SKL Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 My daughter is one of those smart kids who don't test well on standardized tests. (Possibly because she is young for her grade.) Her school's gifted program screens based on standardized test scores, so she hasn't been invited to join. I decided to talk to the gifted teacher, and he suggested that she be individually tested by the public school, and provided a long list of tests they will accept. My next step is to contact the public school (or possibly a private tester) and set up an individual test. Do you have suggestions for the best measures of IQ for an 8.5yo girl who doesn't test well on paper? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sportsmom Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 Is she enrolled in a private school? Not that it really matters, just sounded like you have to go out of your way to contact a public school, rather than the school she attends. Are the suggested tests intelligence tests (WISC-IV or similar) or are they along the lines of nationally normed standardized tests (i.e. Stanford, Iowa, CAT)? I know that there are some testers who work with gifted/special needs students who struggle with traditional test taking that are able to give the traditional standardized tests orally. I would look into private testers, otherwise, you might look into taking the Stanford online, being at home might be less stressful for her than her usual testing environment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 Has she had an Oral achievement test, with no ceiling? Sometimes kids who don't test well on paper, especially if it's due to fatigue (for me, muscle and neurological fatigue really did a number if I had to write/bubble) will show much better on an oral test. The WIAT and PIAT seem pretty widely used (and I believe both are accepted by Davidson, so probably would be accepted in gifted programs by schools as well). They can be used as part of a full assessment, but I've also seen them used by themselves, especially for kids who have a major discrepancy between school work and standardized test performance. If you have to go privately, that will be a lot cheaper than a full educational assessment. With a good tester, most kids seem to enjoy the experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted September 2, 2015 Author Share Posted September 2, 2015 If I pick out just the individual intelligence tests in English for her age, these are the options listed: CogAT CogAT Nonverbal Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment Systems (CAS) Differential Ability Scales inView Iowa Assessments, Form E, Complete Battery ITBS Form C, Complete Battery Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children Leiter International Performance Scale Revised (Leiter-R) Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test Otis Lennon School Ability Test Raven's Progressive Matrices Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale Test of Cognitive Skills (TCS/2) 2nd Edition Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT) WISC-IV WISC-V Wechsler Nonverbal Scale of Ability Woodstock-Johnson III (Cognitive) Woodstock-Johnson IV (Cognitive) Of course it will depend on which ones the tester has available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted September 2, 2015 Author Share Posted September 2, 2015 She has never taken any individual test before. Just the standardized ones that all the kids do in school. Her achievement test results have ranged from roughly average to 99+%ile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenneinCA Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 I would find a tester that you like and see what he/she recommends for your situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 Kaufman might be a good one for what you describe. It has been yes (as in 1st grade for my 26 yos) but we used it to meet state requirements. The tester just talked to him and kept asking him different questions. They ask the questions until a certain number are missed. I just remember it being laid back and her telling me that he had mastered the 4th grade questions in math. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 I would find a tester that you like and see what he/she recommends for your situation. :iagree: Especially a tester that can build a good rapport fast with your children. The more comfortable your child is with the tester, the higher the accuracy, even for a non anxious child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nart Posted September 2, 2015 Share Posted September 2, 2015 I would be really surprised if your local public school district will give any private school student an individual IQ test who wants one just so they can attend the private school's gifted program AND you would be able to pick any IQ test you wanted. If that is the way it works in your district, you are really, really lucky. I would think that group administered IQ tests might be offered for private school students interested in entering public school the following year. ETA: I glossed over the part where you might noted you might have to get a private tester. I would try the school district group administered IQ test first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 Mine both did the wjiii cognitive. I think the tester is more important than the test. How is their teacher this year? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted September 16, 2015 Author Share Posted September 16, 2015 How is their teacher this year? It's too early to tell much, but so far so good. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwik Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 It's too early to tell much, but so far so good. :) That would be a nice change! