WISC website

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LD OnLine’s In Depth section has an explanation of testing.
http://www.ldonline.org/ld_indepth/assessment/tests_measurements.html

I have used the LD in-depth article many times. The website I posted regarding the WISC is a little different.

When I originally became involved 2 years ago with my brother, I used (and continue to use) the Ld in depth article you suggested to understand the scores, averages, and where my brother’s scores put him within the average.

The website address that I posted gives a different look at the WISC. I think if both articles were used in combination they would give a parent a much better understanding of what the subtest really mean and how to translate that into learning.

Thanks
K.

Thank you for the feedback. The reason I offered the alternative web address is because the suggested link site can also misinform a parent. The psychologist will use the total picture based on convergent analysis of the many tests and subtests given to make a diagnosis. If a parent takes the subtests one at a time the picture may be incorrect. For example, let’s look at the information subtest and the explanation given on the Web site you suggested.

Here is a section from that Web site’s explanation.

Measures long term memory, child is asked information questions like how many cents are in dime; things that most kids are exposed to, and checks if they can recall them.

Kids who cannot retain information are going to have to review work more often or it will evaporate. And they’ll need to study for tests, instead of just walking in and whipping out a written tests as do their friends. They need to use aids to recall information, such as studying with graphic patterns, boxes and circles and triangles grouping data according to how it fits into the topic. Grid/calc for times tables in grades 4-7, the longest and most boring single piece of memory work.

Here is what is wrong with this approach.

The presentation begins with the Information subtest. The explanation suggests that this is a problem with memory. That is possible. It is also possible that this is in fact a long-term memory problem. This could also, however, be due to environmental factors that have nothing to do with memory. For example, if a child never experienced a certain concept, the child will not be able to answer the question. The Standford Binet test used to have the word “coal” on it. Few children today have ever experienced coal. Children from different cultures may not know a word or may not be able to answer it correctly. For a non-native speaker concepts can also be missed. This is not a learning disability or a memory problem.

One of my classic experiences when administering the Wechsler Tests came as I was asking the Information subtest questions to an 8th grader, a very bright student who was in trouble with the school more than not because he had trouble with “busy work.” He got his work done very quickly and then had nothing to do. The school offered “more” of the same that he refused to do. One question on the test was “What are the four seasons of the year?”. This student replied “duck hunting, squirrel hunting, rabbit hunting and deer hunting.” His reply was earnest and he knew he was right. I could not pull for the correct summer, winter, etc because the child had fixed on a concept that was very important in his life experiences….hunting with his father!

The critical point is that it is so important to look at the whole picture and to look at how subtest scores cluster to give a sense of a child’s learning strengths and weaknesses. These scores then must be used with other tests and with school records to determine if a learning disability is present. From this point the psychologist can look more at areas of weakness to develop appropriate programs for help that can work through areas of strength.

I guess my hope with the website was to provide parents with more information to help them better understand what reasons the test is given. Many times, evaluators do not give reason or explainations for certain test. Often, they are presented in language which parents can not understand. Sometimes this is done to confuse the parent, while other times it happens becuase an evaluator has the lost the ability to speak in a way parents can understand.

Being in a position many times myself, where I was forced to interpret test results and find my own information, I would have welcomed any little tidbit of information that would have given me a better insight into how my child’s brain works.

I agree that the whole picture needs to be looked at but sometimes it is the fine details that help parents, educators, and children understand how and why things are the way they are! I understand that the subtests are used to produce a full scale score but the subtest can be helpful when looking at the whole doesn’t work.

K.