Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Cogat Question

Hello,

I posted a while back and am hoping for some follow up on Cogat scores.

Aah!! Excellent point Dottie! I feel much better now.

Pretty unethical! I confess, I'd be tempted to rat them out for it. I, too, hate that kind of cheating!

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I think this is the one they used. It just sort of throws the whole thing into question. You would like to believe that the tests are an objective measure but clearly they can be gamed like anything else. I don't really understand the desire to set your kid up for a challenging academic program without knowing if they'll be able to handle it or be forever frustrated.

Unfortunately, this is one of the reasons we are met with skepticism when we advocate for our children that really do have extreme learning needs.

Would the practice (in some instances) be useful for kids with test anxiety?

That's a tough one. I had already bought DS Building Thinking Skills before I had him tested w/ the WISCIV. He finds that type of thing fun. I didn't have him do it before the test though b/c I felt like it was cheating. The Critical Thinking Co even states in his literature that it raises scores on SBV, WISCIV, etc. I understand that is a bit different from using a product which is geared specifically to one test but perhaps not by much?

For some reason I can't see what the original question was on this thread. I am curious what sorts of things are on the Cogat. Our school also does something called a Naglieri test. Are these both more tests of achievement? Ds is ok on the achievement side, but also a big divergent thinker.
(un?)related note -
This year is the first where he's sort of getting 'put what the teacher wants to see' instead of the strictly correct answer (wrong to the teacher ) - not what I would call ideal, but at least he is able to recognize that he is making that decision in his head. Do these tests tend toward having kids make these sorts of decisions?
I noticed on the scat prep tests on the jhu-cty site that several analogy questions seemed to fall in the lesser-of-two-wrongs category.

Sorry yes I deleted. I was afraid I was revealing more info than I should.

When DD took the CogAt, the only "prepping" I did was ask her to read slowly and take her time. I told her the first questions would be so easy, she would be tempted to fly through the test, but that's just what the sneaky test makers were betting on.
If she didn't read carefully it would be very easy to choose an incorrect answer without realizing it.

I told her it wasn't the goal to be the first one done, it was the goal to get as many questions right as she could.

She did very well on the CogAt, personally though, I dislike this test being used as entrance to gifted programs. I think it rewards perfectionism. I would hope the districts use additional measures in coordination with tests like CogAt and Naglieri. Although I guess it's much better than solely relying on teacher's subjective assessments.