Program Goals

The goals of the Floresville ISD program for gifted and talented students are to:

·         Identify students K - 12 to participate in the gifted and talented education program from all population groups including students who speak a language other than English, migrant students, and students with disabilities

·         Develop an appropriate curriculum of study and an array of opportunities to meet the intended program goals for the gifted and talented students

·         Provide school staff at each campus with the knowledge and skills necessary to provide services for the gifted and talented students

·         Develop communication, participation and support among parents and community members and the gifted and talented educational program

·         Develop and implement evaluation procedures for effective programming and for program continuation and improvement

·         Vertically align program options so that GT students experience continuity through the grade levels

I. Student Assessment

            The Floresville ISD identifies students who perform at a remarkably high level of accomplishment when compared to others of the same age, experience, or environment in the intellectual areas. The process of identification consists of three steps:  nomination, assessment, and selection.  Once a student is nominated and assessed, he/she is referred to the GT committee, composed of a campus level administrator, regular teachers and/or gifted/talented teachers, counselor(s), and a district level administrator who have at least six hours of training in the nature and needs of gifted and talented students and program options.  The committee considers whether the population of the GT program represents the diverse population of Floresville ISD.

            Step 1:  Nomination Procedures

·         All Floresville ISD students will be considered annually for nomination to the GT education program. Nomination may be made by teachers, counselors, administrators, parents, the student and/or other community members.  Nomination forms may be obtained by contacting the appropriate campus office. Parents and the community are informed of the nomination process by sending notices home with all students and with an article in the local newspapers.

            Step 2:  Assessment Procedures

·         The campus administrator designates a staff member to complete the assessment process.

·         Parental permission for testing must be received before assessing a student for the GT program.

·         The assessment instruments utilized at each campus vary by level due to the tests having different forms. All campuses assess students for GT in the following areas:

o   Achievement tests in the core academic areas of Language Arts and Mathematics

o   Ability (Verbal, Quantitative, and Non-verbal)

o   Teacher checklist

            Step 3: Selection Procedures

            The assessment information is entered on an identification matrix. The selection of students for the GT Program is based upon achievement test scores, ability tests scores, teacher rating scale, parent information and anecdotal information.  Parents and students will be notified of the selection results and the parent must return a permission form to allow the selected student to participate in the GT program.

Identification Timeline

                Students are identified annually for the GT program during the second semester of each school year. Because Kindergarten students must be identified and served by March 1, the Early Childhood campus initiates the identification process earlier in the year. 

Participation Criteria

            Students must maintain academic, behavioral and performance standards outlined by FISD.

            Transfer Procedures

                When a student identified as GT by a prior school district transfers into FISD, the student will be tested to determine if placement in the Floresville ISD GT program is appropriate. The student must meet FISD selection criteria in order to be identified. The GT committee will meet and make a determination within 30 school days of the student’s enrollment in the Floresville ISD.

            Exit Procedures

            The campus GT committee makes the final decision regarding the exiting of students from the program because of educational, psychological and/or personal reasons after consultation with both the student and the parent(s). Such exit procedure decisions may be based on the following information:

·         Teacher recommendations based on observations of student behavior, performance and products

·         Counselor recommendations based on interview(s) and observations

·         Student academic performance

·         Parental request for withdrawal from the GT program

o   The parent of the GT student may request that his/her child be withdrawn from the program at any time, and the child will be withdrawn.

·         Students request for withdrawal from the GT program

o   Students under 18 must request for withdrawal from the GT program or services with parental permission.

            A student who is exited from the GT program may not be considered for re-entry into the GT program until the following nomination process, and the student must go through the GT identification procedures again.

          Appeal Procedures

            The appeal procedure consists of the following steps:

·            A parent may appeal an identification decision by filing an appeals form provided by the district with the appropriate campus administrator no later than 15 days after the GT committee has announced its identification.

·            The campus administrator considers the appeal and holds a conference with the parent no later than 10 days after receipt of the appeal.  The administrator shall have 10 days following the conference to provide the parent a written response. 

·            If the parent did not receive the relief requested at Level One, the parent must follow the district’s local policy governing appeals described in Floresville ISD policy FNG (Local) beginning at Level Two.

            Furlough Procedures

            An identified GT student may be granted a furlough from the GT program for up to one year.  Reasons may include things such as:  personal or family illness, death in the family, the student being elected to a statewide office that requires a demanding schedule, an opportunity to study abroad, or the student being unable to maintain satisfactory performance.  Appropriate staff designated by the campus administrator will contact and/or meet with the parents to consider the furlough.

II. Program Design

            GT students are served with instructional patterns that enable gifted and talented students to work together as a group, to work with other students, and to work independently.  Specially trained gifted and talented teachers will serve the students.   The GT program instructional prototypes support the unique learning needs of gifted students and include:

·         Enrichment experiences that expand, supplant, and/or extend learning

·         Grouping strategies by which students are brought together to provide the student with appropriately different learning opportunities

·         Acceleration activities which promote learning beyond the regularly prescribed grade level curriculum by varying the pace of instruction in course content and/or in process

·         Guidance in planned, directed experiences that promotes understanding of the self in relationships with others

      Services are provided in the following arrangements.

Campus Implementation

            Acceleration through Credit-by-Exam

            Any student may receive credit for a course or grade level based on Floresville ISD procedures for credit-by-exam.  Students and parents are notified of test dates in student campus handbooks.  Parents and/or students must request the exam(s).  Students may accelerate out of a course or grade level by taking exams according to district policy. (see EEJA, EEJB in Appendices).

III. Curriculum and Instruction

            The curriculum and instruction for the Floresville ISD GT program is based on a continuum of learning experiences that leads toward the development of advanced level products, as well as advanced level thinking skills.

