The Woodcock-Johnson Tests are widely used assessments designed to measure cognitive abilities (WJ cognitive) and academic achievement (WJ achievement test). They can also assess other aspects of psychological functioning. Developed by Richard Woodcock and Mary E. Bonner Johnson, this measure has undergone several revisions, the most recent being the fourth edition. We commonly use these measures, often comparing the results of the Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test with those of the Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive when assessing for learning differences and attention-deficit disorder.
We would be happy to talk to you about how a WJ Cognitive or WJ Achievement Test or both would benefit you or your child, but first, here is an overview. Please feel free to contact us or schedule a consultation anytime.
Woodcock-Johnson Tests Overview 
Three primary Woodcock-Johnson Tests can be administered individually or in combination, depending on the assessment needs.
Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive
- The Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive measures general intellectual ability (g), broad and narrow intellectual abilities.
- It includes tests that assess various aspects of intellectual functioning, such as fluid reasoning, processing speed, short-term memory, and visual-spatial thinking.
- The WJ Cognitive provides a broad assessment of intellectual abilities, making it helpful in diagnosing cognitive impairments and potential giftedness.
- Suitable for individuals from ages 2 to 90+, allowing for a wide range of applications across the lifespan.
- Scores are based on a large, representative sample, providing reliable comparisons to the general population.
Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test
- The Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test assesses academic skills in reading, mathematics, written language, and academic knowledge.
- Includes tests that evaluate basic and applied skills, such as reading comprehension and problem-solving in mathematics.
- The WJ Achievement Test Provides a broad assessment of academic achievement, making it helpful in diagnosing learning differences.
- Used for the same ages and similar morning as the WJ Cognitive.
Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Oral Language
- The Woodcock-Johnson Tests of Oral Language evaluate listening, speaking, and other aspects of oral language ability.
- Helpful in identifying language-based learning disabilities and planning appropriate interventions.
- Use the same ages and similar norming
Uses of the Woodcock-Johnson Tests
There are three primary uses of the WJ Cognitive, WJ Achievement Test, and the Woodcock-Johnson Tests of oral language.
- Educational Planning: The Woodcock-Johnson Tests help identify students’ strengths and weaknesses. They guide the development of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and other educational interventions.
- Clinical Diagnosis: The WJ Cognitive and WJ Achievement Tests, sometimes combined with the oral language test, assist in diagnosing learning disabilities, cognitive disorders, and developmental delays. Thus, they are often used in comprehensive psychological and neuropsychological evaluations.
- Vocational Assessment: The Woodcock-Johnson Tests help assess abilities relevant to job performance and career planning.
Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test
The Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test is a comprehensive set of assessments designed to measure academic skills across a variety of domains. It is widely used in educational settings to evaluate students’ academic performance and identify strengths and weaknesses. Here’s an overview of the WJ Achievement Test:
Domains Assessed by the WJ Achievement Test:
- Reading:
- Letter-Word Identification: Assesses the ability to identify and read individual letters and words.
- Reading Fluency: Measures the ability to read sentences quickly and accurately.
- Passage Comprehension: Evaluates the ability to understand and interpret written passages.
- Word Attack: Assesses the ability to decode unfamiliar words using phonetic and structural analysis.
- Mathematics:
- Calculation: Measures the ability to perform mathematical computations.
- Math Fluency: Assesses the speed and accuracy of performing basic math operations.
- Applied Problems: Evaluates problem-solving skills using mathematical concepts in practical situations.
- Written Language:
- Spelling: Assesses the ability to spell individual words correctly.
- Writing Samples: Measures the ability to produce written language in response to specific prompts.
- Sentence Writing Fluency: Evaluates the ability to construct and write sentences quickly and accurately.
- Academic Knowledge:
- Science: Assesses knowledge of scientific concepts and facts.
- Social Studies: Measures understanding of social studies concepts and information.
- Humanities: Evaluates knowledge in literature, music, and art.
Key Features of the Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test:
- Broad and Narrow Abilities: The WJ Achievement assesses both broad academic domains and specific skills within those domains.
- Age Range: Suitable for individuals aged 2 to 90+, allowing for assessment across the lifespan.
- Standardized Scores: Provides standard scores, percentile ranks, and age/grade equivalents for easy interpretation of results.
- Flexible Administration: Tests can be administered individually or in combination, based on the assessment needs.
Uses of the WJ Achievement Test
- Educational Diagnosis and Planning:
- Identifies specific academic strengths and weaknesses.
- Helps diagnose learning disabilities and other academic difficulties.
- Informs the development of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and targeted interventions.
- Progress Monitoring:
- Tracks academic progress over time.
- Evaluates the effectiveness of educational interventions and instructional strategies.
- Gifted and Talented Identification:
- Identifies students who may benefit from advanced or enriched educational programs.
- Research:
- Used in educational and psychological research to study various aspects of academic achievement and learning.
Woodcock-Johnson Tests Example: Achievement
This example concerns a fictional 12-year-old student, Emma, who has been experiencing difficulties in reading and math. We administer the WJ Achievement Test to assess Emma’s academic skills.
- Reading: The results of her Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test show that Emma performs well in letter-word identification and word attack but has significant difficulties with reading fluency and passage comprehension. This indicates she can decode words but struggles with reading quickly and understanding text, suggesting a need for interventions focused on reading comprehension strategies and fluency practice.
