Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Qualified but not really...

Hello! My DS6 tested for a GT public school in our area. We got the letter today stating he "qualified to attend the school based on evaluation of data that included ability testing and achievement measures." So, I was really happy until I looked at his test scores...he took the WASI and scored 136 verbal and 111 performance. He also took the Kaufman achievement test and scored 77 percentile in reading comprehension and 66 percentile in math concepts/applications. They base their admission on a matrix score and you have to achieve an 8 or higher to qualify. Based on these scores, he got 5 points for WASI and 1 point for Kaufman (so technically, he didn't qualify with a 6). I've heard they let kids in sometimes if they don't quite make the cut but I'm worried he'd really struggle with math if he went there. OTOH, I'm worried he wouldn't get the right amount of acceleration for his verbal skills if we put him in a "normal" school. The GT school has a great art and music program (which my DS would love) but I don't know if that's enough of a reason to have him possibly struggle. My DH says its a great school and if we have to, we can get him a tutor for math but I just don't know...any opinions? Thanks!

Could you give it a whirl and re-enroll him back in his original school if it doesn't work out?

Yeah, that's always a possibility...he doesn't always handle change well but he does make friends really easy so it might be ok if we needed to do that. I'd worry about his self esteem, though, as he's a pretty sensitive kid and has a tendency towards perfectionism. Any opinion on if he would have a hard time with those scores? The GT school is basically a year ahead of the regular public school.

If it's a year ahead, I would definitely go for it! I wouldn't think a one year acceleration would be major problem, even for a moderately gifted kid. In fact, it might just be a great fit. Especially considering the other components you know he will enjoy. Good luck!

Thanks for the replies! I think I am going to try it...I talked to his K teacher today and she really thinks it would be a good fit for him.

I do have a couple questions about the test results though...there's a big difference between his verbal and performance (136-111). Does that mean anything? Also, could that lower performance score explain some of his behaviors, like when he's telling a story, it takes him forever! Its like he's always getting distracted or something. I'm always saying to him "look at me and concentrate." There are other things too but basically, he's just slow to respond to a lot of what I tell him to do, always "forgetting" what I told him to do. Is he just a slow thinker so it takes him a while to do things or is that just me not enforcing the "do what you're told the first time" rule we have in our house? Thanks!