Normative Data
Norm-referenced tests compare a student's achievement with students in a norm group. After a test is created, it is administered to a large, diverse group of children which makes up the norm group. The children's scores are ranked from low to high performance. The scores are then statistically manipulated to form a normal distribution. If a child scores at the 65th percentile, for example, it would mean that the child performed better than 65 percent of the children in the norm group. Normative studies frequently provide data stratified by age, grade level, gender, and/or ethnicity where such factors have been shown by research to affect performance. This allows for a student's performance to be compared to a suitable control group and provide a fair assessment of their current cognitive functioning.