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An Overview of Comprehensive Testing
By Stephen Newton, PhD
A comprehensive test battery is a complex assessment process that is very different from the kinds of tests to which students and parents are accustomed. In school, teachers regularly test a student's ability to spell, calculate, write or recall information. As students become older, they are evaluated on their ability to generalize, synthesize and analyze information from various sources. At times, we test students in groups with achievement batteries, or entrance and exit examinations. Yet comparing these tests to a comprehensive test battery is a bit like comparing a vocal soloist to a full chorus; the breadth and depth of the experience are very different.
A typical comprehensive battery consists of six to eight hours of testing administered over three sessions. Examiners spend many additional hours gathering background information, scoring and analyzing the tests, preparing a report and presenting the findings. A comprehensive test battery can expand or contract, given the referral question(s), time available, needs of the student and expected use of the data. That said, a comprehensive battery obtains a range of information from multiple sources. In my practice, I include the following steps in the testing process:
Obtaining a history of current family and generational learning, health and mental illness, medical history, developmental history, school history, social history, emotional and behavioral history, significant accomplishments, leisure activities and hobbies, sports and music ability.
Observation of appearance; speech, coordination and movement, rapport and social skills and emotional state. Observation of bond with parent, performance anxiety, conversational skills, and patience versus impulsivity.
Administering tests and recording scores. The examiner determines problem-solving strengths and weaknesses in both timed and untimed procedures. Recall and memory are assessed to determine short-term, long-term and working memory.
Sampling the student's environment, including school and home, through direct observation or collateral contacts and rating forms. Parents may be the best source of information , but the examiner must be aware of the potential for bias and blind spots.
Scoring and analyzing initial tests and administering additional tests in areas with questionable and low scores. Individual scores are compared to age norms and the standard curve. Discrepancies are examined, as are clusters versus single scores.
A comprehensive test battery most often rules in diagnoses or rules out a specific disability. Most commonly, these include learning disabilities in reading, math and writing. Other common disabilities include attention-deficit disorder, non-verbal learning disorders, processing disorders and executive functioning disorders.
A comprehensive battery also must look beyond a specific strength or disability and examine the whole student in context. This means collecting data regarding social development, emotional functioning and self-image and determining if a student's present functioning is normal or due to adjustment difficulties, a deficit or pathology. Only when comprehensive data of this type are collected and analyzed can appropriate recommendations be made.
Stephen Newton, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist who routinely evaluates school-aged children from the Bay Area and throughout the Western United States. In addition to testing for learning disabilities, cognitive abilities and executive functioning skills, Dr. Newton also assesses individuals for social, emotional and behavioral concerns.
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