Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment High ITBS Scores and low CogAT?

My daughter is 5 years 6 months and was screened last month for G/T as a kindergartener. Her school district uses ITBS and CogAT to screen students. She did not make the cut this round (which is okay), but I do disagree and have questions/concerns about her test scores.

ITBS Match - 80th percentile
ITBS Reading - 78th percentile
CogAt - 43rd percentile

Granted, she's in kindergarten and is not a seasoned test-taker, but it strikes me as a bit odd that her ITBS scores were 78 and 80, but her CogAt was only 43rd percentile. Does this sound off to anyone else?

I questioned the specialist at her school and was told that it is normal to have a variance in scores...really? That large of variance? How could she have above average math and reading skills, but below average reasoning ability? Something just sounds off to me. Also, it makes me wonder if she bombed one part of the CogAt and it drug her composite down and if no one at her school is savvy enough to catch this?

Also, my daughter was a preemie and is the youngest person in the entire kindergarten. Could this have impacted the norming?

Just a little bit about my background, I have a PhD in Educational Psychology and my M.S. was focused on gifted education. However, I haven't been practicing and feel like I'm out of practice re: testing/screening. I do, however, feel that my daughter is G/T and am concerned that her needs aren't being met academically. I fully realize most parents think their child is 'brilliant' but I think I'm fairly objective about it. Additionally, I have teachers and former professors who know my daughter well and comment on her G/T charactertistics, so it's not just me.

The other thing you have to keep in mind is that the ITBS is achievement test, which means it's based on school skills that the child has already learned. The COgAT is an abilities test, which means it's more about HOW they learn, and more abstract than an achievement test. Another thing to keep in mind is that the test at this level is read to them. Depending on how the tester reads the questions etc. can change the outcome. It's very early to say whether or not the test is valid. She's not seasoned at testing and some kids never will be. Doesn't mean their skills aren't there.

Forgot to ask if she was given the K level. Our school doesn't do these until 1st grade, but I am wondering if since it's for a GT program, they tested out of level. That could also affect the results.

Thank you for the replies!

I am meeting with the enrichment specialist on Wednesday to review the testing information. Hopefully, that will shed some light on the variance.