Evaluating Gifted Identification Practice: Aptitude Testing and Linguistically Diverse Learners

The authors examined individually administered IQ scores from an entire K–5 population (N = 432) of Limited English Proficient students referred for gifted program eligibility determination in a single large urban district in the southeastern United States. Of 8 IQ tests compared, only 1, the Stanford-Binet V, had scores appreciably lower than expected on the basis of the district's screening score criteria. Two nonverbal measures showed no statistically significant differences in comparison to aptitude scores obtained on the other measures. These results suggest that school psychologists’ use of professional judgment in choosing which aptitude measure to administer to these learners appears to be equitable, and that blanket recommendations favoring the use of nonverbal measures with linguistically diverse gifted learners may not be appropriate.