Referral Process
Chapter 16 Regulations
Identification
The definition of giftedness comes from the Pennsylvania Special Education Rules and Regulations. It states:
Mentally Gifted - Outstanding intellectual and creative ability, the development of which requires individually designed programs and/or support services not ordinarily provided in the regular education program. This term includes a person who has an IQ of 130 or higher and when multiple criteria, as set forth in Department Guidelines, indicates gifted ability. Determination of gifted ability will not be based on IQ score alone. A person with an IQ score lower than 130 may be admitted to gifted programs when other educational criteria in the profile of the person strongly indicate gifted ability. Determination of mentally gifted shall include a full assessment in accordance with this chapter.
Montour utilizes a two level screening system with five general categories of multiple criteria and to create a screening matrix for consideration for gifted programming. These categories are:
- Ability Score (IQ) / K-Bit
- Group Achievement Scores in Reading and Math (National percentile)
- Grade Average (%) in Core Subject Areas(English, Reading (Language Arts), Math, Science, Social Studies)
- Parent Rating (Parent Checklist)
- Teacher Rating (Teacher Checklist)
All Gifted Services in the Montour School District are inclusive to the regular education classroom. The goal is to provide an appropriate and rigorous curriculum to best meet the needs of students at all levels. Identified students and high performing non identified students will have access to services, provided they are appropriate.
Montour recognizes the diverse intellectual needs of the gifted learner. The gifted services program meets the needs of the gifted learner by providing a more rigorous course of study through acceleration components, co-curricular experiences, and support services. A challenging stimulating classroom experience is necessary to encourage students to develop their academic and intellectual skills to the fullest potential.
The Gifted Learner:
- learns at a faster rate, more in depth, and with greater complexity
- finds, solves, and acts on problems more readily
- manipulates abstract ideas and makes connections at a higher level
The Identification Procedure:
- initiates with a recommendation by a counselor, teacher or parent
- moves to school counselor to conduct Montour School District Level One Screening
- may result in referral to for Gifted Multi-Disciplinary Evaluation
The Gifted Program:
provides for specially designed instruction that is conducted in an instructional setting; provided in an instructional or skill area through acceleration and/or enrichment at the secondary/middle/elementary levels