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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

Includes online access to new, customizable WJ IV score tables, graphs, and forms for clinicians Woodcock-Johnson IV: Reports, Recommendations, and Strategies offers psychologists, clinicians, and educators an essential resource for preparing and writing psychological and educational reports after administering the Woodcock-Johnson IV. Written by Drs. Nancy Mather and Lynne E. Jaffe, this text enhances comprehension and use of this instrument and its many interpretive features. This book offers helpful information for understanding and using the WJ IV scores, provides tips to facilitate interpretation of test results, and includes sample diagnostic reports of students with various educational needs from kindergarten to the postsecondary level. The book also provides a wide variety of recommendations for cognitive abilities; oral language; and the achievement areas of reading, written language, and mathematics. It also provides guidelines for evaluators and recommendations focused on special populations, such as sensory impairments, autism, English Language Learners, and gifted and twice exceptional students, as well as recommendations for the use of assistive technology. The final section provides descriptions of the academic and behavioral strategies mentioned in the reports and recommendations. The unique access code included with each book allows access to downloadable, easy-to-customize score tables, graphs, and forms. This essential guide Facilitates the use and interpretation of the WJ IV Tests of Cognitive Abilities, Tests of Oral Language, and Tests of Achievement Explains scores and various interpretive features Offers a variety of types of diagnostic reports Provides a wide variety of educational recommendations and evidence-based strategies