School Bridge, LLC

The Wall Street Journal is fuming again — this time about extra time on the SAT.

I'd like to offer a different frame. Again.

Here's what gets lost in these conversations: a student can read every word on the page correctly and still not be able to do what the SAT is actually asking.

Decoding — the ability to sound out and recognize words — is one skill. Reading fluency — the ability to read accurately, automatically, and at a pace that leaves cognitive resources available for understanding — is another. And comprehension, the thing the SAT supposedly measures, depends almost entirely on fluency.

A student with a reading fluency disorder or processing speed deficit can have strong vocabulary, strong reasoning, strong knowledge — and still watch time run out before their brain has finished integrating what they read. That is not a strategy problem. That is a neurological one.

The same is true for students with ADHD, whose attention systems may be working hard enough to decode text but not hard enough to sustain the focused comprehension a 3-hour test demands. Or students with anxiety disorders, whose working memory is actively competing with threat-detection responses during high-stakes testing.

These are not students gaming the system. These are students whose genuine abilities are obscured by a testing format that was never designed with their neurology in mind.

A rigorous psychoeducational evaluation identifies exactly this: the gap between what a student knows and what a timed, standardized test can see. When that gap is real and documented, accommodation isn't an advantage — it's the correction that makes the score mean something.

The question worth asking isn't why some students get more time. It's why we're surprised that intelligence and learning differences can coexist.

If your student is preparing for the SAT or ACT and you've wondered whether an evaluation makes sense, I'm happy to talk through what that process looks like.

📍 Serving families in the DC/MD/VA metro area | testingld.com

Suzie Muir 703-728-8676



https://www.wsj.com/us-news/education/parents-are-fuming-about-other-peoples-kids-getting-extra-time-on-the-sat-2daeea8c

Parents Are Fuming About Other Peoples’ Kids Getting Extra Time on the SAT Special accommodations for irritable bowel syndrome? Families are getting creative, and spending big, in pursuit of an edge.

Parents are sticker-shocked by college costs. I get it. Private universities now run $63,000–$90,000 a year. That's not tuition. That's the whole bill — room, board, fees, everything.

So when I tell families that a psychoeducational evaluation is one of the smartest investments they can make before their student sets foot on campus, I understand why some hesitate.

But here's the math they're missing:
Students with learning disabilities and ADHD who go unidentified graduate at a rate nearly 20 points lower than their peers. That's not a statistic about effort or intelligence. It's a statistic about support, specifically, the lack of it.

Only 37% of college students with disabilities ever disclose to their school. Of those, many still don't receive accommodations. Meanwhile, the bill keeps coming.

An evaluation doesn't just unlock extended time on tests. It gives your student a roadmap for how their brain works, documentation that follows them through college licensing exams and into the workplace, and — most practically — a fighting chance at actually finishing what you're paying for.

The question was never "can we afford an evaluation?"

It's "can we afford not to have one?"

📍 Serving families in the DC/MD/VA metro area (on office); and beyone (remotely)

Suzie Muir 703-728-8676

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/colleges-hundred-thousand-dollars-per-year.html

The Wall Street Journal recently reported that bar exam accommodation rates are surging, and framed it as a problem.

I'd like to offer a different frame.

As a psychoeducational evaluator, I've spent years assessing law students, graduate students, and professionals who have spent their entire academic careers white-knuckling their way through timed tests, often without any formal diagnosis, any documented history of accommodations, or any language for why everything feels harder than it should.

Many of them didn't get evaluated in childhood. Their families didn't know that was an option. They were smart enough to compensate, so no one flagged them. They made it to law school through sheer effort and strategy.

That is not evidence that they don't have a disability. That is evidence of how good they are at masking one.

The WSJ piece notes that some high-achieving students with accommodations perform well. It treats this as suspicious. I'd argue it proves the opposite point: when the barrier of processing speed or sustained attention is removed, what you find underneath is genuine competence.

Accommodations don't create ability. They reveal it.

A comprehensive psychoeducational evaluation isn't a workaround. It's a clinical process- cognitive testing, achievement testing, attention measures, history, and professional judgment - that determines whether someone's neurology is interfering with their performance on a timed, high-stakes exam. When it is, accommodation isn't preferential treatment. It's equal access.

If you're a law student, a recent grad preparing for the bar, or a professional navigating a licensing exam and wondering whether an evaluation makes sense for you, I'd be glad to talk.

Suzie Muir 703-728-8676

📍 Serving the DC/MD/VA metro area | testingld.com



https://www.wsj.com/us-news/education/bar-exam-extra-time-696cfd11

The Number of Law-School Grads Getting Extra Time for the Bar Exam Is Surging More than one in eight test takers in California received accommodations.

