Gifted Education

GRADES 2-6

 
The purpose of the Jefferson County School District’s Gifted Studies Program is to provide Intellectually Gifted children in grades 2-6 as defined by the Mississippi Department of Education, with a differentiated curriculum designed to meet their unique academic, intellectual, and social-emotional needs.  Our mission is to provide educational experiences that will enable students to reach their highest potential as future leaders and problem-solvers in an ever-changing, global society.  The JCSD’s intellectually gifted studies program standards, desired learner outcomes, and state-mandated regulations for all gifted programs in Mississippi as defined by the Mississippi Department of Education.  

 

The Jefferson County School District strives to foster the unique intellectual, social and emotional needs of the gifted student and educate them through the development of appropriate services to meet the needs of these students.

Mississippi’s Gifted Education Act mandates that every public school district within the state provide programs for their intellectually gifted children in grades two through six. o The State of Mississippi defines “Intellectually Gifted Children” as “those children and youth who are found to have an exceptionally high degree of intelligence as documented through the identification process.”
 
Suggested Outcomes for Intellectually Gifted Education Programs

This document, which is the foundation for all Mississippi gifted programs, identifies desired gifted learner outcomes for communication, creativity, group dynamics, thinking skills, research, self-directed learning.  By developing these skills, students work toward achieving the overall goal of metacognition: the ability to understand one's thinking process and thereby, use it more effectively.

1. To provide a differentiated curriculum that incorporates student interests, strengths, and learning styles:
a. Students will complete an interest inventory to be used in planning the curriculum.

b. Students will complete a learning style and personal strength inventory to determine teaching methods.

2. To enhance student self-awareness:
a. Students will identify their own strengths and weaknesses.
b. Students will recognize their individual talents and exhibit them in a responsible manner.

3. To develop creativity and thinking skills:  

6. To develop an awareness of the social-emotional needs of gifted learners and coping strategies.

Mass Screening Referral Process

This process in the Jefferson County School District is administered yearly to all first-grade students.  The district uses a normed group measure of intelligence in the Mass Screening Referral Process. The students are also referred by teachers, parents, administrators, peers, self, or anyone else having reason to believe that the student might be intellectually gifted. Once the student is referred, the district personnel shall collect the data required to satisfy the referral criteria.  Beginning in the second grade through sixth grade, students identified as Intellectually Gifted are served by a certified gifted teacher and are served a minimum of 5 hours per week.

The goals and objectives of the Jefferson County School District Gifted Studies Program are to provide a differentiated curriculum that incorporates students’ interests, strengths, and learning styles: promote self-awareness and self-directed learning, enhance leadership abilities and group dynamics: develop 21 st  Century Learning Skills (MS College and Career Readiness Standards) in creativity, communication, collaboration, and critical thinking.  The Jefferson County School
District Gifted Studies Program is committed to enhancing and enriching the educational experiences of all students through exposure to participation in the fine arts, career exploration, community services, technology, and social-emotional learning.

Stage 1:  REFERRAL PROCESS

There are two types of gifted referral processes:
Type One- Mass Screening.  Students who score at or above the 90th percentile on the normed group measure of intelligence shall move forward in the process.  Students who score between 85th and 89th percentile but lower than 90th percentile shall be subjected to an Emerging Potential for Gifted Referral Checklist.  If students meet the criteria on this checklist, they shall move forward in the referral process.

 

Type Two- Individual Referral:  A student may be referred by a parent, teacher, counselor, administrator, peer, self, or anyone else having reason to believe that the student might be Intellectually Gifted.  The person initiating the referral shall sign the referral form and date it.  Once the student is referred, the district personnel shall collect the data required to satisfy the referral criteria.  Once a referral form has been initiated, signed, and dated, only the LSC or parents can stop the identification process.    Once the Local Survey Committee has determined that a student has satisfied minimal referral
criteria in order to move forward to the assessment stage, district personnel shall review and compile all data available on the student.  This data shall also be made available to a licensed examiner. At this point, the parent will be sent a Parent Packet explaining the referral process.  The parent must sign permission to test before any individual testing can be administrated. The assessment stage includes an individual test of intelligence, which shall be administered by a licensed examiner.  In no case will the examiner be related to the student being tested.  A student must score at or above the 92nd percentile composite/full scale or 92nd percentile on approved subtest (as per publisher) in order to satisfy eligibility criteria.  Once the Assessment Report is finalized, the LSC shall meet to review all data and determine if eligibility criteria have or have not been satisfied.  The LSC shall rule that the student is or is not eligible for the intellectually gifted program.

Parents will be notified in writing of each student tested for the Intellectually Gifted program about the assessment results.  After a student has been ruled eligible for the intellectually gifted program, parents must sign consent for placement form in order for their child to be placed in the intellectually gifted program.  The parent must sign yearly the consent to placement form for their child to reenter the program each school year. 

*Parents can call The Special Services office (601-786-2280) to obtain a Parent Referral Form.
Out- of-district and out- of- state gifted eligibilities:
Each state has a unique set of eligibility criteria for placement in a gifted program.  Hence, a student moving to Mississippi with a gifted eligibility from another state must satisfy Mississippi eligibility criteria before being considered for placement in the gifted program.  The eligibility ruling from another state may be used to initiate the referral process in Mississippi.  There is no temporary placement in the gifted program while the student goes through the eligibility process within the local district.  Students moving from another school district in Mississippi who have been ruled intellectually Gifted can be placed in the Jefferson County School District Gifted Program with the parent signing a consent form.