Dyslexia Associates of San Antonio

  D.A.S.A. specializes in  dyslexia evaluations  for ages 6 through 23,  but we are also able to test adults with our nationally recognized  assessments.  It is important to remember that an effective assessment needs to be a combination of tests, interviews, and samples  which give a complete picture of  the reader's  strengths and weaknesses and which measure the characteristics of dyslexia against  its definitions.

Some schools as a matter of policy will not assess a student  for dyelxia until grade 2 or higher, but  by that time, the reading gap can be wide and painful. This  is  against  Texas Education Agency guidelines outlined in the Dyslexia Handbook( 2018) and against Child Find laws  and educational research findings.Younger children in grade 1 may be fully assesed, and those in mid-kindergarten may be screened and  identified as at-risk with 85% accuracy.

Parents have the legal right to seek and provide the school with a private assessment. At DASA you can be confident that a diagnostician with multiple certifications and many years' exerience is going the extra mile for your child. 

If your child was recently tested by the public school  and you disagree with the FIE results, you have the right to ask for an IEE or independent educational evaluation at school expense. DASA is able to do these as well.

Not all reading problems are dyslexia- but knowing the problem can be half the battle in dealing with the reading issues.

It is never too late to get help.The sooner a potential issue is discovered, the sooner a reader can be helped.

areA reputable company or individual will  perform individualized testing. Likewise, the tester needs to  rule out vision or hearing issues by making sure the reader has had his or her vision and hearing screened prior to testing.

 Beware of lay persons with  unusual titles,  "one screening fits all" tests, companies that have a vested interest in a certain result for entry into their "method-program" or expensive tutoring program,  and online computerized screenings.  No canned program  is a replacement for a qualififed tester and research-based assessments.

No matter where you  choose to go for an assessment, you need to ask the right questions of the tester.

 The first question you should ask anyone who will administer a reading or dyslexia assessment is: What training and certification or licensing  have you received? Is it valid in the state of Texas?

The second question to ask is: What are the names  and types of assessments or  tests that you use? Are they accepted by the school or agency i am testing for?  No one test can identify dyslexia and  no "online test" can, either. Make sure your assessor uses the most current versions of nationally-recognized, norm-referenced tests. 

Finally, ask- Are you also able to help me understand how to advocate for my child in the 504 or Special Education process? You do not need a vague report and little to no follow up; you need the power of information on how processes work in various schools or on the job.

If someone has previously been assessed for dyslexia, remember that the report may only be considered valid for a few years; for accommodations for college or on the job, a re-certification assessment is vital.

Dyslexia is a lifetime condition, but a person's ability to read and decode can improve drastically over time.   This is why re-evaluation may be necessary for a student to continue to receive the help that he or she needs later on in college or on the job.