Psychological Testing Services in Calabasas, CA

We provide comprehensive psychological assessments for children, adolescents and adults utilizing neuropsychological tests

What Is an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE)?

Do you disagree with an evaluation or IEP you received at your school and would like an unbiased 3rd party assessor? If so, an Independent Educational Evaluation (IEE) is an assessment conducted by a qualified examiner who is not employed by the school district that will be responsible to re-evaluate your child fully and give an objective assessment of your child’s educational needs and recommend that your child receives appropriate educational services.

Under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), parents have the right to request an IEE at public expense if they disagree with the school’s evaluation. This means the school district must pay for the evaluation, and the parents are not required to, unless they want additional services that are not covered under the IEE contract.  MindWorks does not request an IEE, but if parents have requested and have been approved for an IEE, they can contact MindWorks to be their unbiased evaluator. MindWorks has worked across multiple local school districts including LAUSD, LVUSD, Lancaster Unified and more. It is important to note that services will be based on IDEA’s requirements for services, rather than qualifying for a diagnosis under the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM).

How To Request an IEE?

Parents must first go through and Individualized Education Program (IEP) with their school. To request an IEP, you must formally request it with your homeschool in writing. The school will then complete a psychoeducational evaluation (no diagnosis can be made) and will document your child’s weaknesses and report if they qualify for services.

If you review the IEP plan, and disagree with the evaluation and the services provided, you may request an IEE. You must document your concerns in detail and outline the reasons you are denying the proposed IEP and requesting an IEE. Request a meeting with the IEP team and discuss your concerns. Then inform the IEP team that you are requesting an IEP in writing and include your supporting documentations. Wait for a response and follow up with the district. It may be helpful to work with an educational advocate or lawyer in this process. Please contact us if you need some referrals.

If you are interested in an IEE, please contact us and we will be happy to walk you through the process.

How Long Does Testing Take?

While testing may only take a few hours with the participate, we will be communicating with you, your child, teachers, therapists, psychiatrists, and other service providers for your child or you (with your permission).  We will take time to prepare and analyze a customized evaluation for your child and their needs. Based on test results, interview insights and findings, you will receive a comprehensive report summarizing and explaining our findings, and providing individualized recommendations for strategic school accommodations and home-support strategies that will strengthen your child’s development. 

On average the full evaluation will take 1-2 weeks of testing (5-6 hours of person-to-person testing broken down between 1-3 sessions) and a final feedback where the results will be discussed with you 2-3 weeks after the assessment is completed.

What Is Included In Each Evaluation?

Initial Intake: After our initial consultation, a comprehensive intake will be conducted with the individual (and parent, if needed) to fully understand individual’s needs. These initial series of questionnaires will help create the testing battery that will later be used for the series of one-on-one tests. Contact with doctors, teachers, schools, therapists and psychiatrists (with your permission) are also utilized to help understand the “full picture” of the patient.

Full Review: A full review of psychological, educational and past testing records is conducted.

Observations: An observation of the child at school may be conducted from time to time.

One-on-One Tests: The individual will meet one-on-one with a psychologist in person. During the "testing" appointments, we use the testing battery created in intake to administer a variety of questions, puzzles, word games, pictures and drawings, and stories, as well as some school-like tasks, such as reading and math, to investigate how the student thinks and feels in different settings. Many of our sessions may range from one to four hours, with several short breaks, depending on the individual's energy level. While testing is limited to what the IEE is requesting, testing can include one or more of the following areas:

• General cognitive and mental strengths and weaknesses including a full IQ test.

• Academic skills in reading, writing, math, oral language and fine motor skills.

• ADHD concerns and full executive functioning skills.

• Memory skills.

• Emotional and behavioral concerns

• Autism/neurodevelopmental skills (if requested)

Evaluation and Interpretation: After the testing and evaluation is complete, the Dr. Salanga will score, interpret, and integrate the information into a comprehensive written report. The report will include background information, test scores, psychologist interpretations, tailored recommendations to better help the individual, and referrals to any needed specialists.

Report and Feedback Discussion: After testing, evaluation, and reports are complete, the Dr. Salanga will meet one-on-one with the individual and/or parent to discuss the report and answer any questions. This feedback may also be given to other professions such as the teacher if desired, and many times Dr. Salanga will meet briefly with the child to go over their strengths and weaknesses as well. A copy of the full report will be given after the feedback appointment is complete.