FAQs on Assessment

1) What will the psychologist do during an assessment?

The cognitive/IQ and literacy tests used in the assessment may vary depending on your child's needs. We typically see you and your child for approximately 3-4 hours over 1 session.

Before the assessment:

• we will review the referral form and other information that you have sent

In our first meeting, we will:

• discuss your child's difficulties with you and explain the assessment process in more detail.
• assess your child's profile of cognitive abilities using a standardised IQ test (lasts about 2 hours).
• assess your child's reading and writing ability using standardised literacy tests (lasts between 1-2 hours).

In our second meeting, we will:

• discuss the results of the assessment with you (and your child if you wish).

After the assessment:

• You should receive a written report of our findings and recommendations within 4 weeks of the assessment.

2) What if my child is not dyslexic?

If the assessment indicates that your child is not dyslexic and/or that the DAS learning programme is not appropriate for your child, we will try to recommend other ways of helping your child. Depending on your child's needs, we will either explain how to help him or her at home or recommend other organisations whose services are more appropriate for his or her difficulties.

Because we use well-recognised standardised cognitive/IQ and literacy tests in our assessment, many of these organisations can use the information from the written report to understand and plan how they can help your child.

3) My child was already assessed, do I need to do another assessment with the DAS?

If the assessment done earlier by a psychologist had covered all areas we assess as well and was done within the last two years, we can evaluate if your child can enroll on our learning programme based on that report. Otherwise, we may recommend that an additional assessment be conducted on your child.

However, if the assessment is out dated or does not provide sufficient information, we may recommend to reassess your child. This is because we require a certain amount of information to determine if our learning programme will be useful for your child. To help us determine if your child needs further assessment, please send us a completed referral form and include the report(s) you obtained from the previous assessment.

4) What do I need to bring for the assessment?

Parents are advised to pack a water bottle and snack for your child. Please also bring along a jacket as the assessment will take place in an air-conditioned room.

5) Can I send my referral form to your learning centre nearest to my home?

It is advisable that you sent the forms to the address that is stated in the referral form. This will reach our assessment centre for easier and faster proccessing. If you send the forms to our learning centre, the forms will reach us later and may delay the appointment of your child's assessment.

6) How long will I have to wait for the appointment of the assessment?

From the date that we receive your referral form, the appointment of the assessment will be approximately  within 4-6 weeks. However, if there is available appointment slot on an earlier date, we can arrange for the assessment to be done earlier.

7) How do I submit my referral form to you?

You may mail or hand-deliver the referral form to us.

8) Can I be with my child during the assessment?

The parent will not be allowed to be with the child during the assessment. However, certain exceptions can be made if the child is very young and shy with the psychologist. The parent may be allowed to be in the assessment room with the child for a short period of time but will have to leave the room after the child has become more familiar with the psychologist.