DAS INTERNATIONAL CONCIERGE ASSESSMENT SERVICES

OUR PSYCHOLOGISTS

DAS International Assessments Services comprises a team of Registered Psychologists, who have been awarded a Master's or Doctoral degree in Psychology from a recognised institution.

They are registered with a recognised national registration board, such as the Singapore Psychological Society.

They have received intensive training to ensure that they are well skilled to carry out psycho-educational assessments. Besides learners with SpLD, they contribute to the community with their work with professionals from different Social Service Agencies and organisations as well as parents to empower them. Our psychologists are also constantly undergoing professional development, such as attending related seminars/talks, conducting research, presenting at conferences, and inviting consultants to learn from their expertise. 

MEET OUR TEAM!

	FONG PEI YI Registered Psychologist    Rex House Learning Centre Pei Yi started out at the DAS as a Specialist Psychologist in 2012. Since then, she has completed the Master of Arts in Applied Psychology programme at the NIE and is a Registered Psychologist with the Singapore Psychological Society. Pei Yi is currently the Assistant Director of the SpLD Assessment Services at the DAS, a team that provides a one-stop psycho-educational assessment service and facilitates the placement of students in learning programmes at the DAS. She also conducts psycho-educational assessments for individuals who experience difficulties with learning.   Read more about Pei Yi here.
	ADELAINE TEO Registered Psychologist Jurong Point Learning Centre Adelaine joined the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) in 2012, and currently holds the position of Lead Specialist Psychologist. Other than conducting psycho-educational assessments for individuals suspected of having learning difficulties, she also carries out training workshops and participates in research projects. Adelaine graduated from the National University of Singapore in 2011 with a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours) in Psychology, and from the National Institute of Education in 2018 with a Master of Arts (Applied Psychology). She is a registered psychologist with the Singapore Register of Psychologists and a full member of the Singapore Psychological Society. She is also a certified Signposts facilitator.  Read more about Adelaine here.
	KATHLEEN CHAN Registered Psychologist Parkway Parade Learning Centre Kathleen joined the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) in 2021 as a Senior Specialist Psychologist. She is part of the DAS SpLD Assessment Services team, providing psycho-educational assessments for children and young adults. Kathleen graduated from Monash University in 2010 with a Bachelor of Arts, majoring in Psychology, and from the RMIT in 2011 with a Bachelor of Applied Science (Honours)(Psychology). Thereafter, she completed a Master of Psychology (Educational & Developmental) at Australian Catholic University in 2015. Prior to DAS, Kathleen worked in both clinical and educational settings in Australia, mainly supporting primary school-age children and young adults with a range of school-based and mental health issues. Kathleen believes that every individual has the potential to thrive in life when given the right opportunities, skills and support. She has a strong passion to make a difference in the lives of children and young adults by building their resilience and resources to help overcome their limitations and adversities.  Read more about Kathleen here.
	PEARLLYN KANG Senior Specialist Psychologist Rex House Learning Centre Pearllyn joined the Dyslexia Association of Singapore (DAS) in 2016 and is currently a Senior Specialist Psychologist with the SpLD Assessment Services Division. She conducts psycho-educational assessments for children to determine their learning profiles and is involved in research projects at the DAS. Pearllyn graduated from the Nanyang Technological University in 2016 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology (Honours), and from the National Institute of Education in 2022 with a Master of Arts in Applied Psychology. She is a registered psychologist with the Singapore Register of Psychologists and a full member of the Singapore Psychological Society. She also completed the Certificate in Dyslexia and Literacy Teaching (SpLD) conducted by the DAS Academy.

THE ROLE OF AN EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST

An Educational Psychologist’s role is primarily to assess for and identify the exceptional needs of a struggling learner, which may have resulted from developmental delays or deficits in his/her learning and social-emotional functioning in the educational setting. The easiest way to think about a child’s exceptional needs is to view them as a mismatch in the child between what is (i.e., the child’s present level of functioning) and what parents and teachers consider what should be (i.e., what the child ought to be achieving).

Special educational needs, learning difficulties (such as dyslexia), emotional and behavioural problems and exceptionally able children all fall within the scope of the educational psychologist's expertise. The educational psychologist is qualified to give advice based upon expert assessment and observation of the child's strengths and weaknesses, drawing upon knowledge of child psychology, child development and education. At the DAI, assessments are conducted by registered psychologists, who assess for concerns related to learning and behavioural difficulties such as Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Upon receiving a referral of a child, the Educational Psychologist proceeds to gain a better understanding of the referral concerns and where necessary, develops an assessment plan based on the highlighted concerns. The psychologist subsequently carries out the assessment, which may involve structured interviews, as well as direct observations or administration of tests for the child, in order to establish an assessment profile. Following this, the psychologists shares the findings and diagnosis (if any) with the child’s parents or guardians, along with recommendations for learning support and strategies. With these recommendations in place, it is hoped that the child can learn at his/her own pace and achieve academic performance that better reflects their potential. 

HOW IS THIS ACHIEVED? 

