What is the CogAT®?
What is the CogAT?
The Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT®) is a multiple choice K-12 assessment that is used to determine admissions into gifted and talented programs. CogAT Forms 7 and 8 are the two most recent editions, both covering the same material; Form 8 is given on a computer or tablet whereas Form 7 is given on paper. When going about CogAT Test prep, it is essential to know which form they will take so that your child builds familiarity with the test-taking skills necessary for computers or paper. Metropolitan areas commonly use the CogAT, with Seattle, Dallas, New York, Washington, DC and Chicago being some of the most popular areas for this test.
BUY NOW
TestPrepExpress’s practice materials include printables and online, interactive questions, similar to those found on Forms 7 and 8. Our test prep covers questions for each battery, and can identify your child’s performance by subsection, making sure you spend your practice time where it matters.
The CogAT assesses students’ reasoning skills through three distinct batteries; verbal, quantitative and nonverbal. Each battery introduces 3 unique question types that measures a different part of the student’s cognition. We offer free CogAT practice questions.
Verbal Battery | Quantitative Battery | Non-Verbal Battery |
---|---|---|
Picture Analogies | Number Analogies | Figure Matrices |
Sentence Completion | Number Puzzles | Paper Folding |
Picture Classification | Number Series | Figure Classification |
In addition to knowing which form your child will take, it is important to ask your child’s school which CogAT level they will be administering, as each version contains a different number and type of questions. If your child is being tested for a highly gifted program, she may be given a level one level higher than what would be considered grade level. If testing happens at the beginning of the year, your child may take a test level one level lower than expected. The grades and CogAT levels listed below are the most common.
The child will often be tested in groups of around 20 students. The test is administered by a test proctor who is a school counselor or a teacher.
Grade | CogAT Test Level | Number of Questions | Test Time |
---|---|---|---|
Kindergarten | Level 5/6 | 118 | 112 Minutes |
1st Grade | Level 7 | 136 | 112 Minutes |
2nd Grade | Level 8 | 154 | 122 Minutes |
3rd Grade | Level 9 | 170 | 90 Minutes |
4th Grade | Level 10 | 176 | 90 Minutes |
5th Grade | Level 11 | 176 | 90 Minutes |
6th Grade | Level 12 | 176 | 90 Minutes |
7th – 8th Grade | Level 13/14 | 176 | 90 Minutes |
9th – 10th Grade | Level 15/16 | 176 | 90 Minutes |
11th – 12th Grade | Level 17/18 | 176 | 90 Minutes |
What do CogAT Scores Mean?
To put it simply, CogAT scores can be complicated. Your child’s age determines who she is compared to determine the score with the possibility that a child is compared to other students in the same grade (“Grade Scores”) or with students in the same school district (“Local Scores”). When looking at your child’s age scores, you will see a “Standard Age Score,” “Age Stanine” and “Age Percentile Rank” for each battery as a composite, as well as a composite score, which is the combined results for each of the 3 batteries. Below are the steps and definitions used to calculate a child’s test score:
“Raw Score”: The total number of questions answered correctly. Note that incorrect answers do not cause points to be deducted from the overall raw score.
“Universal Scale Score (USS)”: After the raw score is determined, it is converted to a normalized standard score known as the Universal Scale Score. The composite USS is determined by averaging the three different scores for the verbal, nonverbal and quantitative reasoning skills subsections.
“Standard Age Score (SAS)”: Calculated by taking your child’s raw scores and placing them on a scale that compares two different children of the same age. An average Standard Age Score is 100.
“Percentile Rank (PR)”: Identifies the percentage of students in the same age group whose scores fall below the score obtained by a particular student.
“Stanine (S)”: This is a number from 1-9 that ranks your child’s cognitive abilities against children of the same age. Stanines are grouped by percentile rank. 1 is considered to be very low while 9 is very high. 5 is the average.
Each stanine is made up of a range of percentile ranks. The table below shows the percentile ranks that formulate each stanine and the associated ability level.
Stanine | Percentile Rank | Description |
---|---|---|
9 | 96-99 | High |
8 | 89-95 | Above Average |
7 | 77-88 | Above Average |
6 | 60-76 | Average |
5 | 40-59 | Average |
4 | 23-39 | Average |
3 | 11-22 | Below Average |
2 | 4-10 | Below Average |
1 | 1-3 | Very Low |
If you’re interested in more about the CogAT, visit the following links:
CogAT® Test (Cognitive Abilities Test™)
CogAT Info for Specific Grades