Gifted Education
The Pleasant Valley School District recognizes the need to educate students of the gifted according to their abilities, interests, talents, and needs. Since “…no single focus program…can hope to adequately serve a population with such potentially complex profiles” (Lewis, 2002); we will provide a continuum of services which may include the following where appropriate: compacting, expanding, enrichment, and/or acceleration of curriculum and instruction. This will be evidenced in the differentiation of content, process, product, and learning styles.
We also recognize that students of the gifted have unique patterns of social and emotional development. Given that, “the balance between cognitive and affective learning outcomes is key to a functional program” (Delcourt, Cornell, and Goldberg, 2007), we aim to foster an environment that will develop their individual academic talents while simultaneously nurturing the whole child.
The Pleasant Valley School District has developed guidelines when considering the acceleration of students who have been identified for the gifted program.
Gifted Identification Process
Parents may request an evaluation to determine if their child is exceptional and in need of gifted education services by contacting their child’s teacher or school guidance counselor. Pennsylvania regulations state that a child is mentally gifted if the child has an IQ of 130 or higher. Students with IQ’s lower than 130 may also be eligible for gifted services when multiple criteria strongly indicate gifted ability. Pennsylvania’s multiple criteria include the following:
- The student is a year or more above grade achievement level for the normal age group in one or more academic subjects as measured by nationally-normed and validated achievement tests able to accurately reflect gifted performance.
- The student has an observed or measured rate of acquisition/retention of new academic content or skills that reflect gifted ability
- The student has demonstrated achievement, performance or expertise in one or more academic areas as evidenced by excellence of products, portfolio or research, as well as criterion-referenced team judgment.
- The student has demonstrated early and measured use of high level thinking skills, academic creativity, leadership skills, intense academic interest areas, communication skills, foreign language aptitude or technology expertise.
- There are not intervening factors such as English as a second language, disabilities, gender or race bias, or socio/cultural deprivation masking gifted abilities.
When your request is received, it will be referred to the school’s Child Study Team. The school district will provide notice regarding whether it will proceed with an evaluation.