The School and College Ability Test (SCAT), is a
standardized test
A standardized test is a test that is administered and scored in a consistent, or "standard", manner. Standardized tests are designed in such a way that the questions and interpretations are consistent and are administered and scored in a predete ...
conducted in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
that measures math and verbal reasoning abilities in
gifted children
Intellectual giftedness is an intellectual ability significantly higher than average. It is a characteristic of children, variously defined, that motivates differences in school programming. It is thought to persist as a trait into adult life, wi ...
.
About
The SCAT is used by the
Center for Talented Youth
The Johns Hopkins Center for Talented Youth (CTY) is a gifted education program for school-age children founded in 1979 by psychologist Julian Stanley at Johns Hopkins University. It was established as a research study into how academically adv ...
(CTY) as an above-grade-level
entrance exam
In education, an entrance examination or admission examination is an examination that educational institutions conduct to select prospective students. It may be held at any stage of education, from primary to tertiary, even though it is typicall ...
for students in grades 2–8. Students in grades 2-3 take the Elementary SCAT designed for students in grades 4-5. Students in grades 4-5 take the Intermediate SCAT designed for students in grades 6-8. Students in grades 6 and above take the Advanced SCAT designed for students in grades 9-12.
There are 55 questions per section, 5 of which are experimental.
The percentile ranks for the SCAT have not been updated since 1979. So, when your child takes this test, your child is being compared to a national sample of children who took the test in 1979.
The equivalent test in the UK is the CAT4 test run by GL Assessment and consists of a battery of 4 individual tests; Verbal Reasoning, Non-Verbal Reasoning, Spatial Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning. CAT4 is used as an admission test and also by schools to determine potential (gifted or weaker children).
Qualification
Anyone who pays for the test may take it; there are no requirements for testing.
Scoring
Scoring is based on a three-step process in which a child's raw score is scaled based on the test version and then compared to the results of the test scores of normal students in the higher-level grade. Please keep in mind that the group of normal students took this test in 1979. So, your child's percentile ranks could be different if compared to a more recent group of test takers.
The minimum scores required for qualification for the 2nd to 10th grade CTY summer courses are below:
[{{Cite web, url=http://cty.jhu.edu/ctyonline/apply/eligibility.html#SCAT_Grades6-10, title=Eligibility {{! JHU CTY, website=cty.jhu.edu, access-date=2016-06-08]
*Grade 2 ≥ 430 SCAT Verbal or 435 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 3 ≥ 435 SCAT Verbal or 440 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 4 ≥ 440 SCAT Verbal or 450 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 5 ≥ 445 SCAT Verbal or 465 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 6 ≥ 450 SCAT Verbal or 470 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 7 ≥ 455 SCAT Verbal or 475 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 8 ≥ 460 SCAT Verbal or 480 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 9 ≥ 465 SCAT Verbal or 485 SCAT Quantitative
*Grade 10 ≥ 470 SCAT Verbal or 490 SCAT Quantitative
References
External links
Catalog Of Summer Programs For Grades 2–6GL Assessment CAT4 TestsCAT4 Questions Answered
Gifted education