In the previous post, we looked at the symptoms of dyslexia. Once parents picked up some red flags that are of concern to them, the next step is to consider if you want to get your child tested.
The decision whether or not to send your child for assessment is a personal one. One of the resistance parents have is that they do not want to label their child. What I want to say is you are not labelling your child. Your child received a diagnosis and that diagnosis can open the door for you to get help, to make things easier for your child. First, let’s understand the difference between screening and assessment. Screening: - preliminary evaluation - looks at symptoms - indicates likelihood - no age criteria for screening - you can approach the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) or use an online tool at www.testdyslexia.com (free of charge) Assessment: - thorough evaluation through information gathering - administered test for IQ, working memory, visual-spatial processing, phonological processing, etc - minimum age for assessment is 6 years old If you decide to go for an assessment, there are a few options available: - MOE’s psychologists (check with your child’s school on this) - Referral from a polyclinic, which will then direct you to KKH or NUH, depending on the child’s age - DAS, which is private but subsidized - Private psychologists. It can be an educational or a clinical psychologist. While both can administer cognitive tests, my preference is to go to an educational psychologist given the setting they work in. You can refer to the chart above for an overview of their respective scope of work Each of the above option has its pros and cons and it’ll be good if you do your own due diligence beforehand. And it is important that you seek out a psychologist that specializes in the areas you’re concerned with. The process of deriving at a diagnosis has an element of subjectivity. When I had my daughter assessed, we went to a psychologist who work in a team of 2 (most work singly), each administering different parts of the tests and thereafter reached an agreed diagnosis after taking into consideration both psychologists’ views. There are psychologists who are box-tickers and do not make further observations or gather additional information that would aid in the assessment process. This can lead to a mis-diagnosis, which some parents have shared with me from their experiences. In our next post, we will be examining the first of three factors that Ron discovered which explains how dyslexia develops, so stay tuned!
1 Comment
Magdalene Wu
19/2/2022 04:18:03 pm
Need help to assess my granddaughter (4yrs 4mo). She is having symptoms of dyslexia and low self esteem. Would like proper assessment.
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Christina TanChristina has a Diploma in Disability Studies and is a licensed Davis Facilitator. |