Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT)

Overview

The NNAT is administered by Pearson Education assesses the intellectual abilities of children between the ages of 5 and 17. The NNAT uses figures and shapes to test reasoning and problem-solving abilities.

The Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test is used as a requirement for some gifted programs and schools.

The test is a group-administered aptitude test administered in both paper-and-pencil and online formats.

The second edition of the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT2) comprises 48 questions, to be answered in just over 30 minutes to complete the test. The test has seven levels marked from A to G, with varying levels of difficulty.

Depending on the levels, there are four types of questions that appear in NNAT:

• Pattern completion: candidates are expected to perceive patterns within larger designs from which a section or two have been removed. They are then expected to identify the correct missing piece that is missing, more like jigsaw puzzles.
• Analogy reasoning: these questions require candidates to use visual-spatial reasoning abilities to discern logical relationships between a variety of geometric figures and shapes—for instance, large circles to small circles or large triangles too small triangles.
• Serial reasoning: students are given sequences of figures or shapes that form logical patterns. He question asks the student to apply the logical pattern to a second row of figures.
• Spatial visualization: students are asked to determine how a design or graphic (two or more) would look when combined or rotated, folded, or altered by, for example, punching holes.

Even though the Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT) is assigned based on levels or grades, the scores are based on age. Candidates are compared to others within three months of their age.

Questions are formatted as follows:

• Children in kindergarten or entering kindergarten will sit for A level exam, which consists of reasoning by analogy and pattern completion questions.
• Children in 1^st Grade will sit for B level exam that consists of three types, serial reasoning, reasoning by analogy, and pattern completion questions.
• Second-grade children will sit for C level exams, which consists of both spatial visualization, serial reasoning, pattern completion, and reasoning by analogy questions.
• Both third and fourth-grade children will sit for D-level exams that consist of questions from pattern completion, serial reasoning, reasoning by analogy, and spatial visualization sections.
• Children in both fifth and sixth Grade will take E level exam that has pattern completion questions, reasoning by analogy, serial reasoning, and spatial visualization questions.
• All candidates from seventh Grade to ninth Grade will take F level exam consisting of pattern completion, serial reasoning, reasoning by analogy, and spatial visualization questions.
• Children in tenth Grade to twelfth Grade will sit for G level exam that contains reasoning by analogy, serial reasoning, and spatial visualization questions.

NNAT scores are calculated as follows:

• Determination of raw score: the number of questions answered correctly. Since there are a total of 48 questions, the raw score will be correctly answered questions out of 48.
• Conversion of the raw score into the normalized score is referred to as the Nonverbal Ability Index (NAI). NAI is relative to candidates in the same age group rather than levels. For instance, children from third Grade will not be scored to fourth-grade students despite all taking the D level tests.

The average score is 100, with a standard deviation of 16. The highest possible score is 160. The SAI score is used in determining the percentile rank; scoring in the 90^th percentile, for instance, means that the child scored higher than 90% of their fellows in the age group.