ASSESSMENTS FOR ADOLESCENTS

Helping your teen to be understood often starts here.

Educational and neurodevelopmental assessments for adolescents can be the first step towards understanding your teenagers strengths, differences and challenges. They can foster and promote learning and well-being by identifying the most appropriate interventions and required adjustments and supports at home, school and in the workplace. When appropriate, the assessments at Raise the Bar Psychology support applications for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and inclusive education funding in schools, and inform the development of individualised education plans.

Assessments for adolescents can help evaluate concerns and identify mental health challenges, giftedness and career readiness. They can also determine whether learning or neurodevelopmental differences are present such as Autism, ADD, ADHD, and learning disorders including dyslexia, dysgraphia and dyscalculia.

For Victorian residents,

students may be eligible for reasonable adjustments and special provisions during classroom learning and exams if they are adversely affected in a significant way by an impairment or disability, including learning disorders. This is available to individual students who may need special provisions in their learning program to achieve the learning outcomes and in assessment to demonstrate their learning and achievement. It includes special provisions such as use of assistive technology, access to rest breaks, and use of a separate room. The Cognitive and Learning assessments provided at Raise the Bar Psychology can be used to support applications for special provisions when appropriate.

Types of assessments

Raise the Bar Psychology provides person-centred, trauma informed and neuro-affirming educational and neurodevelopmental assessments for adolescents. Our psychologists are able to construct an assessment battery that addresses and responds to your adolescents presenting concerns and individualised needs.

Career/Vocational Assessments

Career or Vocational Assessments serve as a valuable tool to assist your teen in exploring volunteering, study, or career pathways. They can help them to clarify their goals and make informed decisions about their future.

A vocational assessment is an evidence-based, thorough evaluation of your teenager’s transferable skills, qualifications, and interests to help identify potential employment or training options. The assessment considers their background, education, and occupational requirements and provides strategies that align with their needs and interests.

As parents, you can leverage vocational assessments to support your teen’s journey toward understanding and selecting suitable career options. The formal report provided at the end of the assessment outlines their work history, transferable skills, aptitude, and personality factors, offering valuable guidance for matching them with appropriate career paths.

Why do Vocational Assessments matter?

Vocational Assessments will showcase your adolescent’s job capabilities and suggest alternative occupations that align with their abilities and needs. These assessments analyse their transferable skills, experience, and qualifications to identify suitable job options while considering any medical or psychological restrictions.

For adolescents on the NDIS, a vocational assessment can help identify suitable employment options, with consideration for reasonable adjustments to enhance independence and maximise work capacity.

What is included in a Vocational Assessment?

A comprehensive Vocational Assessment includes various tools and activities such as transferable skills analysis, aptitude inventories, psychometric testing, and functional capacity evaluations.

The assessment

gathers information on your teen’s employment history, education, transferable skills (including volunteering), functional and work capacity
considers potential barriers like background checks, legal history, and medical conditions
addresses training or education needs related to potential employment.

Mental Health Assessments for Adolescents

Mental health challenges such as anxiety and depression can disrupt daily activities at home, school, and work. At Raise the Bar Psychology, assessing for mental health challenges is a crucial aspect of our assessments, which can include having parents, teachers, and adolescents themselves complete questionnaires and interviews. Identifying mental health challenges enables recommendations regarding evidence-based interventions, and implementation of necessary adjustments and support systems in home, study, and work environments.

A mental health assessment may culminate in the recommendation that counselling services are provided by one of the many experienced psychologists at Raise the Bar Psychology.

Autism Assessments for Adolescents

Adolescents of all ages can undergo an assessment for autism. An autism assessment for your teen involves understanding their history of development and areas of strength, difference and challenge across home, school and in social situations. It also typically includes administering several standardised assessment tools, interacting with them in the clinic, and conducting interviews with parents, teachers and your teen themselves.

A cognitive assessment can also be included in an autism assessment if not previously completed to inform needed adjustments and supports. If learning concerns are present, the Autism Assessment for your teen can also include an assessment of learning and academic achievement.

ADHD/ADD Assessments for Adolescents

An Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) assessment can be completed for your teenager, and typically involves

Interviews with parents, teachers, and your teen
Assessment within the clinic
Questionnaires being completed by you, their parents or carers, teachers, and your teen themselves.

At Raise the Bar Psychology, we utilise behavioural and performance measures designed to assess attention and executive functioning. These measures offer insights into your teen’s level of attentional and behavioural control, as well as their planning and organisational skills. A comprehensive and individualised report with personalised recommendations is provided at the conclusion of the assessment.

