Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment WISC IV,what would FSIQ be?

Update to my french questions. Got our results today. You were right,hey used multiple tests in addition to Wisc.

WISC IV
Verbal comprehension: 126
Similarities 14 scaled
Vocabulary 15 scaled
Information 14 scaled

Perceptual reasoning: 128
Block 14 scaled
Picture concepts 14 scaled
Matrix reasoning 15 scaled

Working Memory: 105
Digit span 11 scaled
Letter number sequencing 11 scaled

Processing speed: 103
Coding 9 scaled
Symbol search 12 scaled

GAI:130
(The working memory and processing speed shock me)

Kaufman (K-TEA-II)
Reading:
Letter and word recognition 133 99th per.
Reading comprehension. 125 95th percentile

Spelling:
Spelling 135 99th percentile

Math
Math concepts and applications 124 95th percentile
Math computation 109 73rd percentile (she mentioned this was low only because he had may concepts he hasn't been taught.

Grav oral reading tests(GORT-4)
Oral reading rate. 16 98th percentile
Oral reading accuracy 16 98th percentile
Fluency score 18 >99th percentile
Comprehension score 13 84th percentile
Oral reading quotient 133 99th percentile

Developmental test of visual motor integration
113 (avg is 90-109)

Test of written language (TOWL 3)
Contextual conventions 14
Contextual language 14
Story construction 14
Writing quotient 126 (avg is 90-110)

OK so the short explanation is she is giving him back the designation of gifted and his IEP so our school is required to do that. I'm curious about some of the lower scores though especially memory and processing since it doesn't match what we have seen in school and home. Thoughts?


***Edited to add, he did have one test in the verbal comprehension section where the psych said he seemed not to understand what she was looking for (he was trying to make the answer more complicated than it needed to be)and he wound up with a score that put him at 8 i think which was just the bottom of average so she threw that one out and did the subtest for information instead which wound up being much more in line with his other marks. Does anyone know what his FSIQ would have been? I think it was 127 but i can't remember because the psych emphasized using the GAI because of the lower working memory and processing speeds.

Questions about lower working memory and processing speed are one of the most frequent types of posts here. Your child's are relatively lower, but still normal, and it's not uncommon for gifted children to have relatively lower WM and PS scores, sometimes much lower in proportion than yours. If there's no other reason for concern, I personally wouldn't be concerned.

I think my confusion around those is because he has an amazing memory ( bordering on photographic) and I'm wondering if the processing speed score is relating to him rechecking his work. ( she did say he did that during the test. )

Could be. Perfectionism is not unknown among the gifted.

Photographic memory is long-term memory; working memory is what you have available for quick access while you're solving a problem. Our ds also has an amazing photographic-type memory and had a dip in working memory on his first WISC, and our neurospych told us that WM is sort of like an "on/off" type of thing - either you have enough or you don't. Unless you see a reason to wonder about WM in your ds' daily life or his schoolwork, I wouldn't worry about the score - I think that WM (and Processing Speed) lower than VIQ and PRI on the WISC happens quite frequently.

Same goes for processing speed - if he doesn't seem to be having any challenges at school I wouldn't think twice about it, other than to be sure the school uses GAI instead of FSIQ for any type of gifted program screening.

Best wishes,

polarbear

Updated with FSIQ question

This is a guess as to the FSIQ b/c I don't have access to the scoring charts, but I am sure that the FSIQ would be below 127. My guess, using the substituted VCI test which was more in line with the other VCI subtests than the 8 would be that his FSIQ would be around 115-119. I say this b/c I have one child with very similar PSI and WMI scores whose FSIQ came out at 130. In order for the FSIQ to be that high with average PSI and WMI scores, her VCI and PRI were significantly higher (140ish) and the GAI was in the upper 140s.

I'd agree, though, that the GAI is a better estimate when you see those types of discrepancies. Neither of my kiddos has ever been given optional substitution tests when they had subtests that were way out of line with the other sections of the index, though, so it is nice that at least the psych knew to do that.

I think technically she considered his one test "spoiled "which is why she subbed it. I'll have to call her tomorrow and ask her what the FSIQ was i guess. Just out of morbid curiosity

I wish that I knew enough when my oldest was tested to ask about spoiled tests and optional tests. At the time, I just took her one majorly low PRI score at face value even though the tester told us that dd had "handed the blocks back" and stated that she could not do that section at all. I may be a bit off on the FSIQ, perhaps it is a tad higher, but it probably isn't the best estimation for him anyway given the variance in the scores.