Intended for mental health professionals whose clients experience learning disabilities, this book succinctly describes the assessment and diagnostic process for learning disabilities using DSM-5(R) and IDEA. Extensive case studies illustrate learning disabilities from preschool through college. Psychoeducational reports and test scores are demystified. Clinicians will improve their ability to advocate on behalf of their clients' educational challenges.

The Clinician's Guide to Learning Disabilities provides a succinct description of the various types of learning disorders that affect educational achievement, illustrated with numerous case studies and supplemented with clear descriptions of educational assessment best practices and score reporting. Interpretation of psychoeducational reports is clarified for clinicians who seek guidance on how to make sense of many types of test scores. Current diagnostic practices for DSM-5 and IDEA are compared and contrasted. An entire chapter on the legal background of learning disabilities provides guidance on supports for students with learning disabilities in all settings. Chapters on preschool assessment and the transition to post-high school college and career expand the scope of the book beyond the school years. No other book describes learning disorders and the psychoeducational evaluation process for mental health clinicians who work with these children and adolescents. A chapter on referral and collaboration will inform clinicians who seek deeper educational knowledge about their clients to better guide students and their families.

Brue’s Essentials Intellectual Disability is a concise, up-to-date overview of intellectual disability evaluation and assessment. This text offers a practical, concise overview of the nature of intellectual disability and adaptive skills functioning in children, adolescents, and adults. Coverage includes the latest information on prevalence, causes, differential diagnoses, behavioral and social concerns, test instruments, and the new DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. The discussion promotes a deeper understanding of the use of assessment data to inform interventions in clinical practice. Designed for easy navigation, each chapter highlights important points and key cautions to allow quick reference without sacrificing depth. A sample assessment report illustrates how findings should be communicated to better inform treatment, giving you a practical reference to ensure comprehensive reporting. In 2013, the DSM-5 conceptualization of intellectual disabilities was significantly changed. It's important for professionals to have access to the most current guidelines from a variety of sources, and this book compiles them all into a single reference.

In one volume, this authoritative reference presents a current, comprehensive overview of intellectual and cognitive assessment, with a focus on practical applications. Leaders in the field describe major theories of intelligence and provide the knowledge needed to use the latest measures of cognitive abilities with individuals of all ages, from toddlers to adults. Evidence-based approaches to test interpretation, and their relevance for intervention, are described. The book addresses critical issues in assessing particular populations—including culturally and linguistically diverse students, gifted students, and those with learning difficulties and disabilities—in today's educational settings. New to This Edition*Incorporates major research advances and legislative and policy changes.*Covers recent test revisions plus additional tests: the NEPSY-II and the Wechsler Nonverbal Scale of Ability.*Expanded coverage of specific populations: chapters on autism spectrum disorders, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, sensory and physical disabilities and traumatic brain injury, and intellectual disabilities.*Chapters on neuropsychological approaches, assessment of executive functions, and multi-tiered service delivery models in schools.

Children living in poverty are more likely to have mental health problems, and their conditions are more likely to be severe. Of the approximately 1.3 million children who were recipients of Supplemental Security Income (SSI) disability benefits in 2013, about 50% were disabled primarily due to a mental disorder. An increase in the number of children who are recipients of SSI benefits due to mental disorders has been observed through several decades of the program beginning in 1985 and continuing through 2010. Nevertheless, less than 1% of children in the United States are recipients of SSI disability benefits for a mental disorder. At the request of the Social Security Administration, Mental Disorders and Disability Among Low-Income Children compares national trends in the number of children with mental disorders with the trends in the number of children receiving benefits from the SSI program, and describes the possible factors that may contribute to any differences between the two groups. This report provides an overview of the current status of the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders, and the levels of impairment in the U.S. population under age 18. The report focuses on 6 mental disorders, chosen due to their prevalence and the severity of disability attributed to those disorders within the SSI disability program: attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder/conduct disorder, autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disability, learning disabilities, and mood disorders. While this report is not a comprehensive discussion of these disorders, Mental Disorders and Disability Among Low-Income Children provides the best currently available information regarding demographics, diagnosis, treatment, and expectations for the disorder time course - both the natural course and under treatment.

This fully updated, comprehensive text examines the assessment of intellectual abilities in children and adults. Chapters emphasize the rationale and techniques for measuring intellectual function in educational, clinical, and other organizational settings. The author includes detailed descriptions of the most widely used procedures for administering, scoring, and interpreting individual and group intelligence tests. This second edition features additional material on testing the handicapped, individual and group differences in mental abilities, theories and issues in the assessment of mental abilities, and new tests for measuring intelligence and related abilities.

Current estimates suggest that between one and three percent of people living in the United States will receive a diagnosis of mental retardation. Mental retardation, a condition characterized by deficits in intellectual capabilities and adaptive behavior, can be particularly hard to diagnose in the mild range of the disability. The U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) provides income support and medical benefits to individuals with cognitive limitations who experience significant problems in their ability to perform work and may therefore be in need of governmental support. Addressing the concern that SSA's current procedures are consistent with current scientific and professional practices, this book evaluates the process used by SSA to determine eligibility for these benefits. It examines the adequacy of the SSA definition of mental retardation and its current procedures for assessing intellectual capabilities, discusses adaptive behavior and its assessment, advises on ways to combine intellectual and adaptive assessment to provide a complete profile of an individual's capabilities, and clarifies ways to differentiate mental retardation from other conditions.