Psychoeducational Assessments
Is your child having a tough time in school or finding it hard to meet important learning goals? Are they facing difficulties with literacy, math skill development, or reasoning? Or are they having trouble with things like staying focused, planning, being organized, and managing their time or their emotions and behaviour? If so, we're here to help!
Psychoeducational assessments provide a deeper understanding of your child's brain. Our registered psychologists use interviews, observations, academic achievements, and historical records to explore how your child thinks, learns, and interacts. This is a diagnostic process that can identify Learning Disabilities (e.g., dyslexia), Giftedness, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Intellectual Disabilities, and any other social-emotional difficulties.
Assessment results provide insight into your child's strengths and areas for growth, paving the way for tailored strategies to support their unique journey of learning and development. This may include ideas for classroom accommodations (i.e., Individual Program Plan) and home-based supports. The main goal of a psychoeducational assessment is to empower students and their families to better advocate for their learning needs.
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Cognitive Ability & Intellect: An individual’s cognitive ability is how they gain knowledge and understanding through thoughts, experiences, and the senses.
Academic Functioning: An individual’s academic functioning is evaluated by looking at their foundational academic skills and achievement across core school subjects, such as reading, writing, and mathematics.
Social-Emotional Functioning: An individual’s social-emotional functioning includes their ability to manage their emotions and understand the feelings of others. Learning and attention-related challenges can have a significant impact on self-esteem, emotion regulation, and social skill development.
Behavioural Functioning: Challenges with self-regulation (including regulating behaviours) can make learning and day-to-day routines difficult for students. For example, some individuals struggle to stay seated throughout the day, show drifting attention, or show troubles thinking before acting.
Executive Functioning: This is the part of your brain that helps us plan and carry out tasks and goals. Areas of executive function include mental skills such as attention, organization, flexibility, and self-monitoring.
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Every child’s needs and abilities are unique. Here are some signs that your child may benefit from a psychoeducational assessment:
Your child’s grades and achievement don’t reflect his/her effort or potential
Your child’s grades are meeting age-expectations except in one or two areas (e.g., English, Math)
Your child asks for repetition of concepts that were already learned
Your child struggles with procrastination or planning skills that homework or task completion
Your child dislikes school or refuses to go to school
Your child may cry over homework or complain about the workload
Your child requires a high level of adult support
Report card comments indicating that your child needs extra time and frequent check-ins to help with attention and focus
Your child struggles with low self-esteem or regulating emotions
Family history of Learning Disabilities or attention challenges
Schools recommend an assessment every 2-3 years to monitor progress and update supports
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Optional free 15-minute consultation
1 hour interview with caregiver(s)
2-3 assessment sessions with child only (4-6 hours total), which includes:
A clinical interview
Observations
Variety of tests and rating scales used to better understand how your child learns, processes information, and functions emotionally and behaviourally
Depending on the child’s needs, additional areas such as memory, attention, language, and motor skills may be explored
Document review (e.g., IPPs, report cards, previous assessment reports, developmental history)
Teacher interview
Questionnaires/rating scales completed by parents and a teacher
Optional classroom observation (by request and agreement with school)
1 hour parent feedback session to discuss assessment results recommendations
A comprehensive report including assessment results and recommendations
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Psychoeducational reports are needed to access accommodations at the post-secondary level. They can also be used to apply for Federal grants. Documents for grants must be no longer than 5 years old. Therefore, it is often beneficial to receive an updated psychoeducational assessment.
Accommodations can be initiated through Access and Inclusion Services at post-secondary institutions. You may be eligible for the following based on your diagnosis and barriers to learning:
Test Accommodations:
Extended time (1.5 or 2x)
Distraction reduced environment
Assistive technology (e.g., dictation, text-to-speech, spelling/grammar check)
Noise cancelling headphones
Classroom Accommodations:
Access to class notes or notetaker
Permission to record class
Adjustment to the attendance policy
Preferential seating
Books in alternative format (e.g., audiobooks)
Basic calculator
Adjustment to group assignments and presentations
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Full Psychoeducational Assessment (Learning Disabilities, ADHD, Anxiety, Depression, Intellectual Disabilities):
Time required: approximately 10-12 hours
Price: $2,200- $2,420 ($220/hour)
Giftedness Assessment:
Time required: approximately 5-6 hours
Price: $1100- $1320 ($220/hour)
Additional Testing Time:
Time required: 1 hour
Price: $220
Please Note: psychologists in Alberta cannot direct bill the following insurance providers- CINUP, Cowan Insurance Group, Johnson Inc., Manulife, and Sunlife.
Almost all Extended Health Care Plans cover all or a portion of the costs for a psychologist under "psychologist services", "psychotherapy", or "counselling". Contact your insurance agent for more information on reimbursement procedures and coverage information regarding “Psychological Assessments.”
Meet our Assessment Psychologist
Tessa Wihak
Registered Psychologist
Tessa Wihak is a Registered Psychologist with the College of Alberta Psychologists.
She holds a Master’s degree in Psychology from Boston University (2016). Tessa has extensive experience working with families impacted by neurodevelopmental and mental health disorders. She has trained and worked within outpatient mental health clinics, special education settings, and non-for-profit organizations.
Tessa works within a client-centered and strengths-based framework to emphasize areas of accomplishment, while supporting areas of growth. Additionally, her experience working in pediatric pain clinics has influenced the way she integrates the biopsychosocial model into treatment.
Tessa uses evidence-based approaches including Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Exposure and Response Prevention, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. With children and youth, she uses play, art, and games to make therapy fun and engaging.
Tessa’s goal is to create a safe and welcoming space where children and teens can express themselves openly. She excels at working with children and collaborates with their support networks to encourage new ways of framing and dealing with challenges. Tessa has worked primarily with individuals struggling with anxiety, depression, OCD, ADHD, and learning disabilities. She provides counselling to children and teens at Maliya.
Tessa provides assessments in the following areas: Learning Disabilities, ADHD, Intellectual Disabilities, Giftedness, mental health, adaptive functioning, and executive functioning.