Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment gifted with average IQ?

The test took only an hour if that, is this any indication of how it was administered? It seemed rather quick to me.

My son's first test was administered in a hour- the tester was horrible and had never tested a child under 12. We cheaped out and tried to do it at the local university with their students. The tester said in her report that he would probably need serious help in class to succeed, might not be mainstreamed all day and that he was far below average in a few areas. We honestly thought she had some other kid in her office- none of it jived with our son.

Fast forward 6 months, new tester used to testing kids under 8 and specifically worked with HG kids. Major difference, this tester laughed hysterically at the previous tester's recommendations, gave us a confirmed HG IQ and said that the other tester was a moron :-)

It all depends on the tester, the test, the day and the child.

If you went through a university, I hope you contact the program director. Not in a "oh bad people you" but maybe they just need to decline serving young kids. What if your child belonged to different parents who just accepted... and then their looking glass becomes this discolored portrait.

Thanks for your reply. The guy who administered our test was quite young, in his early 20's, and going to grad school. He works for a non-profit that helps with counseling needs for the local schools. I doubt he has had much experience administering IQ tests. He said that my son should be adequately challenged since his IQ was only average. I kind of feel like this IQ test really missed something if that is the conclusion. My son in no way struggles with the academics in class. The challenge we face is keeping him interested instead of being bored. He already started to "cut" class by saying he has to go to the bathroom (which is outside of the classroom). The teacher came up to me and said I should check with his pediatrician that he might have a bladder infection because he was using the bathroom so much. When I asked him he said he was just going to get a drink of water and when I mentioned that he was going to miss what the teacher was saying he replied that I shouldn't worry because he easily catches up. I've tried to talk to the teacher about our issues, but I just can't seem to make a connection with her. And she talks to me like I'm 5! I am waiting to see how 1st grade goes. Hopefully, we'll have a better teacher and a more challenging environment.

We did speak with the program director, who refunded our money, apologized and said she really didn't understand what had happened. In theory, they are all trained to test any child. We just had bad luck and a kid who was paralyzed by the one-way mirror. The tester stupidly told him "oh there are people back there watching you."

Oh my goodness CAMom! Hopefully that young tester learned from his/her clearly idiotic way of handling things. And gomomgo, it really does sound like you had a bad situation and false information. Bravo to you for just not accepting it and asking questions. There are testers that specialize in gifted kids. I hope you find one in your area.

See, herein lies the problem with all of these tests. The testers should be sure to reiterate to parents and schools that these tests are limited. They are not the full picture and whether they are truly measuring intelligence is questionable to say the least. Unfortunately, the rub is that testers, by default, really believe in these tests so they're the last people that are going to blather on about the limitations. Who loses? The kids. Sad Sad Sad.

That's what my son's tester said. (qualified, private, "gifted specialist") Yet, every day, DS6 comes home from his public, affluent school begging for a grade acceleration so that he can do harder work. Everything is repetition based and he just doesn't seem to need repetition to assimilate new concepts so he's banging his head against the wall while he waits for new information. I've lost so much faith in the IQ tests and process for identification of kids who need a greater challenge.

This is what I'm afraid will happen to us in 1st grade especially if we get another teacher like we've had this year. Or maybe it's just the way public school is in general? I never thought I'd consider anything but public school, but this first year is really making me think about alternative possibilities.

Thanks to everyone for sharing all your experiences. It is nice to know that I'm not alone. I also never realized how limited and inaccurate these tests could be. Right now my plan is to wait and see how first grade goes.