Dyslexia screen and eval or psychologist eval?

[thundersweet]

I have been posting for a few days in this forum. As you may have read, I suspect my son may be dyslexic. His issues only seem to involve reading, spelling, and memorizing math facts. He seems to be making consistnt gains in his reading ability. We are using LOE. He has already had a vision test for the vision therapy with a fellow covd. I contacted Susan Barton for a list of certified dyslexia testers in my area. There is only 1 near me. I have been in contact with her and she is recommending a screening at the cost of $350 based on what I have told her. She also does another more in depth evaluation that cost about $850. She said since I am homeschooling, I am not worried about getting school accomodations so the basic eval/report to let me know if he is truly dyslexic is all that I need. She also said she could tell me if we needed further psychological testing and could recommend someone in that case.

 

I guess I'm wondering if I need to go straight to a psychological test or if starting with a basic evaluation for dyslexia is all I need at this point? He is developmentally normal in all other areas, as far as I can tell.

 

Thanks,

Sandy

[PeterPan]

LOL, that's sorta easy for one professional asking for $850 + 350 of your money to tell you you don't want what the other professional would do, lol. Is this dyslexia tutor going to do IQ, motor, attention, etc. testing too? Is she going to give you a 6-10 page write-up telling you how those scores apply to every facet of your teaching? Is your money out the window if his diagnosis is NOT dyslexia and you then need the full np eval on top of it? And does it matter to her that dyslexia ISN'T in the DSM? Not that I'm saying dyslexia doesn't exist. I'm saying a tutor can give you any label she wants, but you actually need the help to know how to translate scores (processing speed, working memory, motor control, etc. etc.) into changes in how you teach. Does her eval change how you teach or only give her a label so she can tutor him better?

 

For us the full np eval was huge and gave me information to make radical, CONFIDENT changes in how I teach EVERY SUBJECT. Kids with Dyslexia think differently (read Dyslexic Advantage by the Eides), so you need full circle help, not just with his reading.

 

How old is he? That obviously makes a difference too.

 

I'm sure the lady is good at what she does. That's just a lot of money. At some point you're going to want the full eval, because it opens up doors for accommodations on testing, college student services, etc. That's preposterous to say you won't want the fuller eval. And if she's narrow, there's the issue of what you're NOT getting.

 

If he's young and the eval with this lady would improve her tutoring of him, that's good. But yeah, at some point you'll *probably* want the full evals. And the full evals may turn up things you weren't expecting.

[FairProspects]

It depends on what accommodations or access you want. Even just to get access to Learning Ally (audiobooks, including tons of textbooks) and Bookshare, you will need official documentation from a psych or neuropsych.

 

Also, dyslexics frequently need more time for standardized tests like SAT, AP, etc. and the college board wants to see a LONG record of accommodations or documentation which can only be achieved by putting the paperwork in place with a psych or neuropsych eval.

[LaughingCat]

LOL, that's sorta easy for one professional asking for $850 + 350 of your money to tell you you don't want what the other professional would do, lol.

 

I read the OP as saying the dyslexia tester wants to do the $350 test INSTEAD of the $850 test not her 2 tests for $1200 instead of a different professional's tests.

 

OP, I would try to find out what specific tests she does for the $350. A lot of times I think this level of screening will just tell you what you already know - that your child struggles with reading/spelling/math facts.

[thundersweet]

Yes, it's just $350. I guess I should go back and confirm exactly what testing she is doing. Someone pm'd me with an educational psychologist right near me that she really liked. I think after reading ohE's post, I may just opt to do a full eval. I'm going to email her again and ask her what specific testing she does but I'm pretty sure her field of expertise is just dyslexia. I haven't made any decisions yet.

 

Sandy

[myboyluvsdinos]

My two sons have each had (over the years) 2 neuropsych evals, and 1 Barton Screening. For the NP evals, their IQ and achievement were measured, resulting in a discrepancy which earned them the label of reading disorder. (Other tests were given as well, of course.) For the Barton screening, the screeners administered 9 different probes to look for specific signs of dyslexia. I was given a 12-page report with very specific remediation recommendations to help each child, along with a list of accommodations and further resources. The screeners are also able to sign for Learning Ally membership. The NP reports were nice because I understood what other factors may be playing a part (like memory, executive functioning, etc), but none of them seemed to have a solid understanding of dyslexia and what the very specific symptoms are, even though they actually mention it in their report. The Barton Screeners, on the other hand, specialize only in dyslexia, and are quite good at testing for all the very specific symptoms that you'll see in dyslexics. They cannot do the IQ,achievement, ADHD, etc., testing, however. So there are pros and cons to both. I'm sure the $850 screening was the type that you can take to the public schools to demand remediation -- they cost more and Susan Barton no longer certifies that type of screener, I don't think, because the school districts fight outside evaluations so intensely. The $350 screening tells you whether the child fits the scientific definition of dyslexia, which is valuable because then you know what direction to head with your remediation, but it won't qualify the child for services through the public schools or get them testing accommodations. So it really depends on what you need the eval for. If it's a younger child, the $350 screening is nice because you'll know if they fit the profile for dyslexia and you can then start an Orton-Gillingham program to help them. In time, and with the right kind of tutoring, hopefully they won't need any accommodations. On the other hand, if it's an older child who needs college entrance exam accommodations, you need a NP eval. Sorry all one paragraph -- not sure why my enter button isn't working!

[thundersweet]

Thank you myboy! That was super helpful. My ds is 8. I may just go with the Barton screener first to see where we are. She did say she would be able to tell me if she thought other things were going on and he needed a full psyc eval. Seems like a reasonable place to start.

 

Sandy