Gifted Bulletin Board

Welcome to the Gifted Issues Discussion Forum.

We invite you to share your experiences and to post information about advocacy, research and other gifted education issues on this free public discussion forum.
CLICK HERE to Log In. Click here for the Board Rules.

Links


Learn about Davidson Academy Online - for profoundly gifted students living anywhere in the U.S. & Canada.

The Davidson Institute is a national nonprofit dedicated to supporting profoundly gifted students through the following programs:

  • Fellows Scholarship
  • Young Scholars
  • Davidson Academy
  • THINK Summer Institute

  • Subscribe to the Davidson Institute's eNews-Update Newsletter >

    Free Gifted Resources & Guides >

    Who's Online Now
    0 members (), 100 guests, and 26 robots.
    Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
    Newest Members
    streble, DeliciousPizza, prominentdigitiz, parentologyco, Smartlady60
    11,413 Registered Users
    March
    S M T W T F S
    1 2
    3 4 5 6 7 8 9
    10 11 12 13 14 15 16
    17 18 19 20 21 22 23
    24 25 26 27 28 29 30
    31
    Previous Thread
    Next Thread
    Print Thread
    Joined: Oct 2017
    Posts: 17
    Q
    Junior Member
    OP Offline
    Junior Member
    Q
    Joined: Oct 2017
    Posts: 17
    Hi,

    I'm new here. But, I have read so many of the posts here and learnt a lot about gifted kids/ education. smile

    My 2nd grader shows a lot of signs of being gifted, but I do not know for sure. The school district has all 2nd graders take up the Cogat/ITBS to determine eligibility into their gifted program. I have always been of the opinion that you do not need to practice for these tests and that the tests will be able to filter the truly gifted ones from the bright ones. So, I did not have my child practice at all for these tests. However, we do stay in an area where competition is really high. And many parents had their kids practice with books and testing websites for hours every day. This has me second guessing myself and I'm now wondering if I ruined my kid's chances of a true score. Does practice increase scores? Are there cases of bright (but not neccessarily gifted) kids getting into gifted programs? Is the COGAT/ITBS combined score a good indication of being gifted or not?

    Thanks a lot for this forum. All help is appreciated.

    Joined: Apr 2013
    Posts: 5,244
    Likes: 1
    I
    Member
    Offline
    Member
    I
    Joined: Apr 2013
    Posts: 5,244
    Likes: 1
    Welcome! smile

    Originally Posted by quietandcurious
    wondering if I ruined my kid's chances of a true score.
    In a word, no.

    More info: Many placement tests tend to be either IQ/ability tests or Achievement tests. It is ENCOURAGED to practice for achievement tests, such as ACT, SAT, etc. However prior exposure to IQ test material can give an artificially high or inflated score, resulting in a poor "fit" and/or inappropriate placement. These old posts may be of interest:
    - List of tests for ability, aptitude, achievement
    - How much error can there be in test scores?

    Originally Posted by quietandcurious
    are there cases of bright (but not neccessarily gifted) kids getting into gifted programs?
    Yes, unfortunately many programs are designed for high-achieving, not for gifted.

    Many programs teach one or 2 years ahead, and look for students who will be a good fit for that curriculum. This is matching the child to the program.

    Fewer will determine where a child is at in each subject, based on readiness and ability and then custom fit instruction, pacing, and grouping for that child, for each subject area. This is matching the program to the child.

    Do you know what the gifted program at your child's school consists of?

    Originally Posted by quietandcurious
    Is the COGAT/ITBS combined score a good indication of being gifted or not?
    CogAT/ITBS are typically considered screeners. Group-administered tests can provide some indication of giftedness... and/or of which children test well, were prepped, etc. Each test is a snapshot taken on a particular day. Multiple indicators of giftedness provide a more complete picture.

    Joined: May 2009
    Posts: 647
    K
    Kai Offline
    Member
    Offline
    Member
    K
    Joined: May 2009
    Posts: 647
    Yes, practice can increase scores, but it is unethical to give a child either the CogAT or ITBS to practice for another administration.

    That said, I administered the ITBS in our homeschool yearly, and over time my kids got really good at taking that sort of test. I also administered the CogAT on a few occasions, but I timed it so that it would be a year from when they would take it for GT eligibility.


    Moderated by  M-Moderator 

    Link Copied to Clipboard
    Recent Posts
    Testing with accommodations
    by aeh - 03/27/24 01:58 PM
    Quotations that resonate with gifted people
    by indigo - 03/27/24 12:38 PM
    New, and you'd think I'd have a clue...
    by astronomama - 03/24/24 06:01 AM
    For those interested in astronomy, eclipses...
    by indigo - 03/23/24 06:11 PM
    Son 2e, wide discrepancy between CogAT-Terranova
    by astronomama - 03/23/24 07:21 AM
    Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5