| CODE | PSY5628 | ||||||||||||||||
| TITLE | Psychological Assessment of Children - Educational Focus | ||||||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 5 | ||||||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Psychology | ||||||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | This study-unit provides participants with a solid foundation on decision making about clients aided by psychoeducational assessment. Participants will build a framework for the different ways in which to gather information about client challenges. This will include techniques for building rapport with clients, interviewing children, parents and teachers, using observation strategies and using standardized methods of psychological and educational assessment. Students will learn about the basis of psychometrics with the aid of SPSS and develop an understanding of how these assessments are constructed. They will also be trained in the administration and interpretation of a number of ability and achievement tests. They will develop a critical understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of using standardized testing in decision making about supporting students who are experiencing challenges in the education system. Study-Unit Aims: This study-unit aims at enabling the trainee educational psychologist to develop the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to start engaging with clients, understanding their challenges through interviewing, observational and psychoeducational assessment strategies. Participants will also be able to understand and engage in the construction and use of standardised testing. They will become knowledgeable about the range of assessments available, the tests most commonly used with learners, their attributes and limitations, and most of all develop good assessment skills and techniques with a wide range of clients. A good grasp of the underlying psychometric/edumetric principles underpinning the tests as well as of a critical understanding of the advantages and disadvantages in the use of such tests are essential for the successful completion of the study-unit. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Critically evaluate the important influence that psycho-educational assessment can have on children's educational progress; - Critically analyze the relation between assessment and the process of decision making about children experiencing difficulties in the education system; - Demonstrate a critical understanding of the importance that contextual factors should have in decision making about children; - Critically evaluate the use, advantages and disadvantages of a variety of assessment strategies for decision making about children including document review, interviewing, observation, and testing techniques; - Critically evaluate the potential use and abuse of psychometric tests as tools available for psychologists in decision making about client's educational challenges; Demonstrate a critical mastery of the theories and research on intelligence and achievement testing; - Evaluate the principles of assessment and measurement and psychometric properties of the test/s they are using; - Analyze the statistical processes involved in the compilation and standardisation of any measure of ability and achievement and evaluate the effectiveness of particular tests for the tasks needed; - Evaluate critically the principles that are applied in the administration, scoring and interpretation of tests of psycho-educational development. 2. Skills: By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Demonstrate competencies in building rapport with children, parents, teachers and other clients; - Demonstrate competencies in interviewing children, parents and education personnel in order to support children's development and learning; - Demonstrate competence in observational techniques for the assessment of the influence of contextual factors in the challenges experienced by clients; - Demonstrate competences in the selection and administration of psycho-educational tests in decision making about clients; - Demonstrate skills in the appropriate scoring and interpretation of psychometric tests administered; - Explain results obtained through testing in the context of the test taker鈥檚 particular set of circumstances; - Demonstrate an understanding of ethical issues related to the assessment process; - Critically evaluate the information gained from their assessments in relation to clinical and intervention questions about clients. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: - Boyle, J. & Fisher, S. (2006). Educational Testing: A Competency Based Approach. Oxford: BPS Blackwell. (N/A) (M) - Coaley, K (2009) 鈥楢n Introduction to Psychological Assessment and Psychometrics鈥� Sage. (N/A) (S) - Dombrowski, S. C. (2014). Psychoeducational Assessment and Report Writing. New York: Springer. - Gregory, R. (2006) 鈥楶sychological Testing: History, Principles and Applications鈥� Addison-Wesley. (A) (S) - Hass, M., & Carriere, J.A. (2014). Writing Useful, Accessible, and Legally Defensible Psychoeducational Reports. New Jersey: Wiley. - Joner, M.D., Reiker氓s, E.K.L., Alvestad, M., (2022). Children with language difficulties: identification and adapted language provision in Early Childhood Education and Care, and subsequent assessment by the Educational Psychological Service, European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 30:5, 758-772, DOI: 10.1080/1350293X.2022.2046829 - Kelly, B., Woolfson, L., & Boyle, J. (2008). Frameworks for Practice in Educational Psychology: A Textbook for Trainees and Practitioners. London: Jessica Kingsley. - Lind, A., Nyman, A., Lehtonen, L., & Haataja, L. (2020). Predictive value of psychological assessment at five years of age in the long-term follow-up of very preterm children, Child Neuropsychology, 26:3, 312-323, DOI: 10.1080/09297049.2019.1674267 - Robinson Kurpius, S.E. & Stafford, M.E. (2006) Testing and Measurement: A User Friendly Guide. London: Sage. (N/A) (M) - Rust, J. & Golombok, S. (2009). Modern Psychometrics: The Science of Psychological Assessment. Routledge. (N/A) (S) - Wright, A.J. (2021). Psychological and neuropsychological underpinnings of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder assessment. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry. 26(3),783-794. doi:10.1177/1359104521996765 |
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| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture and Performance | ||||||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
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| LECTURER/S | Paul A. Bartolo Juan Camilleri Louis John Camilleri |
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The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
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