Writing Useful, Accessible, and Legally Defensible Psychoeducational Reports


Book Description

PRACTICAL GUIDANCE ON WRITING USEFUL, ACCESSIBLE, AND LEGALLY DEFENSIBLE PSYCHOEDUCATIONAL REPORTS From clearly identifying reasons for referral to making recommendations based on assessment results, Writing Useful, Accessible, and Legally Defensible Psychoeducational Reports offers practical guidance for creating reports that enhance the understanding of children and their strengths and challenges in order to better meet their educational and functional needs. The authors offer step-by-step guidelines for developing an assessment plan in a collaborative process with parents, teachers, and other professionals, choosing appropriate assessment and data collection tools, gathering relevant information, and providing clear and feasible individualized recommendations that directly respond to referral concerns in a format easily understood by parents and teachers. Ideal for graduate students in school psychology, school psychologists, and other professionals in related fields who work with children in a school setting, Writing Useful, Accessible, and Legally Defensible Psychoeducational Reports: Provides specific suggestions for increasing the usefulness and accessibility of reports including readability, positive phrasing, and vocabulary Illustrates how to develop well-formed questions and how to choose assessment tools to answer referral questions Reviews the legal mandates of report writing and discusses what must be included Demonstrates how to accurately document and integrate data from record review, interviews, observations, and tests Discusses how the use of the referral-based consultative assessment and report writing model can promote more active involvement in collaboration, prevention, and intervention Features numerous real-world cases, helpful checklists, examples of question-driven referral reports, and a model interview protocol




Psychoeducational Assessment and Report Writing


Book Description

This textbook provides in-depth instruction for conducting psychoeducational assessments of children in grades K-12 and conveying results through detailed, well-written reports. It takes readers step by step through the assessment process – collecting data, writing reports, and communicating conclusions – for students with conditions spanning the range of IDEA classifications such as autism, learning disabilities, emotional disturbances, and conditions covered by Section 504. The book offers not only a broad understanding of assessment and communication skills, but also of the ethical, legal, cultural, and professional considerations that come with psychoeducational evaluation. And its sample reports model clear, well-organized results accessible to parents and caregivers as well as teachers and colleagues. Key areas of coverage include: • Assessment basics: the testing environment and protocols, interviewing, and observation. • Report writing section by section, from reason for referral to summary and recommendations. • Guidelines for oral reporting, with case examples. • Special issues in psychoeducational assessment and report writing. • Sample psychoeducational reports using this framework. Psychoeducational Assessment and Report Writing is an essential text for graduate students, researchers, professors, and professionals in child and school psychology; assessment, testing, and evaluation; social work; and psychological methods/evaluation.




Essentials of Cross-Battery Assessment


Book Description

The most up-to-date resource of comprehensive information for conducting cross-battery assessments The Cross-Battery assessment approach—also referred to as the XBA approach—is a time-efficient assessment method grounded solidly in contemporary theory and research. The XBA approach systematically integrates data across cognitive, achievement, and neuropsychological batteries, enabling practitioners to expand their traditional assessments to more comprehensively address referral concerns. This approach also includes guidelines for identification of specific learning disabilities and assessment of cognitive strengths and weaknesses in individuals from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Like all the volumes in the Essentials of Psychological Assessment series, Essentials of Cross-Battery Assessment, Third Edition is designed to help busy practitioners quickly acquire the knowledge and skills they need to make optimal use of psychological assessment instruments. Each concise chapter features numerous callout boxes highlighting key concepts, bulleted points, and extensive illustrative material, as well as test questions that help you to gauge and reinforce your grasp of the information covered. Essentials of Cross-Battery Assessment, Third Edition is updated to include the latest editions of cognitive ability test batteries , such as the WISC-IV, WAIS-IV, and WJ III COG, and special purpose cognitive tests including the WMS-IV and TOMAL-II. This book now also overs many neuropsychological batteries such as the NEPSY-II and D-KEFS and provides extensive coverage of achievement batteries and special purpose tests, including the WIAT-III, KM-3, WRMT-3 and TOWL-4. In all, this book includes over 100 psychological batteries and 750 subtests, all of which are classified according to CHC (and many according to neuropsychlogical theory. This useful guide includes a timesaving CD-ROM, Essential Tools for Cross-Battery Assessment (XBA) Applications and Interpretation, which allows users to enter data and review results and interpretive statements that may be included in psychological reports. Note: CD-ROM/DVD and other supplementary materials are not included as part of eBook file.




