A Neuropsychological evaluation attempts to identify how brain functioning is affecting a child’s performance in school, at home or in social situations. These evaluations require the administration of specific psychological tests that are sensitive to certain types of cognitive processes. The areas evaluated include:
Executive Functions: Executive functions are brain activities that children and adults use to plan, organize and carry out activities. These skills include initiating or inhibiting behaviors, transitioning between tasks, generating information with speed and accuracy, maintaining attention-to-task, and thinking flexibly.
Memory: Memory is an integral part of learning. The types of memory evaluated are visual and verbal memory, short-term memory and “working memory.”
Attention: This is more than just lack of focus or “not listening hard enough.” Attention disorders can be the result of a number of causes, all of which can affect a child’s behavior and learning.
Language: These skills are the primary method in which people interact with each other. Difficulties in language can lead to academic delays but can also present as deficits in attention and memory.
Visual-Spatial skills: Living in a visual world, these skills are essential in navigating the environment. Difficulties in these areas can present as deficits in attention and memory, as well as reading and math difficulties. Evaluation of this domain also includes assessment of visual-motor integration.
Academic Skills: Difficulties in academic skills can lead to learning difficulty and potential failure. Measures of academic functioning not only evaluate reading, writing and math skills, but also how fluently a child can access these skills.
Emotional and Behavioral Adjustment: Emotional and behavioral difficulties can be caused by a number of issues, including difficulties in the areas mentioned above. Assessment of emotional adjustment and behavior includes information gathered from the parent and child interviews, as well as rating scales completed by the school.