Psychoeducational assessments are about much more than receiving a diagnosis. They are about understanding the student, identifying their strengths and challenges, and finding a pathway forward. A psychoeducational assessment can be an important tool for parents, students and educators. It can help explain why a student may be struggling in certain areas, even when they are working incredibly hard. It can also uncover strengths and abilities that may otherwise go unrecognized.  

A psychoeducational assessment can:

• Be an advocacy tool for parents. It provides information that parents can use to better understand their child's learning needs and advocate for appropriate educational supports.
• Help students understand themselves. Understanding how you learn, why certain things are difficult and where your strengths lie can be incredibly empowering. It helps students recognize that struggling with certain aspects of learning does not mean they aren't capable.
• Identify strengths as well as weaknesses. An assessment should provide a picture of the whole student, not just focus on what they find difficult.
• Help identify appropriate intervention and remediation. Understanding the nature of a student's learning difficulties can help determine what type of instruction, intervention and remediation may be needed.
• Provide recommendations for accommodations. It can help identify tools, strategies and accommodations that allow students to access learning and demonstrate what they know.
• Identify additional supports. Recommendations may include assistive technology, specialized services, learning strategies and other supports.
• Help schools better understand the student. It provides teachers and school teams with valuable information about how a student learns and what they need to be successful.

The BC Ministry of Education and Child Care's Inclusive Education Services: A Manual of Policies, Procedures and Guidelines recognizes that psychoeducational assessments serve both diagnostic and planning purposes. The information gathered should help parents and teachers better understand a student's strengths and needs and be used for educational planning, goal setting, selecting teaching and intervention strategies, and evaluating progress. The Ministry also states that school districts should have procedures for accessing school psychology services that are designed to ensure equity of access for all students.  

Psychoeducational assessments look at different aspects of how a student learns. The specific tests used depend on the student's age, learning history and areas of concern. Assessments may include:

• Cognitive abilities: Reasoning, problem-solving and general thinking skills (WISC-V, WAIS).
• Academic achievement: Reading, spelling, writing, reading comprehension and mathematics (WIAT, Woodcock-Johnson, KTEA).
• Cognitive processing: Phonological processing, memory and processing speed (CTOPP-2 and other measures).
• Executive functioning: Attention, organization, planning and self-regulation (BRIEF-2).
• Social-emotional functioning: Emotional well-being, behaviour and other factors that may affect learning (BASC-3, Conners).

These are examples of commonly used assessment tools, not a checklist of tests every student will receive. The psychologist selects appropriate measures based on the individual student. The assessment also involves gathering background information, reviewing school records and considering information from parents and teachers. The goal is to understand the whole student and how different areas of learning interact.  

Perhaps this is one of the most important things to remember.Receiving an assessment report or a diagnosis should not be where the conversation ends. It should be the beginning of a plan. The recommendations in the report need to be understood and put into action. They should help guide decisions about instruction, intervention, remediation, accommodations and additional supports. For students with dyslexia and other learning disabilities, this may mean access to evidence-informed reading and writing instruction, appropriate remediation, assistive technology and accommodations that allow them to demonstrate their knowledge and abilities. It is also important to remember that students should not have to wait for a diagnosis or a completed psychoeducational assessment before receiving appropriate instruction and intervention. A report sitting in a file does not help a student. What matters is what happens next.Access to assessment is another important part of this conversation. Families should not have to rely on their ability to pay privately to get a better understanding of their child's learning needs.   

If you are looking for a psychologist to conduct a psychoeducational assessment, the BC Psychological Association has a helpful online directory. You can search for psychologists by location and area of concern, as well as other criteria. Find a Psychologist in BC: https://psychologists.bc.ca/find-psychologistWhen contacting a psychologist, be sure to ask whether they conduct psychoeducational assessments and have experience assessing learning disabilities, including dyslexia.  

On October 5, 2026, Dyslexia BC hosted a fabulous session with Dr. Benton Dorman and Dr. Simon Lisaingo from the BC Association of School Psychologists (BCASP).The session explored psychoeducational assessments and psych-ed reports, helping families better understand the assessment process and the valuable information these reports can provide. We are grateful to Dr. Dorman and Dr. Lisaingo for sharing their knowledge and experience with our community. Watch the recording of this informative session here: Everything you wanted to know about Psychoeducational Assessments, (but were afraid to ask.)

We hope this resource helps families better understand the importance of psycho-educational assessments and, most importantly, what should happen after one is completed.