Dyslexia & Specific Learning Disabilities

Your Local School Psychologists – Here to Help Decode Your Learning Profile

If you think you or your child has dyslexia or another learning disability (e.g., in the areas of math or written expression), the providers at PACT can help. Learning disabilities, which include dyslexia, affect approximately 10% of people. Learning disabilities are specific areas of weakness that negatively affect a person’s academic skill development and functioning despite the person having at least average intellectual abilities. Thus, a person can be quite bright and capable in most areas but struggle in a specific academic area due to the learning disability. Many students who struggle in school have undiagnosed learning disabilities.

At PACT, our licensed providers have extensive expertise in helping children, adolescents, and adults with dyslexia and other learning disabilities. Our psychological assessments can determine whether you or your child has dyslexia or another learning disability. We can distinguish learning disabilities from the many other conditions that may be affecting academic performance such as ADD/ADHD, depression, and anxiety. An accurate diagnosis is crucial to effective intervention.

Our dyslexia assessments will have recommendations specific to you or your child’s unique pattern of strengths and weaknesses.

It is important to be aware that children and college students who have dyslexia or another learning disability are likely eligible for educational services and accommodations through special education or Section 504. Gaining access to such services and accommodations can be critical to meeting students’ academic needs and preserving self-esteem.

Our psychological assessments can also help you or your child:

  • Improve grades
  • Gain access to educational services and accommodations (e.g., extended time on tests) in grades K-12 as well as college
  • Learn more effectively

If you or your child has been diagnosed with dyslexia or another learning disability, our providers are able to provide consultation or advocacy to:

  • Help to identify appropriate school accommodations and services through regular
  • education, Section 504 or special education
  • Represent your child’s needs at school staffing, 504, or Admission, Review, and Dismissal (ARD) meetings
  • Provide guidance and suggestions on the appropriate educational environment to meet the needs of your child, teen, or young adult

As part of the comprehensive evaluation, the LSSPs at PACT also assess for various other conditions, such as emotional functioning and ADD/ADHD, that can affect educational functioning.

PACT Assessment for Dyslexia and Reading Disabilities

PACT evaluation is based on the recommendations by the International Dyslexia Association and renowned dyslexia expert, Sally Shaywitz, M.D. A psychologist with a doctorate (Ph.D. or Psy.D.) and specialized training and experience in dyslexia assessment will conduct the evaluation, write the report, and provide feedback. A dyslexia evaluation can be conducted with anyone ages 4 to adulthood and (depending on age) includes:

  • Review of developmental, medical, behavioral, and family history
  • Review of report cards, teacher feedback, and results from standardized tests

Individual evaluation session using standardized measures in the following areas:

  • Cognitive abilities and processing (including auditory processing, visual processing, and visual motor integration)
  • Current Tests of Academic Achievement in Reading, Writing, and Math
  • Specific Evaluation of Reading and Writing skills including phonological processing
  • Rapid automatic naming abilities
  • Single word decoding of both real and nonsense words
  • Oral and silent reading in context to evaluate rate, fluency, comprehension, and accuracy
  • Reading Comprehension
  • Orthographic processing (e.g., spelling)
  • Written Expression
  • Oral language skills