How many "types" of WPPSI scores are there?

[Anonymous]

You can call the tester ahead of time to alert them to your concern. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't. When my DD was 4 she took the WPPSI and apparently got test anxiety on one section, even though I had called ahead to try to alert the examiner to her being on the shy side and perhaps needing to be put at ease. I didn't feel that particular tester really took my concerns seriously. Yet, we pressed on with that testing center because a friend with a kid at a school we wanted to go to told us it was THE place (dumb, dumb). DD got all of the practice questions on that bad section right, and all the hard questions, but missed all the easy ones. Her total scaled score put her so low she would have been MR if that had been her real score, even though she did great on all the other sections.

The next year I had her tested by Maria Zimiti (hope I spelled that right; she is in Georgetown). She was very responsive and talked to me twice ahead of time about my concerns. She knocked it out of the park on the second try. Shop 'til you find a responsive tester who fits your child.

[Anonymous]

To 00:12 and others:

I am the original poster. I am still having a hard time figuring out exactly how many scores a child taking the WPPSI at age 4 actually gets. Some have suggested that its a verbal IQ, a performance IQ, and an overall. Others have stated that there is a processing score as well, and yet another person wrote about a GL (General Language) score. I am sure there are many of you on this board who can help me figure this out once and for all. How many scores does a kid get on the WPPSI (age 4 and up)? Does it vary by tester? Thanks to everyone for their help on this.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To 00:12 and others:

I am the original poster. I am still having a hard time figuring out exactly how many scores a child taking the WPPSI at age 4 actually gets. Some have suggested that its a verbal IQ, a performance IQ, and an overall. Others have stated that there is a processing score as well, and yet another person wrote about a GL (General Language) score. I am sure there are many of you on this board who can help me figure this out once and for all. How many scores does a kid get on the WPPSI (age 4 and up)? Does it vary by tester? Thanks to everyone for their help on this.

It does not vary by tester. It does vary by whether your child has reached his/her 4th birthday (e.g., 3 years 11 months versus 4 years old). From wikipedia: "The WPPSI–III provides Verbal and Performance IQ scores as well as the Full Scale IQ. In addition, the Processing Speed Quotient (known as the Processing Speed Index on previous Wechsler scales) can be derived for children aged 4:0 - 7:3, and a General Language Composite can be determined for children in both age bands (2:6–3:11 & 4:0–7:3). Children in the 2:6-3:11 age band are administered only five of the subtests: Receptive Vocabulary, Block Design, Information, Object Assembly, and Picture Naming."

So if your child is already 4, you will get VIQ, PIQ, Processing Speed Quotient, and Full Scale IQ. If not 4 yet, there will be no Process Speed Quotient.

[Anonymous]

Forgot that there will be General Language Composite regardless of whether the child is 4 yet or not. So I believe there are 4 scores if less than 4 years old, and 5 scores if older than 4.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Forgot that there will be General Language Composite regardless of whether the child is 4 yet or not. So I believe there are 4 scores if less than 4 years old, and 5 scores if older than 4.

The GLC is optional and adds to the testing/reporting time. I typically give all subtests so my reports include this composite score. You should ask your evaluator to explain the subtests and scores, and ask for additional/optional subtests if you wish. This thread has prompted me to make a new info packet for my clients.
-tester here

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To 23:25 - thanks very much for offering to fish out your child's results. It will help put my mind to rest. I am also curious exactly how many scores a kid does receive. Are there scores beyond verbal, performance, processing, and overall?

I am the 23.25 poster from yesterday with the preemie (by 8 weeks) son. My son was 4 years and 8 mths old when he did his test. He was given scores for VIQ, PIQ and FSIQ. He scored in the 99th %ile for VIQ and 98th %ile for PIQ with an overall FSIQ in the 99th %ile. Within PIQ there is a Processing Speed Subtest which is a paper-and-pencil task that evaluates visual-motor coordination and visual-motor speed among other things. In this area he had his lowest score and was in the 84th %ile. So I suppose his delays did affect his overall score but not by very much and there are 3 other areas that are tested within PIQ which made up for it.

[Anonymous]

To the 12:41 poster: thanks very much! This is very useful. Did your report also have the GL (General Language) composite score that the other posters have mentioned? Also, how weak were your son's fine motor skills at the time of the test in comparison with his peers? My child just seems behind his peers who are easily writing their names, drawing pictures, etc. They are all around 4 years old - just before or after. My child can do these things, but with far greater difficulty. And he does not do it voluntarily.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:To the 12:41 poster: thanks very much! This is very useful. Did your report also have the GL (General Language) composite score that the other posters have mentioned? Also, how weak were your son's fine motor skills at the time of the test in comparison with his peers? My child just seems behind his peers who are easily writing their names, drawing pictures, etc. They are all around 4 years old - just before or after. My child can do these things, but with far greater difficulty. And he does not do it voluntarily.

I am the 12.41 poster. In our report it says that the GLC is usually done for younger children (2yrs 6mths - 3yrs 11mths) and for older children (4yrs to 7 yrs 3mths) they do the ones I mentioned in my post. I don't know if this split is specific to the testing center we used - Educational Assessment Associates.
With respect to my son, I don't think he is profoundly delayed - you would not notice unless you actively compared him to his peers which I do just as my way of assessing where he is. He holds his pencil awkwardly - this is helped if he uses a thicker pencil - and his hand-eye coordination is not great but that does not seem to stop him from voluntarily writing and drawing.