Counseling and Assessment Services
Assessment of Learning Disabilities
Adult Assessment
The diagnosis of Learning Disabilities (LD) is primarily made by a thorough psychological evaluation. The following procedure is considered standard practice and is followed at this University of Massachusetts site to assess all types of developmental, language-based Learning Disabilities (including Reading Disorder, Mathematics Disorder, Disorder of Written Expression, and Learning Disorder Not Otherwise Specified).
- Clinical Interview
A thorough diagnostic interview begins the assessment process. In the course of the interview, information is gathered in the following areas: developmental history, medical history, school history, employment history, social history, childhood and present behavior patterns, alcohol/drug history, and psychiatric history.
- Psychological Assessment
The LD assessment battery at our site generally consists of testing in the following areas: intellectual functioning, academic achievement, memory, personality functioning, and audiological processing. Patterns of test score performance, test-taking behavior, personality and psychological findings, and historical information are analyzed and integrated to determine if they are consistent with a diagnosis of LD.
Treatment
- Academic Support Services
At the University of Massachusetts Amherst, students diagnosed with LD are eligible to receive academic support services through Disability Services, or, in the presence of a co-existing psychological disorder, Psychological Disabilities Services. In these programs, students will be assigned a case manager who will be available to meet by appointment in order to monitor academic progress and to assist in the implementation of reasonable accommodations as needed. Students with LD are included under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.
Last updated July 24, 2006