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Psycho-Educational Assessment of Specific Learning Disabilities: Views and Practices of Australian Psychologists and Guidance Counsellors

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 March 2015

John D. Meteyard  and
Linda Gilmore
John D. Meteyard
Affiliation:
Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Linda Gilmore*
Affiliation:
Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
*
address for correspondence: Linda Gilmore, School of Cultural and Professional Learning, Queensland University of Technology, Victoria Park Road, Kelvin Grove QLD 4059, Australia. Email: l.gilmore@qut.edu.au
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Abstract

This article reports an investigation of the views and practices of 203 Australian psychologists and guidance counsellors with respect to psycho-educational assessment of students with specific learning disabilities (SLDs). Results from an online survey indicated that practitioners draw upon a wide range of theoretical perspectives when conceptualising and identifying SLDs, including both response to intervention and IQ-achievement discrepancy models. Intelligence tests (particularly the Wechsler scales) are commonly employed, with the main stated reasons for their use being ‘traditional’ perspectives (including IQ-achievement discrepancy based definitions of SLDs), to exclude a diagnosis of intellectual disability, and to guide further assessment and intervention. In contrast, participants reported using measures of academic achievement and tests of specific cognitive deficits known to predict SLDs (e.g., phonological awareness) relatively infrequently.

Keywords

specific learning disabilitiespsycho-educational assessmentresponse to interventionIQ-achievement discrepancyWechsler intelligence scales
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Psychologists and Counsellors in Schools , Volume 25 , Special Issue 1: Psycho-Educational Assessment , June 2015 , pp. 1 - 12
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2015 

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