Ability profiles with a V–, Q–, or N– indicate a relative weakness on the respective CogAT battery. When a student displays a significantly lower score on one of the three batteries, it typically indicates a preference for thinking in one cognitive domain (verbal, quantitative, or nonverbal) rather than another. 


Profiles that show an extreme (E) weakness are most common for students with a median age stanine of 9. Indeed, for students with a median age stanine of 9, profiles that show a significant or extreme weakness are almost as common as relatively flat (A) profiles. This is one reason why the CogAT author discourages use of the overall CogAT composite score to identify academically talented students.


The information that follows offers suggestions on adapting instruction to shore up a weakness indicated by a student’s CogAT ability profile.


Relative Weakness

Cognitive Domain

Page

V–

Verbal

 

Q–

Quantitative

 

N–

Nonverbal

 


Click the links below for guidance on shoring up relative weaknesses:

Relative Weakness in Verbal Reasoning (V–)

Relative Weakness in Quantitative Reasoning (Q–)

Relative Weakness in Nonverbal Reasoning (N–)