School of social sciences and communications counseling psychology program

UNIVERSIDAD DEL TURABO

SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES AND COMMUNICATIONS

COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY PROGRAM


SYLLABUS
COURSE TITLE Cognitive Assessment & Measurement
CODING PSYC 505
TERM January - May 2016
CONTACT HOURS 60
CREDIT HOURS 4

PREREQUISITE PSYC 500, 503, 504, 508, 520

PROFESSOR Dr. Jorge E. Berrios Lugo

[e-mail]

Office Hours: Monday 3:00pm to 5:00pm, Tuesday 10:00am to 12:00pm, Thursday 4:00pm to 5:00pm

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

General topics in psychological assessment such as: its historical development, basic statistical analysis, test construction, ethical standards, cognitive assessment process. Administration, scoring and interpretation of different tests such as: Wechsler Scales, Raven, Vineland, Bender, Beery, and Draw a Person will be used.

GENERAL OBJECTIVE:

Provide students with the knowledge of the concepts of cognition, intelligence and assessment. The student will master the use, scoring, and interpretation of psychological tests. They will learn how to write an integrated report.

SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:

• 
  Knowledge of the concepts of cognition, intelligence and assessment.
  
• 
  Develop the skills of the assessment process: data gathering, tests selection, administration, scoring, interpretation and report writing.
  
• 
  Know and master the assessment process of different psychological settings.
  
• 
  Master the use, scoring and interpretation of cognitive tests
  
• 
  Use interview techniques appropriate to the cognitive assessment process.
  

REQUIREMENTS AND NORMS:
Attendance and participation in class discussions is required since class group discussion enhances the integration of theory with professional experiences. Excused absence is defined as an absence that involves an illness of self or close relative, events of nature, or life threatening situations. These must be justified in an affirmative manner through official documents.
Readings of the assigned material are necessary and compulsory.
Assignments: Must be handed on time to the professor according to the previously established date. Five (5) points deduction will be made from the final grade (of each assignment) for each day of delay.
Plagiarism: using someone else’s ideas, words, phrases, etc., without proper acknowledgement is considered a violation of the APA Ethical Code and UT norms.
Disability Statement: Students with documented disabilities who may need classroom special accommodation should make an appointment with the Quality and Student Welfare Office for proper certification.
Syllabus Modification: The professor reserves the right to modify, delete, or add any requirements on this syllabus for reasonable cause. Such modifications must be informed to the students and in no way may increase the required standard of evaluation.

COURSE CONTENT

THEORETICAL COMPONET
Unit 1

Upon successful completion of this unit, students will review the objectives of the course, the method for the class and the evaluation criteria. Students will also gain an understanding of the basic definitions and terms used in psychological assessment.

1. 
   Know the definitions of measurement, assessment, testing
   
2. 
   Compare and contrast the terms psychological measurement and psychological assessment
   
3. 
   Understand the basic purpose of the psychological assessment
   
4. 
   Understand the basic pillars of the assessment process
   
5. 
   Internalize the stages in the psychological assessment process
   
6. 
   Know the importance of the clinical observation process during a psychological assessment
   

Assigned readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, (5^th ed.) Chapter 1 & 2

Suggested reading:

Kaplan, R., Saccuzzo, D. (2006). Pruebas psicológicas, [Psychological tests](6 ed.)

Mexico: Thomson

UNIT 2

Upon successful completion of this unit, students should gain an understanding of the ethics and laws applicable to the psychological assessment process.

1. 
   Understand the PR Code of Ethics, APA Code of Ethics in reference to the assessment process
   
2. 
   Understand the laws and regulations applicable to psychological assessment: ADA, IDEA, Rosa’s Law, International Testing Commission
   

Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, (5^th ed.) Chapter 3

Junta Examinadora de Psicólogos de Puerto Rico (1992). Código de Ética

American Psychological Association (2013) . Code of Ethics

Suggested reading:

American with Disabilities Act Law, http://www.ada.gov

Individual with Disabilities Education Act, http://www.idea.ed.gov
UNIT 3
Upon successful completion of this unit, students will gain an understanding of the issues associated to diversity and how interfere with the assessment process.

