The BES-3 is designed to speak to the definition of emotional disturbance by IDEIA and the Ohio Department of Education. The assessment provides scores for five areas:  Learning Problems, Interpersonal Difficulties, Inappropriate Behavior, Unhappiness/Depression, and Physical Symptoms/Fears. The BES-3 also provides an overall behavior quotient derived from the five scales. The five scales are discussed below.

The standard score mean for the BES-3 is 10, with a standard deviation of 3. Scores of 7 through 13 are considered statistically average. Scores of 4-6 are considered at-risk scores. Standard scores below 4 indicate a level of serious concern. Norms are provided for each gender aged 4 to 19.

Descriptions of the subscales:

The Learning Problems subscale assesses behaviors conducive to learning, study habits, assignment and homework completion, work habits, academic performance, memory and comprehension skills, and skill in following oral and written directions. It represents the students who do not respond to traditional learning experiences and are not successful in learning without special attention or assistance in the school environment. The understanding is that the learning difficulty is behavioral, thus constituting its inclusion in the need to consider the failure to learn, without other explanation, as a behavior disorder.

The Interpersonal Difficulties subscale assesses social skills conducive to the formation of positive relationships with peers and teachers. Items within this subscale include such behaviors as fighting, inappropriate comments, agitation or provocation of other students, withdrawn behavior, and lack of acceptance by the student’s peers. It encompasses the inclusion of behaviors ranging from the inability to make or keep friends to the acting out/aggressive behavior which interferes with resolving conflict, etc.

The Inappropriate Behavior subscale is an all encompassing one which represents behavior atypical in the context of the educational environment. It is this area which represents attendance, stealing, predictability, sexual behavior, cheating, rule-following, etc. Much of this characteristic deals with the inability to conform to expected patterns of behavior necessary for social/employment success in society. Stability, responsibility, dependability, etc., are behaviors measured by this characteristic.

The Unhappiness/Depression subscale provides a measure of the more subtle indicators of emotional/behavioral problems represented by a pervasive mood of dissatisfaction and negative feelings resulting from personal or school related experiences. This subscale includes behaviors such as avoidance of group activities, self-blame, difficulty accepting suggestions or constructive criticism, suicidal comments, lack of affect (i.e., smiling or laughing), apparent fatigue, apathy, frowning, scowling, and overly critical or pessimistic comments directed at oneself.

The Physical Symptoms/Fears subscale provides a measure of behaviors representing a negative reaction to personal or school experiences. In many cases the behaviors demonstrated under this characteristic constitute a phobic level of response to environmental problems. Included in this subscale are behaviors such as complaints about physical illnesses, self-injury, excessive concern related to family or school problems, temper tantrums, nervous habits, unusual speech habits, tremors, stammering, shaking, or excessive fears.

The School Version can be completed in approximately 20 minutes and includes 104 items easily observed and documented by educational personnel. The Home Version can be completed by a parent/guardian in approximately 20 minutes and includes 104 items representing behaviors exhibited in and around the home environment.

Most school psychologists will consider the ABES-R a less thorough assessment than other adaptive measures, such as the Vineland Adaptive Behaviors Scales. For this reason, this writer recommends that the ABES-R not be used by itself in initial evaluations of cognitive disability or  multiple disabilities.

For the ABES-R, scores from 7-12 are considered average; scores from 4-6 indicate a moderate delay, and scores ranging from 0-3 indicate a severe delay.

Raters can be parents or teachers, or others who work with the student.  Scores for this assessment are standard scores, with 100 (50^th percentile) representing a perfectly typical student. The assessment gives a score for the student’s overall adaptive abilities (GAC) as well as scores for three sub-domains of adaptive abilities – conceptual, social and practical.

The Conceptual domain is comprised of Communication, Functional Academics, and Self-Direction. The Social domain is comprised of Use of Leisure Time and Social Skills. The Practical domain is comprised of Community Use, School Living, Health and Safety, and Self-Care, and if applicable, work.

The four areas of intelligence assessed by the WISC-IV are as follows:

Verbal Comprehension is a measure of verbal concept formation. It assesses a student’s ability to listen to a question, draw upon learned information from both formal and informal education, reason through an answer, and express his thoughts aloud. It can tap preferences for verbal information, a difficulty with novel and unexpected situations, or a desire for more time to process information rather than decide “on the spot.” It’s a good predictor of readiness for school and achievement orientation, but can be influenced by background, education (including excessive absences from school or poor attitudes towards education), and cultural opportunities. The Verbal Comprehension score is derived from the following subtests (the supplemental subtests are not required to obtain an accurate score):

• Vocabulary – examinee is asked to define a provided word.
• Similarities – asking how two words are alike/similar.
• Comprehension – questions about social situations or common concepts.
• Information (supplemental) – general knowledge questions.
• Word reasoning (supplemental)- a task involving clues that lead to a specific word, each clue adds more information about the object/word/concept.

Perceptual Reasoning is a measure of non-verbal and fluid reasoning. It assesses a student’s ability to examine a problem, draw upon visual-motor and visual-spatial skills, organize his thoughts, create solutions, and then test them. It can also tap preferences for visual information, comfort with novel and unexpected situations, or a preference to learn by doing. The Perceptual Reasoning score is derived from the following subtests (the supplemental subtest is not required to obtain an accurate score):

• Block Design – children put together red-and-white blocks in a pattern according to a displayed model. This is timed, and some of the more difficult puzzles award bonuses for speed.
• Picture Concepts – children are provided with a series of pictures presented in rows (either two or three rows) and asked to determine which pictures go together, one from each row.
• Matrix Reasoning – children are shown an array of pictures with one missing square, and select the picture that fits the array from five options.
• Picture Completion (supplemental) – children are shown artwork of common objects with a missing part, and asked to identify the missing part by pointing and/or naming.

