assessment

“This is the value of the teacher, who looks at a face and says there's something behind that and I want to reach that person, I want to influence that person, I want to encourage that person, I want to enrich, I want to call out that person who is behind that face, behind that color, behind that language, behind that tradition, behind that culture. I believe you can do it. I know what was done for me.”

Maya Angelou

The importance of assessment, evaluation, and diagnosis in the field of developmental disabilities is very crucial in today’s society. The main goal of development assessments with children with developmental disabilities is to evaluate and identify the crucial aspects relating to a child such as the strengths and challenges that arise in various spheres of influences. This includes cognitive, social, linguistic, emotional, physical development, as well as numerous adaptive behaviors such as self-care and self-direction. A standard psychometric assessment is also used to evaluate the development of a child in various areas. These tools provide educators, parents and families with critical information about a child’s development and growth.

Developmental assessments are usually done because of a concern that the child may have a developmental delay or disorder. It is important to include a developmental assessment when evaluating children with possible developmental problems because such assessments can: help identify possible developmental problems and the need for further diagnostic evaluation, provide an objective description of the child's abilities and deficits (a functional assessment) and determine eligibility for programs (such as early intervention programs) aid in planning for appropriate interventions. Developmental assessments can be performed by a variety of professionals in a number of settings and for a number of reasons. Insofar as assessing children with autism is complex, particularly in children under 3 years of age, it is important that professionals participating in the developmental assessment have experience and expertise in assessing young children with autism. 

Moreover, in order to assure quality and consistency, it is recommended that developmental assessments of young children: be performed by professionals with experience assessing young children, utilize procedures that are reproducible by other professionals and use age-appropriate testing and scoring methods. Furthermore, it is important that the developmental assessment be viewed as an ongoing process that follows the child over time rather than as a single event. It is also important that the developmental assessment be individualized to the child by: using age-appropriate testing and scoring methods, focusing on the child's presenting problems (such as suspected delays or deviations in development or behavioral problems) and lastly, assessing specific areas of strength and weakness, including specific discrepancies in functioning across and within developmental domains. 

Culture plays a vital role in conducting assessments, evaluations and diagnoses. When conducting any type of assessments, one must consider the cultural context of the family. A child's life is embedded within a cultural context. It is essential to consider and respect the family's culture when assessing children with possible developmental disorders, including autism. If English is not the primary language of the family, it is important for professionals to look for ways to communicate effectively with the family, including the use of professionals and/or translators who speak the child's language. 

Recently, I had the opportunity to interview a Disability Specialist from the Bolivar County Head Start Program in Cleveland, MS which is located in the rural Mississippi Delta. I introduced myself to the Disability Specialist and explained to her the purpose of my task and the interview process. The Disability Specialist was very gracious with her time. She began the interview by stating her name as well as sharing her work experiences with me. She stated that she obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work and her Masters in Mental Health Counseling from Delta State University located in Cleveland, MS. The Disability Specialist also shared with me that she was the Supervisor of Children Services for Life Help Mental Health Center serving four (4) counties in Mississippi. She stated that this particular Mental Health Agency serves 12 counties in the state. The counties in which she served as supervisor was, Bolivar, Washington, and Sharkey-Issaquena. The Disability Specialist went on to explain that Life Help Mental Health Agency is an entity, facility, or distinct part of a facility providing diagnostic, treatment, and prescriptive services related to mental and behavioral disorders in children and adolescents. She also stated that services may be provided to parents and family members of the patient in the form of conjoint, group, or individual therapy, and education and/or training. I was very intrigued about her know of Mental Health.

Because of the location of the Bolivar County Head Start Program which consists of six sites, the Disability Specialist explained to me the protocol in which she and others staff members must follow when an outside entity wants information about how this agency conduct its assessments. Not only did she supply information on how the Head Start Program assessments are conducted, she provided me with the school districts and other entities in which individuals would come in to conduct different assessments.

The Disability Specialist stated to me that Bolivar County has a total area of 906 square miles of which 877 square miles is land and 29 square miles is water. It is the second-largest county in Mississippi by land area and fourth-largest by total area. Its Head Start Programs are zone according to the school districts located in Bolivar County. They are Cleveland School District, North Bolivar Consolidated School District and West Bolivar Consolidated School District. She explained to me that when assessments need to be conducted in the Head Start Program, the school district in which the child resides in is responsible for the assessments and services.

The school district’s Special Education Department administers the assessments. The SPED Department of each District administers 2 Tests: Battelle Developmental Inventory, Second Edition (BDI-2) is an early childhood instrument based on the concepts of developmental milestones. As a child develops, he or she typically attains critical skills and behaviors sequentially from simple to complex, secondly, The Goldman Fristoe Test of Articulation (3rd ed.; GFTA-3) is an individually administered instrument used to measure speech sound abilities in the area of articulation in children, adolescents, and young adults ages 2 through 21.

The Disability Specialist explained to me that Bolivar County Head Start Program is governed by Performance Standards in which policies are created by the federal government. Head Start is a comprehensive American preschool program for disadvantaged children. It offers a mix of educational, social, nutritional and health services to three- to five-year-old and their low-income families to bring poor children up to the level of more advantaged children by the time they reach school entry.

In the policy in which Head Start is governed by: (1) A program must use one or more research-based developmental standardized screening tools to complete the screening. (2) A program must use as part of the screening additional information from family members, teachers, and relevant staff familiar with the child’s typical behavior. (3) If warranted through screening and additional relevant information and with direct guidance from a mental health or child development professional a program must, with the parent’s consent, promptly and appropriately address any needs identified through: (i) Referral to the local agency responsible for implementing IDEA (Local School Districts) for a formal evaluation to assess the child’s eligibility for services under IDEA as soon as possible, and not to exceed timelines required under IDEA; and, (ii) Partnership with the child’s parents and the relevant local agency to support families through the formal evaluation process. (4) If a child is determined to be eligible for services under IDEA, the program must partner with parents and the local agency responsible for implementing IDEA, as appropriate, and deliver the services.

The Disability Specialist also explained to me that she is an Advocate for the children who are enrolled in the Head Start Program who may have a disability or a suspected disability. She stated that her motto is “I Must Work and Know Not the Possibilities of My Limitations.”