June 17: Jiya Vaducha, an 11 year old girl of Indian origin in UK has been granted the elite membership of Mensa after she secured the highest possible score on a British Mensa test. She scored 162 on the Cattell III B paper and was invited into the membership club of children with high IQ. Mensa membership is open to those individuals who have demonstrated an IQ in the top 2 per cent, either through the society’s own supervised test or on the evidence of a psychologist’s report.
Jiya Vaducha displayed signs of high IQ from an early age, she wishes to pursue her interests in art and music
Jiya’s parents, mother Bijal- an accountant by profession- and father Jignesh run a software consultancy together. Jiya’s mother told the media that her daughter had been displaying characteristics of someone with high intellect since a very early age but they are completely surprised at her score of 162. As parents, they feel that their real task begins now which is to ensure that she gets the right opportunities so that she can realise her full potential.
A PTI report quoted Bijal as she talked about her daughter’s interests, “Being surrounded by accountant, IT consultants and business people in the family, Jiya wants to avoid any profession that ties her in one room. Her ambition is to use her strong academic base in the field of art and music, which she wholeheartedly enjoys.”
The same report includes a statement from John Stevenage, chief executive of the British Mensa wherein he congratulates Jiya on her achievement. “Many congratulations to Jiya for achieving such a good score. I hope she uses her Mensa membership to meet new people and learn new things through our extensive range of events and special interest groups.”
British Mensa has clarified that the tendency to compare such scores with geniuses like Einstein is flawed
British Mensa has, however, also stated that the general trend is to compare such achievements with scientists Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. Such a tendency is flawed because there is no evidence that either genius ever took a similar test. It has been clarified by the organisation that while 162 is the highest score possible on the test, it does not mean it is impossible to be any brighter. It is not a percentage score, but a measurement on a scale. It simply means that the people who devised the test believe that the differences in ability above that level cannot be meaningfully measured by this test.