What aspect does a diagnostic assessment focus on?

A diagnostic assessment is specifically designed to identify a student's individual learning needs, strengths, and weaknesses. This type of assessment delves into areas such as cognitive skills, academic knowledge, and learning difficulties, making it an essential tool for educators to tailor instruction and interventions to support each student's unique profile.

By concentrating on identifying specific learning needs, a diagnostic assessment helps teachers understand where a student may struggle or excel, allowing for targeted teaching strategies. This is particularly important in special education, where understanding a student's unique learning profile is crucial in developing effective individualized education programs (IEPs).

In contrast, determining student grades focuses on overall performance, measuring social-emotional development looks at personal growth rather than academic skills, and comparing test scores to national averages provides a broad perspective of a student's performance against peers rather than their individual learning needs.