RESOURCE PACKET Assessment of Language Impairment

Examiners should not generalize from instruments that measure only vocabulary, which is
merely one aspect of the linguistic and cognitive domains. No child should be considered
speech-language impaired solely on the basis of standardized test results. Standardized tests
tend to examine discrete skills in a decontextualized manner (i.e., away from natural
communicative environments). Furthermore, not all children are suitable candidates for
standardized tests.
Descriptive measures of functional or adaptive communication often provide a more realistic
picture of how a student uses his/her communication knowledge and abilities in everyday
situations and the impact of a language impairment in those settings. Examples of descriptive
measures are:
• language/communication samples,
• observations,
• interviews,
• play-based assessment,
• transdisciplinary assessment,
• curriculum-based assessment, and
• criterion-referenced tests.
For some student populations, such as children with severe disabilities or children whose
English proficiency is limited, the provision of unbiased assessments can only be made with
descriptive measures. There are Teacher Input - Functional Communication and Functional
Communication Rating Scale forms that may be useful when assessing the communication
skills of students who have disabilities such as Autism, Developmental Delay, Mental
Retardation/Functional Delay, and Multiple Disabilities for whom the diagnosis of Language
Impairment may not be appropriate. The Published Standardized Instruments matrices include
lists of test instruments that can be used for the assessment of language and includes additional
information (age range, administration time, description, test publishers, and purpose) for each
test.
CONDUCTING A LANGUAGE EVALUATION
• Conduct hearing and vision screenings.
• Obtain relevant information from the parents: concerns about communication skills,
developmental history, etc.
• Information must be gathered from two educators – the student’s classroom teacher as well
as another professional. For preschoolers, obtain this information from childcare providers
or other adults who see the child outside of the family structure.
• Obtain information from teachers related to progress in the general curriculum,
communication skills, behavior and social interactions. General curriculum for preschoolers
is developmentally appropriate activities.
• Review school records, e.g. grades, test scores, special education files, documentation of
prereferral strategies/interventions, and discipline and attendance records.
• Select and administer at least one comprehensive norm-referenced test that is appropriate
for the student’s age and yields receptive, expressive, and total language quotients
whenever possible.
ED –4072 / Rev. 07.09
Department of Education
Language Impairment Resource Packet