Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Don't wait to get your gifted child tested!

Accurate identification of giftedness is necessary to determine what specific academic services your child needs. It also provides documentation when advocacy is warranted. While states and districts have varying requirements for gifted identification (see NAGC for more), many districts circumvent these requirements by creating roadblocks and delays. Yet, rather than request testing when they suspect their child is gifted, some parents just wait for the school to decide if testing is indicated. And some refuse to grant approval for any testing at all. 

Why do some parents refuse testing for their child?

Insufficient information. Most parents know their own child, but don’t have a classroom full of children against which they can compare abilities. While they may suspect that their child is gifted, they may not feel justified advocating for testing. “Who are we to think our child is so smart?”

Parents may trust the school’s judgment when determining whether their child should be tested. Yet, in many schools, gifted children may be overlooked, and teachers and administration often convince parents that their child is already receiving appropriate services. There is also a common misconception that bright children have been prepped before they start school, and their strengths will dissipate over time. As a result, many schools arbitrarily delay gifted evaluations until students are well beyond third or fourth grade, even though testing children between the ages of five and eight is considered ideal. 

Apathy. Some parents believe that the “gifted program” in their district is a waste of time. Maybe it just involves extra homework. Perhaps it is only an hour pull-out a week. Some may have tried to advocate in the past and met with such resistance that they gave up. Others may feel it is not worth the time and effort, and make the decision to enrich their child’s education on their own. In these situations, parents have been led to believe they have little recourse to change the system, and cannot request additional services for their child. 

Concerns about consequences.  Parents worry about what they might find out from the evaluation. “Could our child also have a learning disability? What if he or she is not as bright as we thought? How will we explain to our child that he or she is gifted?” These concerns sometimes deter parents from requesting an evaluation, since they have little guidance about how they will cope with these possible outcomes. 

Most schools fail to help parents understand the benefits of testing, how it can aid them with developing a plan geared toward appropriate academic instruction, and how they can assist the parent and child with their reactions to the test results. And when school staff are either misinformed or philosophically opposed to gifted identification, they may persuade parents to refuse an evaluation. It may be suggested, for example, that their child could be traumatized if he or she “fails” the testing, or might be ostracized by peers for being different if identified as gifted.

Should parents decline testing because of these concerns?

While these concerns may be reasonable to consider at first, the benefits of testing usually outweigh any initial doubts. Here are some reasons for moving ahead with testing:

1.  An evaluation will provide you and the school with a wealth of information about your child’s strengths, weaknesses and academic needs. An IQ test offers more than just a number; your child’s abilities are assessed in a range of areas that will help you and your school with academic planning. (For a helpful description of IQ testing, see the NAGC overview on testing.) The pattern of your child’s performance also provides important information about how he or she approaches new and challenging situations. Does he plan carefully and take his time? Does she rush or become frustrated if challenged? The pattern of responses is particularly important when evaluating gifted children, because many demonstrate large differences in scores between subtests. (For a great discussion of this, see Linda Silverman’s article.) A skilled psychologist can help you understand the reasons for any discrepancies and how to integrate this information into a meaningful academic plan.

 2.  Your child cannot “fail” the test. It is a measure of relative strengths and weaknesses based on age-based norms. Despite common misconceptions, you cannot “hothouse” your child to do well on these tests; studying and preparation are not required. IQ testing occurs in a one-to-one situation that asks a child to try out new skills, and stops each section of the test before it becomes too stressful. The psychologist typically tries to put the child at ease, and many children enjoy the individual attention they receive.

If your child’s overall IQ score does not meet criteria for gifted services, you can still request enrichment for your child in those areas of strength identified by the evaluation. If the score was close to the cut-off, typically an IQ score of 130, you may want to see if your child could be reevaluated the following year, especially if the psychologist noted any circumstances that might have contributed to an artificially lower score. For example, some gifted children are not identified because of fine motor skill weaknesses, or a tendency to ponder over the correct response (decreasing their score during timed tests), which can deflate their overall score. Common situations such as insufficient sleep the night before, hunger, or frustration over missing recess can influence test performance. Underidentification also occurs when children come from underprivileged or culturally different backgrounds, or where English is spoken as a second language. 

3.  It is worth getting an evaluation, even if the “gifted program” in your school district is less than adequate. Some parents doubt the benefits of the “gifted program” in the school and think it is not worth the effort. Even if the “program” lacks credibility, gifted identification still may offer your child options that might not be available without the label. The information the evaluation provides is still valuable in terms of understanding your child’s abilities, and can aid with advocating for improved individualized services. It is also useful should you move, transfer your child to another school, or decide to homeschool your child.

