Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Bombed placement test.

I posted last week regarding my dd 10 who has been approved to accelerate to 6th grade in the fall (skipping 5th). They gave her two math tests last week that they give to all incoming 6th graders. One is a standard math test to place you in either 6th standard grade math or advanced math (the equivalent of 7th grade). The second test they gave her was the 6th grade gifted test to see if she qualifies for 6th grade gifted math (equivalent of 8th grade).

Needless to say she bombed both tests. She scored a 74% on the first and only got 1 out of 26 word problems correct on the second. Both of these tests were of math she has likely never done, but still I was disappointed.

According to her MAP math, she outscores 8th graders on average and has a 99.9 percentile. She got a 75th percentile on the ACT explore in math, which I thought was pretty good all things considered. She currently takes gifted 4th grade math which is equivalent to 5th and half of 6th grade math, and has an A. She also has high WISC-IV scores:
Verbal Comprehension Index 151 >99.9%
Perceptual Reasoning Index 141 99.7%
Working Memory Index 110 75%
Processing Speed 126 96%
Full Scale IQ 144 99.8%

Global Ability Index 156 >99.9

According to the middle school handbook, you have to score into at least 6th grade advanced math in order to get into the gifted Science, Social Studies and English programs (why English I don't know, but since she is ALREADY in the gifted English program at the middle school and getting an A, I'm hoping they will let her continue with it!). She has a 100th percentile in English on the ACT Explore and a 96th percentile in Science on the ACT Explore.

I'm frustrated, scared and worried. The middle school coordinator told me they are discussing the math placement scores, meeting with her current math teacher, the principal and the scheduling person and will get back to me shortly.


I don't understand how a child can score so very high on all these standard tests and have so little working knowledge of the subject in actuality. The tester wrote:

--Struggled with basic computation (when subtracting, she has issues with borrowing and when adding, she had issues carrying numbers. When multiplying 2x2 digits she forgot to put a zero in as a place holder when multiplying the second number).
--Also seemed a little frustrated.
--Did well on problem solving, understands fractions well, read graphs accurately


My husband insists that had she been exposed to the math ahead of time instead of being tested cold, she likely would have done better. He also said we should offer to teach her at home or externally to get her up to their "advanced math" standards. It's all such a disconnect. And I doubt the school will expect "we'll catch her up."

I don't care if she gets into gifted math, she excels in science and social studies and reading/literature. I feel like math is hampering us. She technically meets all their other criteria except for the Math.

I don't want to skip to 6th grade if she is going to be behind where she would have been if she STAYED in 5th grade. If they are going to plop her into non gifted 6th grade based on the math score alone, I'd rather she stay in 5th grade next fall, take the gifted math that will expose her to the math she needs on the stupid placement test, and get into all the gifted programs.