Title

The impact of discontinue criteria on potential gifted students' scores on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children - fifth edition

Year Issued

2021

Abstract

Gifted identification varies across the United States between states, districts, and school psychologists. Although multiple measures of cognitive ability exist, one of the most popular tools is the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children- Fifth Edition, published i...
Show moreGifted identification varies across the United States between states, districts, and school psychologists. Although multiple measures of cognitive ability exist, one of the most popular tools is the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children- Fifth Edition, published in 2014. This standardized assessment measures cognitive abilities and is now in its fifth edition. The most notable difference is the use of five primary index scales, rather than four, that combine to yield a Full Scale IQ score. Another change is that the discontinue criteria are shorter for a few subtests within the measure. Although this leads to a shorter test administration time, many gifted advocates believe that this shortened discontinue criteria may underestimate gifted students' abilities by not allowing them to demonstrate knowledge beyond those three missed items (National Association for Gifted Children, 2018; Silverman and Gilman, 2020). The purpose of this study is to begin to explore how those shortened discontinue criteria on the Verbal Comprehension Index may or may not impact potentially gifted students’ scores and moreover, gifted eligibility. Understanding how these shortened discontinue criteria may or may not impact scores will help to guide districts and school psychologists into proper identification methods and criteria and a further understanding of the Verbal Comprehension Index on the WISC-V. This study will focus on the following questions: How do shortened discontinue criteria impact potential gifted students' scores on the Similarities subtest? How do shortened discontinue criteria impact potential gifted students' scores on the Vocabulary subtest? With limited verbal subtests, how does the WISC-V's shortened discontinue criteria impact potential gifted scores on the Verbal Comprehension Index? How do these discontinue criteria impact how school psychologists and schools determine eligibility?
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Author

Iera, Dana