Postgraduate - UnitDPSY6261 - Developmental neuropsychology

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2013 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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0 points, SCA Band 1, 0.000 EFTSL

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Level	Postgraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences
Organisational Unit	School of Psychology and Psychiatry
Offered	Clayton Second semester 2013 (Day)
Coordinator(s)	Dr Renee Testa

Synopsis

Students will become familiar with the use of appropriate paediatric neuropsychology assessment tools and will learn the skills required to obtain a comprehensive history from parents, teachers, hospital case notes and other relevant information sources. Assessment and management of the behavioural consequences of neuropsychological deficits will be discussed, together with the provision of parent education and school interventions. The importance of conveying neuropsychological findings and recommendation in a clear and interpretable manner for non-psychology professionals, such as teachers and careers, will also be an area of focus.

Outcomes

On completion of this unit students will:

Be familiar with the main stages of central nervous system development, and the impact of these stages on normal cognitive functioning;
Be fully aware of the impact that various neurodevelopmental disorders, various neuropsychiatric disorders or several kinds of acquired brain injury might be expected to have on the development of cognitive skills;
Be familiar with theories of recovery function during childhood and adolescence, and appropriate rehabilitation and management strategies;
Be competent in taking a comprehensive case history, in selecting and administering neuropsychological tests suitable for each developmental period, and interpreting the results of these;
Be able to effectively impart their neuropsychological findings and recommendations to non-professionals such as parents and teachers; and
Feel confident working with children, parents, teachers and professional childcare workers.

Assessment

Assessment will be based on three components, each of which will be graded.
Test administration: 35%
Essay/Report: 35%
Written assignment: 30%

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Renee Testa

Co-requisites

Must be enrolled in Doctor of Psychology in Clinical Neuropsychology