State Regulations
704 KAR 3:285. Programs for the gifted and talented.
RELATES TO: KRS 157.196, 157.200(1)(n), 157.224, 157.230
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: KRS 156.070, 157.196(3), 157.220, 157.224
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY: KRS 157.200(1)(n) includes within the
definition of “exceptional children” a category of “exceptional students” who
are identified as possessing demonstrated or potential ability to perform at an
exceptionally high level in general intellectual aptitude, specific academic
aptitude, creative or divergent thinking, psychosocial or leadership skills, or
in the visual or performing arts. KRS 157.224(1) commits the state to a
comprehensive educational program for its exceptional school-aged
children.
KRS 157.230 requires all school districts to operate programs for resident
exceptional children, primary – grade twelve (12). This administrative
regulation establishes the requirements for programs for gifted and talented
students.
Section 1. Definitions. (1) “Acceleration options” means various forms of
advancing through material or grade levels prior to the prescribed time based on
early mastery, such as pretesting in content and being excused to go onto higher
level activities, curriculum compacting or linear acceleration, simultaneous or
dual enrollment in courses at different grade levels including postsecondary,
early exit from school, and grade-skipping.
(2) “Advanced placement and honors courses” means courses emphasizing
college-level content based on college board curricula and tests (advanced
placement), or the provision of more challenging material through higher levels
of content, process and product (honors courses).
(3) “Cluster group” means a group usually consisting of four (4) or more
identified students placed in a heterogeneous classroom or other instructional
setting with a teacher trained in the appropriate instruction of special needs
students, specifically gifted and talented, for the purpose of receiving a
differentiated educational experience matched to the student’s needs, interests,
and ability.
(4) “Collaborative teaching” means a gifted education teacher provides
differentiated direct instruction in a regular classroom to a cluster group of
identified gifted students in conjunction with the regular classroom
teacher.
(5) “Consortium” means a collaboration of schools or districts that pool
resources to provide appropriate services for gifted and talented students.
(6) “Consultation services” means the provision of instructional information
and materials by the gifted teacher to the regular classroom teacher so that he
may provide appropriate and adequate services to the gifted student while in the
regular classroom setting.
(7) “Counseling services” means effectively-based counseling assistance
planned in coordination with the gifted teacher and provided by a counselor
familiar with the characteristics and socioemotional needs of gifted and
talented students.
(8) “Creative or divergent thinking ability” means possessing either
potential or demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in
creative thinking and divergent approaches to conventional tasks as evidenced by
innovative or creative reasoning, advanced insight and imagination, and solving
problems in unique ways.
(9) “Diagnosis” means the evaluation and determination of the appropriate
type and level of service options which would meet a given individual child’s
interests, needs, and abilities.
(10) “Differentiated service experiences” means educational experiences which
extend, replace, or supplement learning beyond the standard curriculum.
(11) “Differentiation” means a method through which educators shall establish
a specific, well-thought-out match between learner characteristics in terms of
abilities, interests, and needs, and curriculum opportunities in terms of
enrichment and acceleration options which maximize learning experiences.
(12) “Disadvantaged” means operating under conditions detrimental to normal
cognitive or affective growth due to socioeconomic limitations, cultural
factors, geographic isolation, or various combinations of these factors to a
degree that requires special considerations.
(13) “Distance learning” means learning opportunities offered through the use
of computer technology and satellite transmission or optical fiber
transmission.
(14) “Extracurricular enrichment opportunities” means differentiated,
academically-based activities that supplement classroom instruction and are
often after school and competitive in nature, such as academic teams.
(15) “Formal identification” means a process by which a student in grades
four (4) through twelve (12) is identified and diagnosed as having gifted
characteristics and behaviors using a balanced combination of criteria specific
to a category of giftedness – intellectual aptitude, specific academic aptitude,
creativity, leadership, or visual and performing arts, and by which a student
may be determined eligible for various levels of services in each category in
which the student meets the criteria.
(16) “General intellectual ability” means possessing:
(a) Either the potential or demonstrated ability to perform at an
exceptionally high level in general intellectual ability, which is usually
reflected in extraordinary performance in a variety of cognitive areas, such as
abstract reasoning, logical reasoning, social awareness, memory, nonverbal
ability and the analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of information; and
(b) A consistently outstanding mental capacity as compared to children of
one’s age, experience, or environment.
