CHAPTER 16

1. CHAPTER 16 Regulations Covering the Education of Gifted Students August 25,2009

2. CHAPTER 16 The new regulations were amended October 31, 2008 and became effective November 1, 2008.

3. CHAPTER 16 The Evaluation Process Our current procedures: parent/teacher makes referral/request student is “screened” using the Slosson (administered by school counselor) Gifted Evaluation Scale is completed by the parent and teacher—points are assigned Student has to reach a total of 50 points before a Permission to Evaluate is presented to parents. IQ testing is administered by the school psychologist to complete the evaluation process

4. CHAPTER 16 The Evaluation Process According to the new laws…this process has to change!

5. CHAPTER 16 How do we change the process??? Administering the Slosson prior to obtaining the parent’s permission is in violation of the law. Why??? Because the Slosson is not administered to ALL students; therefore it qualifies as a an “evaluation” and not a screening and may not be completed without the parent’s permission.

6. CHAPTER 16 Brainstorming Session How might we change the process???

7. CHAPTER 16 How might we change the process??? (possible solution) Meet with the psychologists (and maybe the school counselors) to review and revise the process. Share the recommendations/ suggestions from the teachers of the gifted. Propose new procedures, meet with Dr. Arnold, develop AR on the process, train the gifted teachers and the school counselors. Implement the new process! SUCCESS!!!!

8. CHAPTER 16 The Regulations mandate the following… When a parent requests an evaluation of their child, we must evaluate*-parents are limited to one request per school year. The request must be in writing. (You must contact Cheryl) (*If a decision is made to not evaluate/re-evaluate a student, a NORAG must be issued to the parent) If a parent makes a verbal request to a professional employee or administrator, a Permission to Evaluate must be provided to the parent within 10 calendar days of the oral request.

9. CHAPTER 16 The Regulations mandate the following…(con’t) The evaluation be completed within 60 calendar days after the district’s receipt of the Permission to Evaluate. The 60 day timeline is also applicable if a re-evaluation is being completed on a student.

10. CHAPTER 16 The Regulations mandate the following…(con’t) Members of the GMDT are: parent, school psychologist, current teacher(s), and any other person who can provide information on the child’s background. No one test (or type of test) can be used to determine the student’s eligibility for gifted programming.

11. CHAPTER 16 The Regulations mandate the following…(con’t) The new regulations provide that a student is determined to be gifted when he/she has an IQ of 130 or higher OR meets the criteria of “demonstrating achievement, performance or expertise in one or more academic area as evidenced by excellence of products, portfolio or research, as well as criterion-referenced team judgment.”In addition, evaluation results indicating such deficits in memory or processing speed cannot be the onlyreason a student is deemed ineligible for gifted education services.

12. CHAPTER 16 The Regulations mandate the following…(con’t) The “P” in GIEP now stands for Program (not Plan) Teachers of students who are gifted must be notified of who the students are and be provided with a copy of at least the SDI page *** (***once the web-based program is up and running, notification will be sufficient as the teachers will have read only access to the GIEP) GIEPs should be labeled “DRAFT” and the parent must leave with a copy of the draft document even if corrections have to be made before the document is finalized.

13. CHAPTER 16 The Regulations mandate the following…(con’t) A written invitation to the GIEP meeting must be provided to the parents at least 10 school days in advance. At this time also provide the parent with a copy of the Procedural Safeguards. The GIEP must be completed within 30 calendar days after the GMDT issues the Gifted Written Report (GWR). The GWR must also include recommendations for programming. The GIEP of each student must be implemented no more than 10 school days after it is signed or at the start of the following school year if it is completed less than 30 days before the end of the current school year. A GIEP must be reviewed and renewed annually.

14. CHAPTER 16 The Regulations mandate the following…(con’t) At least one of the student’s regular education teachers must attend the GIEP meeting, annually, even if the GIEP is being revised. Current caseload numbers are 75 students; effective July 1, 2010 the numbers are reduced to 65. Class rosters can only have 20 students.

15. CHAPTER 16 Completing the GIEP How to get it done using the new guidelines

16. CHAPTER 16 PRESENT LEVELS OF EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCE The GIEP of each gifted student shall be based on the GMDT's recommendations and shall contain the following: A statement of the student's present levels of educational performance (PLEP). On initial evaluation/identification or re-evaluation PLEP should include a summary of the information contained in sections I, II, and III of the GWR (Assessment of Academic Functioning, Learning Strengths, Educational Needs). The information which is provided in the report can be included in the PLEP section of the GIEP.

17. CHAPTER 16 When creating an annual GIEP, information could be based on present education level data (gathered from formal and/or informal assessments/evaluations) such as: Summary of performance in current educational program: Instructional levels (reading, math) Specific aptitudes and abilities (what is the student good at?) Rates of acquisition and retention (how fast does the student acquire information?) Interests/Strengths/Needs Creativity assessment Problem solving and higher level thinking skills Social/emotional needs Learning styles Other (parent/teacher input)

18. CHAPTER 16 A few examples: The student has exceptional ability to acquire and retain knowledge and demonstrates exceptional memory in ____ The student is a creative producer of knowledge and is a non-conformist in ways of thinking about____ The student works independently and/or is self-directed in ___ The student needs curriculum compacted in ___ The student needs acceleration in ____ The student needs to develop and apply advanced research experiences in ___

19. CHAPTER 16 Where can you get this information???? The classroom teacher Performance Tracker Classroom observations School Counselor Report Cards Teacher Input Form (located on Docushare) This information will assist in the development of appropriate goals and short term learning outcomes.

20. CHAPTER 16 Other required information… A statement of the Annual Goals (what you anticipate/ expect the student to achieve in the school year) and short term learning outcomes (the steps to get to the Annual Goals).

21. CHAPTER 16 More required information… Specially Designed Instruction (SDI)—modifications or adaptations to the curriculum that support or assist the student in achieving or reaching his/her annual goal/short tem objective. SDI answers the question… “What might the student need in order to be successful??”

22. CHAPTER 16 Still more required information… Support Services are services that ensure that the student benefits from the gifted support programming. This could include: Small group instruction Registering for PSAT or SAT exams Taking the PSAT or the SAT Meeting with the school counselor for course selection Researching various schools and participating in college visitations

23. CHAPTER 16 Things to expect…. Compliance Monitoring…it is coming Due Process Requests—make sure that your paperwork is in order and that your files are straight. This is the only thing we have to stand on.

24. CHAPTER 16 Pencil in the date… October 12, 2009 Gifted Training including the perspective from an attorney Questions, Comments, Concerns