The real facts about your child's IQ

Parents may be surprised to discover the following facts
about IQ and IQ testing.

1. IQ stands for Intelligence Quotient. But it is debatable
whether IQ tests really measure intelligence (or whatever it
is we mean by "intelligence" - psychologists have been
divided for years).

IQ tests do not take into account aspects such as
creativity, artistic or musical talent - a child can most
certainly be "gifted" without having a high IQ.

Nor do IQ tests take into account qualities such as
leadership which will have a huge impact on the child's
life. They cannot be taken as any kind of indicator of
success in future life.

It is dubious as to whether IQ scores have any real value of
their own outside the educational system.

2. However unimportant IQ is in itself, your child’s IQ
score will have a serious impact on his or her schooling. It
may well determine which class he or she is put in and can
therefore have far-reaching effects.

It is a fact that children achieve better academic results
when in a class with more able pupils. It is therefore in
your child's interest that he or she gets a place in the
highest class possible for his or her abilities.

3. IQ test results can be very unreliable. Research has
shown that 50% of children will achieve a score varying by 5
points in either direction when retested, some as much as 20
points!

The most unreliable tests are group tests (rather as
individual tests) which are usually the kinds of IQ test
used in schools. The teachers responsible for carrying out
the tests are often not trained adequately, which may make
the results even more unreliable.

4. The IQ of an individual is not innate or fixed.

Many parents assume that the IQ score is something innate to
their child, that he or she will have to live with it for
the rest of their lives. This is not the case. The IQ can
change significantly - either decrease or increase - due
largely to environmental factors. It is not fixed at any
time.

5. Statistics show that the IQ of children is related to
their environment. Parents can raise their child’s IQ by
providing the optimum environment and stimulating the child
in the right way. It is proven that IQ scores can be
significantly raised by practising IQ tests, as explained in
detail in "How to Raise Your Child's IQ"
( http://www.raise-your-childs-iq.com/ ).

6. It is dubious as to whether IQ tests actually test any
kind of innate intelligence. You can see this when you
examine an IQ test. Much emphasis is placed on aspects which
are in fact "learnt" rather than innate - in particular, a
heavy emphasis on verbal expression (vocabulary and
proverbs) which is commonly taken as a useful intelligence
indicator, however depends greatly on the kind of
environment in which the child has been raised, and what
kind of training he or she has received.

Given that the IQ is not innate or fixed, and that such an
importance is attached to IQ scores in the educational
system, it is the responsibility of the parents to assist
their children as much as they can in achieving as high a
score as he or she is able to reach. The child will most
certainly benefit.