I don't think the CogAT is a good or bad test. It's a screening tool to help decide what kids would be a good fit for a gifted program. Our school district uses the OLSAT, which is probably sort of similar.
The advantage to the CogAT/OLSAT, etc. is that they are tests that can be given cheaply and quickly to large groups of kids. That is why they are used. I think an IQ test (WISC, etc) would be the best way to identify "gifted" kids since it also looks at different types of intelligence- the ability to identify geometric patterns, being able to memorize numbers quickly, etc.
IQ tests are very expensive and can only be given one on one, so obviously, you can't screen 300 or more kids with that.
I wouldn't necessarily poo-poo the CoGAT. There probably is some strong correlations between doing well on it and the WISC, etc. Our district will also accept scores on the WISC, which makes sense to me.
Last edited by jack'smom; 06/14/11 09:57 AM.
