If you had to use a standardized test...

[Itlbokay]

or are currently required to have your children tested annually, which one would/do you use?

[tankgirl73]

Originally Posted by Itlbokay

or are currently required to have your children tested annually, which one would/do you use?

Well, we're in Canada... I like to use to Canadian Test Centre... they have a CAT test which is a grade-based subject test, and they also have a CTCS which is a test of 'cognitive skills'. Corroborate the two and you have a measure of over/underachievement, etc.

When my ex and I divorced, when DS was 3, he was not thrilled about my homeschooling plans. He'd never complained about it when we were together, but it came out that that was only because he was going to 'be there' to 'keep an eye on things'. He didn't trust me to do a good job on my own! Realize here that I'm a teacher by profession -- not that you need to be in order to homeschool, in fact sometimes it can be a hindrance lol... but from his point of view, that should have been a huge plus in my favour. I'm a professional piano teacher with LOTS of pedagogical training and experience with how children learn, etc.

But no... that wasn't enough. Anyway, as a compromise, I agreed to annual third-party testing to make sure DS was 'measuring up'. I was reluctant because I was concerned that if DS was just naturally slow in some area, I wanted him to be able to go at his own pace, which is one of the benefits of HS after all!... and a standardized test might just label it as "behind". He seemed to understand that though, and said he just wanted to see measurable progress, etc etc.

Anyway, when he was at the end of 'grade 1' we did the first test. And DS actually *loved* it. Here was a kid who HATED bookwork, at that time he even just plain hated writing. Could read like the devil but refused to write. Sit and do math problems? No way. But the standardized test? He was asking to do more. :

So we've done it each year and he's always done very well.

The CTC tests are geared nationally, rather than pandering to individual provincial curricula. They do testing for schools but also cater to homeschoolers, so your results are compared with national results of all kinds of kids. I've always found their service prompt, friendly, personal and affordable. Plus it keeps the ex off my back!

[UnschoolnMa]

The only one we've ever done was the CAT 5/survey. We did that one because it was the shortest test that our state accepted.

[zeldamomma]

Probably the Peabody test, if I could find someone to administer it. It's supposed to be fun for kids, and relatively painless. But that would be purely a box-checking exercise. I'm not sure what I'd do if I wanted to assess where my kids are.

ZM

[incorrigible]

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[Itlbokay]

We're in the U.S - I have it narrowed down to the CAT 5, as I can administer it myself, and the Stanford 9, which a teacher friend is willing to administer. I suppose if I must subject my children to a standardized test, I would like to used the most widely accepted.

[Wilhemina]

This is our first year to have to test, we are using the CAT because I can administer it, it's accepted by our school district, and so far it's been pretty easy.

[Queen Gwen]

We used to live in a state which required some sort of testing or outside evaluation, and we used the Iowa Test of Basic Skills because I could administer it, plus it was easy to get and use.

Now we've moved, but my kids still wanted to do a test. Go figure. We did Cat5 because it was cheaper. It seemed like a much easier test insofar as the questions for the kids were concerned, but much more fiddly for me -- we had a much narrower window for using and returning it, we had to use answer sheets even in the 1st grade test (ITBS we just wrote in the books). The kids were quite charmed that the place we got it from sent pencils to use.


I used to have a friend who would spout off on how poorly normed various standardized tests are. I guess which one you choose depends on what you want to get out of the experience.

[mattemma04]

I have done the IOWA ITBS test with my dd for K and grade one.Will probably use it for the first 6 years,and then look into something else.

[annethcz]

This will be our first year testing. I'm planning to use the Peabody, that's what everyone I know recommends.

[Citymomx3]

We used the CAT-E this year. It's just Language Arts, Reading, and Math.

[sha_lyn]

I've used the CAT-5 in the past and hated it, or should I say the kids did.
We just used the PASS and love love love it.
I've never heard of the Peabody

[Itlbokay]

Originally Posted by sha_lyn

I've used the CAT-5 in the past and hated it, or should I say the kids did.
We just used the PASS and love love love it.

If you don't mind, what did they dislike about the CAT? and love about the PASS?

[sha_lyn]

It's too long and it is timed are the 2 things that come to my mind right now.

The PASS is untimed. Also within each grade level is several levels. There is short placement test to see which level to use.

[sha_lyn]

So I decided to look up the Peabody
Only test I found was this one
http://ags.pearsonassessments.com/gr...pInfoID=a29060
for the severely learning disabled.