1. 
   Understand the growing diversity in the Puerto Rican population
   
2. 
   Understand how culture, language, ethnicity, and other diversity variables has to be taken into consideration during the assessment process
   

Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, 5^th ed. Chapter 5

Goldfinger, K. & Pomerantz, A. (2014) Psychological Assessment and Report Writing 2^nd ed. Chapters 2, 3, 4
Suggested reading:

Herrans, L (2000). Psicología y medición: El desarrollo de pruebas psicológicas en Puerto

Rico[Evaluation and psychology: the development of psychological tests in Puerto Rico].

México: McGraw Hill.

UNIT 4
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will know at a glance the history associated to psychological assessment and the theories of intelligence.

1. 
   Know the historical development of the assessment
   
2. 
   Understand the evolution of the theories associated to intelligence
   

Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, 5^th ed. Chapter 7

Suggested reading:

Neukrug, E., Fawcett, R. (2010). Essentials of testing & assessment, Chapter 1

UNIT 5
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will review the terms of statistic associated with assessment and review the terms associated to test construction

1. 
   Know the scores used in the assessment decision tree
   
2. 
   Understand the relevance of the normal curve, correlations, central tendency measurements, and dispersion measurements
   
3. 
   Understand the terms reliability and validity
   
4. 
   Review the theory of tests construction
   

Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of Children: Cognitive Foundations, 5^th ed. Chapter 4

Suggested reading:

Neukrug, E., Fawcett, R. (2010). Essentials of Testing & Assessment, Chapter 3, 4 & 5

UNIT 6
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will understand the variables that influence intelligence and cognition

1. 
   Understand how biological, social and cultural factors intervene in the development of human cognition
   

Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of Children: Cognitive Foundations, 5^th ed. Chapter 8

Suggested reading:

Coaley, K. (2012). An introduction to psychological assessment and psychometrics, Chapter 7

UNIT 7
Upon successful completion of this unit, the students will understand the statistics associated with the cognitive assessment process

1. 
   Review the basic terms of test development
   
2. 
   Review the basic principles of the Normal Curve
   
3. 
   Understand the use of the mean, standard deviation, percentile and t-score and z-score
   
4. 
   Review the item response theory
   

Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of Children: Cognitive Foundations, 5^th ed.

Suggested reading:

Furr, R. M. (2008). Psychometrics: an introduction, Chapter 13.

PRACTICAL COMPONET
UNIT 1: REPORT WRITING
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student can understand the basic components and structure of a psychological assessment report

1. 
   Review the parts of an initial clinical interview
   
2. 
   Know how to report the scores
   
3. 
   Know the diagnostic decision making and report
   

Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, 5^th ed. Chapter 19

Goldfinger, K. & Pomerantz, A. (2014) Psychological Assessment and Report Writing 2^nd ed. Chapters 2, 4, 5, 10, 11, 13
Suggested reading:

Neukrug, E., Fawcett, R. (2010). Essentials of testing & assessment, Chapter 12

UNIT 2: WISC-IV SPANISH
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will know the administration, scoring and interpretation of the WISC-IV Spanish
Assigned Readings:

Wechsler, D. (2005) WISC-IV Spanish Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Suggested reading:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, 5^th ed. Chapters 9, 10 & 11

Torres, P., Romero, I., Rodríguez, W. & Rodríguez, C. (2009). Validación Concurrente de la WISC-IV Spanish con la EIWN-R, PR [Concurrent validation of the Spanish WISC-IV with the EIWN-PR]. Revista Puertorriqueña de Psicología. 20

UNIT 3: RAVEN, BENDER GESTALT, BEERY-BUCKTENICA VMI
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will know the administration, scoring and interpretation of the
Assigned Readings:

