What is the CAT4 used for?

The CAT4 and be used for a variety of reasons. Firstly as a school entrance exam to ensure that children are able to learn quickly and effectively in a high performing environment. If children in a class are too far apart in academic ability the teacher will end up slowing down the material and having to teach to the lowest common denominator. There is of course room for peer learning and differentiated learning approaches but many schools, particular private schools, are not willing to compromise on the basic cognitive skills they want each and every child to have.

Apart from using the CAT4 as a school entrance exam it is also used as an ability checker and future performance predictor. Many schools now use the CAT4 in year 8 to predict a child’s future performance – particularly at GCSE – and to help determine which set is most appropriate for the child. By developing your child’s cognitive skills in terms of thinking, reading, learning, remembering, reasoning, and paying attention your child will outperform many other children over time even with a starting point of low topic knowledge. These skills will support your child in every way and last a lifetime.

Can’t children be assessed in the classroom – why do we need the CAT4?

In a classroom the teacher only sees a few aspects of a child’s ability. Sometimes the child simply hasn’t ever felt the need to really use their cognitive abilities. Verbal skills are easy to identify but this hidden potential by determining reasoning ability, spatial reasoning, verbal reasoning, non-verbal reasoning, make a huge difference to future academic performance. Academic ability and topic knowledge is only one part of the puzzle. The teacher / schools needs to be able to assess the full profile of a child and the CAT4 is an excellent tool to break that down into simply, understandable parts.

Why the CAT4?

The CAT4 is one of the UK (possibly worlds excluding the USA of course) used test of reasoning abilities. It uses at least 25,000 students standardised results to provide an accurate baseline against which your child can be measured. There prove indicators for national tests and examinations during every stage from KS2, SATs, GCSEs and A-Levels. Provide a real insight into the way a child thinks.