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoundAbout Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 I would be really surprised if your local public school district will give any private school student an individual IQ test who wants one just so they can attend the private school's gifted program AND you would be able to pick any IQ test you wanted. If that is the way it works in your district, you are really, really lucky. I would think that group administered IQ tests might be offered for private school students interested in entering public school the following year. ETA: I glossed over the part where you might noted you might have to get a private tester. I would try the school district group administered IQ test first. Yes I would look at the rules. Our district did summer testing for their gifted program for people just moving into the district but we were required to register for our local public school before my son was eligible take it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted September 16, 2015 Author Share Posted September 16, 2015 I don't think group tests are the way to go with her though. I feel it would be a waste of time, given that she's taken many group tests with such inconsistent results. I'm not sure face-to-face will be better, but I'm thinking it may be worth a try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 FWIW, I actually saw a Groupon for individual IQ testing for my market recently. Guess it's hard getting business for everyone these days! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted September 16, 2015 Author Share Posted September 16, 2015 Well, I finally sent an email to the public school folks to see if they will offer to do anything. I feel so "that mom." :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 I'd have in the back of my mind that there is the potential for 2e (using that term very loosely), with the not-testing-well-on-paper. My two cents: There is a new WISC out, the V, though I don't know much about the differences between the V and the IV. The IV will break out working memory and processing speed from the g-loaded sections (verbal comprehension and perceptual reasoning) so that if the former two are dramatically lower, an IQ estimate can be given using only the latter two ("GAI" or general ability index), though also be aware that there are very particular rules regarding when it's possible to do that. There is at least one subtest in PR that is timed, block design. One benefit of the WISC for a 2e-ish kid is that it provides quite a bit of information on strengths vs weaknesses. I'm not a fan of the Woodcock Johnson-Cognitive. I felt that the WISC more accurately distinguished my ds's strengths and weaknesses than the WJ-Cog. (FWIW, the school psych did the WJ; we had the WISC done privately a different year.) For the purposes of getting a high score for admission to a program, I've longed to have one of my kids take the Stanford-Binet (SB5), to compare to WISC scores. IIRC, the SB5 is untimed and good for assessing visual-spatial types of kids, though I have no personal experience with it. For a student who doesn't test well on paper, I'd stay far, far away from a group ability screening like the CogAT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted September 16, 2015 Author Share Posted September 16, 2015 Well, the public school lady very promptly responded to my email. She says they will not do gifted testing for kids who aren't enrolled in the public schools. But she also said that due to my kid's 2012 test scores, the state's education dept should have my kid on record as gifted. They are checking into that. Interesting. But it would not surprise me if we aren't properly documented, because that test was taken when my kid attended KG at a charter attached to their preschool. It was associated with a public school district, but they did their own thing in a lot of ways. Not sure if being on record or not will matter, because my kid's school says they only accept scores from tests within the past 2 years. (I wish I had turned those scores over when my kid was in 2nd grade, but I really thought she would do well on the test they took that year. I didn't get the results until after school ended.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted September 16, 2015 Author Share Posted September 16, 2015 wapiti, I have been starting to think mild 2e also. Though it could just be her age, or some personality issue. I recently received the results of the state 3rd grade reading test they took last spring. Miss E (the advanced reader) came out about average for the district (above average for the state, but not by much). Really?? My slower kid scored "advanced," the highest level. Again, really? Now I just realized that the school gifted person is more likely to find my kid's latest reading test scores in the state system than her old Iowa scores. I can just see the eyerolls. :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted September 16, 2015 Share Posted September 16, 2015 If 2e is a possibility, you want the best testing you can get, not a quick screen. Often 2e kids on screening tests end up testing neither gifted nor LD, when they actually need support in both areas. Also, look for an age-normed test (which most Individual tests are) not grade normed. Grade normed tests can underestimate kids who are young for their grade, and many programs don't take prior accelerations into account. A kid who is above average with kids 2 years older than she is is way, way above kids her age, and IIRC, your Ms E probably is close to 2 years below some of her classmates. FWIW, reading is often my DD's lowest score on standardized tests, and it has everything to do with her finding the passages boring and not reading them with enough detail, so she misses stuff that is downright easy. This year, when the test is required for something she truly wants, I'm not seeing the skimming nearly as much. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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