The International Dyslexia Association updated its official definition of dyslexia in 2025, (first time in more than 20 years!) recognizing that dyslexia often occurs alongside other neurodevelopmental conditions such as ADHD and language delays. The revised definition also emphasizes that early identification and targeted support can improve long-term outcomes, helping more children receive accurate diagnoses and effective assistance. https://dyslexiaida.org
📆 Evaluation, diagnosis, recommendations w Suzie Muir Www.testingld.com

Dr. Suzie Muir - Learning Disabilities and / or Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder Evaluation, Diagnosis & Recommendations Dr. Suzie Muir offers evaluation, diagnosis, and recommendations for learning disabilities, and ADHD for students in preschool through graduate school. Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC.

Most parents think they can't get their child evaluated because the cost feels too high.

They're usually wrong.

The real problem isn't the price — it's not understanding what they're actually getting.

If you're putting off an evaluation, waiting to see if your child "grows out of it," or hoping the school will figure it out on their own — you're playing a waiting game that costs more every year.

Parents don't always choose the cheapest option.

They choose the one that feels like the clearest path forward.

A comprehensive psychoeducational evaluation from Dr. Muir doesn't just give you a label — it gives you a roadmap. Documented
accommodations. A plan that follows your child from preschool through graduate school. Real answers after years of guessing.

That's exactly what hundreds of families across Virginia, Maryland, and D.C. have discovered — that one evaluation changed everything: the right school supports, the right exam accommodations, the right interventions at the right time.

The cost of an evaluation is what you pay once.

The cost of not evaluating is what your child pays for years.

Understand that difference, and the decision becomes easy.

Competence, caring, expertise you can trust.

Schedule your evaluation at testingld.com or call 703-728-8676.

Dr. Suzie Muir - Learning Disabilities and / or Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder Evaluation, Diagnosis & Recommendations Dr. Suzie Muir offers evaluation, diagnosis, and recommendations for learning disabilities, and ADHD for students in preschool through graduate school. Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC.

Free 15-minute phone consultations —Not sure if your child needs testing? Undiagnosed learning disability? ADHD interfering w school? Call us. Suzie Muir. 703-728-8676

Dr. Suzie Muir - Learning Disabilities and / or Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder Evaluation, Diagnosis & Recommendations Dr. Suzie Muir offers evaluation, diagnosis, and recommendations for learning disabilities, and ADHD for students in preschool through graduate school. Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC.

📅 Now booking appointments for June & July — Weekdays and Weekends available.
Dyslexia, ADHD, Learning Disability, Evaluation www.testingld.com

Whether you prefer meeting virtually or in person, flexible options are available to fit your schedule:
Virtual
Meet from wherever you are- flexible scheduling available
In person McLean, VA (Washington DC suburbs)
Office appointments available weekdays and weekends

🎉 Free consultation available
(703) 728-8676
www.testingld.com

Helping students to reveal their potential academically.

Call or visit the site today to schedule. www.testingld.com

Dr. Suzie Muir - Learning Disabilities and / or Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder Evaluation, Diagnosis & Recommendations Dr. Suzie Muir offers evaluation, diagnosis, and recommendations for learning disabilities, and ADHD for students in preschool through graduate school. Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC.

Testingld.com Documentation provided to support your student so he/she can reveal potential w greater consistency in school 703-728-8676

'We can probably reduce those supports now?'

'No.'

Em 🌈

Need WORKPLACE Accommodations? Dyslexia, Learning Disability, ADHD?

Under the ADA, employees are entitled to reasonable accommodations at work. But to request them, you typically need a current, comprehensive evaluation to document your diagnosis.

TestingLD.com provides professional evaluations that can support your request for workplace accommodations, including:

✅ Extended time or modified deadlines
✅ Assistive technology
✅ Flexible scheduling or remote work arrangements
✅ Written instructions or other communication supports

You deserve to do your best work, with the support you need.

📍 Washington, DC suburbs in-office or virtual appointments
📅 Weekday and weekend scheduling available
📲 Book online: www.testingld.com
📞 Call for a FREE consultation w Suzie Muir: 703-728-8676

📋 Is Your Learning Disability or ADHD Evaluation Still Valid?

If you, or someone you support, has a diagnosis of dyslexia, a learning disability, or ADHD, your documentation may need to be updated before it can be accepted for:

✅ College accommodations
✅ Graduate school support services
✅ Standardized tests (SAT, ACT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, DAT, BAR, & more)

Most institutions require an evaluation completed within the last 3 years(

Dr. Suzie Muir - Learning Disabilities and / or Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder Evaluation, Diagnosis & Recommendations Dr. Suzie Muir offers evaluation, diagnosis, and recommendations for learning disabilities, and ADHD for students in preschool through graduate school. Virginia, Maryland and Washington DC.