Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment TOMAGS

I'm not sure if anyone can help with this, but....I'm trying to compile some of the assorted data we've been given about our dd. However I was given only a raw score for TOMAGS. Does anyone happen to have a conversion scale for the TOMAGS? All the information I have been able to find uses scale or standard scores in discussing interpretation.

Raw score: 40
Age at time of testing: 8 years and 9 or 10 months
Grade: 3rd grade (spring)

Thanks,
Taminy

sorry I can't help but thought I would bump this up there so maybe someone else can. My DS's tester told us that we should do the TOMAGS this summer but we haven't decided yet if we will do that. He's pretty young for it so she wanted to wait until he was five, but he is REALLY into Math so she thought it would be helpful to see where he is at.

Anyhow, I find it odd that when people test they only give parents parts of testing, like raw scores and no explanation. I am not sure who did the testing, but I would really consider hounding them for more information because that is pretty ridiculous. Hope you get some answers. : )

What is the TOMAGs?

Dazed and Confused: TOMAGS is a the name of a test. It stands for Test of Mathematical Ability for Gifted Students". I don't know anything about it, other than that

Shellymos: Thanks for the effort--I appreciate it. My DD was tested through the school district, which is now out for the summer. I was told that the score was within the "gifted range", but I was hoping for a clearer picture than that. The test was actually done a year ago, but I've been trying to put together a more comprehensive picture of my kiddo (for a lot of reasons) so I asked for the actual score to include in my profile. As an aside, my DS was given the test during kindergarten and did not do well, but was then, and is now, achieving quite a bit above grade in many areas. I know that behavior/personality/maturity played a part (at the time would not attempt something new unless certain it would be "right", especially in a formal situation with an unfamiliar adult), but I also know that the tester said that areas he left blank included fractions and time telling. He'd never seen fractions, and hadn't really ever paid attention to time (runs on his own schedule and ignores the clock whenever possible ). I'm curious as to how he would do now, after a year of instruction that was differentiated for him and a slightly more relaxed attitude towards "mistakes".... As I said at the top of the post, I really don't know much about this test, but based on my DS, I suspect that it may require exposure to skills/notation in order for a child to demonstrate depth of reasoning. Perhaps you would want to ask your tester before deciding when your DS should take it.

Then again...what do I know ?

regarding exposure, I do know that our tester said that I should expose him to more of those things before taking the TOMAGS. Not necessarily teach, but just provide more exposure so he can have the knowledge base to figure those things out (things such as fractions and decimals, etc). I still haven't done it, other than getting a couple math workbooks that he looks at from time to time. He somehow got the concept of fractions and all that and decimals so maybe I have been exposing him a bit, who knows. Or its his math websites he likes to go on. Who knows. I do think exposure would certainly help scores for a test like that. I think for us we aren't going to have him take it privately. We will wait to see what the school says. He is clearly several grades ahead in Math and maybe they can do some test through the school instead so we don't have to pay for it.

Here's info from the publishers I got off of Hoagies, but I am sure you have seen this already. Maybe it will help to give you more info.

http://www.prufrock.com/productdetails.cfm?PC=84

Hi- I have a questionregarding subtests. can any one tell me what subtests on the WISC WIAT and Stanford that indicate abstract reasoning and other math related ability and achievement. I used to know, and I do not remember what are the stronger indications for math giftedness and abstract thinking.
Thanks.

The Stanford 10 Mathematics is broken down into Problem Solving and Procedures. Procedures is the plug and chug while Problem Solving is more reasoning.

A Procedures question : 4 x 8 = ?

A Problem Solving question: Hank left his house at 4:30 and walked to the movie theater. What else would you need to know in order to figure out what time he arrived at the movie theater?

Glad to help. Mine are much more recent and convenient to put my hands on.