Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment How does ADHD affect testing?

A question for a friend. Her child (6) has not been diagnosed with ADHD but it seems pretty obvious he is. How would this affect testing. What are your experiences. Seems he pretty much bombed the testing. Could this be the reason?

Which type of testing are you asking about? School / standardized testing, or neuropsych/educational eval testing?

polarbear

It was a neuropsych/educational eval testing through the school. Not sure the exact test they used.

They used the test OLSAT 8 Level B.

Overall score was 26th percentile. Could a bad day or ADHD affect the scores so much that the child could still be in the gifted range?

Thanks!

Medication, behavior therapy, and growth over time can radically change scores for a child with ADHD. The particulars of the scores (subtests) already acquired may be revealing of discrepancies.

If the parent feels these scores are inaccurate or incomplete, were I in their shoes I'd likely seek further testing to tease out details, in order to get a real sense of the child's functioning. From what you've said, I'd likely rely on a private tester for more information, rather than a school tester.

My aim in testing further would not be to sift for "gifted" scores, but to get a sense of what the strengths and challenges are at this moment in time, so I'd know what to work with and how.

Thanks DeeDee. Seems in class he is in the 80th percentile for reading and 55th percentile for math. The reason for testing was because of complaints from the teacher about the child's behavior. The parent and teacher is suspecting the child to be gifted and that might have something to do with the way he acts in class.

Seems he was impulsive in answering the questions of the test and didn't think it through.

Acting out can be due to many, many causes. I'd put giftedness on that list, but it's not in my top 10. IMO the family should seek a thorough neuropsych workup, including Conner's and ADOS. A functional behavior analysis at school would also not be a bad idea.

Great advise DeeDee. She is moving forward with your suggestions.
Do you know how it works with insurance for these types of tests?
If she doesn't have a mental component in her insurance is there a way to get this to fall in the medical?

Some insurance will cover if there's a suspected disability (ASD, ADHD). Some counties also have agencies that will cover the evaluation for disabilities. A reputable neuropsych's office will be able to tell you how to get it covered if possible.