District Policy
9200 - Guidelines for Elementary High Ability Services
Special Programs Washington County School District - Revised 09-10-2013
1. Purpose:
To provide appropriate instruction to students of high ability.
2. Policy:
A process is in place to refer and identify high ability learners. Each elementary school has a plan for serving students at all levels, including those of high ability. Identified high ability students will be provided appropriate service by qualified teachers.
3. Procedure:
3.1. Referral and Identification
3.1.1. Identification of students is done systematically using data that is gathered from teachers, parents, and assessments.
3.1.2. One staff member will represent each school as a high ability facilitator. The facilitator coordinates the referral process and communicates with the district high ability department.
3.2. Service Plan
3.2.1. Teams comprised of teachers, staff, and administrators will review data from classroom teachers, parents, and assessments to determine services that will be offered. Parents will be notified of those services.
3.2.2. Schools implementing "clustering" or grouping of the high ability learners will consult "The Cluster Grouping Handbook," by Susan Winebrenner and Dina Brulles as they make placement decisions.
3.2.3. Schools implementing pull-out programs will carefully weigh the benefits; ensuring that the class time missed is content already mastered, that the instruction being offered is appropriate, and that progress is being measured.
3.2.4. Select students identified as needing a considerably more challenging curriculum will be offered the option of attending a high ability strand school. High ability strand schools will have classrooms comprised entirely of identified high ability learners. These classes will be staffed with endorsed teachers, trained in offering appropriate instruction to high ability learners.
3.3. Qualified Teachers
3.3.1. Representatives from each school (one per grade level) will attend high ability professional learning community sessions. These sessions are facilitated by the district high ability department and offer instructional strategies and resources specific to high ability learners.