Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment KBIT and RIAS scores very different...what now?

Edited some parts of post out of an abundance of caution for privacy, now that I've received responses and been able to think through things

A student's scores on the KBIT-2

Scores removed

Same student's scores on the RIAS

Scores removed

The tester told the parent (me ) that usually, RIAS composite scores are about 8 points lower than KBIT-2 scores; this child's were 17 points lower.

The tester did say the disparity between verbal & nonverbal (on the RIAS) is statistically significant.

If I understand correctly, the KBIT is untimed, the verbal sections on the RIAS are untimed, and the nonverbal sections on the RIAS are timed.

Thoughts? Next steps, if any?

I think my options are as follows:

1. Leave it alone. This is her score, the end.
2. Ask this tester to administer a different test. (The tester said this was a possibility.)
3. Pursue private testing with a different test.


Thanks in advance for helping me process this.

The KBIT-2 is considered a screener, rather than a comprehensive instrument. There are differences of opinion in the professional community regarding how comprehensive the RIAS-2 is. (I assume this was a RIAS-2, and not the now-outdated RIAS.) Requesting a more complete assessment would not be unwarranted.

FWIW, there is some research suggesting that the RIAS nonverbal composite, in particular, diverges somewhat from some of the other standard instruments, with not particularly strong loading onto either general intelligence or nonverbal factors. Speed (if this is the RIAS-2) is probably not the main issue, as some attempt was made in the revision to reduce the impact of speed. It would not be shocking if a WISC-V came up with stronger Fluid Reasoning scores than the RIAS, given the student's KBIT-2 scores.

Thank you!

I did not see anything with the name of the test on it, so all I have is that I was told it was the RIAS. I assume it probably is the most updated version.

I mentioned the WISC to the tester (because I'd read that the GAI was a good option to use for students with processing speed issues). She said that since I had looked up info about that test she wouldn't be able to administer it, because "sometimes parents will try to prep their kids for the test." I clarified that the info I've looked up is about score reports and how they can be useful, not about what the test items are like. She insisted that my knowing ANYTHING about the test meant she wouldn't use it for my child. Is this standard practice? It seems like a parent should be able to educate herself on the options available for testing, to know what's out there and what kind of info the different options can provide.

Sorry for the tangent. Anyway, if I want the WISC, I will need to pay for it privately. If I go through the schools (and therefore this tester), I apparently shouldn't request a particular test and won't know what she'll choose.

What you said about the RIAS nonverbal is interesting and sheds a bit of light on things. I appreciate it!

Thank you, aeh. I agree with you completely. The more I've mulled it over, the more I don't understand where the tester was coming from with that comment. It seems like parents being informed would be a good thing - they can discuss the pros and cons with the tester before selecting an instrument, they can understand what the results will and won't tell them, etc.

I am not one to look for offense, but I can't help wondering whether the tester just doesn't trust homeschoolers. Ugh.

We have a university's psychology clinic that we could use for the testing - not free, but not completely unaffordable either. Rather than making waves with the school/district, I may go that route.

That is not unheard of. Some homeschoolers (and others, truthfully) find that they obtain an evaluation that is more tailored to the information important to the family when they go outside. I've always tried to make my evals meaningful for the individual family and student, not only with reference to school, but to life as well, regardless of who writes my checks, but I know not every evaluator has the same perspective or means.

I will add, though, that there is rarely a reason to doubt the hard numbers obtained by any eval. Interpretation, of course, is another matter.