Sattler, J (2008) Assessment of Children: Cognitive Foundations, 5^th ed. Chapters 18

UNIT 4: BEHAVIOR QUESTIONNAIRE, DRAW-A-PERSON
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will know the administration, scoring and interpretation of the
Assigned Readings:

Inventario de Comportamiento Escuela Manual

UNIT 5: VINELAND BEHAVIORAL ADAPTIVE SCALE-2
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will know the administration, scoring and interpretation of the Vineland Behavioral Adaptive Scale
Assigned Readings:

Vineland Behavioral Adaptive Scale Manual

UNIT 6: EIWA-III
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will know the administration, scoring and interpretation of the EIWA-III
Assigned Readings:

Wechsler, D. (2008). EIWA-III Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Suggested reading:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, 5^th ed. Chapters 14 & 15

UNIT 7: WPPSI-III & EIWN-R, PR
Upon successful completion of this unit, the student will know the administration, scoring and interpretation of the
Assigned Readings:

Wechsler, D. (2003). WPPSI-III Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Wechsler, D. (2008). WPPSI-III Manual, México: Manual Moderno

Wechsler, D. (1992). EIWN-R, PR Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Suggested reading:

Sattler, J (2008). Assessment of children: cognitive foundations, (5^th ed.) Chapters 12 & 13

TEACHING STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES

Lecture

Class discussions

Test demonstration

Analysis of cases

RESOURCES

Audiovisual media

Videos

Library database

Virtual Classroom (Blackboard)
STUDENT’S EVALUATION CRITERIA AND GRADING SYSTEM:
Student Evaluation

Mid Term Test (100 points; 15% of grade) - will evaluate the knowledge acquired thru the first half of the course, focused theoretical aspects of the cognitive assessment process

Final Test (100 points; 15% of grade) - will evaluate the competencies in administration, scoring and interpretation of the instruments presented throughout the course

Administration, Scoring, Interpretation and Report Writing (3 reports, 100 points each; 15% of grade each report)-

Quizzes & Projects (88 points; 15% of final grade)

Taylor SSL (62 points; 10% of final grade)

A requirement for passing this course is the completion of the Taylor Study Method’s (TSM) weekly Lessons. TSM assists with enhancing your comprehension, consolidation, retention, and recall of the material covered in this class.  
The benefits you will derive as a student include:

• 
  Being better prepared to participate in class;
  
• 
  Enhancing your learning, comprehension, consolidation, retention and recall of core content in the field of psychology;
  
• 
  Being better prepared for testing situations;
  
• 
  Providing you with enhanced preparation for the Comprehensive Examinations; and
  
• 
  Increasing preparedness for your future licensing exam
  

You will complete your Pre-Test in the first week of class, and the Post-Test in the last week of instruction.  

• 
  It is important that you complete each weekly Lesson and Practice Quiz. You must score 65% on the Practice Quiz in order to advance to the next Lesson; you can take the Practice Quiz two times to pass it.
  

Your grade will be impacted by the full completion of TSM’s Student Program materials as noted above.

Note: Scores on Pre- and Post-Tests do not impact your grade.  However, we encourage you to do your best on all of your TSM assignments, as your efforts will positively impact your ongoing preparation and confidence in becoming equipped for your future academic and professional milestones such as the Comprehensive Examination and the licensing examination.  Fully investing your time now, and giving TSM your best effort, will pay off for you in meeting your professional goal of becoming a licensed psychologist.
Grading System

Grade Points Percentage

A 585 – 650 90 – 100

B 520 – 584 80 – 89

C 455– 519 70 – 79

D 390 – 454 69 – 60

F 0 – 389 0 – 59
Minimum Passing Grade: B or 520 points
Acquisition of Testing Materials

As part of the requirements for the course, it is necessary that the student acquires the tests and materials suggested by the professor. The professor will inform the tests and materials to buy and where to acquire it.

