Gifted Identification and Placement Process (Revised AUgust 2017)
Students can enter the gifted identification and placement process in one of three ways:
Teacher recommendation: Teachers contact [email protected] and Marc will contact parents.
Parent recommendation: Contact [email protected] for a parent recommendation and permission form.
Other data: State and district-level assessments can be an indicator of giftedness. Marc will contact parents of students identified using this data.
Parent recommendation and permission forms will be made available electronically.
To qualify for the Pioneers program, a student must qualify with all three of the following criteria. All testing must be completed by district personnel.
1. Creativity, reasoning, and problem solving: NNAT3 assessment. A score in the 90th percentile is required to qualify for the gifted program. (Alternate assessment: SAGES, 90th percentile.)
2. General mental ability: WISC-V assessment. A full scale IQ score of 125 or higher is required to qualify for the gifted program. General Ability Index (GAI) of 125 or above may be used in place of the full scale IQ.
3. Documented evidence of exceptional performance. Evidence includes the following tools: NWEA assessment (either Math OR Reading at the 84th percentile or above), MAP test scores (Advanced in one area), or data compiled from a teacher survey.
Teacher recommendation: Teachers contact [email protected] and Marc will contact parents.
Parent recommendation: Contact [email protected] for a parent recommendation and permission form.
Other data: State and district-level assessments can be an indicator of giftedness. Marc will contact parents of students identified using this data.
Parent recommendation and permission forms will be made available electronically.
To qualify for the Pioneers program, a student must qualify with all three of the following criteria. All testing must be completed by district personnel.
1. Creativity, reasoning, and problem solving: NNAT3 assessment. A score in the 90th percentile is required to qualify for the gifted program. (Alternate assessment: SAGES, 90th percentile.)
2. General mental ability: WISC-V assessment. A full scale IQ score of 125 or higher is required to qualify for the gifted program. General Ability Index (GAI) of 125 or above may be used in place of the full scale IQ.
3. Documented evidence of exceptional performance. Evidence includes the following tools: NWEA assessment (either Math OR Reading at the 84th percentile or above), MAP test scores (Advanced in one area), or data compiled from a teacher survey.
Gifted Referral and Professional Responsibility
A referral for the gifted program immediately place anticipation and impressions into the minds of parents and students. It has been our experience that it is best that the children do not know about this nomination. Please take this responsibility with care, and as a serious professional responsibility which will have a profound effect on the life of a child and his/her family.
As you are considering nomination for testing for the gifted program some of the important considerations that you need to keep in mind include:
1. Your referral is an indication and responsibility of your professional observation and awareness of special gifted traits of a child in your room. Simply because the child is a good student and enjoys academic pursuits that alone is not necessarily a “gifted trait” and should not be considered as such in itself.
2. You should only refer those students in whom you see gifted traits. (The Duke Talent Identification Program has compiled an extensive list. You can find it here.)
3. Referring all children who enjoy school and get high marks is misleading to the children and the parents.
4. Parents of intelligent children are usually very aware of that fact, and if they are asked if they think their child is “gifted” they will almost always say yes. Be careful in using the term “gifted” in describing children to others before they are evaluated.
5. Parents are often disappointed and sometimes frustrated when this term has been used and their child does not qualify for the program.
6. The testing process is lengthy and time consuming. Policy only permits a child to be tested once per school year for this reason.
7. It is very disappointing to a child if he/she does not “make” it in the program. Bright children are very sensitive and often feel that they are not “smart” if they don’t meet the guidelines.
If a parent asks... what they should tell their child about referral or evaluation, it has been our experience that it is better for the child to simply tell them that they have done very well in school and on their testing. Because they have been very successful, they have been selected to have further evaluation and they will be participating in some special activities with the school counselor to see just how much they know and can do. These will be fun activities and they do not need to study or prepare for it.