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WISC-IV Discrepancy?


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Hello, I am new to the board and read a similar thread, but the facts are reversed from our situation. My DD's Working Memory Index is 23 points higher than her Verbal Comprehension & Perceptual Reasoning scores. Psychologist noted she has an atypical neurological functioning that only 4.7% of sample demonstrated.

What does this mean? Is this indicative of ADD and/or Dyslexia? Just tying to figure out what additional testing I should pursue for her?

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I have a kid in a very similar situation, with a rather high WMI score, higher than the VCI by close to two standard deviations. In his case, the lower VC score is due to language processing issues. What's interesting is that it's common for kids with LDs to have a WM score that's dramatically lower than VC and PR, but this is the complete opposite! He's a late bloomer, still in speech therapy, and continues to surprise me every day. His VC and to some extent his PR scores are not reflective of his actual intelligence level (he's up, he's down, he's anything but "average" :lol:). Same odd situation with the achievement scores, which were dramatically higher (2 to 3 standard deviations, in some cases) than his supposed ability level according to the WISC. Lesson: for "complicated" kids, you really have to take the results with a large grain of salt. Plus, while we have found test results to be helpful and interesting, to say the least, they do often lead to more questions - don't forget that you know your child better than any test.

 

Short answer, yes, there's probably some sort of learning issue, but what, and what to do about it, are another matter.

 

Have you had your conference with the psych yet? I'm surprised the psych didn't offer more in the way of analysis or practical recommendations, but that may come when you talk. Otherwise, I'd want to consult with someone who's experienced with twice-exceptional kids. Be sure to get copies of the subtest scores in case you'd like to take them elsewhere for another opinion.

 

:lurk5: I'd love to hear about anyone else who has a working memory score far higher than their other WISC scores. We will probably re-test, maybe in another year (two years after the last one), in the hope of getting a clearer picture.

Edited by wapiti
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Thank you so much for replying! DD also has the achievement discrepancy!

Well, the psychologist recommended "participation in a research based group for dyslexia." My DD just stumped her and she could not explain further. We are now seeking the school test DD, but I already fear they will not have any further insights since they typically hold a lesser license (I could be way off on this). Originally, we thought ADD since DD is VERY disorganized, distracted etc., but her focus during testing without meds was exceptional and her Processing Speed is a high average and I read that ADD have lower PS scores than ADHD and ADHD typically was below average---again I could be way off on this too.

I just want to make sure the school captures ALL the necessary tests for Dyslexia and does not try to do minimal testing. Currently, they are proposing: Listening Comprehension and/or Intellectual Functioning Test; PHonological Awareness Test; Rapid Automatic Naming Test (alphabet knowledge and sequencing, letter names and letter sounds, word attack skills, word recognition, reading-passage comprehension, and fluency); and Spelling.

Did you use a certain program to help your child?

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Unfortunately I don't know much about dyslexia testing. I can only - barely - comment on language processing, since three of my kids seem to have some degree of this (and we don't know about the younger three yet :tongue_smilie:). But their WM scores were all a bit different. Anyhow, the general idea is that the language processing issue gets in the way of the test itself, at least in the VCI portion - the language required gets progressively more difficult as the child gets older, also, and compensation strategies from younger years may fail. Their PRI scores varied, so I don't know what's behind that exactly.

 

My one with the high WM does seem like he has attention issues, but only *sometimes* (ok, alright, a large percentage of the time :glare: but not enough to seek a diagnosis and medication at this point). His PSI score was a significant problem, particularly within the coding subsection.

 

Still listening for any other replies :bigear:. I do get the sense that this is a rare combination. If I remember, in the morning I'll look at his report for any other nuggets of info, though most of the juicy stuff came during the oral conference, not in the written report.

Edited by wapiti
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@Kai,

Yes, that is what I understand as well, although I see many of the dyslexic symptoms in my DD--not so much the inverted or transposed letters, but more of the problems with decoding, substituting a "known" word for an unknown even if it does not make sense in the sentence, comprehension issues, headaches when reading, re-telling a story is out of sequence and lots of "umms," in lieu of words, ambidextrous in sports (like using blocks in track and hurdling), history of dyslexia in the family, etc. Very puzzling.

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Well this IS such a mystery. Yes, she does have a vision issue (one is 20/20 other is weaker), has glasses and contacts, but not religious about wearing either one. She also was a slow reader. Also speech issue (no tubes or ear infections/literally only sick once in her life), I was the ONLY one who could understand her up until she was 5 ish; In fact when she was 24 months our nanny, taught her basic sign language. Had Speech Therapy, remedial reading. Very argumentative, stubborn.

She scored a high average on PS, WMI a high above average, Low Average on PR and VC (23 point spread between WMI and VC & PR). Correction decoding was well below grade level, as was basic reading and reading comp, and spelling; visual/perceptual motor skills are below her age equivalent (9yrs v. 12yrs), she claims she is clumsy, but she can lead with either leg in the 100h and 300 hurdles, uses either leg to shoot out of the blocks, is often the top in cheerleading requiring balance for the stunts, qualifies for state in mid-distance races, and took up acrobatics and in less than 9 months took 4th place at a National meet. However, she scored way above grade level (at time of testing she was in 7th grade--12 grade second semester) in Math reasoning. She can read passages multiple times, but has a difficult time articulating the story in a sensical manner and it is out of sequence, with lots of junk words like "umm" and "so yeah" inserted instead of conveyed thoughts.

We did start her on meds for ADD, but either the dosage is too low despite upping it twice, or it's not just ADD. I am considering Barton reading to run concurrently with school--read about it on another thread--so grateful for this forum. School has fumbled the ball when it comes to implementing her modifications (she went entire school year until school finally started to follow SOME parts of Plan 2 weeks ago), so this year has been awful for her. She was in Pre AP Math and Science, but teachers refused to modify her tests (chunking) because of departmental policy and transferred her to regular math which means she has lost the opportunity in our district to start Geometry when she enters 9th grade. She cried so badly because she prides herself on her math skills, literally asked "why are they kicking me out?" As a result of the school's failure to follow her Plan, she was ineligible in track for 2 of the only 4 meets the school participates in, and another ego blow. While I am pursuing that end, I also need to find that life boat for her educational needs. So Barton's most likely, but I just do not understand what I need to do to find her "learning style," to address her weaknesses and maintain her strengths. Ugh.:tongue_smilie:

Edited by momx4
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