Dear SFES Families,
This year, the Howard County Public School System will be administering the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) to all students in grades 3 and 5. The CogAT assessment is a group-administered abilities test that measures students’ reasoning abilities, which they develop through in-school and out-of-school experiences. It is not designed to test a student’s academic achievement, but their potential.
The test is made up of three batteries – Verbal, Quantitative, and Nonverbal. Each battery takes approximately 30 minutes to complete. CogAT helps educators understand a student’s cognitive strengths and weaknesses and assists with adapting instruction to meet the needs and abilities of each student.
SFES students in grades 3 and 5 will participate in the testing, which will be administered on December 9th, 10th, and 11th. No special preparation is required. Just send your child to school ready to learn as you do daily. Please try to avoid appointments on these days.
The Gifted and Talented Education Program will use the data from the CogAT assessment as one criterion for placement into fourth grade Gifted and Talented mathematics classes and middle school Gifted and Talented content classes. Students’ individual scores will be reported to parents in late February or early March.
Please contact me if you have any questions about your child’s involvement with the CogAT assessment.
Sincerely,
Katie Carter
Assistant Principal