Identification & Testing

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CogAT Pre-Screener Notification

September 2024,             

Dear Parents/Guardians,

This is a notification that all 2nd and 4th grade students, who are not already GATE identified, will have an opportunity to be screened for potential Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) identification.  The district will utilize the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) Pre-screener, as the initial screening tool in the GATE identification process.  

The CogAT Pre-screener is a computer based assessment that will be administered at your child’s school site.  It is a timed, multiple choice assessment that takes approximately 60 minutes to complete.  The CogAT is a test of general reasoning ability and indicates how students learn new tasks and solve problems, particularly when given little or no direct instruction.  The reasoning abilities measured are in the areas of verbal (words), quantitative (numbers), and non-verbal (puzzles and shapes) reasoning.  Based on the results of the CogAT Pre-screener, your child may be eligible to participate in the CogAT Post-screener.  Scores from the complete CogAT assessment are one of multiple measures used for GATE identification. 

Please note that students can only participate in the CogAT screening process once during the district wide GATE identification screening period indicated for their grade level.  The district wide CogAT Pre-screener testing window is scheduled for Monday, October 7th through Friday, November 8.  Each site determines their own screening dates within the testing window.  For more information about specific screening dates, please contact the counselor at your child’s school.

CogAT Pre-screening is optional.  If you do not want your child to participate in CogAT screening please contact your child's school counselor by Friday, October 4th to opt-out. 

Sincerely,

The GATE Identification Team

The Long Beach Unified School District prohibits discrimination, intimidation, harassment (including sexual harassment) or bullying based on a person’s actual or perceived ancestry, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, immigration status, national origin, religion, race or ethnicity, sex, sexual orientation, or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics. For questions or complaints, contact Equity Compliance Officer: Steve Rockenbach, Director of Employee Relations, 1515 Hughes Way, Long Beach, CA 90815, 562-997-8222, srockenbach@lbschools.net and Title IX Coordinator: Kimberly Dalton, Director of Human Resource Services, 1515 Hughes Way, Long Beach, CA 90815, 562-997-8108, kdalton@lbschools.net.