            Characteristics

            The purpose of the Floresville ISD Gifted and Talented program is to provide services specifically designed for gifted students to demonstrate skills in self-directed learning, thinking, research, and communications as evidenced by the development of innovative products and performances. These products and performances are advanced in relation to students of similar age, experience, or environment, and reflect individuality and creativity.

            Some characteristics of the GT curriculum may include:

·         Focusing on the student’s abilities and interests

·         Differentiating from the regular curriculum in both content and opportunities

·         Stressing advanced higher level thinking skills (application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation) creative thinking, and problem solving skills

·         Utilizing materials, resource personnel, and field trips in a much more in-depth manner

·         Introducing content beyond prescribed curriculum and encouraging independent study

·         Providing the GT student with a diverse and advanced education resulting in achievements or meaningful end-products.

IV. Staff Development

            Staff development is an important aspect of the GT program. Teachers who are responsible for delivering GT content have 30 hours of training and annual six hour updates. All Pre-Advanced Placement and Advanced Placement teachers will receive College Board training every three years.

Staff development training is provided to inform staff about how to:

• Identify students and their educational needs
• Utilize identification procedures to ensure that the program is accessible to students from diverse populations
• Differentiate learning experiences for the GT students
• Give guidance to meet the needs of GT students
• Supply appropriate materials and activities
• Enhance the general education curriculum

V. Community and Parental Involvement

            The Floresville ISD provides information about the district’s Gifted and Talented education program to all parents and community members.  The district holds annual meetings to provide information on program services.  The GT program is also described in the student handbooks. Parents are given the opportunity annually to provide input on the effectiveness of the program.  Educational programs and/or student products are highlighted throughout the school year.

            Evaluation

            The gifted education program is evaluated annually, and evaluation results are shared with the Floresville ISD board of trustees, campus administrators, teachers, and counselors. The evaluation process includes input from teachers, students, parents and community members.

VI. Legal Requirements

            This Floresville ISD plan is based on the Board Policies and Texas laws, rules, and guidelines for gifted education (see Appendices).

Documentation

            Each campus is responsible for maintaining documentation of GT procedures. The following documents are standardized throughout the district:

·         Identification

·         Parent nomination

·         Teacher nomination

·         Parent information letter

·         Parent permission to assess

·         Teacher letter

·         Matrix with signatures and date of committee meeting

·         Parent notification letter

·         Parent permission to participate

·         Appeals

·         Notification of exit

·         Furlough

·         Program evaluation

·         Program information disseminated to parents and community

            For each student selected for the Floresville GT program the campus is expected to maintain a purple folder in the cumulative folder. The purple folder must contain:

·         Parent permission to assess

·         Matrix with student scores listed and committee signatures

·         Parent permission to be in the program (if student is selected)

·         Other documents listed under the documentation section above (if applicable)

Document Retention

            Each campus will maintain nominations, assessment information, and any other documents pertaining to the identification procedure in the student permanent folder. These documents are subject to an Office of Civil Rights complaint. We assure that we have provided opportunities for students from diverse populations to be fairly and equitably nominated, assessed, and considered by the selection committee by retaining the records for those not selected for the GT program.  The documents for students not selected should be stapled together with a purple cover denoting that the documents are from assessment for GT.

PEIMS Coding

            When a student is selected, and permission has been obtained from parents for the student to participate, the student is coded in PEIMS as a GT student. This coding will roll forward from year to year because once the student is considered to be gifted, he/she remains gifted throughout his/her school career. GT students may only be exited under the circumstances described in the section entitled “Exit Procedures”.

            According to the Student Attendance Accounting Handbook disseminated by the Texas Education Agency, the gifted and talented indicator code reflects the student’s participation in the gifted and talented program for each nine-week reporting period.

            According to the Student Attendance Accounting Handbook, the gifted and talented indicator code is removed from PEIMS on the effective date of exit if:

• The student withdraws from the district
• The district decides the student must be withdrawn from the program according to the local board approved exit policy, or
• The parent requests that the student no longer be served in the program

 Appendices

Appendix A   FISD Board Policy Online

http://www.tasb.org/policy/pol/private/247901/

DMA (Legal) Professional Development: Required Staff Development

EEJA (Legal and Local) Credit by Examination with Prior Instruction

EEJB (Legal and Local) Credit by Examination without Prior Instruction

EHBB (Legal and Local) Special Programs: Gifted and Talented Students

FNG (Legal and Local) Student Rights and Responsibilities: Student and Parent Complaints/Grievances

Appendix B     Texas Laws

Texas Administrative Code (TAC) §74.24: Other Provisions-Credit by Examination

http://info.sos.state.tx.us/pls/pub/readtac$ext.TacPage?sl=R&app=9&p_dir=&p_rloc=&p_tloc=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_tac=&ti=19&pt=2&ch=74&rl=24

TAC §89, Subchapter A: Gifted and Talented Education

http://info.sos.state.tx.us/pls/pub/readtac$ext.ViewTAC?tac_view=5&ti=19&pt=2&ch=89&sch=A&rl=Y

Texas Education Code (TEC) §29.121 Educational Programs: Statewide Plan

(TEC) §29.123 Educational Programs: State Plan Assistance

http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/docs/ED/content/htm/ed.002.00.000029.00.htm#29.121.00

TEC §42.156: Gifted and Talented Allotment

http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/docs/ED/content/htm/ed.002.00.000042.00.htm#42.156.00

Appendix C   Texas State Plan for the Education of Gifted/Talented Students

http://www.tea.state.tx.us/gted/GTStatePlanEnglishAug05.pdf

http://www.tea.state.tx.us/gted/GTStatePlanSpanishAug05.pdf

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