Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment test scores and dates

Any idea on how strict DYS is to adhering to the 2 year rule on IQ and achievement test scores? Also, our psychologist administered WJ III achievement tests but we didn't receive any Broad scores only a few specific scores with an overall Academic Applications score (all listed in %). When I asked for the Broad cluster scores, I was told that since the child was under 5, there were "fluency" issues and the achievement tests that were able to be given were given. Child was 4.5y at time of testing. Any insight into DYS dates policy and WJ III scoring would be appreciated.

That's a tough one. DS5 didn't have a complete WJ III test and the same was true about at least one another 5 year old DYS on this board. They each missed a different subtest. Go figure. They both had more than qualifying Broad Math scores though.

My son missed one writing subtest (writing sample or something like that) which is kind of pity since he could have easily got over 145+ on the writing broad cluster judging by his other scores. He did have Academic Skills, Academy Fluency and Brief Achievement scores, all 3 of them very high.

What kind of subtest did your child get? There is a big difference between 160 on Math Fluency and 160 on Applied Problems. If his scores were extremely high on Applied Problems or on Comprehension then they may not worry too much about the broad cluster.

If I understand it correctly your tests are more than 2 years old. One of them can be older but if both of them are more than 2 years old and the WJ III is missing the necessary scores then I would fully expect them to ask for another achievment test.

I think it's one thing if your child just turned 5 and you couldn't get the rest of the testing due to his/her age and another thing if he/she is old enough to take the full scale test and his/her scores are too old anyway.

LOL Dottie. DS5 could write his name when he was 3.

WOW really? DS was doing that at 2yrs old mentally with no manipulatives.

Thanks for all of the feedback. I think I'll end up retesting on either IQ or achievement but will submit with what I have. BTW - the overall academic applications was >99.9 and scores were in the 140-189 range so even if just writing a name earned 121, it should take a bit more to get to 140. The achievement subs were as follows:
letter-word ID, spelling, applied problems, writing samples, and passage comprehension.
Do you think they'd accept these along with current EOG test scores that are one grade advanced? He goes to a school with curriculum that is normed one grade ahead so in 1st, he took the EOG for 2nd.
Also, if I submit all of this, would they out right reject (he meets qualifying scores in both IQ and achievement although the achievement scores are not clustered), conditionally deny and ask for more tests or conditionally accept and ask for more tests?

Also, is achievement testing based upon what an average child aged xyz knows or is it grade based, that is what an average child in 2nd grade knows? Thanks again for all of your insight.

Passage comprehension. He had just begun reading - approx 2 months, when we had him assessed. He wasn't an early reader, 4.5, but quickly became proficient and moved to a 2nd-3rd grade reading level. Thanks for the welcome! I will probably retest on achievement since he qualifies already on IQ and only 1 needs to be recent. Now that he is almost 7, everything should be more reliable. I was encouraged to apply by 2 other DYS parents of children at his school. Thanks again.

Hi Momx2!

I'm late, but I think if IQ is good, re-test on achievement is what I would do to!

Good luck!

Funny thing Dottie, we had the Reading Fluency subtest but didn't have the writing sample.

Keep in mind that the scores were renormned in 2007. Do you remember the huge drop down in Crystal's son math scores after they used the latest tables? The difference in points was enormous.

Thanks for everyone's feedback. I guess we'll retest the achievements, at a minimum. BTW - he is definitely HG, I am not sure he is PG although raising him has been quite a challenge thus far. I just wish I'd read the reqs for DYS more carefully last year and then nothing would be out of date
Also, do achievement scores vary greatly with age (in other words, testing younger than 5y could result in unreliable scores, so a child could retest much higher, particularly if they weren't reading at time of previous achievement scores and are 5y now and reading)?