TEXTBOOK

Sattler, J. (2008). Evaluación infantil: fundamentos cognoscitivo[Assessment of children; cognitive foundation], 5ed. La Mesa, Ca: Sattler Publishing

Goldfinger, K. & Pomerantz, A. (2014). Psychological Assessment and Report Writing, 2nd ed. Los Angeles, CA: Sage

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Herrans, L (2000). Psicología y Medición: El Desarrollo de Pruebas Psicológicas en Puerto

Rico [Psychology and Assessment: The Development of Psychological Tests in Puerto

Rico]. México: McGraw Hill.

Neukrug, E., Fawcett, R. (2010). Essentials of testing & assessment, (2ed). Belmont:

Brooks/Cole

Sattler, J (2006). Evaluación infantil: fundamentos conductuales, sociales y clínicos, (5ed) [Assessment of children; behavioral, social and clinical foundations]. La Mesa, CA: Sattler Publishing

Torres, P., Romero, I., Rodríguez, W. & Rodríguez, C. (2009). Validación Concurrente de la WISC-IV Spanish con la EIWN-R, PR [Concurrent Validity of the Wisc-IV Spanish with the EIWN-R, PR]. Revista Puertorriqueña de Psicología. 20

Wechsler, D. (1992). EIWN-R, PR Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Wechsler, D. (2008). EIWA-III Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Wechsler, D. (2005). WISC-IV Spanish Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Wechsler, D. (2003). WPPSI-III Manual, San Antonio: Pearson

Wechsler, D. (2011). WPPSI-III Manual, México: Manual Moderno

KEY TERMS PER WEEK

WEEK 1- Introduction to Psychological Assessment and Basic Definitions

Measurement

Psychological Testing

Psychological Assessment

Clinical Observation
WEEK 2- Ethics, Legal Aspects and Diversity Issues of the Psychological Assessment Process

Informed Consent

Test Selection

Individuals with Disabilities Education Act

HIPAA

American with Disability Act

Cross Cultural Assessment

Language Issues

WEEK 3- History and Development of Assessment

Francis Galton

Binet, Simmon & Henri (Binet - Simon scale)

Stanford Binet Intelligence Scale

Intelligence Quotient

Mental Age

WEEK 4- History and Development of Assessment

Charles Spearman (“g” intelligence factor)

Crystalized and Fluid Intelligence (Cattel & Horn)

John Carroll

Factor Analysis

CHC Theory

Emotional Intelligence

Multiple Intelligence

WEEK 5- Factors Related in the Development of Intelligence

Processing Speed

Working Memory

Educational Level and Intelligence

Gender Difference in Cognition

Socioeconomic Status and Cognition

Intelligence Tests

Test of Achievement

WEEK 6- Statistics Review

Reliability

Validity

Normalization

Standardization

Central Tendency Measurement (Mode, Mean, Median)

Dispersion Measurement (Range, Variance, Standard Deviation)

Standard Scores (z-score, T Score, IQ Score, Scale Score)

WEEK 6- Mid Term Departmental Test
WEEK 7- WISC-IV Spanish

David Wechsler

CHC Theory

Acculturation

WEEK 8- EIWA-III (WAIS-III)

WEEK 9- Vineland Adaptive Behavioral Scale 2

Adaptive Behavior

Developmental and Intellectual Disorder (Mental Retardation)

WEEK 10- Bender Gestalt II

Visual Motor Functioning

Lateralization
WEEK 11- Beery VMI 6ed.

Visual Motor Integration

Visual Perception

Motor Coordination

WEEK 12- Other Psychological Measurements
WEEK 13- Report Writing Review
WEEK 14- Introduction to Neuropsychological Assessment

Clinical Neuropsychology

Executive Functioning

Memory

Dementia
WEEK 15- Final Test

Rev. 5/11/2015

JEB