Faculty Development Training
Series 3 - Gifted and Talented Education Service
Purpose
Although talented individual is not under IDEA, these students are a special group of students who also have unique needs and service. Teachers and schools would need to identify those students, cultivate their unique ability and provide appropriate learning opportunities to meet students’ needs.
Goal
“To identify students with high potential and exceptional performance and to develop challenges that match their strengths and needs (“Department of Defense Education Activity”, n.d.)”
What is “Gifted and Talented Learner”
Definition
“Children and youth with outstanding talent perform or show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared with others their age, experience, or environment.” (“NSGT”, 2015)
Key characteristics to help identify gifted and talented students
Intellectually gifted (“Department of Defense Education Activity”, n.d.)
Those learners often exhibit most of characteristics shown as below
Maturity in judgment
Rapid learning, early reading, avid reading
Extensive stores of information
Strong problem-solving abilities
Long attention span
Easy with puzzles and mazes
Highly sensitivity
High degree of energy
Wide range of interests
They are often perfectionist and idealistic.
They often think abstractly and with complexity.
Creative and talented
Those learners often excel in the visual or performing arts, they are independent, curious, aware of creativeness, original, risk taking, attracted to complexity, artistic, open-minded, intuitive and has well-developed sense of humor (Mastropieri and Scruggs, 2000).
Approaches of identification (“Department of Defense Education Activity”, n.d.)
Referral
1. Screening – Terra Nova test scores is used to find likely candidates for gifted program services. A student whose total score on the Terra Nova achievement test or another nationally normed achievement test is at or above the 97th percentile should be considered for referral.
2. Nomination methods - Nomination forms are
provided to teachers, parents and students who
could detail the reasons for nominating a student for
the gifted program.
3. Transfer Records - Students whose records from
other schools before transferring should be
considered. Students who have been receiving
gifted education services shall be automatically
eligible for the service.
Additional tests and other measurements
The InView Cognitive Abilities Test and the Naglieri Nonverbal Abilities Test (NNAT) may be administered on a case-by-case basis and used as part of the data collection of student profile development. Other measures such as rating scales, anecdotal information, observations, performance assessments and tests of achievement could be included to support the assessment process.
Gifted program services for gifted and talented learners (“Department of Defense Education Activity”, n.d.)
"Least Restrictive Environment" (LRE) options such as separating classroom, adapted tasks, modified assignments and differentiated instructions would all be included.
Regular classroom with differentiation of instruction
The gifted education resource teacher collaborates with the regular classroom teacher to implement differentiated instructions.
Regular Classroom with Cluster Grouping and Differentiation
Within the regular classroom, the teacher groups identified students together and provides additional and expanded content or challenges aligned with curriculum standards.
Regular Classroom with Grade Acceleration of Specific Content
The gifted education resource teacher assists both teachers and students with the appropriate arrangement.
Resource Sessions outside the Classroom
The student receives advanced classes from the gifted resource teacher during the regular scheduled time.
Grade Acceleration
The student is advanced to the next grade level in the grade-advanced classroom.
Individualized Services
Including mentorships, independent study, individual guidance and counseling.
Additional Opportunities
Providing information to facilitate identified students in activities that offer challenges beyond the standard instructional program. Activities may include the following:• Academic contests/competitions • Seminars • E-learning • Special events and opportunities • Interest groups and clubs • Study groups • Leadership activities
Accommodations
Accommodations such as adapted instructions, enrichment settings/activities and evaluation procedures are mostly included in school services for the identified students to meet their exceptional needs and to ensure their success. Other accommodation such as acceleration which allows students to skip grades, register the school early or receive appropriate grade level of curriculum. For instance, in acceleration, universities may allow gifted students to enroll in college level courses when the prerequisite is met (Mastropieri & Scruggs, 2000).
Basic identification procedure
---> REFERAL
•-through nomination, screening and transfered record
---------> ASSESSMENT
•-multiple measures may include: grades, portoflios, individual IQ tes, criterion-reference tests, etc.
--------------> ELIGIBILITY
•-Committee members review, monitor and make a decision on eligibility for each student.
Reference
Department of Defense Education Activity. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.dodea.edu/Curriculum/giftedEduc/
NSGT. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.nsgt.org/giftedness-defined/
Mastropieri, M., & Scruggs, T. (2000). The inclusive classroom, strategies for effective instruction . New Jersey, NJ: Prentice-Hall.