Diagnostic Learning Services- ADHD & Dyslexia Testing

05/17/11

Excellent Educational Resource

by Trudy Voigt at Citysearch

Two words describe our experience with Laurie Gaines ... Exceptional Professional! A proctor for my son's home school curriculum, we couldn't be more pleased with Laurie's reliability, caring nature, and focus on students' specific talents and needs. Laurie receives an overwhelming A+ from our family!

05/15/11

wonderful resource

by MCopple at Citysearch

We feel very fortunate to have met Laurie Gaines. We were overwhelmed with differing opinions and diagnoses for our daughter. Laurie helped to take the existing information and make sense of it all. She was a superior consultant for us, and gave us specific steps to guide us through the process in order to obtain a correct diagnosis. She is extremely knowledgable, responsive and compassionate. Through her resources and guidance, she helped to identify our child's strengths and weaknesses and provide a plan of action.

05/14/11

Very positive experience

by alycemt at Citysearch

When our son was struggling in school, his teacher recommended testing for learning disabilities. We were overwhelmed and did not know where to turn until a friend recommended Laurie Gaines. She was wonderful--courteous, compassionate, and understanding. She scheduled our son's testing appointment within 24 hours of our initial phone conversation. I didn't know how he would react to sitting through 3 hours of testing but Laurie established an instant rapport with him and he actually enjoyed his testing experience.

When Laurie followed up with test results, she was encouraging, informative, and truthful. I can't stress the importance of this enough. A friend of mine had her son tested with another group in town and walked away feeling insulted and discouraged.

One more thing--her prices are excellent. For those on a budget she charges much less than competitiors for the same services.

05/13/11

Diagnostic Testing Services

by Creative Tutors at Citysearch

I wish to respond to the message posted on May 12, 2011 from mom2jake.....

I work with diagnosticians and psychologist from across the Dallas Ft. Worth area and find that Laurie Gaines has a superior service where she out preforms her peers in the testing industry. Specifically, her reports are well written and easy to understand by both parents and school officials. Her testing environment is comfortable and children of all ages are at ease while testing occurs.

One of the most difficult messages to hear from a testing professional is that your child has a learning disability but when Laurie discusses the findings and shares the specific results with you she also has solutions and numerous recommendations for parent and school teachers alike. Her compassion runs through every aspect of the process and I have not known an evaluator with such concern for the well-being of her students

You are welcome to call me and I will be happy to talk to you about your child and solutions to improve their educational situation and why starting with these tests are crucial. If I were in your shoes, I would want to know the results of such tests before my school has those in hand. To be empowered with the information gives the parents a position of strength. My number is 214-282-6268 please feel free to call me .

05/12/11

Caution: Reviews are too good to be true...

by mom2jake at Citysearch

Overall, Laurie did an OK job for us. Our experience was not as good as all these reviews make it seem, and while I don't usually post reviews, I wanted to share my experience and a word of caution.

After finding these rave reviews, I contacted Laurie because I wanted to have my son tested for learning disabilities, and I didn't think my son's school could do it this year. She was very good about returning my phone calls, and explaining the testing that she would perform.

The appointment was setup with no difficulties, and the staff was courteous and friendly.

The day of the testing, Laurie was late, and she had a staff member perform some of the tests until she got there. The tests lasted about 3 hours, and they gave my son a snack in between, which he appreciated. At the end of the tests, Laurie seemed rushed, gave us a quick 'it went well’, then focused on getting paid, and quickly let us know she would contact me when the report was ready to review in about a week.

When I met her to review the report, again she seemed very preoccupied and not focused. She started to review the report with me, commenting on my son's strengths, and his struggles, until I told her the child she was referring to was not my son. Then, she excused herself, she found my son's folder, and we started over. The report was about 4 pages long, and consisted mostly of the test results and summary findings of the test results. Her interpretation of the tests was that my son had learning disabilities. There were only 2 bullet point recommendations given, and I felt these were so broad they could apply to any child. It seemed very much like a cookie-cutter report. It was very disappointing.

As far as cost, I felt the cost of the testing was too high for the service she provided, and since none of this was covered by my insurance, it hurt my pocketbook even more.

Later, I shared her report with my son's school diagnostician, and she said that these tests were very limited and outdated. She went ahead and performed more thorough testing over several days, and her results showed that my son does not have any learning disabilities. She spent over an hour showing me and explaining the different tests, the ones Laurie gave, and the ones she gave my son, and discussing the findings. I wish I had waited and let my son's school provide this service for free, but having both evaluations helped gain a better understanding of my son's abilities.

In all, the service and feedback was very rushed and impersonal. I would not recommend her to my friends.