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• Now available... The Feifer Assessment of Reading!

  PAR is pleased to announce the release of the Feifer Assessment of Reading™ (FAR™) by Steven G. Feifer, DEd. This comprehensive test is designed to help identify specific reading disorder subtypes so clients can individualize a child’s education plan with interventions targeted to that child’s needs. Based on the author’s neurodevelopmental theory of reading, which maps reading disorders to specific neural pathways in different regions of the brain. Aids diagnosis by generating index scores for four dyslexic subtypes: dysphonetic dyslexia, surface dyslexia, mixed dyslexia, and reading comprehension deficits. Puts the I back in IEP by directly informing intervention decisions; helps educators develop customized learning goals and objectives. Features colorful, engaging, and unique item content. Offers norms based on a diverse standardization sample of 1,074 individuals. In just 15 minutes, the Screening Form can identify those who may be at risk for a reading disorder. Can be used by professionals qualified to diagnose reading disorders and by teachers qualified ...

• Now Available! The Feifer Assessment of Mathematics!

  Identifying and addressing characteristics of a math learning disability gives clinicians and educators the tools they need to develop appropriate interventions specific to the individual child, so he or she can succeed in math. The Feifer Assessment of Mathematics™ (FAM™) isolates, measures, and quantifies three subtypes of developmental dyscalculia to explain—from a neurodevelopmental perspective—why a child may have difficulty in math. The 19 subtests of the FAM help determine not only if a child has the characteristics of a general math learning disability (MLD), but also his or her specific subtype of dyscalculia: Procedural: A deficit in the ability to count, order, or sequence numbers or mathematical procedures. Verbal: An inability to use language-based procedures to assist with arithmetic skills. Semantic: A core deficit in both visual-spatial and conceptual components. Created by Steven G. Feifer, DEd, author of the Feifer Assessment of Reading™ (FAR™), the FAM is: Unique: It’s the only math assessment that identifies specifically WHY a ...

• Brain-Based Assessment: An Interview with Steven G. Feifer (Part 1)

  We recently sat down with Steven G. Feifer, DEd, author of the Feifer Assessment of Reading™ (FAR™) and Feifer Assessment of Mathematics™ (FAM™) for an interview to discuss how to use cognitive neuroscience to better understand why students struggle in school. This is the first part of a two-part interview. Come back next week for the conclusion.   What influence did neuroscience and research in this area have on your work in test development? Steven Feifer: I have spent most of my career as a school psychologist trying to coalesce the fields of neuropsychology and education. I suppose it stemmed from my utter frustration in trying to explain learning simply through the lens of an IQ test score. After all, when was the last time somebody wrote a meaningful goal and objective on an IEP because a psychologist said a child’s Full Scale IQ was 94? Why was an instrument like the FAR needed? SF: The FAR was created for a number of reasons. First, I am especially grateful to PAR for recognizing the need for an educational assessment tool based upon a ...

• Brain-Based Assessment: An Interview with Steven G. Feifer (Part 2)

  We recently sat down with Steven G. Feifer, DEd, author of the Feifer Assessment of Reading™ (FAR™) and Feifer Assessment of Mathematics™ (FAM™) for an interview to discuss how to use cognitive neuroscience to better understand why students struggle in school. This is the second part of a two-part interview. Did you miss Part 1? Catch up here. How do the FAR and FAM go beyond just using an aptitude/achievement discrepancy perspective? SF: The FAR and FAM represent a more ecologically valid way to understand the core psychological processes involved with both reading and mathematics. Many psychologists are used to measuring executive functioning, working memory, visual perception, and processing speed using stand-alone instruments, and then must clinically bridge these results into the worlds of reading and math. In other words, how does poor performance on executive functioning tasks impact the ability to read on grade level? These can be very difficult questions to answer. The FAR and the FAM seek to measure these psychological constructs while the student is actually engaged in the academic skill itself, allowing the examiner to directly determine ...

• PAR Assessment Toolkit Web Version Now Available

  Due to Customer requests for a non-iPhone version of our successful application, the PAR Assessment Toolkit is now available on a variety of platforms and devices! The PAR Assessment Toolkit can be accessed for free on any internet-enabled computer or mobile device. This helpful resource includes... A Normal Curve, along with associated standard score conversions for a variety of metrics, that can be used to convey results to clients or professionals; A Conversion Chart, which enables you to rapidly convert between T scores, z scores, percentiles, and standard scores; An Age Calculator, which quickly generates an individual’s exact age in years, months, and days after you input his or her birth date; A Mental Age Determiner, which enables you to input an individual’s chronological age and IQ and receive an estimate of his or her mental age; ...

• The Feifer Assessment of Reading: Brain Science and the Response-to-Intervention Approach

  What does the science of cognitive neuropsychology—brain research—have to say about why kids struggle to read? Plenty! But it can be very time-consuming for busy professionals to sift through the research, assess kids’ brain functioning, and choose interventions that target their specific needs. This is where the Feifer Assessment of Reading™ (FAR™), a new product from PAR, can help. The FAR was developed using a brain-based educational model of reading. Research using neuroimaging techniques has clearly shown that specific neural networks in the brain are associated with different aspects of the reading process, such as phonemic awareness, fluency, decoding, and comprehension. This means that interventions for reading disorders vary depending on the specific dyslexic subtype of the individual reader. Reading expert Dr. Steven Feifer developed the FAR to identify the four most common dyslexic subtypes: dysphonetic dyslexia, surface dyslexia, mixed dyslexia, and reading comprehension deficit. Comprising 15 subtests to measure highly differentiated aspects of reading, the FAR generates five index scores: the Phonological Index, including phonemic awareness, decoding, and positioning sounds; ...