Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment WISC IV Confusion

Thank you to everyone who has participated in this post.

We did sort the VCI and PRI issue out and Dottie was right. The tester added subtest scaled scores incorrectly into these two indices. Meanwhile, we found out that the school does not qualify students purely on FSIQ but rather on the WASI (Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence) test and they have suggested a retest given the issues surrounding our first test.

I understand WASI is akin to the VCI and PRI portions of WISC-IV. That said, I have read some questionable things online about the validity of this abbreviated test, notably that it did not correlate well with the WAIS test and should be cautiously, if at all, administered. Can anyone shed any light on this test?

Thanks for the feedback Dottie. I gather that the district may be breaking with best practices by requesting a retest so soon. Is that so? Maybe we should be thankful rather than suspicious of the districts motives. They have said they would be happy to see our daughter qualify and this may be an indication of how far they are willing to go to give her a chance to meet the qualifying score. Would you agree with this conclusion?

Incidentally, we have submitted a portfolio of other "qualifications" - everything from excellent grades at her gifted private school to her standardized test scores and teacher recommendations. We think there's ample broad-based evidence she can more than thrive in the district's GT program. We hope that her full portfolio, including IQ tests, ultimately carry the day.

It seems a little strange that they would rather consider a screening test like the WASI than her FSIQ on the full WISC, which is presumably more accurate.

Still, if the first tester wasn't experienced with the WISC (which could explain the mis-scoring?) Your DD may do better on the WASI.

We're told that the other candidates for the program all take the WASI. I wish we had known that sooner. BTW, what does "DD" stand for? I keep seeing that but haven't been able to hazard a guess.

DD = dear daughter
DS = dear son
DH = dear husband

etc.

See this sticky for some commonly used acronyms explained:

http://giftedissues.davidsongifted....of_Common_Gifted_Acronyms.html#Post13990