Plan for 2021-2022

District Gifted and Talented Program Plan Requirements

12.5(12) Provisions for gifted and talented students. Each school district shall incorporate gifted and talented programming into its comprehensive school improvement plan as required by Iowa Code section 257.43. The comprehensive school improvement plan shall include the following gifted and talented program provisions: valid and systematic procedures, including multiple selection criteria for identifying gifted and talented students from the total student population; goals and performance measures; a qualitatively differentiated program to meet the students' cognitive and affective needs; staffing provisions; an in-service design; a budget; and qualifications of personnel administering the program. Each school district shall review and evaluate its gifted and talented programming. This sub rule does not apply to accredited nonpublic schools.

A. Describe the valid and systematic identification procedures, including multiple selection criteria for identifying gifted and talented students from the total student population (grades K-12)

Evidence: • Describe the identification criteria and procedures used by the district (grades K-12) for each grade.

1 or more CogAT score(s) at or above 96 NPR AND 1 or more Iowa Assessment/MAP score(s) (in reading or math) at or above 96 NPR

OR 5 or more scores from Iowa Assessments, MAP, or CogAT at or above 90 NPR in reading and math

B. Goals and performance measures

Evidence: • Describe program-level goals and performance measures for grades K-12.

Program Goals:

• Students will be identified and routinely monitored for talented and gifted services.

• Student progress will be continuously monitored and reported to parents at regular intervals to coincide with building expectations.

• Different levels of service will be provided to learners based on their unique learning needs.

• K-12 identified gifted students will receive instruction and/or guidance from program staff, program facilitators, school counselors, teachers, and administrators.

• Differentiated curriculum will be a focused strategy for staff to ensure no gifted child is left behind.

• The program coordinator will provide professional development for all teachers concerning differentiation and giftedness.

Performance Measures:

• Each student in the Talented and Gifted Program makes a year’s growth in ISASP in Reading and Math.

C. A qualitatively differentiated gifted and talented program to meet the students’ cognitive and affective needs

Evidence: • Describe the processes for providing services to meet cognitive and affective needs in the gifted and talented program for each grade level. A linkage between the selection of students, the anticipated student outcomes and the special instructional programs shall be evident.

Because Springville students are selected through standardized tests (including the Cognitive Abilities Test), the TAG program participant is not only meeting grade-level expectation, he/she is also formulating critical-thinking solutions and creative connections. The two subjects in which the students are identified are reading and math, and the in-school instructional groups that are formed with identified students are reading and math. The instruction during the talented and gifted group time is made up of periodically cross-curricular topics with a main focus on reading or math. Digital platforms such as IXL and Noetic Challenge Math keep us focused on meeting both grade-level and above-grade-level standards (where appropriate).

The anticipated student outcomes are individually determined, and therefore, the special instructional programs are as well. For example, a student could participate in the TAG program by working individually or in a small group with the TAG Coordinator, in addition to working with the school counselor on social/emotional issues related to being gifted.

Another example is that a student could be a great candidate for subject acceleration, and so his/her programming is focused toward learning and mastering the current and next grade level's math standards. Data would be collected over the course of the school year, and discussions about future program services would take place toward the end of the year.

The Springville TAG Program is student-centered. Each student works each year on goal setting. As each goal is different and is developed over the course of the week, month, trimester, and year.

D. Staffing provisions

There is and will be a .75 FTE talented and gifted coordinator who serves kindergarten through second grade with enrichment and third grade through twelfth grade with the TAG program. Students identified as needing TAG at the elementary level meet with the coordinator at regular times through the week in their specified strength. Students in middle school and high school meet with the coordinator during 10-minute meetings each week to evaluate the quality of their educational experience and make weekly goals. The coordinator works in directly teaching gifted students as well as meeting with their teachers through the week to help with differentiation. Starting in 6th grade, TAG students may take online classes, and starting in 9th grade, TAG students may take classes at Kirkwood.

In addition to the TAG Coordinator, decisions on program practices are made by the TAG Committee, which is made up of the Springville administration, both building counselors, an elementary teacher, a middle school teacher, and a high school teacher.

E. In-service design (professional development)

Every year, the Springville TAG Committee choses a National Association for Gifted Children(NAGC) standard to focus on for each school year. For the 2021-2022 school year, the NAGC focus standard for the district is Standard 2: Assessment. The TAG Coordinator provided professional development to the district staff during the beginning of the year introductory inservice days. At that time, the TAG coordinator presented information on screening, tests taken, differentiation, acceleration, social/emotional issues of gifted students, and any pertinent gifted issues that may arise.

Using data from a beginning of the school year survey, the TAG coordinator plans specific professional development according to the standards that the staff felt they were not proficient in. The TAG Coordinator will present on October 25, November 15, January 17, April 18, and the end of the year professional development.

In addition, the TAG Coordinator provides optional staff workshops through the school year including: “Multiple Ways to Assess Students To Get The Full Picture” on September 27, “Students Self-Assessing Progress” on November 1. Additional opportunities will be added as the year progresses.

All of the slideshow presentations are also available around the clock on the Springville TAG website. The TAG Coordinator offers monthly "Differentiation Collaboration Cycles" and regularly meets with staff to improve differentiation in the classroom. The TAG coordinator is also given the opportunity to take professional leave for any applicable professional development opportunities.

F. Each school district shall review and evaluate its gifted and talented programming

At the of the school year, the district staff will be reevaluating their proficiency in our work on the National Association of Gifted Children (NAGC) focus standard of the year: standard 2: assessment. Our goal for this school year is for our staff data to improve (by having each staff member say that they feel proficient in each standard). This will be evident by comparing the before-school-year survey data and the after-school-year survey data. At this time, the TAG Committee will reflect on the professional development opportunities for the year, and how that has impacted the survey data. From there, changes will be proposed for next year’s improvement plan, and we will start a new standard with a new plan for professional development.

Additionally, the TAG Committee will meet at the end of 2021-2022 to review our student data and set our new goals for the next school year. From there, changes will be proposed for next year’s improvement plan, and we will start the next school year with the proposed changes in order to better help our students achieve their potential.