Because Arkansas Gifted Standards require identification of gifted students, the Harrison School District considers the task of identifying gifted students extremely important. The district also maintains that it is the parent's right to be included in the process and informed of the outcomes which could affect their child. The process for identifying students has several stages. School personnel, teachers, parents, students, and community members are provided with information concerning the identification process, including characteristics of the gifted through newsletters, handbooks, and the district gifted website.
1. Referrals (Nominations): Referrals are accepted from teachers, school personnel, parents, students, and community members. The coordinator can also use the review of student assessment scores to refer students, along with the data retrieved from enrichment. All students will be tested for the program at the end of their second grade year. Although the district might set specific times for initial testing or the requesting of referrals, referrals are encouraged and accepted at all times during the school year (7.09). It will be the responsibility of the gifted coordinator to seek these referrals and begin the identification process in a timely manner. A referral form should be completed on each individual and submitted to the gifted coordinator.
2. Permission: Once the referral form is completed and submitted to the coordinator, the coordinator notifies the parent by letter. At this point, the parent/guardian is asked to sign the permission to assess and collect data (7.08). Permission is requested to collect relevant data, administer various tests, and share pertinent data with a professional placement committee. This permission must be granted before the data collection process can begin.
3. Data Collection: If the parents/guardians sign and return the permission form, then the data collection process begins. As standards require, the use of at least two objective (one of which must assess creativity) and two subjective measures, must be used in the identification process. Data collection includes, but is not limited to current standardized test scores, an ability test, grades, creativity test, data collected through enrichment, and parent and teacher checklists. It is the objective of the school district to ensure that the gifted and talented identification procedures are non-discriminatory with respect to race, culture, economic background, religion, national origin, sex, or handicapping (7.06). The coordinator is responsible for collecting data, overseeing any assessments given, and compiling the results in an orderly fashion to be shared with the placement committee (7.04).
4. Placement Committee: The placement committee of at least five members, chaired and trained by the gifted coordinator and including administrators, teachers, and/or counselors, will review the compiled data collection of the referred student. The list of committee members are kept on file annually (7.03). All current data is used to determine the placement of a child according to the appropriate program options. It is important to note that student placement decisions are based on multiple criteria. No single criterion or cut-off score is used to include or exclude a student from identification (7.05). The placement committee will make professional decisions on the identification and placement of students (7.03).
5. Dissemination of Information: After the decision of the placement committee is made, parents (7.08), teachers, and school personnel are notified of the placement committee results. If placement in the gifted and talented program is recommended, parental permission for participation in the program must be obtained. If placement in the gifted and talented program is not recommended, parents are informed of that decision and provided with contact information for questions or an appeal. Instructionally useful information about individual students obtained during the identification process is communicated to the appropriate instructional staff.
6. Placement Appeals: Parents/Guardians may appeal placement decision through the following process (7.08):
A. Request an initial conference with the GT coordinator regarding the placement decision. Those included in this conference would be the parent/guardian questioning the committee decision and the GT Coordinator.
B. After this informal meeting, if the parent/s still disagrees with the committee decision, then the parent/guardian may submit additional data to the Gifted Coordinator. A meeting with the placement committee will then be scheduled.
C. The Gifted Coordinator will collect any further data that might help in the identification process, including additional testing when possible.
D. A placement committee of at least five professional educators (including some initial committee members and some new committee members) will be formed to review the appeal (7.03). The appeals committee will once again be chaired by the Gifted Coordinator and include the appropriate administrator/s. The parent/guardian making the appeal has the right to provide additional information for the committee, but will not be present as the committee makes the final placement decisions.
E. The decision of the appeals committee must be based on multiple criteria (7.05). The decision of the appeals committee will be communicated in writing to the parent/guardian making the appeal. This decision will be final concerning placement at this time, but the student can be referred again after at least one year of time has passed.
7. Annual Review: Identification of gifted and talented students is an ongoing process extending through grades 12. Each identified student's placement will be reviewed at least annually. If evidence indicates that the GT program is not able to meet the needs of the student, then exit procedures will be followed.
8. Exit Policy: A student with signed parental permission to no longer participate in the program will be allowed to exit the program without committee decision.
Although attention is given to carefully placing students in the program due to evidence that they need qualitatively differentiated educational services, situations may arise when the GT program can no longer meet the needs of the student. As with determining placement in the gifted program, multiple criteria will be used in determining if exiting the program is in the best interest of meeting the student's needs. Exit from the Harrison School District’s Gifted Program may be initiated by a GT specialist, classroom teacher, parent, or student. A recommendation for discontinuation of gifted services should be based upon proper documentation of multiple criteria, which should include multiple subjective and objective sources, that indicates a student would not be best served by continuation in the gifted program.. This data may include: unsatisfactory annual reviews, lack of motivation and/or task commitment in the GT classroom, failure to work to full potential in the regular classroom, an updated creativity assessment or rating from the teacher/specialist, and other information as needed. One factor will not cause a student to be excluded from the program. (7.05)
Before the exit procedure is initiated, a parent conference will be held in an effort to improve student performance. If the student performance continues with no improvement, a GT exit committee will place the student on probation or exit the student from the program. The exit committee will be comprised of at least five members consisting of, but not limited to, a GT specialist, building administrator, counselor, and classroom teachers. The placement committee will review the data and make a decision about what is in the best interest of the student. Written results of the placement committee will be sent to the parent. Parents and/or classroom teachers may appeal the exit decision. Procedures for appeals of placement decisions will then be followed.
9. Transfer students: Transfer students will be evaluated and considered for participation. Records will be requested and the placement committee will determine whether a decision can be made with existing records or if further testing will be needed for all transfers. If further testing is needed, parental permission will be required and the identification procedures will be followed (7.01-7.09). The only exception to this process will be the transfer of previously identified gifted student, due to active military duty. This military-transfer student will be placed immediately upon entering when the records indicate previous identification. (Act 146 - 2013)
10. Record Keeping: The Gifted and Talented Coordinator will keep all records of placement decisions and data on each student nominated and placed in the program. Records are kept for a minimum of five years or for as long as needed for educational decisions. Appropriate confidential destruction of the records will take place at the end of the above stated.