Working Memory assesses a student’s ability to memorize new information, hold it in short-term memory, concentrate, and manipulate that information to produce some result or reasoning processes. It is important in higher-order thinking, learning, and achievement. It can tap concentration, planning ability, cognitive flexibility, and sequencing skill, but is sensitive to anxiety too. It is an important component of learning and achievement, and ability to self-monitor. The Working Memory score is derived from the following subtests (the supplemental subtest is not required to obtain an accurate score):

• Digit Span – children are orally given sequences of numbers and asked to repeat them, either as heard or in reverse order.
• Letter-Number Sequencing – children are provided a series of numbers and letters and asked to provide them back to the examiner in a predetermined order.
• Arithmetic (supplemental) – orally administered arithmetic questions. Timed.

Processing Speed assesses a student’s abilities to focus attention and quickly scan, discriminate between, and sequentially order visual information. It requires persistence and planning ability, but is sensitive to motivation, difficulty working under a time pressure, and motor coordination. Cultural factors seem to have little impact on processing speed. It is related to reading performance and development. It is related to Working Memory in that increased processing speed can decrease the load placed on working memory, while decreased processing speed can impair the effectiveness of working memory. The processing speed score is derived from the following subtests (the supplemental subtest is not required to obtain an accurate score):

• Coding – children under 8 mark rows of shapes with different lines according to a code, children over 8 transcribe a digit-symbol code. The task is time-limited with bonuses for speed.
• Symbol Search – children are given rows of symbols and target symbols, and asked to mark whether or not the target symbols appear in each row.
• Cancellation (supplemental)- children scan random and structured arrangements of pictures and marks specific target pictures within a limited amount of time.

The verbal portion of the KBIT-2 contains two types of questions: verbal knowledge and riddles. Verbal knowledge asks students to identify a picture (typically from a group of six) that represents a word or phrase spoken to the student. Riddles are simply that – riddles.  These items cover both receptive and expressive vocabulary, and do not require reading or spelling skills (all verbal knowledge answers can be pointed out by the student and all riddle answers are verbally given by the student).

The nonverbal scale is made up of a matrices assessment that measures fluid thinking or the ability to solve new problems by perceiving relationships and completing analogies. An example of a matrices problem is as follows:

Because items contain abstract picture designs rather than words, you can assess nonverbal ability even for students with poor language abilities (students can point to the correct answer). All items from the KBIT-2 are in full-color and appeal to children, particularly those who are reluctant to be tested.

The KBIT-2 provides a composite IQ score derived from the verbal and nonverbal scores.

The KBIT-2 is an efficient way to compare verbal and nonverbal abilities, screen for gifted students, get a quick estimate of intelligence in institutional settings (such as prisons, group homes, rehabilitation centers, and mental health clinics), and reevaluate individuals previously given a comprehensive IQ test. Brief and easy to use, it also offers impressive reliability and validity.

It must be noted that the KBIT-2 is not a thorough measure of cognitive abilities, and is not appropriate as a stand alone cognitive measure for those students who are expected as having a cognitive disability. The KBIT-2 does not look at processing speed, which is an important aspect of one’s overall cognitive functioning.

The BASC-2 Rating Scales is a behavior assessment tool that measures teacher or parent responses to a child’s behavior. Constructs measured include 8 clinical scales, 3 composite scales and 2 adaptive scales. These are:

Clinical
Hyperactivity
Aggression
Anxiety
Depression
Somatization
Atypicality
Withdrawal
Attention Problems
Learning Problems (teacher form)

Composites
Externalizing
Internalizing
Behavior Symptoms Index
School Problems (teacher form)

Adaptive Scales
Adaptability
Social Skills

The clinical scales measure levels of negative or undesirable behaviors as compared to same-aged peers. T-Scores between 41 and 59 fall in the average range. T-Scores between 60 and 69 fall in the “at risk” range. T-Scores above 70 indicate clinically significant levels of maladaptive behavior.

The Adaptive scales measure levels of positive behaviors compared to same aged peers. T-Scores between 41 and 59 fall in the average range. T-Scores between 31 and 41 fall in the “at risk” range. T-Scores below 30 indicate clinically significant levels of maladaptive behavior.

The test also includes an “F-Index” which is a measure of the rater’s tendency to be excessively negative in describing the child. High F-Scores should be treated with caution.

Some school psychologists will compare the cognitive and achievement scores to see how well they match up. For students who have a average or above average IQ, yet still struggle with an area of achievement (let’s say, Reading), the question then becomes “why does the student’s reading score not match up with his IQ score?” There can be several reasons for this. It could be that the student has missed a large amount of school, or has attended, but has not paid attention for a long time, and thus has not really been attending in the classroom to learn what has been taught. It could also be that the student may have a disability in that subject area, and struggles to learn despite his best efforts to do so.

Bell Curve/Normal Distribution

Click the chart above for a full size printable image.

The Bell Curve gives a visual representation of where a student’s score falls in comparison to his or her peers. The “average” student will have a score that falls near the top, or highest point, of the curve. Those students with extreme deficits or skills will have scores that fall at the left or right ends of the curve, respectively.

The percentile line in the chart above shows the number of students across the sample population who scored as well as or below the student in question. So, in a report by your school psychologist, the percentile score may be described as follows:

Kyle scored at the 90th percentile. This means that his score is equal to or above 90 out of every 100 of his same aged peers.

Katy’s situational adaptability score was at the 7th percentile. This means that her ability to be adaptable to unexpected situations is only as good or better than 7 out of every 100 same aged peers.