Blog Post #2: The Differences Between Psychological & Educational Evaluations
An educational assessment is provided by the school and focuses on how a student learns. It identifies academic strengths and challenges in areas like reading, writing, and math, often used to guide school-based support or tutoring plans. A school-based evaluation will assess academic achievement, cognitive abilities, behavior, and social-emotional areas.
A psychological or neuropsychological evaluation, on the other hand, provides a broader view of a child or teen’s functioning. It often includes cognitive testing, attention, memory, learning, language skills, executive functioning, emotional and behavioral areas, and personality testing (when appropriate). This type of evaluation helps uncover why a student is struggling and offers recommendations that address both learning and emotional needs. These evaluations are used to identify and diagnose psychiatric and developmental disorders, such as autism, ADHD, anxiety, depression, specific learning disorders, to name a few examples.
Another complicating factor is that psychologists can provide psychoeducational assessments which answer the question of in-classroom support needs and if dyslexia, dyscalculia, or dysgraphia are occurring. From my experience, school-based evaluations and diagnostic evaluations go hand in hand. Schools are usually open to collaborating and working together to serve the student the best. We are not in opposition, instead the evaluations serve a different purpose with some overlap.
The most important difference between a school-based evaluation and a psychological/neuropsychological testing is that one provides an “educational disability,” and the other is a formal medical diagnosis. A school-team is unable to diagnose autism or ADHD. Instead, these concerns are viewed in the lens of the classroom and whether or not the academic areas impacted meet the criteria needed for formal school support. Often, after school testing, the parents have to seek a private evaluation to reflect the medical side of the symptoms and concerns.
Comprehensive private testing allows the psychologist to tailor the measures to answer the referral question. Licensed clinical psychologists receive extensive training in assessment to accurately administer, score, interpret, and conceptualize what is occurring. The report is not one-size-fits-all. Instead, I consider the clinical interview, ancillary information, behavioral observations, and test data to write appropriate treatment recommendations.
At Mindful Psychology & Wellness, I specialize in comprehensive evaluations that provide clarity to a complex picture, so individuals can thrive both academically, behaviorally, and emotionally. I can help determine the type of testing needed during a consultation in order to effectively guide you through the evaluation process.
Let's find answers together. Call Mindful Psychology & Wellness at (817)631-4786 or email info@mindpsych.org to set up a consultation call with Dr. Kroes. I serve the DFW area with an office in North Richland Hills.