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Summary Presentation
Evaluation
of
Gifted Services
in
Oswego School District 308
Carolyn M. Callahan
University of Virginia
Evaluation Process: Stage I
Focusing the Evaluation
Interviews
• Key informants
AT Teachers, Honors Teachers, AP Teachers
General Education Teachers
Parents
Administrators
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East West North
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TALENTED AND GIFTED (TAG) PROGRAM
SCHOOL DISTRICT # 41, GLEN ELLYN, IL
Evaluation Process: Stage 2
Data Collection Interviews
• Key informants
Teachers
Students
Parents
Principals
Superintendent
Central Office Staff
0
50
100
East West North
1st Qtr
2nd Qtr
3rd Qtr
4th Qtr
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr
East
West
North
TALENTED AND GIFTED (TAG) PROGRAM
SCHOOL DISTRICT # 41, GLEN ELLYN, IL
Evaluation Process: Stage 2
Data Collection • Observations in classrooms (AT, Honors, AP, General
Education)
• Review of program documents
• Surveys: Separate surveys by
level
• Parents (AT, Honors, AP)
• Teachers (AT, Honors, AP)
• General Education Teachers (elementary)
• Principals
• Review of demographic and performance data
Key Features Of The Program
Examined in the Report
Presented as independent, but highly
inter-related!
• Philosophy and Definition
• Program Standards of the National Association
for Gifted Children
• Evaluation
ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT
•COMMENDATIONS
•PROBLEMS, ISSUES
AND CONCERNS
•RECOMMENDATIONS
SUMMARY AND HIGHLIGHTS
WITH CAVEATS
• The gifted program is embedded in a school context
• Changes suggested extend beyond the current gifted
program
• No “instant fixes”
• Presentation focuses only on recommendations
• There are many complex recommendations embedded in
the full report—this oral report is just a means to open
discussion
Program Philosophy And Definition
• Recommendation
• Assemble a small, but representative task force
• Affirm or revise definition of gifted
• Consider subject specific giftedness, underachievement, twice-exceptional
• Consider implications for underserved populations of gifted students in
Oswego (minority, low income, ELL students)
Program Philosophy and Definition
• Develop a vision, program philosophy statement, and student
outcome goals based on current research and theory that can guide
program decision-making
Program Philosophy and Definition
• Consider a talent development program for those students who are
entering school without the same high level of opportunity to learn as
their peers
Learning and Development
• Invest in developing teacher and administrator
understanding of student differences at the high end of
performance and potential
• Differentiation of the general education curriculum and the
curriculum offered as part of gifted services is critical
Learning and Development
• Develop programming options that provide opportunities
for mentorships and experiences with experts in the
disciplines –particularly at the secondary level
Learning and Development
• Develop a scope and sequence of programming options
and curricular offerings
Learning and Development
• Focus more energy on college and career awareness for
gifted students
Learning and Development
• Develop a clear and firm cluster-grouping policy to make
differentiation feasible in the general education classroom
Student Identification
and Assessment
• Centralize the identification process
• Develop a comprehensive assessment system that
relates to services
• Continue efforts to ensure issues of racial and socio-
economic diversity are addressed in the identification
process
• Invest in a talent development program grades k-2
Student Identification and Assessment
• Identify students as needing specific services rather than
identifying students as gifted
• Place emphasis on labeling services rather than labeling
children
• Base identification on profiles that identify student
learning needs rather than an arbitrary number that
signifies giftedness
Curriculum: General
• Develop distinct content, process and
product goals and curriculum across
grades K-12 for gifted students
• Establish an articulation committee of
elementary, junior high and high school
teachers
• Ratchet up the curricular standards and
instruction in the general education
program
• Develop defensible curriculum based on
goals
Curriculum and Instruction: Elementary
• Provide greater differentiation in the general education
classroom and in the AT classrooms for gifted learners
based on student assessment data
• Develop a curriculum scope and sequence for the AT
program that extends beyond emphasis on process skills
• Units designed based on extensions of the Common Core
Standards
• Focus on big ideas and important concepts of the disciplines
• Move away from the fictional novel base. For example in AT
reading, move to analysis of and creation of a wider variety of
fictional and non-fictional informational text to include a much
wider scope of engagement in the reading and writing process
(e.g., journalism, autobiographies, biographies, short stories,
poems, songs).