(17) “Gifted and talented identification and placement committee” means a
school or district committee made up of the gifted education coordinator or a
gifted education teacher and representatives from classroom teachers,
administrators, counselors, special education teachers and other appropriate
personnel who follow district policies and procedures to formally identify and
determine level and type of service options.
(18) “Gifted and talented student services plan” means an educational plan
that matches a formally identified gifted student’s interests, needs, and
abilities to differentiated service options and serves as the communication
vehicle between the parents and school personnel.
(19) “High potential learners” means those students who typically represent
the top quartile (twenty-five (25) percent) of the entire student population in
terms of the degree of demonstrated gifted characteristics and behaviors and
require differentiated service experiences to further develop their interests
and abilities.
(20) “Independent study” means a self-directed course or study of a selected
topic under the supervision of a teacher or the auspices of a university.
(21) “Informal selection” means a process by which a student in the primary
program is documented as having the characteristics and behaviors of a high
potential learner in one (1) or more categories using a series of informal
measures for the purpose of determining eligibility for the talent pool.
(22) “Instructional grouping” means the temporary grouping of students for
the purposes of addressing specific continuous progress skill development,
socioemotional needs, and interests.
(23) “Magnet school” means a school which is organized around an area of
interests, draws students from an entire community, and has no specific entrance
standards except interest in the focus of the school (e.g., a magnet school for
the arts or a magnet school for science and mathematics).
(24) “Mentorship” means specialized studies, such as an internship, with an
adult mentor in the community and under the direction of an educator
knowledgeable in gifted education.
(25) “Primary review committee” means primary teachers, counselors,
administrators, gifted education personnel, and other appropriate personnel
familiar with the child’s potential or demonstrated abilities.
(26) “Psychosocial or leadership ability” means possessing either potential
or demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in social
skills and interpersonal qualities such as poise, effective oral and written
expression, managerial ability, and the ability, or vision, to set goals and
organize others to successfully reach those goals.
(27) “Resource services” means a service delivery option that:
(a) Entails a part-time grouping of students with gifted characteristics
based on the interests, needs and abilities of the students;
(b) Is designed for accelerated content, special interest groups, process
skills development or various combinations of all; and
(c) Is provided in a pull-out classroom or other appropriate instructional
setting.
(28) “Seminars” means discussion-based sessions on specific topics focusing
on advanced content and higher level process skills.
(29) “Special school” means a specialized school designed to:
(a) Serve gifted students in grades four (4) through twelve (12) in specific
academic areas (such as a magnet school in science and mathematics); or
(b) Develop specific areas of giftedness such as visual and performing
arts.
(30) “Specific academic aptitude” means possessing either potential or
demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in one (1), or
very few related, specific academic areas significantly beyond the age,
experience or environment of one’s chronological peers.
(31) “Talent pool” means a group of primary students informally selected as
having characteristics and behaviors of a high potential learner and further
diagnosed using a series of informal and formal measures to determine
differentiated service delivery needs during their stay in the primary
program.
(32) “Travel study options” means academically-based United States and
overseas travel which may result in high school or university course credit.
(33) “Underachieving” means the development of a significant gap between a
student’s potential ability and demonstrated achievement to a degree that there
is an overall diminished ability to achieve at the expected level of
ability.
(34) “Visual or performing arts ability” means possessing either potential or
demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in the visual or
performing arts and demonstrating the potential for outstanding aesthetic
production, accomplishment, or creativity in visual art, dance, music, or
drama.
Section 2. Policies and Procedures. A local school district shall have in
operation and available for public inspection local board approved policies and
procedures which address each requirement in this administrative regulation and
are consistent with KRS 157.200, 157.224, 157.230 and 703 KAR 4:040.
Section 3. Identification and Diagnosis of Gifted Characteristics, Behaviors,
and Talent and Determination of Eligibility for Services. (1) A district shall
adopt policies and procedures which shall provide for identification and
diagnosis of strengths, gifted behaviors and talents through:
(a) Informal selection and diagnosis in the primary program;
(b) Formal identification and continuous diagnosis of a student in grades
four (4) through twelve (12); and
(c) Provision of multiple service delivery options in primary through grade
twelve (12).