- Mathematics: The WJ Achievement Test assessment reveals that Emma has strong calculation skills but struggles with applied problems. This indicates that she can perform computations but has difficulty applying math concepts to solve real-world problems. This suggests a need for interventions that focus on problem-solving and practical applications of math skills.
- Written Language: Emma’s spelling performance is average, but her writing samples and sentence fluency are below grade level, indicating she needs support in developing her written expression skills.
The detailed profile provided by the Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test helps us develop a targeted educational plan for Emma, addressing her specific areas of need and supporting her overall academic development.
Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive
The Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive is a comprehensive battery designed to assess intellectual functioning in individuals aged 2 to 90+. It provides a detailed profile of cognitive strengths and weaknesses, which can be used for various purposes, including educational planning, clinical diagnosis, and research.
Key Features of the WJ Cognitive:
- Broad Range of Abilities: The WJ Cognitive measures a wide range of cognitive abilities, including broad and narrow intellectual skills.
- Age Range: Suitable for individuals aged 2 to 90+, allowing for assessment across the lifespan.
- Standardized Scores: The Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test provides standard scores, percentile ranks, and age/grade equivalents for easy interpretation of results.
- Flexible Administration: The assessment can be administered individually or in combination, depending on the assessment needs.
Key WJ Cognitive Clusters and Subtests:
1. General Intellectual Ability (GIA)
- GIA Standard: This central score of the Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive Test is a comprehensive measure of overall cognitive ability, typically derived from a subset of core tests.
2. Broad Cognitive Abilities
- Comprehension-Knowledge (Gc): Measures verbal ability, general knowledge, and crystallized intelligence.
- Includes Oral Vocabulary, General Information
- Fluid Reasoning (Gf): Assesses the ability to solve novel problems and think logically.
- Includes Number Series, Concept Formation
- Short-Term Working Memory (Gwm): Evaluates the ability to hold and manipulate information in short-term memory.
- Includes Verbal Attention, Numbers Reversed
- Cognitive Processing Speed (Gs): Measures the speed at which cognitive tasks are performed.
- Includes Letter-Pattern Matching, Pair Cancellation
- Auditory Processing (Ga): Assesses the ability to analyze and synthesize auditory stimuli.
- Includes Phonological Processing, Nonword Repetition
- Long-Term Retrieval (Glr): Evaluates the ability to store and retrieve information over time.
- Includes Story Recall, Visual-Auditory Learning
- Visual Processing (Gv): Measures the ability to analyze and synthesize visual stimuli.
- Includes Visualization, Picture Recognition
3. Narrow Abilities
- Quantitative Knowledge (Gq): Assesses mathematical reasoning and knowledge.
- Reading-Writing (Grw): Measures reading and writing skills.
- Decision Speed (Gs): Evaluates the speed of making decisions based on simple visual stimuli.
- General Speediness (Gs): Measures overall speed of processing and completing tasks.
Uses of the Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive
- Educational Diagnosis and Planning:
- The WJ Cognitive identifies cognitive strengths and weaknesses that may impact learning.
- Informs the development of Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) and targeted interventions.
- Clinical Diagnosis:
- Helps diagnose cognitive impairments, learning disabilities, and other psychological conditions.
- Provides a detailed cognitive profile for neuropsychological evaluations.
- Research:
- The WJ Cognitive is used in educational and psychological research to study cognitive functioning and its relationship to academic performance and other outcomes.
- Vocational Assessment:
- Assesses cognitive abilities relevant to job performance and career planning.
Woodcock-Johnson Tests Example: Cognitive
This example is a fictitious 15-year-old student, John, who has been experiencing difficulties in school, particularly with problem-solving and math. We administer the Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive to evaluate John’s profile.
- Fluid Reasoning (Gf): The results indicate that John has difficulties with fluid reasoning, as evidenced by lower scores on Number Series and Concept Formation. This suggests that John may struggle with tasks requiring logical thinking and problem-solving.
- Short-Term Working Memory (Gwm): John scores below average in short-term working memory, particularly in Numbers Reversed, indicating challenges with holding and manipulating information in his mind.
- Cognitive Processing Speed (Gs): John’s processing speed is also below average, as shown by his performance on Letter-Pattern Matching and Pair Cancellation. This suggests that he may take longer to complete cognitive tasks, which could impact his academic performance.
- Comprehension-Knowledge (Gc): On the other hand, John’s comprehension-knowledge is above average, as evidenced by high scores on Oral Vocabulary and General Information, indicating strong verbal abilities and general knowledge.
Based on this detailed Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive profile, we can develop targeted interventions to support John’s learning. These include strategies to improve problem-solving skills, working memory exercises, and accommodations to allow extra task completion time. This comprehensive assessment with the Woodcock-Johnson Cognitive helps ensure that John’s educational plan is tailored to his strengths and weaknesses.
Our Use of the WJ Cognitive, Achievement, and Oral Language Tests
The above examples should give you a good idea of how we use the Woodcock-Johnson Tests. While each one covered a battery that only included one test, we can aslo use both the Woodcock-Johnson Achievement Test and the cognitive side to test for specific learning differences and Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. They are a core part of our educational assessments including preschool evaluations.
We would be happy to discuss how the Woodcock-Johnson Tests would benefit you or your child. Please feel free to contact us or schedule a consultation anytime.
