After having a private evaluation and comparing the WISC scores to the testing done at the school in 3/96, I’m sitting here wondering about these scores. If this is an IQ test, and your IQ is not supposed to change significantly over your life, then I have to wonder which of the scores are more reliable. Especially when there is PROGRESSION of 6 points (scaled scores) in picture completion (one subtest), 3 points in vocabulary & picture arrangement (2 subtests), 2 points on Comprehension & Object Assembly (2 subtests), and REGRESSION of 2 points in arithmetic & coding (2 subtests).
What are your thoughts on this? Are these higher scores an abberation because he was having a “good day,” or would a “good day” not affect the score so much, as it gets to the underlying intelligence, not the performance?
Thanks!
Re: changes in WISC scores????????
“and come up with the answer (things like a TV without an antenna )”
Do they really have this picture or are you kidding ? What house has a t.v. with an antenna ? I can’t think of one and doubt my kids even know we used to need an antenna to watch t.v., now we have cable with no antennas!
Yup, I was kidding ;)
I was trying to think of a possible example, and thought of that one — and knew it was totally out-of-date, but figured it would be a fun flashback! Remember when you had to get up and WALK ACROSS THE ROOM to change the channel? And wait for the thing to warm up? Or when the color would go bad so it would be kind of blue and purple instead…
And just think, our kids have no frame of reference for the phrase “a broken record” — they’ll have to think it’s something out of Guinness or something…
IQ scores can change. For example, One subtest, Information, asks general knowledge questions — obviously an appropriately challenging education or lack thereof will have an effect on whether one student keeps up with the “Norms” in this category. Our brains change as we grow and develop.
Good days & bad days, of course, can affect the score too — but basically, unless you’re having such a good day that there’s divine intervention and you’re given the answers, you aren’t going to score *higher* than your potential (anymore than you could run faster than you can really run).
SOme kids are sensitive to who is giving the testing — especially if you’ve got a kiddo with auditory processing issues, then a pretty subtle change in how the oral directions are given can make a big difference in how well you understand them. Other times it’s just a personal connection thing. Also, people who are more prone to emotional mood swings have more swings in things like IQ scores, too. If you’re too anxious it’s going to lower that score.
It’s always possible that this time the kiddo had some idea what he was getting into, while the first time he was very anxious (sometimes kids get very scared of the results of iQ tests — adults, too — will we find out that yes, he’s really a hopeless retard?)
And some kids just get their wiring better organized… so they get smarter, especially for thigns like “picture completion,” where you have to say what’s missing from the picture, so you have to have a solid idea of what’s normal in your mind, compare it to the picture, and come up with the answer (things like a TV without an antenna )