ArticleParents
Decoding an evaluation report, paragraph by paragraph
Standardized scores, narrative sections, and the recommendations table — translated into plain language.
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Evaluation reports are written for other clinicians, not for parents. That's why they feel cold and dense. Here's the map so you can read yours without a dictionary.
The four parts of almost every report
- Background & history — context the clinician was given. Check it for errors.
- Test scores — usually a table with standard scores and percentiles.
- Narrative / clinical impressions — what the clinician concluded and why.
- Recommendations — the part that actually drives next steps.
Reading the scores without panic
Most tests are scaled so 100 is average and roughly two-thirds of children fall between 85 and 115. A percentile is just 'out of 100 same-age peers, how many scored at or below this.' A single low score is a data point, not a destiny.
The recommendations section is the one to photocopy and bring to school. The scores explain the 'why'; the recommendations are the 'what now.'