SBISD Elementary G/T Screening

1
(No Transcript)
2
SBISD Elementary G/T Screening

• Grades Kindergarten - 5
• Fall Identification on All Campuses
• Created by Karen M. Fitzgerald, G/T Specialist

3
Core Beliefs

• We believe there are gifted and talented
  individuals in every ethnic population and
  socioeconomic group in our school district.
• We believe there are methods of identifying our
  under-represented populations that need to be
  explored and piloted.
• We believe that by identifying and serving our
  gifted and talented students early, we help pave
  the road to academic success for them in middle
  school, high school, and college.

4
G/T Education in Texas

• Subchapter D. Educational Programs for Gifted
  and Talented Students
• Section 29.121. DEFINITION. In this subchapter,
  gifted and talented student means a child or
  youth who performs at or shows the potential for
  performing at a remarkably high level of
  accomplishment when compared to others of the
  same age, experience or environment and who
• (1) exhibits high performance capability in an
  
• intellectual, creative, or artistic
  area
• (2) possesses an unusual capacity for
  leadership or
• (3) excels in a specific academic field.

5
Who Are The Gifted?

• They are intellectually curious,
  innovative, and playful with ideas.
• They enjoy the challenge and involvement
  of intellectual and creative tasks.
• They prefer complex tasks and process information
  in complex ways.
• They generate many ideas and multiple solutions
  to problems.

6
Who Are The Gifted?

• They seek out challenge.
• They develop basic learning
  skills earlier.
• They have a keen and sometimes unique sense of
  humor.
• Frequently they are single-minded in pursuit of
  that which captures their interest and are
  sometimes difficult to redirect into other
  activities.

7
Bright Child vs. Gifted Learner

• Asks the questions
• Beyond the group
• Prefers adults
• Enjoys learning
• Is intense
• Already knows
• 1-2 repetitions for mastery

• Knows the answers
• Top group
• Enjoys peers
• Enjoys school
• Is receptive
• Learns with ease
• 6-8 repetitions for mastery

8
How Do We Find Them?

• Nomination by teacher or parent
• Cognitive abilities tests are given.
• Teacher surveys are completed.
• Parent surveys are completed.
• Small portfolio of work samples is gathered by
  teacher and/or parent.
• A matrix of the G/T information is completed with
  both objective and subjective data.

9
How Do We Find Them?

• Test scores for children may fluctuate according
  to such varied factors as
• Fatigue
• Emotional State
• Test motivation
• Richness of living environment
• Agethe younger the child, the more difficult it
  can be to get a reliable test score.
  

10
G/T Committee Meetings

• G/T committees meet on each
  elementary campus.
• G/T trained educators select
  top candidates.
• G/T Committee decides Does this child need
  services that the schools dont normally
  provide?
• Students with highest scores, both objective and
  subjective, are top candidates for G/T services.
• There are no quotas.

11
How Do We Serve Them?

• First, we need to formally
  identify them for a
  General Intellectual Ability
  (GIA) program.
• Next, we provide a nurturing
  and challenging
  environment within the
  elementary classroom setting.
• Our advanced curriculum reflects the best
  practices in G/T education.
• We strive to serve a representative G/T
  population within SBISD.

12
How Do We Serve Them?

• G/T students in grades K-5 are cluster-grouped in
  a classroom with a G/T trained teacher.
• G/T students in grades 3, 4, and 5, attend
  enrichment classes at Bendwood SPIRAL one day
  each week.
• Some Primary Gifted Program (PGP) students
  participating in our pilot have a campus pull-out
  program for K-2.
• Other PGP students receive G/T instruction in the
  regular classroom with a G/T teacher.

13
Cluster Grouping

• Purpose
• Provide for nurturing, challenging environment
  every day for G/T students
• Meet special needs of G/T student
• Meet TEA requirements-placement with G/T
  certified teacher
• Enhance home campus program

Note We found extensive support for this in best
practices research, literature, and from our
experts
14
Cluster Grouping

• Guidelines
• 5-8 G/T students in same classroom
• Recognize and provide for variations in student
  abilities
• G/T certified teacher who works effectively with
  G/T students
• Teacher who will consistently differentiate the
  curriculum
• Presented to SBISD elementary principals with
  excellent response

15
Gifted children come in countless varieties

• Gifted children, due to unique characteristics,
  have needs which must be met by educators,
  parents, and the community.
• Gifted children will not make it on their own.

16
How do I nominate a child?

• Talk to the childs teacher about what he or she
  is seeing in the classroom that might indicate
  giftedness in your child.
• Contact the counselor by phone or email to make a
  referral before the deadline.
• Begin to gather a small portfolio of work samples
  which demonstrate academic performance above
  grade level.

17
What the teacher will do

• May nominate a few students
  for G/T screening
• Completes teacher survey for nominated candidates
  in his or her classroom
• May suggest portfolio items to include
• Conferences with parent regarding gifted
  nomination

18
What the parents will do

• May nominate a child
• Completes the parent survey
• Gathers items for the small
  portfolio of sample
  work
• Conferences with teacher regarding
  characteristics of gifted the teacher sees in the
  child

19
Elementary Counselors

• Your contact for all information about G/T
  screening and identification
• Coordinate all G/T testing on campus
• Gather completed portfolios for nominated
  students
• Distribute and collect teacher and parent surveys
• Chair campus G/T committee to score portfolios,
  choose nominees, and finalize all details of the
  G/T screening process

20
Further Contact Information

• Karen Fitzgerald, G/T District Representative,
  713-365- 4820
  karen.fitzgerald_at_springbranchisd.com
• Helen Wehring, Advanced Academic Services
  Administrative Assistant, 713-365-4820
  helen.wehring_at_springbranchisd.com
• Lynne Luberger, HCE Counselor, 713-365-4930
  lynne.luberger_at_springbranchisd.com
• Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented
  (TAGT), 512-499-8248
• Texas Education Association (TEA), Austin, TX,
  512-463-9581

21
Questions?
22
(No Transcript)