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the no.1 media on Dys disorders
You have received the report of the speech therapy assessment, and it is full of figures, tables and technical terms. It is not easy to find your way through it. Yet this document is valuable: it describes your child’s profile and guides everything that follows. Here is how to read it, section by section, and what to take away from it. There is no need to be a specialist: a few reference points are enough.
A speech therapy assessment report generally follows the same structure. It begins with the child’s identity, the reason for the consultation and the name of the referring doctor. This administrative section is brief.
Next comes the case history (anamnesis), that is, a summary of the interview with the parents: development, schooling, background. Then come the results of the various tests, often presented in tables. These tables may seem impressive at first glance.
The report ends with a summary, a conclusion including any diagnosis, and recommendations: therapy, adjustments, other assessments. This is the most important part for what comes next.
Test results are often expressed as standard deviations or percentiles. These figures place your child in relation to children of the same age, thanks to the test norms. These norms are established on large numbers of children.
A percentile indicates the percentage of children who perform worse. A percentile of 10 means that 10% of children of the same age do worse, and 90% do better. The lower the percentile, the greater the difficulty. This system makes it possible to position the child precisely.
A negative standard deviation indicates a result below the average. In general, a result below about -1.5 or -2 standard deviations is considered to signal a significant difficulty. Your speech therapist will tell you which thresholds are used. These thresholds may vary depending on the tests.
Beyond the figures, the speech therapist analyses the nature of the errors. This section is often the most useful for understanding your child. It is frequently the most telling part for parents.
It indicates, for example, whether the errors mainly concern the translation of sounds into letters, the memory for words or grammar. It also specifies the situations in which the child does better or worse. This information directly guides the therapy.
This analysis makes it possible to define the profile of the dysorthographia: phonological, lexical, grammatical or mixed. This profile guides the entire management. See phonological dysorthographia and lexical.
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The report also presents the results of the other tests: reading, phonological awareness, working memory, oral language. They help to understand the origin of the difficulties. These tests complete the picture.
For example, weak phonological awareness may explain a phonological dysorthographia. Slow reading may indicate an associated dyslexia. Limited working memory may explain forgotten agreements. These links help to understand how the child functions.
These results may also lead the speech therapist to recommend other assessments. These recommendations are important to follow. See the tests used in assessment.
The conclusion is the most important part. It indicates whether the results allow a conclusion of dysorthographia, or of a broader written language disorder including dyslexia. This is the sentence that sums up the whole assessment.
It specifies the severity of the disorder, sometimes described as mild, moderate or severe, and the child’s strengths, on which the therapy can build. These strengths are just as important as the difficulties.
The term used may vary: dysorthographia, specific written language disorder, learning disorder with impairment of written expression. They refer to closely related realities. These different terms refer to closely related realities.
The report states whether therapy is needed, with which objectives and at what pace. It often specifies the number of sessions per week and the duration of the first course. This plan is built for your child.
It may also contain recommendations for school: educational adjustments, tools to put in place, adaptations to assessments. These elements are very useful when requesting a PAP (Personalised Learning Plan). These recommendations are valuable for the school.
Finally, it may propose other assessments if an associated disorder is suspected. Follow this advice to get a complete picture. See the therapy and the PAP.
Keep the original safe. Make copies for the school, the school doctor and the other professionals who support your child. This document will stay with you for a long time.
You are not obliged to pass the whole report on to the school. The conclusion and the recommendations are often sufficient. Certain information about family history may remain confidential. You keep control over the information you share.
If some passages remain unclear, ask the speech therapist for a feedback appointment. They are there to explain. No question is too small. See after the diagnosis.
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It means that only 5% of children of the same age obtain a lower result. This is a result well below the average, which signals a significant difficulty on the test concerned. This figure helps to gauge the extent of the difficulty.
No. The conclusion and the recommendations are often sufficient. You may keep certain personal or family information confidential. You remain free to decide what you share.
Ask the speech therapist for a feedback appointment. They will explain the results and answer your questions. It is their role to help you understand.
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