this book was so interesting and taught me a lot more about IQ testing and the history behind it! as a future educator and recently having taken a special education course in which I was introduced to the topic, this was such a relevant topic which made me super excited to pick this up. the structure of this book was nice, weaving together the author's personal experiences and lots of research. the story provides an excellent look at the history of IQ testing, the effect it has on individuals, and the various inequities and discrimination that have come about as a result. the only minor note I had was that the pacing seemed a bit off at times and I had to get reengaged to pay attention but overall this was a very interesting and informative read!

Information: B+
Writing: A-
Narration: B+
Best Aspect: Material about IQ and IEP’s that I rarely see in books.
Worst Aspect: Little dull and long at times.
Recommend: Yes

It’s so very rare for me to pick up a non fic book by choice, let alone an educational one 🤣 But given that I’ve just started my Ed grad program, this seemed like a great resource.

I found the audibook to be so engaging and I looked forward to my mornings where I could listen to this. I’m still fairly new to the education field and this year I have a few students with IEPs (different from Louisa’s, but still very informational). I feel like in classes we learn a lot about the history of the education system as well as the testing process, but through the admin or school’s POV. Very rarely do we have the mother’s thoughts. Stetler’s approach was clearly personal and very heartfelt and opened my eyes up to ways to at our past testing norms can hinder or hold back certain students. I took many notes while listening and can already see its relevance in my classroom after just a few weeks of school starting.

Highly recommend! Thank you NetGalley for letting me listen to this one.

As a special educator and someone who underwent IQ testing last year as part of my own evaluation for ADHD, this book really interested me. I mostly agreed with the conclusions the author draws, though some of her assumptions about the education system did draw me to mentally correct her. It’s true that our system is not amazing, and it’s true that we should not be segregating students the way we often do. I certainly agree with that. But I know the professionals I have worked with often collaborate to support their students, and not just at the annual IEP. I also get her idea of things being less specialized and more holistic, but the reality is, most of our providers and educators are already responsible for too much.

I really appreciated the author’s deep ambivalence about her own attitudes toward success and academic achievement. It is the kind of thing I think many of us would learn at a younger age, to appreciate all different forms of success, if our education system was more inclusive. I also appreciated her research into IQ testing - as with many things, including medical devices, IQ tests were designed with white, typically developing children in mind, and no one seems to care to make a version for anyone else. I know for myself because my students often do not have super reliable communication when they are tested for their triennial IEP, their scores are always interpreted with a huge degree of caution.

The biggest takeaway for me was that thinking about the interaction between an individual’s current skills and their environment is the best place to start when considering the supports they require and should receive. I have seen many people develop skills that are able to support them in using public transportation, activities of self-care, and in their vocations, and I never really have any idea what my students’ IQ scores are. Like the author, I don’t feel that a number can determine anyone’s potential.

I did not really care for the narrator too much. Her voice was a little cold and judgy to me.

Overall I really liked the book and feel like non-educators as well as educators would find it thought-provoking!

Huge thank you to Netgalley, Tantor Audio, and the author for an advanced copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

As soon as I saw the title, I knew I had to read this book. I work in the disability care industry, and I'm always looking for stories that resonate with my experience and that offer a different viewpoint. This one hit all the notes for me.

A Measure of Intelligence illuminates a part of the industry that is inherently infuriating for me as a provider. In order to qualify for services ("services" could mean a wide range of things--in my line of work it's housing, staffing, etc.; the author gives us a perspective of resources available in the school system), individuals must have a diagnosis of a disability prior to the age of 22. This usually means a Full Scale IQ (FSIQ). I've seen this become a barrier for individuals who need service but cannot receive the funding that they need.

The IQ is such an important, foundational test to how systems decide who needs help and what kind of help they qualify for (with some other markers too, but IQ is foundational). Stetler highlights why using an IQ test to determine service need is flawed. The system is doing the best it can with what is built already, but we can do better.

If you don't have any experience with intellectual disability, I think this would be a fascinating look into a world that might surprise you. Stetler shares about IQ tests, questioning if what they measure actually translates to real, lived experiences; she also questions how the IQ tests were built and normed, and what they represent to a person taking it (both sides of the spectrum, gifted and deficits). I particularly enjoyed hearing from a parent's point of view; her daughter is lucky that her parents are involved and knowledgeable about this system, as so many are not and lose out on necessary services.

I want everyone to read this book, if for no other reason than to look at the system in place and begin questioning if we are truly serving our most vulnerable children/adults in a way that honors their strengths and their needs. 5 stars, no notes.

I listened to the audiobook. The person who read it had a good voice to listen too and was able to keep me engaged.

I wasn’t sure what to expect when I first started this book. My children do not have an extra chromosome, but they do have IEPs in school. I had no idea that their IQ could potentially be a detractor when it comes to the services they are able to access, despite what they are actually needing. The fear a special needs parent might feel when their child needs more services than allowed due to them having a higher IQ is palpable.

So far we haven’t experienced this, but it’s so good to know and take into account as we continue to grow with children who have iEPs.

The only reason I gave it 4 stars over 5 is because it had some repetitiveness. I know things were state multiple times in similar ways to make sure the context was understood. However, I think the author could have done without.

I learned so much through this book! Woven through her and her daughter's story, Pepper gives us a great overview of how intelligence tests came about. The biases, discrimination, and inequality that has always been part of it. She also gives us a great glimpse of how it affects people to this day. Our society puts people's worth based on what is deemed intelligent. But intelligence is so much more than what middle class white cis people consider intelligence. She exposes the intersection of intelligence with immigrants, neuro-divergence, poor, lack of support, etc

I'm very glad I picked up this book and gave it a listen!

As other reviews have pointed out, this was much more non-fiction than memoir - to the book's benefit. I don't think I would have enjoyed this had it truly been a memoir.

It's been a while since I've learned this much from a single book. The light Pepper Stetler sheds on IQ testing, education of those with different learning abilities and the countless dualities the parents of said kids are subject to.

My hope is that Pepper's care and effort do not go unnoticed, and change is enacted thanks to the light she's shed on the problem. But even if that doesn't happen on a large scale, each reader will take something away from this book. She's certainly lit enough of a fire under me. Unless it's to discredit them, I wouldn't want to be the next person to bring up IQ scores around me.

{Thank you bunches to NetGalley, Pepper Stetler and publisher for the ALC in exchange for my honest review!}