(2) A local school district shall establish a procedure that identifies
students displaying gifted and talented behaviors and characteristics as defined
in KRS 157.200 and Section 1 of this administrative regulation and allows for
determination of eligibility for services based on the student’s individual
needs, interests and abilities. This procedure shall include a combination of
informal measures, formal measures and objective-based eligibility criteria.
Determination of appropriateness of level and type of services provided to a
student shall be subject to continuous assessment.
(3) A local school district shall provide a system for diagnostic screening
and identification of strengths, gifted behaviors and talents which provides
equal access for racial and ethnic minority children, disadvantaged children,
and children with disabilities.
(4) District identification and diagnosis procedures for appropriate services
shall be based upon a balanced multiple criteria approach, continuous and
multiple long-term assessment, and early identification and diagnosis of
strengths, gifted behaviors and talents.
(5) A local school district shall implement a procedure to obtain parental or
guardian permission prior to the administration of an individual test, given as
a follow-up to a test routinely administered to all students, used in formal
identification and prior to official identification and placement.
(6) Beginning with the 2001-2002 school year, a local school district shall
implement a procedure to obtain information related to the interests, needs, and
abilities of an identified student from his parent or guardian for use in
determining appropriate services. A parent or guardian of an identified student
shall be notified annually of services included in his child’s gifted and
talented student services plan and specific procedures to follow in requesting a
change in services.
(7) In the primary program, formal, normed measures may be used for
diagnosing the level of instructional service needed by a student and for
evaluation of student progress. Data from formal, normed measures shall not be
used for the purpose of eliminating eligibility for services to a child in the
primary program but may be used to discover and include eligible students
overlooked by informal assessment.
(8) A single assessment instrument or measure shall not be the basis for
denying services once a child has been informally selected and placed in the
talent pool.
(9) For children in the primary program, the procedure for selecting a high
potential learner for participation in the primary talent pool shall include use
of a minimum of three (3) of the following recognized or acceptable assessment
options to assess the degree of demonstrated gifted characteristics and
behaviors and to determine level of need and most appropriate service
interventions:
(a) A collection of evidence (e.g., primary portfolios) demonstrating student
performance;
(b) Inventory checklists of behaviors specific to gifted categories;
(c) Diagnostic data;
(d) Continuous progress data;
(e) Anecdotal records;
(f) Available formal test data;
(g) Parent interview or questionnaire;
(h) Primary review committee recommendation;
(i) Petition system; and
(j) Other valid and reliable documentation.
(10) Exit from the primary program shall be based on criteria established by
703 KAR 4:040.
(11) For a student in grades four (4) through twelve (12), a local school
district’s procedure for identifying and diagnosing gifted and talented
behaviors, and the level of services needed, shall include:
(a) A valid and reliable combination of measures to identify strengths,
gifted behaviors and talents which indicate a need and eligibility for service
options;
(b) At least three (3) of the following recognized or acceptable assessment
options for identification and diagnosis:
1. A collection of evidence from portfolios demonstrating student
performance;
2. Inventory checklists of behaviors specific to gifted categories;
3. Continuous progress data;
4. Anecdotal records;
5. Peer nominations;
6. Formal testing data specific to gifted categories;
7. Parent interview or questionnaire;
8. Primary review committee recommendation for those entering the fourth
grade;
9. Self-nomination or petition system;
10. Student awards or critiques of performance or products specific to gifted
categories; and
11. Other valid and reliable documentation;
(12) To qualify as a gifted and talented student in grades four (4) through
twelve (12), the following criteria shall be met in one (1) of these gifted and
talented categories:
(a) General intellectual ability shall be determined by a student score
within the ninth stanine on a full scale comprehensive test of intellectual
ability. If a student scores low on formal group measures of intellectual
ability, yet other documentation shows potential, the district shall administer
an individual mental ability test. Evidence of general intellectual ability also
may include:
1. High performance on additional individual or group intellectual
assessment;
2. Observation of applied advanced reasoning ability; or
3. Checklist inventories of behaviors specific to underachieving or
disadvantaged gifted learners.