Curriculum and Instruction: Elementary
• Consider incorporating appropriate elements of NAGC’s
Parallel Curriculum, Problem Based Learning, Kaplan’s
Depth and Complexity, the CLEAR curriculum model, and
Renault's Multiple Menu Model or Enrichment Triad Model
• Curriculum development should reflect opportunities to
differentiate according to the learners’ levels of aptitude
and achievement, interests, and products
• Develop scaffolding to assist learners with high, but
unrealized potential to transition to the AT curriculum
Curriculum and Instruction: Junior High School
• First, decide on who should be served in honors classes with consistency across disciplines and schools
• Develop a clear set of goals and objectives focusing on the big ideas and major concepts of the disciplines
• Develop a curriculum • Units designed based on extensions of the Common Core
Standards
• Consider incorporating appropriate elements of NAGC’s Parallel Curriculum, Problem Based Learning, Kaplan’s Depth and Complexity, the CLEAR curriculum model, and Renault's Multiple Menu Model or Enrichment Triad Model.
• Curriculum development should reflect opportunities to differentiate according to learners’ levels of aptitude and achievement, interests, and products
Curriculum and Instruction:
High School
• Consider pre-AP courses designed to provide more
scaffolding and support for prospective AP students. Staff
should discuss and develop student writing skills, time
management, and curriculum differentiation
• Develop an external support structure and support system
for less well-prepared students
• Develop other options at the high school level for gifted
students (independent study, externships, internships and
advanced electives as well as dual enrollment)
Learning Environments
• While the District cannot back off from the mandate to
achieve AYP, strategies for encompassing that goal within
an overall mandate for excellence for all students should
become a priority of the administration
Program Design: Elementary
• Reframe the service delivery model to
provide more instructional time devoted to
appropriate curriculum for gifted learners
• Expand language arts AT to one hour per day with
AT having full responsibility for language arts for
identified students
• Combine math and math investigations into one
program for one hour per day with AT having full
responsibility for mathematics for identified
students
Program Design: Elementary
• Develop a schedule that will allow the AT teachers to
provide “push-in” services to help the general education
teacher differentiate for gifted students in science and
social studies.
• Continue the option of acceleration, but carefully re-
consider the criteria and the goals of the acceleration
process as well as strategies for evaluating its
effectiveness with students who opt for acceleration.
• Acceleration should be used only when other options cannot meet
the needs of identified students
• Acceleration should be considered in conjunction with all other
options for services during the assessment process
Programming: Junior High
• Implement Honors classes in science and social studies at grade 6
• Develop alternatives to Honors classes such as Enrichment Clusters (see Renault) that will provide students opportunities to explore and develop interests and to access community resources
• Develop a guidance and counseling component for the Junior High that helps all students identify individual strengths, interests, and values that can guide career considerations and high school course planning
• Develop a parent committee that can lead a “Community Resource Mining” initiative for the gifted program elementary through high school
Programming: High School
• Develop a guidance and counseling component for the
High School
• Expand options for secondary school students to include
internships, mentorships, and advanced exploratory
courses in summer school
Program Administration and
Management • Designate clear administrative
responsibility at the central office level for
all aspects of gifted and talented services
• Make all AT teachers full time staff
• Hiring and assignment of AT teachers
should be a collaborative decision of the
central office and building level
administrator
Program Administration and
Management • Re-define the gifted teacher specialist as a direct
service and collaborative teacher
• Develop deep, sustainable partnerships
between gifted teacher specialists and other
educators so students have additional support in
order to reach high standards
Program Administration and
Management
• Develop a collaborative team environment that uses
student performance data to drive differentiated
instructional practice evident at every school every day.
Professional Development
• Develop a strong professional development strand for all
educators and administrators focused on the needs of
gifted children, variations among gifted children, curriculum
development, and best practice
• After staff development opportunities are provided,
teachers who are willing and able to differentiate should be
assigned gifted clusters.
• Administrators must be willing to assess both skill and will
of teachers before assigning the cluster groups of children
to teachers’ classrooms
Professional Development
Develop a set of criteria and process for hiring teachers based on the
NAGC standards for teacher competencies. Use the criteria in joint
hiring (school administrator and Director of Special Programs).
Professional Development
Develop clear and aligned standards for evaluating AT
staff, honors and AP teachers
Develop supplemental evaluation protocols that will
provide feedback to all teachers on their success in
adapting curriculum and instruction to the needs of the
students. Provide building level administrators skills in
using these tools.
Evaluation
• Assign an individual within the system with the
responsibility for developing a data warehouse and a
long-term, evaluation plan coordinated with that database
• Include strategies to collect outcome data related to
specific goals and objectives of gifted services
• Include comprehensive and longitudinal student and
program data
CLOSING/SUMMARY NOTES