Diagnostic assessment test to identify learning disability, neurological disorders, and developmental delay.

The Bender Visual Motor Gestalt Test is a diagnostic assessment test used with all age groups to help identify possible learning disabilities, neurological disorders, mental retardation, or developmental delay. Test results also provide information about specific abilities, including motor coordination, memory, and organization. The child is given a series of nine designs, each on a separate card, and asked to reproduce them on a blank sheet of paper. There is no time limit. The test is scored by professionals who consider a variety of factors, including form, shape, pattern, and orientation on the page. The Bender-Gestalt test is often given as part of the System of Multicultural Pluralistic Assessment (SOMPA).

For Further Study

Books

Cohen, Libby G., and Loraine J. Spenciner. Assessment of Young Children. New York: Longman, 1994.

Culbertson, Jan L., and Diane J. Willis, eds. Testing Young Children: A Reference Guide for Developmental, Psycho-educational, and Psychosocial Assessments. Austin, TX: PRO-ED, Inc., 1993.

McCullough, Virginia. Testing and Your Child: What You Should Know About 150 of the Most Common Medical, Educational, and Psychological Tests. New York: Plume, 1992.

Wortham, Sue Clark. Tests and Measurement in Early Childhood Education. Columbus, OH: Merrill Publishing Co., 1990.