(b) Specific academic aptitude shall be determined by composite scores in the
ninth stanine on one (1) or more subject test scores of an achievement test. If
a student scores low on a formal group measure of academic strength, yet other
documentation shows potential, the district shall administer another
standardized normed achievement test. Evidence of specific academic aptitude
also may include:
1. High performance on an additional individual or group test of academic
aptitude;
2. Student awards or critiques of performances;
3. Off-level testing;
4. Portfolio of high academic performances; or
5. Student progress data.
(c) Creativity shall be determined through the use of informal or formal
assessment measures of a child’s capacity for originality of thought, fluency,
elaboration, and flexibility of thought. Documented evidence of creative
thinking ability also may include:
1. Creative writing samples;
2. High scores on tests of creative ability (e.g., Williams or Torrance,
etc.);
3. Behavioral checklists or observations specific to creative behavior;
or
4. Observation of original ideas, products or problem-solving.
(d) Leadership or psychosocial abilities shall be determined by a variety of
informal measures and the documentation of the willingness of a student to
assume leadership roles in class, in a student organization, and in a community
activity. Evidence of psychosocial or leadership ability also may include:
1. Sociograms (i.e., questionnaires designed to assess leadership
characteristics);
2. Peer recommendations;
3. Behavioral checklists or observations specific to leadership behavior;
4. Portfolio entries which display leadership qualities; or
5. Offices held by student in extracurricular activities and class
government.
(e) Visual and performing arts talent shall be determined through evidence of
performance which may include auditions, letters of recommendations, or product
or portfolio assessment by specialists or professional artists. Evidence of
visual or performing arts also may include:
1. Awards or critiques of performance; or
2. Portfolio of visual or performing arts ability.
Section 4. Procedure for Determining Eligibility for Services. (1)
Identification of gifted
characteristics, behaviors and talent shall be based
on the following process:
(a) Data gathering. A district shall develop a system for searching the
entire school population on a continuous basis for likely candidates for
services using both informal and available formal, normed, standardized
measures, including measures of nonverbal ability;
(b) Data analysis. A district shall develop a system for analyzing student
data for the purposes of a comparison of the students under consideration for
identification to local or national norms, including those required in this
administrative regulation, and to district-established criteria of eligibility
for each category of giftedness;
(c) Committee for determination of eligibility and services. A school
district or school shall assemble a selection and placement committee which
shall have four (4) purposes:
1. To provide feedback on the adequacy of the district’s identification and
diagnostic procedure;
2. To ensure that a variety of views are heard during the selection and
placement process;
3. To determine which students meet identification criteria and which
services, at what level, shall be included in each identified student’s gifted
and talented student services plan; and
4. To help provide communication and support in the schools and
community;
(d) Provision of services. A district shall implement articulated services
from primary through grade twelve (12) which provide multiple delivery options
matched to diagnosed behaviors, strengths and characteristics of individual
students; and
(e) Petition and appeal for services. A district shall provide a petition
system as a safeguard for a student who may have been missed in the
identification and diagnosis procedure.
(2) Exceptions and special considerations for eligibility. School personnel
shall take into consideration environmental, cultural, and disabling conditions
which may mask a child’s true abilities that lead to exclusion of otherwise
eligible students, such as a student who qualifies as:
(a) An exceptional child as defined in KRS 157.200;
(b) Disadvantaged; or
(c) Underachieving.
Section 5. Program Evaluation. (1) District policies and procedures shall
ensure that a program evaluation process shall be conducted on an annual basis
and shall address:
(a) Overall student progress;
(b) Student, parent, and faculty attitudes toward the program;
(c) Community involvement;
(d) Cost effectiveness;
(e) The incorporation of gifted education into the regular school
program;
(f) Overall quality of instruction and program personnel credentials; and
(g) Future program directions and modifications.
(2) Data collected in the annual program evaluation shall be utilized in the
school and district instructional planning process.
(3) Beginning with the 2001-2002 school year, local district policies and
procedures shall ensure that the school personnel report to a parent or guardian
the progress of his child related to the gifted and talented student services
plan at least once each semester.