As every child is unique, with varying levels of strengths and needs, psychologists will tailor the assessment accordingly. Nonetheless, the assessment process is broadly described as follows:

• Hold a preliminary discussion with parents or guardians to understand further referral concerns and gather information about a child’s learning and developmental history.
• Where necessary, gather information from professionals who have worked with the child. These professionals can include the child’s teachers or educational/speech-language/ occupational therapists.
• Make direct observations and/or assessments of the child.
• Conduct an assessment debrief involving parents or guardians to share the outcome and recommendations based on their child’s assessment profile.
• Prepare a psychological report, which is a record of the child’s background and presenting concerns, assessments conducted and recommendations. The report is written as far as possible in non-technical language so that it can be clearly understood.

For further information

You are welcome to contact DAS International for further information if you have any specific questions about an assessment of your child at enquiry@dasint.org.sg

Alternatively, complete this ENQUIRY FORM.

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSESSMENTS

What assessment materials and techniques does DAS International use?

Assessment can be about answering specific questions about a child’s educational development

• Is he dyslexic?
• Is his inattention appropriate for his age?
• What can we do to help her pass her Maths exam?

Or about more general questions

• Is she doing as well as we can expect?
• What sort of school might be best at the secondary stage?
• How should his education be supplemented to overcome his difficulties?

That’s why we always ask what the purpose(s) of the request for assessment is/are.

We provide assessment services to answer these different questions, starting with what has been done up to the present. Specifically, so we would like to know about previous assessments and interventions (e.g. speech and language therapy or occupational therapy), in as much detail as possible. We also need parents’ views and observations, and we prefer parents to ask the child’s teacher(s) for opinions and observations on how the child performs in school.

We look carefully at what parents send us and formulate an assessment plan, suggesting what we consider to be the best ways to answer the questions.  We can discuss this via video conferencing, or we can invite parents (and sometimes the child) to an initial consultation to discuss what might be done.  

EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY ASSESSMENTS

Cognitive Assessments:

Depending on the questions to be answered, the psychologist might use either the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, 5th Edition, the Singapore Ability Scales, or some combination.  There may also be some value in using some aspects of dynamic assessment, including informal tasks and games, and tests and questionnaires of “executive functioning” (including attention control, short-term memory, motivation). The aim is to develop a picture of the child’s strengths and difficulties in handling a variety of learning tasks.  The child’s own feelings and attitudes to learning, especially as they pass the age of 10, is at the centre of this investigation.  We want to identify what the child finds hard and so look for ways of helping, as well as what the child finds easy, and so what resources they bring to their learning.

Academic assessments:

The educational psychologist may administer tests of educational attainments, such as from the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test, 4th Edition. If there is a particular focus on one academic area, then more detailed assessments might be used, to try to make clearer what the child’s strengths and difficulties in this particular area are.  The areas we most often look at in-depth are reading, writing and spelling, oral language and maths.

Assessments of other areas of functioning

Overlapping with both cognitive and educational assessments, we may want more detailed pictures in some particular areas of cognitive functioning.  For phonological abilities, where we might use the Comprehensive Test of Phonological Processing or the Phonological Abilities Battery. For attention, we might use the computerised Test of Variables of Attention. Parents and teachers may be asked to complete survey forms that provide further insight into a child’s learning and behaviour in various settings.

Reporting Back

Following the assessment, the psychologist will consolidate the findings and share them with parents. Conclusions and where diagnoses (if any), along with recommendations will be discussed with parents as well. As quickly as 2 weeks after the assessment debrief session, we will provide a report documenting the assessment process, outcome and recommendations. We aim to summarize the findings and recommendations as succinctly as we can.

We also aim to consider how adults can explain the conclusions of the assessment to the children concerned, and so we will suggest possible ways to do so, which will help the child and family go forward in learning or social development. 

DAS INTERNATIONAL CONCIERGE ASSESSMENT SERVICES

• Providing a personalised approach for every client
• A Concierge Service with direct access to the Psychologist within 3 working days of receiving the enquiry form
• Initiating an intake interview with the Client scheduled for a date of the following working week where the client will be guided in completing the assessment criteria, obtaining information, understanding the client's concerns and providing preliminary recommendations for assessment testing that is required.
• Discussion of Fees and range of assessments are discussed at the preliminary client interview so that clients are clear from the onset what to expect during the assessment process
• Assessment dates are confirmed within the earliest date of the following week or at the client's availability
• An Assessment report will be delivered as quickly as within 6 weeks* from receiving the application as we understand every assessment is a priority.
• DAS International Assessments complements our existing specialist remedial programmes with fast referrals to the appropriate comprehensive support from the assessment recommendations

 * Duration is dependent on the gathering of all necessary information.

ASSESSMENT FEES

Fees for one area of assessment can range from $1701 to $2268 (including GST), and additional fees will be applicable for assessments that evaluate more than one assessment area. 

With effect from 1 Jan 2023, fees shown are inclusive of GST at 8%.

DAS Psychologists can provide psycho-educational assessments for students (Primary to Tertiary) as well as school-readiness assessments for preschoolers. 

Contact us with your concerns and we will work with you to support you and your child.  

We look forward to supporting students with Specific Learning Differences to achieve their potential through DAS International Assessment Services.

Read more here

ASSESSMENT PROCESS