Referrals may originate with a teacher, a parent, a counselor, an administrator, the student himself/herself or a student peer.
Since giftedness can develop in many different areas, it is difficult to assess through any single method or instrument. Each student that has been nominated will be assessed through the use of both subjective and objective criteria. This criterion will include at least three of the following evaluation tools: teacher inventory, parent inventory, student portfolios, and various assessments specifically created to evaluate intellect, creativity, and academic ability.
Students who speak a primary language other than English may be evaluated in their primary language. Before a student may be assessed, there must be a parent permission for assessment signed by parent or guardian.
February: Collect nominations
March: Gather data, permission to test, and testing
April: Recording of data
May: Determine eligibility (campus committee meetings), mail notification letters to parents
December: Collect Nominations
January: Gather data, permission to test, and testing
February: Recording of data
March: Determine eligibility (campus committee meetings), mail notification letters to parents
March 1: Services begin
Referral made: The referral information is given to the school counselor. The school counselor will then send a "parental permission for assessment and placement" letter to the student's parents.
The school counselor will send a parent and teacher checklist for each student nominated.
Testing scheduled: Approximately 3-5 hours of testing will be scheduled over a reasonable amount of time (2-3 weeks). The school counselor and teacher will set up these times.
Testing done: The school counselor or GT coordinator completes the testing within a reasonable amount of time. Consideration is to be given to each child's age, attention span, and maturation.
The school counselor fills out a Student Matrix with the subjective and objective data.
The Student Profile goes through a campus level selection committee. The committee is composed of the campus principal, school counselor, GT coordinator, and campus teachers. These members all have training in the Nature and Needs of the Gifted Learner.
A letter is sent to parents with notification of the committee's placement decision. Parents are invited to call for a conference to discuss or appeal the decision that has been made.