Selecting The Best Psychologist-Child Fit

      By selecting Dr. Todd, a nationally board certified and Florida licensed school psychologist, to evaluate their child, parents can be assured that they are have chosen an expert in testing administration and evaluation. This is important because once the intelligence test has been administered, it cannot be given again for over a year, as the results would not be valid.

     Although all psychologists are trained to give intelligence tests, the crucial factor in the selection process is the ability of the examiner to relate well enough with the child so the child will enjoy the testing process and will cooperate to the fullest extent possible. This requires a wise and gentle approach and a skilled examiner who knows when to apply a little pressure, when to back off, when to encourage and when to use praise and other rewards; all to elicit the best responses from children who are in a strange environment with a person they have never met. A price cannot be placed on the examiner’s skill. Nor can a child work to his capability when under time pressure by an examiner. It is this ability of the examiner that results in the highest test score possible for the child. The skill of the examiner is earned through years of experience in working with children of different ages, who vary in the diversity of their personal backgrounds, their ethnic origin, and their language of birth. A skilled examiner is cognizant of the developmental aspect of the children being tested and is sensitive to the nuances of the child’s personality and how that interfaces with performance on a test.

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