Cognitive or Intellectual Assessments for Adolescents

A Cognitive Assessment provides insight into your teenager’s thinking and reasoning abilities by assessing various abilities that support learning, including language and comprehension, reasoning and problem-solving, memory, and speed of processing. By providing your teenager with a serious of tasks and activities to complete, insight into their unique profile of cognitive strengths and challenges is provided.

Cognitive assessments (sometimes referred to as intellectual ability or IQ tests) assist with determining the reasons behind learning concerns and support the development of individualised and effective learning plans to support overall development and well-being. Cognitive assessments are also used to identify the presence of various neurodevelopmental and learning differences such as intellectual delays, giftedness, dyslexia, autism, and ADHD.

When appropriate, the results of a cognitive assessment can be used to support the provision of reasonable adjustments at school and in the workplace, special provisions applications for end of school exams in Victoria, and inclusive education and NDIS funding applications.

The particular cognitive assessment battery used will depend on your teenager’s age and their individual needs, with options such as the WISC-V if they are under 17 years of age, the WJ IV COG at any age, and the UNIT-2 for adolescents with language delays, hearing impairment or English as a second language.

Learning Assessments

Employing a comprehensive set of both cognitive and achievement assessments is valuable for parents and educators seeking insights into your adolescent’s learning and academic abilities. Assessing their level of academic achievement enables the identification of specific and evidence-based interventions, and required educational adjustments and supports.

Raise the Bar Psychology offers a range of academic assessment tools designed specifically for adolescents. These tools assess broad areas such as reading, writing, mathematics, and oral language, and in-depth examination of sub-skills including word reading and recognition, decoding, reading fluency, reading comprehension, spelling, writing fluency, sentence and essay composition, grammar usage, punctuation, handwriting speed and legibility, mathematics calculation and fluency, applied problem-solving, and receptive and expressive language skills.

Academic or Learning Assessments are instrumental in tailoring educational strategies and supports to address your adolescent’s specific learning needs.

Assessment Process

An assessment can uncover your unique strengths, differences and challenges, how your brain learns best, and whether you require particular support or adjustments at home, school or the workplace.

At a minimum, it provides clear insights to help you overcome barriers, leverage your strengths and identify supports needed to reach your potential.

Step 1 : Booking & Consent

Share your concerns, goals, and needs so that we can match you with the right psychologist and assessment.

Step 2 : Clinical Intake

Meet with your psychologist to share background information. Your psychologist will explain the assessment process and what to expect.

Step 3 : Assessment

Meet with your psychologist at the clinic. The number of visits depends on the needs of the client and is usually 1 to 3 visits. Ask questions and receive feedback as you go.

Step 4 : Feedback

Receive a clear and simple explanation of assessment results. Ask questions. Plan a clear path forward. A comprehensive and personalised report is provided.

Step 5 : Ongoing support

We offer child friendly feedback sessions, school consultation, and parent support. Many families return to monitor progress and to review recommendations in preparation for important transitions (e.g., starting primary, secondary or tertiary education).

Helping our children to flourish starts with understanding and helping them understand themselves. This is what we’re here for. To help you identify their uniqueness and look at the best ways to support them in their learning and general well-being.

We’d love to support you; whether you have a few questions or concerns, want to know your options, or are looking for the best provider for your teen, book a call with us today.

FAQs for Assessment for Adolescents

Can I get a Medicare rebate?

Medicare rebates are available if referred under items for ‘Complex Neurodevelopmental Disorders and eligible disabilities’ by a paediatrician or psychiatrist.

Do I need a referral?

No, a referral is not necessary. Our team is available to help you evaluate whether an assessment would be beneficial depending on your needs and circumstances, and they can help determine which assessments would be most useful if an assessment is recommended.

How can an assessment help me?

Assessments can help you identify your teen’s strengths, differences and challenges, what makes them unique, how their brain learns best, and whether they might qualify for additional funding and support. At a minimum, an assessment can help you support them in overcoming barriers, working with their strengths, and identifying what government support might be available to them (if needed).

What does the assessment process involve?

Most assessments include an initial intake session, an assessment (the length depending on the type of assessments required) and a feedback session with comprehensive and individualised report four weeks after the final assessment session.

How long does the assessment take?

The length of an assessment will depend on the number and type of assessments required, and this will be determined on a case-by-case basis. All assessments include an intake interview and feedback session usually four weeks after the final assessment session. Depending on individual needs, the assessment process can vary from three to eight hours.

What types of conditions or concerns can be addressed through assessment?

Educational and neurodevelopmental assessments can identify and support teenagers and their families understanding of various presenting concerns and neurodevelopmental or learning differences including mental health challenges, learning difficulties, developmental delays in language, cognitive, motor or adaptive functioning skills, and autism and ADHD.