Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment scores

So, I got my DD7 tested and she scored a FSQ 125. The psychologist said that I should test again in 1 year to see if she makes it to FSQ 130 (to receive gifted services).

Thoughts?

Her highest score was working memory.

Did she have any scatter? Did he offer a reason why he thinks her score would go up by at least 5 points in a year?

scatter was 5. From my understanding she thought that the 5 points were still within the margin of error.

Was she given the WISC IV? From what I've read the children testing as gifted (130) on the WISC III are now testing on the WISC IV 125. I know the WISC IV will soon be outdated, but a five point difference is considerable and if more schools actually read the information that's available on the WISC, then maybe they'd lower the bar to 125.

BTW, it's wonderful she has a high working memory!

Thanks KADmom. Yes, she used the WISC-IV. The WISC-V is supposed to come out in the Fall.... so who knows what's going to happen..
Yes, 5 points is a lot. I am confused because I always thought that she was smarter than my other one and it turns out he is smarter... I guess the working memory was tricking me.

oh... KadMom... I have been thinking about what you wrote regarding WISC-III. I am praying that WISC V assesses my child higher.... if I decide to test her again in the future.

bina, there are many different kinds of "smart". I have an EG ds who does not appear "quick" at anything and who doesn't look obviously intellectually gifted until you take the time to listen to his ideas. I also have a dd who doesnt test as highly gifted but who has an extremely high working memory and processing speed and she's the child that everyone else in the whole right away thinks is EG - and she's the child who more naturally performs exceptionally well at school.

While its possible that your dd's IQ score may have been underestimated, if you eventually find out it wasn't, don't *not* advocate for challenge for her or look at two children as one more "gifted" than the other -keep them both challenged and nurture their individual strengths. Parents here incur school district also sometimes are able to successfully advocate for entry into gifted programs based on achievement scores. I've seen both the pros and cons of that - it means that there are kids in class with my ds share nowhere near as high-level on eir thinking processes, but it also means kids like my high-achieving dd have opportunities to be more appropriately challenged in school than they would be otherwise. Of all three of my children, it's my closer to average range IQ kid who has the most motivati to d well in schoo and who is in fact extremely successful in school, so don't be discouraged by a not-quite-sky-high IQ result. I beleive all three of my children, each with differing abilities, will be successful and happy as adults

polarbear

If your concern is that you are hoping she will qualify for a school gifted program, they may use their own test and may not even accept outside testing. You may want to ask. If they use a different test, you may not be affected by the new WISC-V.

Did the psychologist think your child may not have done her best for some reason, or did she just suggest retesting because of the margin if error.

I agree, though, that there is a lot more to working out what a child needs than just an IQ test, and gifted services may or may not be helpful depending on the child and on what the school offers. My daughter used to be in a school gifted program and it really didn't offer much. We moved her to another school that doesn't have a gifted program but that is more flexible.

My DS didn't test in the gifted range, although we'll probably get him retested at some point because his speech and language issues may have affected his scores. Regardless, he spends part of the time in first grade (he is in kindergarten) and his teacher says how academically advanced he is. So maybe he needs to be retested, but it could also be that his particular strengths show in the classroom while the IQ test includes areas of weakness as well. He is exceptionally strong (gifted range) in fluid reasoning and perceptual reasoning. Some programs will let kids qualify based on subscores, not just FSIQ. Regardless, though, individual kids have strengths and weaknesses at may not be represented in a single score.

My daughter has always scored very highly on IQ tests, but my son has had a much better school experience and is much happier in school (doing very well academically despite his lower test scores).

there seems to be a theme that those who don't score as high are more well adjusted. My DD is happier at school than my DS.
Polar Bear and AP221 you both bring up good points. I get stuck on the IQ score sometimes. In the end, I just want both my kids to be happy and well ajusted.
the psychologist seemed to think it was the margin of error. But later I realized that my DD had only had a glass of milk for breakfast that day... (she usually eats something more). I may be overthinking it... but when we had our break in the middle of the test she was super hungry...so I wonder if that affected her. She also told me she was not feeling well that day (before the test & before we knew the results). So, of course now I am looking at that and wondering...

I'd ask the school what they use. I can understand the concern about whether being hungry and tired affects scores. My daughter was up all night before one test and had a high fever for another!

Longer tests like the WISC are considered the best and give you a fuller picture of strengths and weaknesses, but other tests (like the KBIT and RIAS) are shorter and may be less expensive. You could always do a shorter test and then a longer one later if needed. My DD took the RIAS and did so well that we did a full WISC-IV later. Get a full test if you can, but a shorter test may be less expensive if that is a concern. Some people do get big differences in scores (I've seen complaints about group tests in particular), but my daughter's scores were very similar on the KBIT-2, RIAS, and WISC-IV.