Section 6. Service Delivery Options. (1) A student diagnosed as possessing
gifted characteristics, behaviors or talent shall be provided articulated,
primary through grade twelve (12) services which:
(a) Are qualitatively differentiated to meet his individual needs;
(b) Result in educational experiences commensurate with his interests, needs
and abilities; and
(c) Facilitate the high level attainment of goals established in KRS
158.6451.
(2) For a student in a primary program, services shall be provided within the
framework of primary program requirements and shall allow for continuous
progress through a differentiated curriculum and flexible grouping and
regrouping based on the individual needs, interests, and abilities of the
student.
(3) Emphasis on educating gifted students in the general primary classroom,
shall not preclude the continued, appropriate use of resource services,
acceleration options, or the specialized service options contained in subsection
(5) of this section. A recommendation for a service shall be made on an
individual basis.
(4) Grouping for instructional purposes and multiple services delivery
options shall be utilized in a local district gifted education plan. Student
grouping formats shall include grouping for instructional purposes based on
student interests, abilities, and needs, including social and emotional.
(5) There shall be multiple service delivery options with no single service
option existing alone, districtwide, at a grade level. These service delivery
options shall be differentiated to a degree as to be consistent with KRS
157.200(1). Both grouping for instructional purposes and multiple service
delivery options may include:
(a) Various acceleration options (e.g., early exit from primary, grade
skipping, content and curriculum in one (1) or more subjects from a higher grade
level);
(b) Advanced placement and honors courses;
(c) Collaborative teaching and consultation services;
(d) Special counseling services;
(e) Differentiated study experiences for individuals and cluster groups in
the regular classroom;
(f) Distance learning;
(g) Enrichment services during the school day (not extracurricular);
(h) Independent study;
(i) Mentorships;
(j) Resource services delivered in a pull-out classroom or other appropriate
instructional setting;
(k) Seminars;
(l) Travel study options; or
(m) Special schools or self-contained classrooms, grades four (4) through
twelve (12) only.
(6) With the exception of an academic competition or optional extracurricular
offering, services shall be provided during the regular school hours.
Section 7. Curriculum. (1) A comprehensive framework or course of study for
children and youth who are diagnosed as possessing gifted characteristics,
behaviors and talent shall be based on a district or school’s curricula required
to meet the goals established in KRS 158.6451.
(2) A school shall differentiate, replace, supplement, or modify curricula to
facilitate high level attainment of the learning goals established in KRS
158.6451 and to assist students identified and diagnosed as gifted and talented
to further develop their individual interest, needs and abilities.
Section 8. Personnel. A local school district shall ensure that direct
services to students identified as demonstrating gifted and talented behaviors
and characteristics shall be provided by professionally qualified and certified
personnel as required by the Education Professional Standards Board.
(1) A teacher shall be appropriately endorsed in gifted education in
accordance with 704 KAR 20:280 if the teacher works:
(a) directly with identified gifted pupils in addition to the regularly
assigned teacher; or
(b) For at least one-half (1/2) of the regular school day in a classroom made
up only of properly identified gifted students.
(2) All other personnel working with gifted students shall be prepared
through appropriate professional development to address the individual needs,
interests, and abilities of the students.
Section 9. Budget; Funding. (1) State funds for gifted education shall be
used specifically for direct services to students who are gifted and talented.
Direct services to students identified as demonstrating gifted and talented
behaviors and characteristics shall be provided by professionally qualified and
certified personnel as required by the Education Professional Standards Board in
704 KAR 20:280. Seventy-five (75) percent of a district’s gifted education
allocation shall be used to employ properly certified personnel to provide
direct instructional services.
(2) A local district budget decision impacting state funds for gifted
education after the annual submission of the local district education plan shall
be coordinated through the district gifted education coordinator. If the change
will cause a major or significant adjustment to the district gifted education
budget, the change shall be submitted to the Kentucky Department of Education
for approval as an amendment.
(3) A district receiving state gifted education funding shall designate a
gifted education coordinator to:
(a) Oversee the district gifted education operation;
(b) Serve as liaison between the district and the state;
(c) Ensure internal compliance with state statutes and administrative
regulations; and
(d) Administer and revise the gifted education program budget.
