School psychologists often identify young children who may need special education supports and services. This guidance on collaboration, timing, and methodology of special education assessments can help.

<div>
  <div>
    School psychologists play a vital role in identifying preschool students who
    may need special education supports and services. Preschool evaluation and
    assessment can be complex and challenging because many of the
    characteristics that are typical for preschool children can make assessment
    difficult.&nbsp;
  </div>

  <h2>A Collaborative Assessment Process</h2>

  <div>
    The preschool evaluation process should always be collaborative with other
    members of early childhood service teams including the school psychologist,
    speech and language pathologist, occupational therapist, general education
    teacher, special education teacher, and parents. Multiple assessors may be
    observing or taking turns interacting with the child within the same
    assessment time window.&nbsp;
  </div>

  <h2>The Preschool Evaluation Timeline</h2>

  <div>
    While procedures are similar across the nation, specific processes and
    methods vary, so it&rsquo;s important for school psychologists to adhere to
    their state and district&rsquo;s methods for evaluating young children for
    special education services.&nbsp;
  </div>

  <div>
    In the state of California, for example, children who have received Regional
    Center services will need to have their school-based evaluation and IEP
    meeting completed before their third birthday. School psychologists will
    also need to collaborate with the Regional Center service coordinator to
    receive previous reports from the child&rsquo;s past assessors, doctors, and
    service providers. These results will be summarized in the school-based
    psychoeducational report as well. After the child turns three, the school
    district will then provide required special education services for the
    child. &nbsp;
  </div>

  <h2>Methods for Preschool Assessment and Evaluation</h2>

  <div>
    In California, a comprehensive and thorough preschool assessment should
    evaluate multiple domains, including: cognitive/early academic, adaptive,
    social-emotional, communication, and fine and gross motor. Information
    should be gathered from multiple sources and using the RIOT model (record
    review, interviews, observations, and testing). Social, behavioral, and
    learning observations may take place at a designated classroom/playroom at
    the assessing school, and also at the child&rsquo;s current preschool.
    &nbsp;
  </div>

  <div>
    The child&rsquo;s parents and current teachers will be valuable sources for
    interviews and rating scale data. A comprehensive evaluation like this will
    allow for the identification of a student&rsquo;s strengths and weaknesses
    across all developmental areas. School psychologists are typically in charge
    of the evaluation in the cognitive, adaptive, and social-emotional areas.
    Below are some suggestions on assessments that can be administered in each
    of these areas:&nbsp;<br />
    &nbsp;<br />
    <strong>All Areas</strong>&nbsp;
  </div>

  <ol>
    <li>
      <a
        href="https://www.pearsonassessments.com/store/usassessments/en/Store/Professional-Assessments/Developmental-Early-Childhood/Developmental-Assessment-of-Young-Children-%7C-Second-Edition/p/100000730.html?tab=product-details"
        >DAYC-2</a
      >: Offers parent and teacher input forms in all five domains (cognitive,
      adaptive, social-emotional, communication, and motor) as well as
      observation tools. &nbsp;&nbsp;
    </li>
    <li>
      DP-3: &nbsp;Offers parent and teacher input forms in all five domains
      (cognitive, adaptive, social-emotional, communication, and motor).&nbsp;
    </li>
  </ol>

  <div><strong>Cognitive</strong>&nbsp;</div>

  <ol>
    <li>
      <a
        href="https://www.pearsonassessments.com/store/usassessments/en/Store/Professional-Assessments/Cognition-%26-Neuro/Gifted-%26-Talented/Kaufman-Assessment-Battery-for-Children-%7C-Second-Edition-Normative-Update/p/100000088.html?tab=faqs"
        >KABC-II</a
      >: Normed for students ages 3:0 to 18:11&nbsp;
    </li>
    <li>
      <a
        href="https://www.pearsonassessments.com/store/usassessments/en/Store/Professional-Assessments/Cognition-%26-Neuro/Comprehensive-Ability/Differential-Ability-Scales-II/p/100000468.html?tab=faqs"
        >DAS-II</a
      >: Normed for students ages 2:6 to 17:11&nbsp;
    </li>
  </ol>

  <div><strong>Social-emotional&nbsp;</strong></div>

  <ol>
    <li>BASC-3 (overall functioning)&nbsp;</li>
    <li>ASRS, GARS-3, or CARS-2 (autism-specific)&nbsp;</li>
  </ol>

  <div><strong>Adaptive</strong>&nbsp;</div>

  <ol>
    <li>Vineland-3&nbsp;</li>
    <li>ABAS-3&nbsp;</li>
  </ol>

  <div>
    <br />
    This list is not meant to be exhaustive, but rather to serve as suggestions
    for common assessments used in preschool evaluations.&nbsp;
  </div>

  <div>
    For more information, see
    <a
      href="https://apps.nasponline.org/search-results.aspx?q=preschool+assessment"
      >NASP&rsquo;s position statement</a
    >
    on assessing young children and
    <a
      href="https://www.myschoolpsychology.com/testing-information/preschool-assessment-3-to-5/"
      >this link</a
    >
    for more assessment recommendations.&nbsp;
  </div>

  <div>
    Thanks for reading our resource on preschool special education assessment
    and evaluation. We hope it is a useful addition to your school psychologist
    toolkit.&nbsp;
  </div>

  <div>
    To find out where your specialized skills are needed most across the nation,
    browse our
    <a
      href="https://www.crosscountryeducation.com/job-search-results?what=school+psychologist&amp;where="
      >school psychology jobs</a
    >
    at Cross Country Education.&nbsp;
  </div>
</div>


Preschool Special Education Evaluation and Assessment – Guidance for School Psychologists

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