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Why a Neuropsychological Evaluation
Is Preferable for Admission to The Lang School

 

The Lang School serves twice-exceptional (2e) learners—students with advanced cognitive potential alongside learning, attentional, social-emotional, or other neurodevelopmental challenges. To determine whether a student will thrive at Lang, the admissions team needs a full picture of how the child thinks, learns, and regulates themselves, not just their academic profile.

 

Why neuropsychological testing provides a better fit:

  • It clarifies the child’s learning profile beyond IQ and academics – Lang looks for students with superior cognitive strengths (often in one or more subdomains, even if the overall IQ is uneven).

  • It identifies co-occurring challenges – such as ADHD, autism, or executive functioning weaknesses, which can shape classroom support needs.

  • It informs individualized programming – The detailed cognitive and emotional data helps Lang design tailored supports and determine whether their model can meet the student’s needs.

  • It strengthens the case for placement – For families seeking district funding, a neuropsychological evaluation provides diagnostic evidence and a rationale for why a highly specialized setting like Lang is appropriate.

 

In short:

  • A psychoeducational evaluation shows what a child can do academically.

  • A neuropsychological evaluation shows how and why they perform the way they do—and whether Lang is the right fit to support their growth.

 

Tests Typically Included:​​​​​

Neuropsychological Evaluation

 

Includes everything in a psychoeducational evaluation, plus a deep dive into cognitive, attentional, and emotional functioning.

​

Possible components:

  • Cognitive / Executive Function:

    • Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS)

    • NEPSY-II (attention, memory, social perception, sensorimotor skills)

    • Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (set-shifting)

    • Tower of London (planning/organization)

  • Attention & Processing:

    • Conners Continuous Performance Test (CPT-3)

    • Test of Variables of Attention (TOVA)

    • Processing Speed measures (e.g., WISC Coding, Symbol Search)

  • Memory & Learning:

    • Children’s Memory Scale (CMS)

    • California Verbal Learning Test – Children’s Version (CVLT-C)

    • Rey Complex Figure Test

  • Language & Visual-Spatial:

    • Boston Naming Test

    • Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT-5)

    • Judgment of Line Orientation

  • Fine Motor & Visual-Motor:

    • Beery VMI (detailed scoring)

    • Grooved Pegboard Test

  • Emotional & Behavioral:

    • Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC-3)

    • Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL)

    • Reynolds Child Depression and Anxiety Scales

  • Adaptive Functioning:

    • Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scales (Vineland-3)

Psychoeducational Evaluation

 

Focuses on intellectual ability + academic achievement.

 

Common tests:

  • Cognitive / IQ:

    • Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V)

    • Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scales Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (KABC-II)

  • Academic Achievement:

    • Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Achievement (WJ-IV)

    • Wechsler Individual Achievement Test (WIAT-4)

    • Kaufman Test of Educational Achievement (KTEA-3)

  • Basic Processing Skills:

    • CTOPP-2 (phonological processing)

    • GORT-5 (oral reading fluency)

    • KeyMath-3 (for math skills)

  • Optional screeners:

    • Beery VMI (visual-motor integration)

    • BRIEF-2 (parent/teacher forms for executive function)

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