Cognitive Evaluations

Factors Important in Assessments 1. Developmental History 2. Cultural Uniqueness 3. Impact of Disability

Approaches to Assessment 1. Free play, Elicited, Structured Play 2. Dynamic Assessment – test/teach/test 3. Criterion Referenced Assessments

4. Norm-Referenced Assessments Batelle Developmental Inventory Bayley Scales of Infant Devel.: 3 Differential Ability Scales: 2 Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children

Learning Accomplishment Profile- Diagnostic Standardized Assessment Leiter International Performance Scale: Revised Merrill-Palmer Developmental Scales: R Mullen Scales of Early Learning Pediatric Evaluation of Disability Invent.

Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale: V Syracuse Scales of Infant and Toddler Development Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence: III Woodcock-Johnson Psychoeducational Battery: 3

Criterion-Referenced Instruments Brigance Diagnostic Inventory of Early Development: Revised Carolina Curriculum for Infants and Toddlers with Special Needs: 2 Developmental Observation Checklist Gesell Developmental Schedule

Hawaii Early Learning Profiles High/Scope Child Observation Record Infant-Toddler Developmental Assessment Vulpe’ Assessment Battery-Revised Work Sampling System

Assessing Communication Skills

Why do we assess communication skills? 1.Communication develops in relation to a child’s social, emotional, cognitive, and motor skills. 2. All professionals and family members interact through communication.

3.80% of children receiving special education have primary or secondary communication deficits 4.Language impairments in preschool years often have later academic, emotional, and/or behavioral difficulties – 60% in special ed

Speech: the production of speech sounds Receptive Language: comprehension of language and how it is acted upon Expressive Language: how words are expressed or verbalized

Development of Communication & Language Pragmatics: Rules that govern the use of language in social contexts and for the purpose of communication 3-6 months: increase interactions, turn- taking 8-12 months: gestures and sound vocalizations

12-15 months: words and word approximations 18 months: combine words and to indicate their communicative intent 3-4 years: maintain a topic of conversation

Phonology: rules for the formation of speech sounds, or phonemes, and how phonemes are joined together into words 6-8 months: speech and non-speech 9-15 months: word-like sounds Age 3: produce many sounds Age 4: produce most sounds

Syntax: the rule system for combining words into phrases and sentences months: 1 word 18 months: 2 words 2 years: 3 words 2-2 ½ years: 2-3 words, questions, negations, imperatives

3 years: complex sentence structure 5 years: basic and complex syntactic structures MLU – Mean Length of Utterance

Semantics: rules for the meanings of words and their joint relationship to one another 18 months: say 50 words, comprehend 300 words 2 years: produce 500 words

2 ½ to 3 years: comprehend 1,000 words 4 years: how to use language as a tool to focus on language form and content

Types of Communication Assessments 1.Standardized Tests of Language and Communication 2.Criterion-Referenced and Non- standardized Instruments 3.Ecological Approach in Assessment 4.Communication Sampling 5.Decision Trees

Intervention Guidelines 1.Start at the Child’s level 2.Move vertically and horizontally 3.Watch the child for cues 4.Be functional 5.Follow the interests of the child 6.Target behaviors for success

7.Consider the content of the activities 8.Be efficient: target more than one goal 9.Use direct training at times 10.Be facilitative: modeling