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Cognitive Abilities test... practice or not?


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My teen son will be taking a Cognitive Abilities test. He's never had testing similar to this. Is it wrong to purchase practice tests so he can see what is expected of him and have an idea how to take them?

Or, is it better to take it without practice and is it even 'ok' to have him practice?. Dr. thinks he has ADD and possibly an Auditory processing disorder.

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If you mean an individually-administered IQ test, such as the WISC or Woodcock Johnson Cognitive, then no, no practice. Just make sure he's well-rested and well-fed in advance, ready to do his best thinking :).

 

(If you are talking about the CogAT, a group screening test for ability but not an official IQ test, then I'd practice filling in a bubble answer sheet. However, I'd very, very strongly advise against this type of test for a student who might have an LD of any type. I'm assuming that this type of test is not what you mean since it sounds like you're seeing a psych or neuropsych of some sort.)

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We are seeing a Psych and they are giving him the CogAT. I have three older daughters who were all gifted, Merit Scholarships, etc.

Maybe they suspect him of being gifted, also. I know he's 'gifted' in getting out of any kind of work! So looks like I better find a practice test for him. Thanks.

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The CogAT is a terrible test for many 2e kids. It was VERY inaccurate for two of my kids, way, way, way, way off. The results were worse than information - they were utter dis-information.

 

To be blunt, I *very seriously* question the professional expertise of a psych using that test with a child who is being evaluated for LDs and giftedness. I don't understand why they wouldn't choose something else. I can't say that strongly enough. I would not pay for that test. Usually that test is for group situations where schools are trying to save money.

 

When you get the results, keep in mind that results not in the gifted range don't mean that the child isn't gifted.

 

(Eta, sorry, I'm a bit over-caffeinated, but I feel very strongly about this.)

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DS's school just did it, as a matter of fact, yesterday. We were told no preparasion needed? However, I did have him practicing fill the bubble. I did poke around the web to show him what kind of question to be expected. He had never done a verbal/figure analogy, nor classified. I think it is ok to do so just so he know what to expect and fill bubble correctly. Other thamn that, nope

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I did have my oldest practice problems similar to one of the tasks on the CogAT because it struck me as such an oddball thing. It was the one where the student has to imagine folding a piece of paper, punching one or more holes, and then predicting what it would look like when unfolded. We practiced with real pieces of paper until she got the hang of it.

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