Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Cogat

Our school uses the Cogat to identify students for the g&t program. My child scored in the 99th percentile for verbal and non verbal with a composite score of 140. Our school does not offer the quantitative subtest. For those who have similar scores and have also had IQ tests, did your scores correlate to a high level of giftedness or can she score well on Cogat and still have average IQ and not be gifted. I have always believed her to be gifted, but I also doubt my beliefs.

http://giftedissues.davidsongifted.org/BB/ubbthreads.php/topics/231877/CogAT_IQ_correlation.html

http://giftedissues.davidsongifted....3686/Re_Should_I_test_IQ.html#Post233686

These past threads may be what you're looking for.

I guess it was mostly correlated, but we also saw some unusual (wide spread) of results on WISC. On COGAT, dd got high 140s (very high on quantitative) and on WISC V, she saw scores from 120 - 150 (very high on verbal). So the scores were all over the board. But overall, the teachers / educators determined that she was gifted and at the higher end of giftedness.

Those other threads will offer a range of perspective -- it seems a bit hit or miss for some, being a group test and geared toward academic success ability, rather than individually gauging intellectual ability. Some GT kids do poorly on the CogAT in part due to time or overthinking. One of my DC actually scored very high on the CogAT, yet lower on the WISC V (a whole SD less in verbal, though it was top in both), yet still in the gifted range. But the scores did correlate in that the quantitative on the CogAT was the lowest, and the PSI and WMI were lowest -- didn't have time to attempt all the problems. The higher verbal ability still showed in both.

So the answer I'd give is, yeah, you can test well and score high on the CogAT, yet possibly have an IQ that's -1/+1 SD (or more, I'm guessing), so really it's not the end-all answer. But if it gets you what you need in school, then I suppose that's the most affordable way to get the extension. If you feel like you need more information, then you can get the IQ and achievement testing done.

Edit to add: What's interesting to me is that for this DC, if IQ correlated to the CogAT, would have easily been DYS qualifying based on CogAT; instead the WISC didn't show DYS levels, but then the EXPLORE test was DYS levels. So I feel like the WISC might be a little low, the CogAT maybe a little high, and he tests well academically. In the end, the picture painted has helped DC get more of what was needed out of school.

CogAT is pretty decent for what it is: a quick and dirty group screener. It's reasonably accurate most of the time. BUT - - according to the authors themselves, it was never intended to be used for identifying giftedness by itself. It measures - call it "learned abilities". It's not quite an achievement test, but it's not an ability/ IQ test either. The authors explain that where the errors are mostly found is for:

(1) Kids above the 90th percentile. And the further they get from the norm, the more likely they are to provide correct but not standard answers - which are marked wrong. (In a WISC, the testing is done one-on-one, and the psych can take the time needed to probe for rationale, giving marks for well-justified but unusual/ divergent responses)

(2) Kids who do not come from an enriched early environment (since it mostly measures things that have been learned), and/ or English language and culture (since it is a written test)

(3) 2E kids (again, because it involves reading (after grade 2) and writing, in a (potentially distracting) group setting, without the rapport, and the kinds of interactions and supports that are inherently built-in to a one-on-one oral test.

So if the CogAT results make sense, great. But if your gut and the CogAT don't agree, trust your gut.

DYSDS7 is going to take CogAT in October at school. The CogAT scores will be one of the test scores that the school uses to identify kids for advanced math and reading (gifted) programs, starting in 3rd grade. The others are the two (fall and spring) MAP test scores. I am wondering how that would turn out for my DS7.....