The School Psychologist's Survival Guide


Book Description

A practical and accessible guide for helping school psychologists meet their everyday challenges In this newest addition to the Jossey-Bass "Survival Guide" series, popular blogger Rebecca Branstetter offers help for school psychologists who must often travel to multiple school sites, deal with students with severe disabilities, meet with concerned parents, and manage school crises. The book is filled with practical advice, proven strategies, and useful tools, complete with reproducible forms, letters, and checklists for busy professionals. Filled with the tools, strategies, and ideas for school psychologists who must deal with the myriad challenges of working with a diverse group of students, often in multiple locations Another book in the popular Jossey-Bass "Survival Guide" Series Rebecca Branstetter is an experienced school psychologist and popular blogger ("Notes from the School Psychologist": studentsgrow.blogspot.com) This vital resource offers a down-to-earth guide for both novice and seasoned school psychologists.




Psychological Assessment and Report Writing


Book Description

Outlining a step-by-step assessment model, Psychological Assessment and Report Writing, Second Edition covers five key topics central to psychological assessment: understanding the context of a referral; determining what data is needed to answer referral questions; gathering the data; integrating the data; and communicating the findings. Authors Karen Goldfinger and Andrew M. Pomerantz review each facet of psychological assessment and report writing—providing how-to instructions and alerting readers to a myriad of issues they must consider when conducting assessments in clinical, forensic, or educational environments. Filled with varied case examples that promote interest and meet instructional requirements, including one detailed case study that recurs throughout multiple chapters, the book uses sidebars and question and answer sections to encourage readers to consider their own case material and use critical thinking skills as they review each section of the model.




Essentials of IDEA for Assessment Professionals


Book Description

Quickly acquire the practical coverage and guidance you need to understand the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) governs how states and public agencies provide early intervention, special education, and related services to children with disabilities. To understand it thoroughly, school psychologists, teachers, and other school service providers need a comprehensive resource to guide them in what this frequently amended Act means and how it should be interpreted. The first concise, yet authoritative, book of its kind on which professionals can rely to navigate this often-misunderstood law, Essentials of IDEA for Assessment Professionals is that source. Like all the volumes in the Essentials of Psychological Assessment series, each chapter features numerous callout boxes highlighting key concepts, bulleted points, and extensive illustrative material, as well as test questions that help you gauge and reinforce your grasp of the information covered. Written in the user-friendly and well-known Essentials format, each of the seven concise chapters covers terminology, classification, assessments/evaluations, and other topics related to IDEA. With an accompanying CD offering commentary on judicial decisions related to interpretation of IDEA, as well as references to the 2006 final regulations for IDEA 2004 and Section 504 regulations, Essentials of IDEA for Assessment Professionals provides helpful guidelines for educational assessments and evaluations.




Psychological Report Writing Assistant


Book Description

Expert Report Writing Software—provides a step-by-step guide to writing clinically sound and rich psychological reports The Psychological Report Writing Assistant software is a highly interactive program that guides the report writer through all phases of writing a report that is comprehensive, includes integrated interpretation, uses everyday language, and answers the referral questions. Key features include: A composition screen with links to resources to facilitate report writing Sample reports with links to guidelines on how to write sections of the report A comprehensive menu of treatment recommendations Search function to identify problem phrases with suggestions for alternative wording Compatible with Microsoft Windows Blending the best of science with an appreciation for the art of doing clinical work, the accompanying guide: Describes six core qualities of an optimal psychological report Provides an overview of cognitive, neuropsychological, personality, psychoeducational, and forensic reports Offers guidelines for formatting and completing various sections of a report Discusses recommendations for treatment and for tailoring the report to the individual Includes instructions for navigating the software Filling the need for an easy-to-use, intuitive tool for organizing and writing relevant psychological reports, Psychological Report Writing Assistant will help you quickly and easily create thorough and complete psychological reports.




