Ainsley Conner is an educator truly dedicated to gifted education – not only is she an
academic specialist in the Advanced Learner Programs Office at Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) in Maryland, which serves over 80,000 students, but she is also an adjunct associate professor at Notre Dame of Maryland, teaching in the Gifted Education master's program. In 2017, AACPS started using CogAT to enhance the evaluation and identification process for gifted and talented (G&T) programs.
Broadening the Approach to Student Ability
AACPS’ shift to CogAT in 2017-2018 was driven by dissatisfaction with the previous tool. “We were doing Naglieri, and I wasn't pleased with that,” Conner said. “I felt like we would capture more students if we had the verbal and quantitative batteries as data points. And so, we utilize all three batteries individually for our identification purposes.”
Conner refers to the three domains covered by the CogAT, which assess verbal, nonverbal, and quantitative reasoning. Naglieri assessments, by contrast, only evaluate nonverbal reasoning skills, which Conner’s team found didn’t give them a complete or useful understanding of the AACPS student body (note: this is even true of the NGAT despite the fact that it uses CogAT-imitation verbal / quant / nonverbal sections)
This change to CogAT allowed AACPS to uncover more students for G&T programs. Notably, Conner’s team found that the nonverbal section of the test had negatively impacted scores for many students, including those with exceptional abilities in other areas. By removing the nonverbal section as a key factor, they were able to identify a broader group of students.
The data from CogAT also helps pinpoint outliers—such as students who demonstrate high ability but low achievement, those who would typically be overlooked for G&T programs. In these cases, Conner’s team works with individual schools in the district, partnering with teachers and principals to gather a fuller picture of the students' strengths and challenges.
“We'll break down the verbal and quantitative and pair them with reading and math achievement data,” Conner said. They also utilize more qualitative observations about students, noting those who are displaying strong communication, creative, or leadership skills.
Using CogAT to Refine Teaching Strategies
Beyond G&T identification, Conner’s team uses CogAT to adjust teaching strategies for students who may need more personalized instruction. She cites the example of students who score in the 99th percentile but struggle with behavioral issues that hinder their learning.
“I've come into these schools and said, ‘Hey, these kids need something different,’ and we've been able to create a sort of tailored approach to their learning, with advanced instruction and strategies and opportunities,” Conner said. The results have been promising: “They're excited, they're engaged more, they're learning and they can attend. [We’re] able to get to the students because they're getting what they need — and then, their behavior is getting better,” she said.
Impact on All Students
Thanks to CogAT, AACPS is better equipped to serve not only gifted students but all students, addressing their unique abilities and challenges.