4. Fears about what a gifted evaluation will uncover are common. Most parents eventually learn to face these fears and find that the test results are a meaningful overview of their child's strengths and weaknesses. The evaluation may validate what the parents already suspect, but also may provide some surprises in terms of exceptional abilities, untapped strengths, or learning problems. Many learning disabilities remain undetected among bright and gifted children because their intellectual strengths allow them to compensate for their difficulties. By evaluating your child at a relatively young age, any suspected learning differences can be identified and hopefully addressed through appropriate instruction.

Concerns about explaining test results to a child strikes fear in many parents. While it is best to avoid sharing an actual IQ score with a young child, it is certainly helpful to explain findings in terms of strengths and weaknesses, especially since this most likely confirms what your child already suspects. You can explain what it means to be gifted, and place it in a context your child can understand. If you are concerned about isolation from peers, gifted identification will do little more than confirm what your child and his or her peers already know.

Don’t wait until the school recommends that your child get an evaluation. 

If you suspect your child might be gifted, find out the procedures for requesting an evaluation. These guidelines should be available through your school district. Keep in mind that some children are less likely to be “noticed” by teachers and referred for evaluation. Children who are frequently overlooked for testing can be children of color; children from underprivileged, lower socio-economic backgrounds; less verbal, visual-spatial learners; non-English speaking children; gifted children with other disabilities (twice exceptional gifted learners); and less cooperative students. Do not assume that teachers or administrators will automatically recognize your child's abilities or refer your child for testing.

Some teachers and schools are proactive about prescreening students for giftedness and others are not. Even group ability tests used to prescreen for gifted evaluations can miss students who are easily distracted, become anxious during testing, or who are already bored with school. As a parent, you will need to keep this on your radar, and advocate for individualized testing when needed. Gifted identification is an important first step toward ensuring that your child receives an appropriate and meaningful education. It may be up to you to set the wheels in motion!

18 comments:

  1. Thanks for sharing this. I agree that it's important to get your child tested, even if the program at school isn't very good.

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  2. Anonymous,

    Thanks for sharing your perspective.

    Gail

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  3. Thank you so much for posting this! Do you have any recommendations for a parent who has asked for their child to be tested for giftedness and the school REFUSED to do so?

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  4. That is so unfortunate. Have you found out why they are refusing this? If you can counter their reasoning, maybe that will help. If not, check the NAGC website (www.NAGC.org) for more information about regs. in your state. You may want to check with other parents in your school community to see how they have handled this, or check with a school psychologist or psychologist directly for more information. Good luck.

    Gail

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  5. Maybe getting tested from your school is not a great idea. Coming from past experience I have been tested privately and by the school. One said I was gifted and the other said I was below average. 14 years old currently. I apologise if my structure of this was incorrect as I have dyslexia and find it incredibly difficult

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  6. Anonymous,

    It sounds like the testing may not have taken into account the dyslexia, resulting in conflicting results. Sorry that your school was not more careful with the testing. You raise an important point, though, that sometimes private testing can be more thorough. However, the cost can be a problem for some families, and some school systems will not use the results. Anyway, thanks for sharing your experience. I hope that you get the academic support you need.

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  7. As a parent I am trying to decide whether to have our elementary-school daughter tested. Our public school in California has cancelled GATE program due to budget reasons. In fact our school claims all students are gifted, so no testing needed. This is a "highly rated" school district. Teaching in school is fine but clearly targeted at poor to average performers. No pull-out programs exist.

    What actionable information would we get from having our daughter tested? She is doing well in school. We do have the ability to pay for private testing and or private school if needed. However I am not sure if private schools are any better with gifted kids? Plus if my daughter is happy at school/doing well/not complaining, is it worth getting her tested?
    She doesnt seem challenged in Math in school at all. And matches many other gifted characteristics. Hence wondering .....

    To summarize:
    We think our daughter may be gifted, but not 100% certain.
    Even if testing found her to be gifted, what would we do differently?

    Any feedback would be much appreciated!

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    1. Wow, it's always disturbing when a school district claims that all of their students are gifted. I am not familiar with the laws in your state, so you may need to check with NAGC to find out more about this. If there is any leverage regarding legal requirements for gifted programming, it doesn't matter if a gifted "program" is cancelled; what matters is how the district can provide for your child. If your child was disabled, it wouldn't matter is they didn't have a special ed program; they still would have to provide services for her.

      Testing is expensive, but it can give you information regarding her strengths and weaknesses, and perhaps help with advocacy in the schools. For example, if she's not challenged at all in math, maybe they might accelerate her a year in math. This would not involve a gifted "program," but just targeting what your daughter needs.

      Check with NAGC for more information about your state, and perhaps meet with a psychologist or school psychologist to determine what your daughter needs. Good luck!