Essentials of Assessment Report Writing


Book Description

Instructive guide to preparing informative and accurate assessment reports for a variety of individuals and settings Assessment reports are central to the diagnostic process and are used to inform parents, clients, and clinicians, among others, about academic problems, personality functioning, neuropsychological strengths and weaknesses, behavioral problems, and the like. Essentials of Assessment Report Writing provides handy, quick-reference information, using the popular Essentials format, for preparing effective assessment reports. This book is designed to help busy mental health professionals quickly acquire the knowledge and skills they need to write effective psychological assessment reports. Each concise chapter features numerous callout boxes highlighting key concepts, bulleted points, and extensive illustrative material, as well as test questions that help you gauge and reinforce your grasp of the information covered. This practical guide focuses on efficiently and effectively communicating referral and background information, appearance and behavioral observations, test results and interpretation, summary and diagnostic impressions, and treatment recommendations. The authors provide examples of both good and bad case report writing and highlight ethical issues and topics relevant to presenting feedback. Essentials of Assessment Report Writing is the only pocket reference illustrating how to prepare an effective assessment report.




High-Impact Assessment Reports for Children and Adolescents


Book Description

Assessment provides rich opportunities for understanding the needs of children and adolescents, yet reports are often hard for parents, teachers, and other consumers to comprehend and utilize. This book provides step-by-step guidelines for creating psychoeducational and psychological reports that communicate findings clearly, promote collaboration, and maximize impact. Effective practices for written and oral reporting are presented, including what assessment data to emphasize, how to organize reports and convey test results, and how to craft useful recommendations. In a large-size format for easy photocopying, the book includes sample reports, training exercises, and reproducible templates, rubrics, and forms. Purchasers get access to a Web page where they can download and print the reproducible materials. This book is in The Guilford Practical Intervention in the Schools Series, edited by Sandra M. Chafouleas.




Comprehensive Evaluations


Book Description

An invaluable collection of sample case reports from experts in child and adolescent assessment With contributions from authorities in the fields of psychology and special education-including Dawn Flanagan, Elaine Fletcher-Janzen, Randy Kamphaus, Nadeen Kaufman, George McCloskey, Jack Naglieri, Cecil Reynolds, and Gale Roid—Comprehensive Evaluations provides over fifty sample case reports to help you draft carefully planned, goal-directed, and comprehensive evaluations that clearly explain the reasons for a student's school-related difficulties, from preschool to postsecondary level. A wellspring of information for educational professionals, Comprehensive Evaluations provides models for writing diagnostic reports to accompany the tests most frequently administered in the evaluation of children, adolescents, and adults, including the BASC-2, KABC-II, WAIS-IV, WISC-IV, and WJ III. The reports reflect various disciplines within psychology and education, different theoretical perspectives and paradigms, and span a broad spectrum of disabilities. The diagnostic reports found within Comprehensive Evaluations will help: Expand your familiarity with widely used test instruments Enhance your understanding of the interpretation of test scores Improve your ability to tailor written reports to the purposes of the evaluation Translate assessment results into meaningful treatment recommendations Recognize the differences in what evaluators from various school districts, agencies, and private practices consider to be a comprehensive evaluation Appreciate how your theoretical perspective and choice of tests can influence diagnostic conclusions Determine a report writing style that meets your needs Comprehensive Evaluations deftly illustrates how thorough assessments help empirically pinpoint the reasons a student is struggling in school, which then allows an evaluator to select the most appropriate accommodations and interventions to help the student succeed.