Scores or information generated from an instrument that is “technically adequate” can reliably and accurately predict performance or behavior for any given population of interest. In other words, the instrument should be standardized for the population it will be used on, reliable, and accurate in its identification of children who are and who are not at risk. Make no mistake: this is a high but reasonable standard to achieve. In-depth guidelines can be found in The Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing [^[i]]. If you work with a school psychologist, work alongside him/her to review guidelines in Principle IV-C2 of the National Association of School Psychologists’ Professional Conduct Manual (2000).

[i] AERA et al. (1999)