(4) State funding to a district shall be contingent upon:
(a) Employing properly certified personnel to administer and teach in the
program;
(b) The annual submission of a local district gifted education year-end
report;
(c) A summative evaluation of the program and student progress; and
(d) Complying with this administrative regulation.
Section 10. Procedural Safeguards. A school district shall establish a
grievance procedure through which a parent, guardian or student may resolve a
concern regarding the appropriate and adequate provision of talent pool services
or services addressed in a formally identified student’s gifted and talented
student services plan. This districtwide grievance procedure shall address:
(1) How, and by whom, the grievance procedure is initiated;
(2) The process for determining the need to evaluate or reevaluate the child
for appropriate services;
(3) The criteria for determining if placement of the child needs
revision;
(4) Procedures for ensuring that appropriate services are provided to all
identified students consistent with KRS 157.200 and 157.230; and
(5) Procedures for ensuring the participation of the parent or guardian, a
regular education teacher of the student, a gifted education teacher or
coordinator, administrator, and a counselor in addressing a grievance. (4 Ky.R.
528; eff. 7-5-78; Am. 9 Ky.R. 40; eff.8-11-82; 17 Ky.R. 111; eff. 9-13-90; 20
Ky.R. 1685; 2350; eff. 3-9-94; 26 Ky.R. 203; 608; eff. 9-1-99.)
704 KAR 3:285. Programs for the gifted and talented.
RELATES TO: KRS 157.196, 157.200(1)(n), 157.224, 157.230
STATUTORY AUTHORITY: KRS 156.070, 157.196(3), 157.220, 157.224
NECESSITY, FUNCTION, AND CONFORMITY: KRS 157.200(1)(n) includes within the
definition of “exceptional children” a category of “exceptional students” who
are identified as possessing demonstrated or potential ability to perform at an
exceptionally high level in general intellectual aptitude, specific academic
aptitude, creative or divergent thinking, psychosocial or leadership skills, or
in the visual or performing arts. KRS 157.224(1) commits the state to a
comprehensive educational program for its exceptional school-aged
children.
KRS 157.230 requires all school districts to operate programs for resident
exceptional children, primary – grade twelve (12). This administrative
regulation establishes the requirements for programs for gifted and talented
students.
Section 1. Definitions. (1) “Acceleration options” means various forms of
advancing through material or grade levels prior to the prescribed time based on
early mastery, such as pretesting in content and being excused to go onto higher
level activities, curriculum compacting or linear acceleration, simultaneous or
dual enrollment in courses at different grade levels including postsecondary,
early exit from school, and grade-skipping.
(2) “Advanced placement and honors courses” means courses emphasizing
college-level content based on college board curricula and tests (advanced
placement), or the provision of more challenging material through higher levels
of content, process and product (honors courses).
(3) “Cluster group” means a group usually consisting of four (4) or more
identified students placed in a heterogeneous classroom or other instructional
setting with a teacher trained in the appropriate instruction of special needs
students, specifically gifted and talented, for the purpose of receiving a
differentiated educational experience matched to the student’s needs, interests,
and ability.
(4) “Collaborative teaching” means a gifted education teacher provides
differentiated direct instruction in a regular classroom to a cluster group of
identified gifted students in conjunction with the regular classroom
teacher.
(5) “Consortium” means a collaboration of schools or districts that pool
resources to provide appropriate services for gifted and talented students.
(6) “Consultation services” means the provision of instructional information
and materials by the gifted teacher to the regular classroom teacher so that he
may provide appropriate and adequate services to the gifted student while in the
regular classroom setting.
(7) “Counseling services” means effectively-based counseling assistance
planned in coordination with the gifted teacher and provided by a counselor
familiar with the characteristics and socioemotional needs of gifted and
talented students.
(8) “Creative or divergent thinking ability” means possessing either
potential or demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in
creative thinking and divergent approaches to conventional tasks as evidenced by
innovative or creative reasoning, advanced insight and imagination, and solving
problems in unique ways.
