Mindworx Psychology offers a range of psychometric testing including intelligence and academic testing, and diagnostic assessments for problems at school and giftedness. Paediatricians, parents, school counsellors, teachers and doctors (GPs) commonly refer children and adolescents to our friendly child psychologists to obtain an accurate understanding of needs. This may include cognitive assessments, educational assessments, ADHD and behavioural assessments.

We use a range of gold standard psychological IQ tests to measure aptitudes, abilities and strengths. These include the Wechsler IQ test range, amongst others.

– WISC: Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children

– WPPSI: Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence

– WIAT: Wechsler Individual Achievement Test

The reality is that most children have strengths in some areas, and weaknesses in others. Even for those children who are gifted, they may be called ‘twice-exceptional’ because they may have an exceptional ability as well as a learning difficulty. These types of combinations of strengths and weaknesses, when unrecognised, can cause frustration for children, parents and teachers alike.

Testing can uncover all types of challenges – dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADHD, working memory issues, slower processing speeds… the one thing we know is that no two brains are exactly alike. Every child’s profile is different due to their genetics, environment and prior learning.

Some children are referred because their challenging behaviour falls outside the range of expected age-appropriate behaviour at school, home or both. Such behavioural concerns may include difficulties around hyperactivity, impulsivity, aggression, oppositional behaviours, sustaining attention and/or disruptions to peer relations or learning.

We understand that accurate assessments are important. A comprehensive and detailed assessment is a tool that parents can use to understand their child’s needs, and obtain the help and support their child requires to flourish. Our approach is holistic – we assess academic, social, behavioural and emotional functioning to get the full picture of ability. All assessments require a comprehensive developmental and medical history to be taken, and the psychologist may (with your permission) request to liaise with your child’s school in order to fully understand any issues to be investigated.

Clinical observations and gold standard assessments are undertaken by our experienced psychologists – not by a computer. Our psychologists will then analyse all of the information and write a thorough report including recommendations to assist your child to flourish. The psychologist will also provide a thorough debrief for parents – and other parties as required.

Read more about Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

Cognitive assessments for children help assist with the identification of children who are gifted and talented, as well as with the diagnosis of specific learning difficulties.

Intellectual Giftedness :

A cognitive assessment may help children to access gifted and talented programs or special classes e.g. admission to selective schools, acceleration classes, GERRIC (UNSW). It can also help to guide teachers in the provision of extension activities in the classroom setting. A comprehensive assessment will also allow parents to understand both strengths and areas of weakness. Some children are twice exceptional, with testing uncovering areas of significant strength and significant weakness.

A comprehensive assessment will allow parents to understand both strengths and areas of weakness in development, and take into
account academic, social, behavioural and emotional functioning.

Specific Learning Difficulties or Disabilities: Identifying a learning difficulty or disorder in children can help teachers make appropriate accommodations for students in the classroom. This information can be used to manage academic support, and to minimise negative experiences at school such as poor academic results, school avoidance or low self-esteem.

Intellectual difficulty or disability: An assessment will assist in identifying a limitation in intellectual functioning, which is characterised by an IQ test score of 70 or below. Testing can provide a better understanding of how an intellectual disability impacts the child’s ability to learn. It can also help in the development of effective plans or particular accommodations being made in the classroom.

Assessments can also assist in making applications to access government or school disability funding, special needs teachers or
special provisions in formal school examinations.

Although there are hundreds of assessments on the market, and we will tailor our approach to your specific needs, for the purposes of working with schools we commonly use gold standard cognitive assessment tools such as the WISC, WPPSI and WIAT. The administration of such standardised psychometric tools can only be completed by accredited psychologists.

Wechsler Intelligence Scales for Children
Fifth Edition (WISC-V, Australian Standard) for children aged 6 to 16 years.

Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence
Fourth Edition (WPPSI-IV, Australian Standard) for children aged 2 years and 6 months to 7 years and 7 months.

These tools can assess overall IQ, but also look at strengths across various domains and constructs of intelligence. These include:

– Verbal Comprehension :
the ability to use a range of vocabulary to understand and express general knowledge and explain concepts

 – Perceptual Reasoning :
the ability to solve complex non-verbal problems

 – Working Memory :
the ability to learn, manipulate and retain information to complete new tasks

 – Processing Speed :
the ability to quickly process and make judgements about information