Psychodiagnostic and practical exercises on testing

Teacher(s)

Bukowski Henryk;

Language

French

Content

The course is organised according to the different stages of the psychodiagnostic examination:
* (1) The analysis of the request ;
* (2) The relational and socio-cultural aspects of the examination;
* (3) The general methodology of the diagnostic examination;
* (4) Ethical principles governing the examination and the use of results;
* (5) Conceptual reference frameworks;
* (6) Examination of personality and behaviour;
* (7) Examination of cognitive functions.
In addition, a series of professional speakers from the field will share their experience of assessing individuals and answer your questions.
Finally, a series of optional assignments will be offered to earn bonus points. The aim of these assignments is to develop the cross-disciplinary skills of research, synthesis, integration, criticism and communication of information relating to psychodiagnosis. All or part of the content generated by these assignments may form part of the course content assessed by the examination.

Teaching methods

The course includes lectures by the professor and guest speakers who share their professional experience in psychodiagnostic assessment.
In parallel with the lecture, practical work is organised to put into practice some of the concepts and tools presented in the lecture. The aim of the practical work is to teach and practise the practical skills needed to use a psychodiagnostic test correctly.
In addition, a series of optional assignments will be offered for bonus points. The aim of these assignments is to develop the transversal skills of research, synthesis, integration, criticism and communication of information related to psychodiagnosis.

Evaluation methods

The integration method for evaluating students’ achievements is as follows:
The student is assessed on:

• Knowledge acquired in the course through an exam. This accounts for 10 points out of 20 (i.e., 50% of the final grade). The exam assesses the student’s understanding of the concepts and the appropriate use of notions covered in class. The exam format is not systematically the same across the two sessions: in the first session, the exam is a multiple-choice questionnaire (MCQ), whereas in the second session (August–September), an oral exam may be organized instead of the written exam.
  
• Practical work (TP). This accounts for 10 points out of 20 (i.e., 50% of the final grade). The allocation of these 10 points is as follows:
  
  • up to 0.6 points for attendance at the three practical sessions (or one compensatory assignment per absence, even if justified),
    
  • up to 2.0 points for completing the five MCQs (0.4 points each),
    
  • up to 1.6 points for the two formative assignments (0.8 points each),
    
  • up to 5.8 points for the final graded assignment.
    
  In the second session (August–September), the evaluation is identical except that the three compensatory assignments necessarily replace attendance at the three practical sessions. These practical sessions are an integral part of the program and the student’s training. Continuous assessment carried out during the practical sessions is designed to teach, practice, and ultimately evaluate the acquisition of practical skills required for the appropriate use of a psychodiagnostic test.
  

The integration method consists of adding the points obtained for the exam (10/20) and for the practical work (10/20). To pass, the student must obtain at least 10 out of 20 overall. A student who fails the course overall must retake the failed components (exam and/or practical work). A passing grade (exam or TP) and any bonus points obtained in the first session are carried over for the calculation of the final grade in the second session.
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Students will also have the opportunity to complete a series of optional assignments for bonus points. These assignments aim to develop cross-disciplinary skills in research, synthesis, integration, critical thinking, and communication of information related to psychodiagnostics. All or part of the content generated through these assignments may be included in the course content evaluated in the exam.
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To give students a clear idea of expectations and to help them adapt their study approach accordingly, a mock test is offered on part of the course material, with sample questions at a difficulty level similar to that of the written exam. Students will also be informed of their grade on the mock test.
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Use of generative artificial intelligence (AI):

• The use of generative AI to complete practical assignments (TP) is strictly prohibited.
  
• The use of generative AI for optional bonus-point assignments is permitted only if both of the following conditions are met:
  
  1. The submitted assignment must explicitly indicate which paragraphs were generated by AI.
     
  2. The submitted assignment must include an additional page containing a personal critique of the benefits and weaknesses of using generative AI in the very specific context of the assignment. This requires the student(s) to evaluate and reflect on the quality of the AI-generated output, notably by confronting it with other information sources. At least three arguments (totaling > half a page) are expected in the personal critique.
     
  If the personal critique is deemed unsatisfactory (non-compliance with instructions and/or weak arguments), a penalty of -30% may be applied to the grade.
  

An assignment in which the use of generative AI is judged highly probable by the teaching team, despite the absence of explicit mention of such use, may be considered cheating or plagiarism and will result in an appropriate sanction determined by the teaching team.
The teaching staff may use AI-detection methods. In case of suspected use of generative AI, the instructor may ask the authors of the assignment to provide evidence of their writing process and/or to meet for further clarification.

Other information

Basic knowledge of psychometrics and psychopathology.
The following course(s) provide important foundations for understanding and integrating this course:
- LPSP1211: Psychometrics.

To contact the teaching team, please use the Moodle Forum, especially if the question is likely to concern several students. If you contact us by email, please make sure to :
- contact the professor if the email concerns teaching in a large auditorium (henryk (point) bukowski (at) uclouvain.be) or the relevant assistant if the email concerns practical work.
- indicate the acronym and name of the course in the email title
- in the body of your email, put in bold the subject (objective, core of your request)
- if relevant, indicate the TP series concerned or all the members of your work group
Without this information, your email may not receive the appropriate follow-up.
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Online resources

All PowerPoint presentations are available on Moodle as the course progresses.
On Moodle you will also find :
- information and locations for submitting assignments (practical work)
- the written exam and the mock exam
- announcements from the teaching team
- discussion forums to address the teacher and each other
- documents to support student learning
Teams software is used when the course is delivered co-modally or, exceptionally, remotely. Written exchanges, including answers to questions asked, and sometimes recordings of the course will be found on Teams.
During the written exam, Teams is used to communicate with all students.

Bibliography

Grégoire, J. (2019). L’examen clinique de l’intelligence de l’enfant. Fondements et pratique du WISC-V. Bruxelles: Mardaga.
Laveault, D. & Grégoire, J. (2023). Introduction aux théories des tests en psychologie et en éducation (4e édition revue et complétée).Bruxelles: De Boeck.

Faculty or entity

> EPSY