Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment KBIT / WISC IV Correlation? RIAS Results - Update

Sometimes gifted kids do take longer than typical kids on assessments, but our school psych rarely gave a WISC that took longer than about an hour. On the other hand, I usually took at least two hours on the WIAT-II.

The kids usually kind of enjoy it because they get a better mix of too easy/too difficult/just right questions and much more one-on-one attention than they are used to getting in school.

You might want to find out if the school will accept private testing without their own testing - our school was willing to look at our private eval but still insisted on doing their own eval. I think before making a decision it's worth asking the school pscyhologist which IQ test she administers, and also verifying which tests are required and accepted with the gifted program coordinator (or whoever would be involved and know the answer). If you do have testing through the school they probably won't offer up the subtest scores etc, but you can absolutely request them and have to give them to you. What the school most likely won't give you is an in-depth analysis of what any observed scatter means, and the school psychologist will probably not explain what any of the subtests mean, so if you ever find yourself in a team meeting at school and want to emphasize a need based on a specific subtest score, you need to know for yourself how the subtest works and what the subtest results mean in the overall picture for your child.

You'll most likely get a much more thorough report and understanding of your child's scores from a private evaluator.

polarbear

Thanks for the tip Beckee- One hour is much less daunting than three!

Thanks for your advice polarbear. It sounds like keeping the ball rolling with the school psychologist is a good idea right now, then maybe schedule outside testing if needed. The reason I was thinking one or the other was because I've heard you can only test with the same instrument/test once per year. Did your private tester use a different test than the school? How much time was there in between tests? I will try to find out what test the school uses and let her know ahead of time I'd like a copy of the results if possible. They usually don't let parents know when they test-they simply pull the student out of class when the child gets to the top of their list. Thanks again for your replies- this has been a tough road to navigate and it is so nice to get input from others who have been through this!

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Purpleviolin thanks for sharing your scores- That is in line with what the original screener told us. How were your DS7's processing/memory scores? If we do decide to pursue the WISC IV, I'm a little worried that my DS9 might have issues with speed seeing as how he ran out of time on the CoGat.
Thanks again for your replies! [/quote]

Sorry I have not been coming here recently. DS7 Has good memory score but much lower processing speed (109 Maybe), which made his GAI 157.

My dd took the KBIT-2 and WISC IV when she was 6. Her KBIT composite score was 131, and her WISC FSIQ score was 138 (140 with extended measures) and her GAI was 142 (or 146 with extended measures). It is really hard to predict from one test to another it seems.

Purpleviolin-thanks for the input!

Nutmeg-thanks for sharing your scores! It really does vary from test to test.

Hoping that the KBIT was an underestimate rather than overestimate.

He'll be testing with the school psychologist in the coming weeks; not sure which instrument, but hoping it goes well.

Thanks again for your replies!

I just found out that the school psychologist will give my ds9 the RIAS.
I am unfamiliar with this test; does anyone have any experience/ input on this particular test?

The RIAS is a favorite for schools, because it can be given in just 20 minutes or so. It only has four subtests, and they basically keep giving the kids questions until they hit some predetermined discontinue threshold.

It can lead to underestimation if the kid hits the discontinue threshold early, because they can be pretty low... like two consecutive incorrect answers.

Thanks for the info Dude : ) The school Psychologist tested him yesterday, so I am guessing I will get results in the next week or so. I'm a little nervous to get the results; hoping for the best-well, mainly hoping for consistency with his original screener-I'm tired of trying to solve mysteries when scores don't seem to add up!
Thanks again for your reply!

DD was tested with the RIAS and her results were a bit odd--96th-99th% on 3 subtests and 50th or so on the 4th. I do wonder what the deal was there but the scores were good enough to get her into the GT school she attends. I would have preferred a longer test, but it seems the RIAS is a decent instrument, anyway.