning effectiveness?

Discover your child’s unique Learning Profile and how to improve their Learning Effectiveness with the help of our team.

Pure Empowerment offers assessments for children and adults to help identify specific learning disorders/difficulties, this assessment consists of administering standardised cognitive and educational tests. All assessments are conducted by our registered psychologists, with clinical experience in the field of educational psychology.

Cognitive testing reveals strengths and weaknesses in key skills such as:

Verbal learning issues
Processing speed
Auditory processing
Non-verbal learning issues

Academic testing reveals abilities in core academic areas such as:

Reading
Oral language
Writing
Mathematics
Spelling

Why is it important to get an assessment by our team?

If you suspect that your child suffers from a specific learning disorder, it is important to accurately identify the underlying problems and put in place effective intervention programs and strategies as early as possible in their education.

The first step towards helping your child reach their full potential is to have them assessed by a psychologist with a special interest in learning difficulties.

An educational assessment can;

Reveal the underlying causes of the difficulty.

Offer specific recommendations for home or school to improve your child’s learning

We are here to help you to make informed decisions about the individual’s learning needs

Assist in the application for special considerations in VCE. In order to apply for VCE special provisions, parents must provide an assessment from a registered psychologist.

Please see the VCAA website for more information on how to apply and the requirements for special provisions or talk to the school principal.

http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/Pages/vce/exams/specialprovision/specialexams.aspx

What happens at our assessment appointment?

Typically, the assessment process takes approximately five hours (from 9.30 am in the morning till 2.30 pm in the afternoon). However, length depends on the age of the individual and the test(s) being administered.

Generally the day will include;

A preliminary interview at the beginning of the day, including discussion of the background information.
A standardised cognitive (IQ) test
A battery of educational tests
A comprehensive feedback session – Here, the psychologist will present the results, as well as explain the meaning of these results. Strategies to address the issues identified will also be discussed. In some instances referrals to other specialists may also be considered.

Cognitive Assessments:

Cognitive assessments help to understand an individual’s speed of learning in an academic environment, providing information on the student’s strengths and areas of difficulty.

These may include:

Wechsler Preschool and Primary School Scale of Intelligence – (WPPSI) for children 2.6 to 7.3 years old
OR the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 4th Edition (WISC- V) for children 6 to 16.11 years old
OR the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS-III).

Educational Assessments:

Educational assessments provide information on an individual’s reading, writing, spelling and maths skill levels.

These may include:

Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT-III),
Neale Analysis of Reading Ability-III,
Edwards Reading Test,
ACER Word Identification Tests,
SA Spelling Test,
ACER Literacy Tests,
The Woodcock Diagnostic Reading Battery

Following the Assessment

A comprehensive report written by the psychologist who administered the test will be provided four weeks after the assessment session.

Here is an overview of what you can expect to receive in the report:

A brief developmental history of the individual assessed.
Observations of the individual during the assessment process.
Statement of issues as described by parent(s) and, when available, teachers.
Description of tests, together with a statement and an analysis of results.
A summary and strategies/recommendations for meeting the individual’s specific needs at home, school and through tutoring programs.

Costs

The cost of an assessment is (TBA) with a 50% deposit required at the time of booking. This cost includes an initial review of your child’s history, a standardised cognitive test, a battery of educational tests and other appropriate tests which assist in diagnosing learning difficulties and a detailed assessment report with specific learning recommendations for home and school, which are based on your child’s learning needs.

Please note that the remaining payment is due on the day of the appointment either by Credit Card (Visa and Mastercard), Debit Card or Cash.
Please note : NO rebates under medicare apply The cost is reduced for Provisional Psychologist to conduct the assessment which includes:

1) parent interview

2) testing of child

3) write up of report and

4) follow up/feedback session with parents

Rebates:
Private health care funds may offer rebates on some psychological services. Please contact you provider for futher information.
Medicare does not cover the assessment service.

Whats the next Step?

The first step is to meet with one of our experienced child psychologists to discuss your needs and review your child’s background history.

We also suggest you complete our Learning Assessment Checklist to provide better insight into the issues of concern and understand how your child might benefit from an assessment.

Once booked in, individuals or parents are asked to complete a form to provide background information and an overview of the issues of concern.

Learning Assessment Checklist