Placentation Research - Meng Hu's Blog

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THE FUTURE OF IQ TESTS
In fact, the quality of test use will increase. The identification
of children with SLD has provided a prominent role for IQ tests
for more than 30 years. But because of the discrepancy formula
that loomed over every child referred for possible SLD, IQ tests
were often given for the wrong reasons (to plug a number into a
formula) by the wrong people (those who found no use for IQ
tests except to plug into a formula). That will stop. Some states
may continue to use the discrepancy formula because it is familiar
and permitted by law (although states can no longer require
it). But most states, I believe, that opt to use IQ tests will do so
to identify the child’s pattern of strengths and weaknesses. That
approach will help identify a processing disorder as well as cognitive
strengths for the purpose of individualizing educational
planning. And that is intelligent testing.
IQ TESTING IN 2030
Over most of the next decade, I see a continuation of today’s
practices. IQ tests have become sophisticated, theory based, and
exceptional in many ways. They reflect a refinement and upgrade
over IQ-tests-past and will continue to be used intelligently for
clinical, psychoeducational, and neuropsychological evaluations
of children and adults. The best tests will continue to be revised
and restandardized in a timely fashion because most test users
are aware of the Flynn Effect and don’t want to use a test with
outdated norms. But these updated and undoubtedly improved
IQ tests will be used less and less.
Computerized IQ tests will proliferate by 2015 and will rival
individually administered IQ tests. At first there will be resistance,
and the computerized tests will be used as screening tests, to determine
whether an individual test needs to be administered,
or as supplements to the clinical tests. But the computerized
tests will win out because they are cost-efficient, they are timeefficient,
and they have untapped potential to measure abilities