OLSAT case studies
OLSAT · Put your knowledge to work in context.
The Otis-Lennon School Ability Test (OLSAT) is a group-administered cognitive abilities test used by many schools to estimate reasoning and problem-solving skills in students from kindergarten through grade 12. It is not a subject-matter achievement test; instead, it samples verbal, nonverbal, and quantitative reasoning through multiple-choice items. Schools use OLSAT results alongside grades, teacher ratings, and other evidence for gifted-program screening, placement, and instructional planning. The test is published by a commercial assessment company, and this page is an independent study resource with no affiliation to that publisher or to any school district. The OLSAT case studies are 5 cases and about 2,328 words.
1Scrambled Garden Sentences: Time Order Versus Causal Connectives
Okafor coordinates gifted screening at a K–8 school. She reviews a fourth grader's response to a sentence-arrangement item.
536 words, about 3 min2Following Directions in a Nine-Card Grid: Procedure Versus Classification
An examiner administers a following-directions task to Lina, a second grader. The materials are nine picture cards in a three-by-three grid.
444 words, about 2 min3Paper-Airplane Series: Color Rule Correct, Rotation Rule Reversed
A pictorial-series item shows five frames, each containing a paper airplane. In frame 1 the airplane is red and its nose points north.
433 words, about 2 min4Figural Classification With More Than One Defensible Odd One Out
During a figural-classification trial, a student sees four figures and is asked to choose the one that does not belong. Figure 1 is a large square containing a small shaded circle.
460 words, about 2 min5Number Series 5, 8, 14, 26, 50: Doubling Versus Double-Minus-Two
A quantitative-reasoning item presents the number series 5, 8, 14, 26, 50, . A student, Andre, writes 100 and explains, 'Each number is about double the one before, so 50 times 2 is 100.' The teacher checks the transitions: 5 to 8 is not double, 8 to 14 is not double, and 14 to 26 is not double.
455 words, about 2 min