Using the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children

Alan Kaufman and Nadeen Kaufman developed the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, with the first edition coming out in 1983 and the revised and updated one in 2002. It is composed of 16 subtests (ten subtests for mental processing and six for achievement) that lead to four global test scores, which are the sequential processing scales, the simultaneous processing scales, the achievement scales, and the mental processing composite. It is used in clinical researches but it could not be utilized as a primary or complete assessment of a child’s intelligence. A different assessment test should be used as a primary intelligence instrument. The Kaufman Assessment Battery, however, a well accepted instrument to correlate with other types of assessment tests.

The main purpose of this standardized assessment test is to assess the achievement and intelligence of children. The first edition can assess children who are aged 2.5 years (2 years and six months) to 12.5 years while the new edition can be used for individuals up to 18 years old. The Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children is specifically developed for three groups, the children of preschool age, the children with learning disabilities, and children who belong to minority groups. This is why there is a Spanish edition for this test and a subtest for children who cannot be tested verbally. The results of this assessment instrument is correlated with other tests to help teachers plan educational placement, develop IEP, help a neurological diagnosis, and further research in special education.

The administration of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children will depend mostly on the age of the child being tested. Younger children will take fewer subtests than older children. The youngest bracket, 2.5 years old, takes seven subtests. The oldest bracket, 12.5 years old, takes 13 of the total 16 subtests. Thus, the test can last as short as 35 minutes or as long as 85 minutes.

Since this assessment test is especially developed to measure nonverbal intelligence, it becomes limited in measuring verbal intelligence. This test has also been criticized for using questions that measure intelligence in subtests that are supposed to indicate achievement. And finally, only a trained examiner or a psychologist can interpret the scores of the test.

The sample utilized for the standardization of this intelligence and achievement test, according to the authors, was representative of the population of US children, based on attributes such as gender, age, ethnicity, size of the community, and the education of the parents. The sample was also based on educational placement, whether the child belongs to a special education class or mainstream classroom. The norms established from the standardization led to global scores having a mean score of 100 with a standard deviation of 15.

Although only a trained psychologist can adequately interpret the four global test scores of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children, the following would be useful information for the special education team.

• Sequential processing scale – This reflects the child’s ability to solve problems that involve sequences. For example, the child may arrange items in a series. The scale also measures the child’s short-term memory because some tasks involve recall of numbers or items in sequence.
• Simultaneous processing scale – This scale is based on seven subtests that measure the use of several processes to solve more complex problems. These complex problems involve the following:
  1. Recognizing a face
  2. Identifying an object or a scene using a picture that is partially complete
  3. Reproducing a design by manipulating rubber triangles
  4. Selecting a picture that would complete another picture
  5. Choosing a picture that similar to another picture
  6. Recalling the location of pictures shown in one page
  7. Arranging pictures based on a certain logical order.
• Achievement scale – The score in this scale illustrate what the child has learned in school and at home. The questions are primarily based on facts that are taught, such as story characters, famous people and places, and mathematical skills.
• Mental processing composite – This is the combination of the sequential and simultaneous processing scales.