Topic 4
Holly Tetreault
Emotional and Behavioral Disorders
Assessments and Screening
The Basics
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children & Families defines the difference between screenings and assessments. Screenings merely offer a snapshot of student’s current developmental abilities. Assessments make judgments and determine if the student needs service or more evaluations. Assessments are a continual process that monitors growth as students grow (Health and Human Services, 2010). There are many tools available for school psychologists, behavioral specialists, and pediatricians to use when evaluating students for emotional and behavioral disorders. For example, USD 500 (Kansas City Kansas Public Schools) uses a variety of the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Fourth Edition (WISC-IV). In addition the district uses a standard Functional Behavior Assessment to initially assess behaviors. There are multitudes of assessment tools available and the instruments use vary from district to district. The Violence Institute of New Jersey, a product of Universal Behavioral Healthcare, provides a comprehensive list of assessments and screening tools used specifically for identifying emotional and behavioral disabilities. The University of Pennsylvania created a comprehensive list of standard screening instruments used commonly in special education.
Federal Policies and Legislation
IDEA 2004 (Individuals with Disabilities Education Act) outlines specific guidelines for screenings and evaluations. Including:
“3. Clarify that screening for instructional purposes is not evaluation. The screening of a student by a teacher or specialist to determine appropriate instructional strategies for curriculum implementation shall not be considered to be an evaluation for eligibility for special education and related services. [34 CFR 300.302] [20 U.S.C. 1414(a)(1)(E)]”
“5. Add a requirement that evaluation procedure be administered in form that is most likely to yield the most accurate information. Each public agency must ensure that assessments and other evaluation materials used to assess a child under Part 300 are provided and administered in the child’s native language or other mode of communication and in the form most likely to yield accurate information on what the child knows and can do academically, developmentally, and functionally, unless it is clearly not feasible to provide or administer. [34 CFR 300.304(c)(1)(ii)] [20 U.S.C. 1414(b)(3)(A)(ii)]”
For more information on the legalities of evaluations including assessments and screening please visit the IDEA website.
Terms to Know
For additional terms or a more comprehensive list of terms please visit Wrightslaw. Wrightslaw is a free website that provides federal legislations and policies in regards to special education.
Assessments: The process of testing and measuring skills and abilities. Assessments include aptitude tests, achievement tests, and screening tests.
Criterion-Referenced Tests: The individual’s performance is compared to an objective or performance standard, not to the performance of other students.
Diagnostic Test: A test used to diagnose, analyze or identify specific areas of weakness and strength; to determine the nature of weakness or deficiencies; diagnostic achievement tests are used to measure skills.
Intelligence Tests: Tests that measure aptitude or intellectual capacities.
Norm-referenced Tests: Standardized tests designed to compare the scores of children to scores achieved by children the same age who have taken the same test.
Response to Intervention (RTI): Use of research-based instruction and interventions to students who are at risk and who are suspected of having specific learning disabilities; used as an initial screening tool.
Standard Deviation (SD): A measure of the variability of a distribution of scores. The more the scores cluster around the mean, the smaller the standard deviation.
Websites to See
The following websites provide additional information on assessments and screening.
Developmental Screening and Assessment Instruments with an Emphasis on Social and Emotional Development for Young Children Ages Birth through Five. Information provided by the National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center.
Screening for Social Emotional Concerns: Considerations in the Selection of Instruments. Information provided by the Technical Assistance Center on Social Emotional Intervention.
Additional Resources
The following are links to groups that provide support to families who need additional information and support on screening and assessments.
Council for Children with Behavioral Disabilities
Pacer Center: Champions for Children with Disabilities
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