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  8. We waited to have testing done on our identified son. He was "coded" in grade 3. He went from K to 2 upon the urging of his K teacher. She was even thinking gr 3 wasn't out of the realm of possibility. He was eager to learn, voracious reader and loves maps/building things. Fast forward a few years. He now doesn't "understand anything" in quite a few subjects. If it isn't easy on the first try, he quits. Does much of math in his head which frustrates the teacher on the communication side of things. Finally got assessment done. Wisc-V and WIAT were done. In the end, we got a rough GAI out of it, but really, nothing that we didn't already know or know to do in class. I am at a loss as to what to do now. He also doesn't seem to want to read ANYTHING. He has read quite a bit of what would be appropriate for him already but he needs to still read. The psych that did the assessment has done hundreds of assessments for giftedness as she is the faculty prof that runs the local university's psych program training new psychologists in assessments (high and low). When we moved into the school division in grade 3, it was clear he was repeating 6 months of the previous year. There was no opportunity to accelerate despite my pressure to do so. He clearly needed gr 5 math (4th grade was still multiplication and division, something he was doing at the end of 2nd grade).Do you have any thoughts? What do I do now? I still have some psych ed money left for the year but I do know I can't do another full assessment for a year. Thank you for listening.

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    1. Unknown, So sorry for your struggle. You are going through what so many parents of gifted children have experienced - unfortunately. I am not sure what the state regs are where you live, but I would assume you have checked on that to see if you have rights in terms of insisting on more gifted services for him. I can't really offer advice online, but am wondering if he might not really need another full evaluation, but perhaps might benefit instead from meeting with a psychologist to get a sense of his distress. Is there a local or state gifted organization that can help you with advocacy? You also might be able to get some good advice from the Davidson Gifted forums. And is there anyone in the school you trust who could help advocate along with you? Good luck, and let us know how it works out.

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  9. My son was recently tested for Gifted and Talented at his teacher's recommendation. He is currently finishing his 2nd grade year; he is young for his grade and is still 7. I was thrilled since I had an inclination that he may be gifted. He has always had a great vocabulary and scores well in Math and Reading. I believe he is above average in his artistic ability as well. He is extremely funny and tells stories and jokes as an adult would. In conferences I always receive feedback that he does not pay attention and is disruptive in class. I wonder how he can act this way yet absorb everything he learns at the same time! Anyhow, I received a letter stating he did NOT test into the talented and gifted program; however, I did not receive the actual test results. I'm wondering if I should let it go and trust that the school has made the correct decision or appeal. Perhaps I could make a better decision if I had the results to see if he's borderline? I wish my son was a little more challenged, but at the same time I feel he may not be gifted. He has little interest in school and doesn't want to go most days. When I try to get him enthused and to care about homework or his grades he says things like "my grades don't define me as a person". If he does take interest in something he will see it through and master it; video games for example. I'm not sure what to do. I would hate to push for acceptance and then have my son be in over his head and overwhelmed. Any advice is appreciated.

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    1. Anonymous, This is a tough situation. A lot depends on what the criteria are for GT placement in your state. Check with NAGC to find information about this, or your state gifted organization. If gifted education is mandated, you should have a right to see the testing. If they did not use a formal IQ test, then a lot of abilities could be missed. If he is 2e, there may be reasons that he is not being identified. Again, there may be a lot of reasons for lack of identification. If you would like to discuss this further, feel free to contact me directly for a consultation. However, other readers may have opinions to offer about this. Good luck.

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  10. My son was only two points away from qualifying for gifted on the non-verbal section of the exam. Should I ask for him to be retested since he was so close? He did not do as well in the verbal section...I think he was 12 points away from qualifying. I don't know the school's policy on retesting.

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    1. Anonymous, Requirements for gifted services are different in every state. Based on what you wrote, I am not clear whether this is a classroom test, a pre-screening tool, or IQ testing. I don't know the reference range, your child's age, or their cut-off for services. I would suggest that you speak with the school or a psychologist about this. If you would like to speak with me further, feel free to contact me through my coaching/consultation services. Thanks.

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  11. I am looking for clarification on PA Public Charter School being exempt from identifying my daughter whom I am positive is gifted. Do I have a right to go to the Public School District? The Charter school flatly denies any responsibility. It makes me so upset. Not sure what to do next.....

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    1. Unknown, As a resident of Philadelphia, my understanding is that your daughter has the same rights as any other student. You might need to go through a different process, though, such as the intermediate unit, or another office through the district. I would suggest that you check with the Philadelphia School District Admin. office directly. Good luck.

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  12. I am looking for clarification on PA Public Charter School being exempt from identifying my daughter whom I am positive is gifted. Do I have a right to go to the Public School District? The Charter school flatly denies any responsibility. It makes me so upset. Not sure what to do next.....

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  13. Is there a proper way to articulate the "reason or evidence" why you are requesting screening? I don't want to sound like an overly-proud parent, and the school social worker knows my son from his 504 for diabetes and his problems with reading and writing.

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