We offer multilingual services at no additional cost!
ESA is a state-approved agency for Child Study Team Services. Our team members are New Jersey licensed and/or certified School Psychologists, Learning Disabilities Teacher Consultants, Social Workers, Occupational Therapists as well as Speech and Language Therapists.
Educational Evaluation
Certified Learning Disability Teacher Consultant will, through a series of tests in reading, language, and math, evaluate the educational grade levels the student is working and functioning on while outlining their strengths and weaknesses. The report will include recommendations and learning strategies to support student progress in areas of academic functional performance.
Psychological Evaluation
A certified school psychologist will complete an assessment which encompasses the individual’s behavior, personality, cognitive abilities, and several other domains. The child will complete a standardized test to assess a range of abilities, including behavior or movement (dexterity) and in neurological functioning in areas such as spatial and processing speed. This will be used to assess the child’s overall cognitive ability know as IQ or intellectual ability. Intellect is a term used in studies of the human mind and refer to the ability of the mind to come to correct conclusions about what is true or false and about how to solve problems. Psychological evaluations try to pinpoint what is happening in some’s psychological life that may be inhibiting their ability to behave or feel in more appropriate or constructive ways; it is the mental equivalent of physical examination.
Speech and Language Evaluation
A Speech Language Pathologist will perform a selection of standardized and/or non-standardized assessments which measures specific aspects of speech, spoken and non-spoken language, cognitive communication and swallowing function. This includes observation and analysis of work samples, measures for speech, language, cognitive communication, with consideration for documented ecological validity and cultural sensitivity. In addition, it includes a medical status, describing and interpreting an individual’s communication ability. Reports include recommendations and goals for Speech Therapy and if they qualify for services such as Speech Teletherapy.
Social History Assessment
Through a social assessment, we will obtain a family history documenting the social aspect of the past and current life experience of the student. Information gathered gives us an understanding of the student’s level of functioning and the most appropriate plan of intervention.
Neurological Evaluation
Conducted by our team of medical doctors, a neurological evaluation is an evaluation of the child’s nervous system, which includes the brain, spinal cord, and the nerves that connect these areas to other parts of the body. A neurological exam is done to assess any abnormalities in the nervous system that can cause problems with daily functioning. A complete exam includes evaluation of an individual’s speech, awareness of environment, motor function and balance (walking ability, muscle strength, and tone), sensation, reflexes, coordination, and the 12 cranial nerves of the brain. These nerves are involved in smell, vision, pupil activity, eye movement, taste, hearing, swallowing, and movement of the face, neck, and shoulders.
Neuro-Developmental Evaluation
Our Neurodevelopmental medical doctors will provide a specialized comprehensive assessment of infants through preschool aged children. This includes a wide range of developmental, behavioral, emotional, and learning difficulties. Developing brain systems and environmental factors are assessed to provide a profile of cognitive and developmental abilities, such as pre-academic or academic skills, play skills, adaptive function skills, social-emotional, language communications, motor skills, behavior, and attention.
Psychiatric Teletherapy Evaluation
Medical doctors will diagnosis psychiatric disorders by identifying mental health symptoms, disorders, and key components of a comprehensive empirically based, psychiatric assessment of children and their families.
Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA)
A Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA) is a comprehensive and individualized, problem solving process that addresses challenging behaviors. It identifies specific target behaviors, the purpose of the behavior, and what factors are interfering with the student's educational process.
Functional Behavioral Assessments (FBA) incorporate a variety of techniques and strategies to gather information as a means of understanding the specific reasons for the student's challenging behavior. An FBA helps to explain how a student's behavior relates to or is affected by his/her environment. An FBA looks beyond the form of the behavior (i.e., what the behavior looks or sounds like), and focuses on identifying what causes and maintains the behavior (i.e., the function). This type of assessment leads the observer beyond the "symptom" (the behavior) to the student's underlying motivation (escape, avoid, or gain something. (i.e., automatic/ sensory = reinforcement).
Multiple Methods include but are not limited to an interview, rating scales, direct observations, descriptive analysis and functional analysis. The FBA identifies immediate non-school factors (e.g., poor sleeping habits) that predict the occurrence or non-occurrence of challenging behaviors.
