Tuesday Jun 07, 2022

Standardized Testing

Summary

This week Hasna and Alison talk about standardized tests. They explore what standardized tests measure, how schools filter students using these tests, consequences of the tests on parents and kid and wrap up with talking about the DSM-5.

Topics

00:00 - This Life, the chronicles of Autism moms podcast, series 1 episode 15 – Standardized Testing with Hasna.
00:01 – What is standardized Testing?
01:50 – Why was Standardized Testing created?
02:30 – When would it be appropriate for our neurodiverse children to have such testing?
03:00 – Standardized Testing immediately puts a non-Standard child at a disadvantage
04:00 What does the test consist of?
07:00 – What are the consequences of these tests for our children?
09:00 – Current tests are so outdated they do not reflect what the child is actually capable of.
09:30 – A huge shift in testing is required, how do think this can be done?
10:20 – DSM – Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Health Disorders – This manual is periodically updated, for example between version 4 and 5, Autism and Aspergers were redefined. Constantly evolving according to research.

13:00 – There are no current accommodations with the standardized tests for special needs children they are being compared to neurotypical children.

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To learn more about navigating the school process, watch Learn Autism’s video: Evaluation process and effective school inclusion