(9) “Diagnosis” means the evaluation and determination of the appropriate
type and level of service options which would meet a given individual child’s
interests, needs, and abilities.
(10) “Differentiated service experiences” means educational experiences which
extend, replace, or supplement learning beyond the standard curriculum.
(11) “Differentiation” means a method through which educators shall establish
a specific, well-thought-out match between learner characteristics in terms of
abilities, interests, and needs, and curriculum opportunities in terms of
enrichment and acceleration options which maximize learning experiences.
(12) “Disadvantaged” means operating under conditions detrimental to normal
cognitive or affective growth due to socioeconomic limitations, cultural
factors, geographic isolation, or various combinations of these factors to a
degree that requires special considerations.
(13) “Distance learning” means learning opportunities offered through the use
of computer technology and satellite transmission or optical fiber
transmission.
(14) “Extracurricular enrichment opportunities” means differentiated,
academically-based activities that supplement classroom instruction and are
often after school and competitive in nature, such as academic teams.
(15) “Formal identification” means a process by which a student in grades
four (4) through twelve (12) is identified and diagnosed as having gifted
characteristics and behaviors using a balanced combination of criteria specific
to a category of giftedness – intellectual aptitude, specific academic aptitude,
creativity, leadership, or visual and performing arts, and by which a student
may be determined eligible for various levels of services in each category in
which the student meets the criteria.
(16) “General intellectual ability” means possessing:
(a) Either the potential or demonstrated ability to perform at an
exceptionally high level in general intellectual ability, which is usually
reflected in extraordinary performance in a variety of cognitive areas, such as
abstract reasoning, logical reasoning, social awareness, memory, nonverbal
ability and the analysis, synthesis, and evaluation of information; and
(b) A consistently outstanding mental capacity as compared to children of
one’s age, experience, or environment.
(17) “Gifted and talented identification and placement committee” means a
school or district committee made up of the gifted education coordinator or a
gifted education teacher and representatives from classroom teachers,
administrators, counselors, special education teachers and other appropriate
personnel who follow district policies and procedures to formally identify and
determine level and type of service options.
(18) “Gifted and talented student services plan” means an educational plan
that matches a formally identified gifted student’s interests, needs, and
abilities to differentiated service options and serves as the communication
vehicle between the parents and school personnel.
(19) “High potential learners” means those students who typically represent
the top quartile (twenty-five (25) percent) of the entire student population in
terms of the degree of demonstrated gifted characteristics and behaviors and
require differentiated service experiences to further develop their interests
and abilities.
(20) “Independent study” means a self-directed course or study of a selected
topic under the supervision of a teacher or the auspices of a university.
(21) “Informal selection” means a process by which a student in the primary
program is documented as having the characteristics and behaviors of a high
potential learner in one (1) or more categories using a series of informal
measures for the purpose of determining eligibility for the talent pool.
(22) “Instructional grouping” means the temporary grouping of students for
the purposes of addressing specific continuous progress skill development,
socioemotional needs, and interests.
(23) “Magnet school” means a school which is organized around an area of
interests, draws students from an entire community, and has no specific entrance
standards except interest in the focus of the school (e.g., a magnet school for
the arts or a magnet school for science and mathematics).
(24) “Mentorship” means specialized studies, such as an internship, with an
adult mentor in the community and under the direction of an educator
knowledgeable in gifted education.
(25) “Primary review committee” means primary teachers, counselors,
administrators, gifted education personnel, and other appropriate personnel
familiar with the child’s potential or demonstrated abilities.
(26) “Psychosocial or leadership ability” means possessing either potential
or demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in social
skills and interpersonal qualities such as poise, effective oral and written
expression, managerial ability, and the ability, or vision, to set goals and
organize others to successfully reach those goals.
(27) “Resource services” means a service delivery option that:
(a) Entails a part-time grouping of students with gifted characteristics
based on the interests, needs and abilities of the students;
(b) Is designed for accelerated content, special interest groups, process
skills development or various combinations of all; and
(c) Is provided in a pull-out classroom or other appropriate instructional
setting.
(28) “Seminars” means discussion-based sessions on specific topics focusing
on advanced content and higher level process skills.
(29) “Special school” means a specialized school designed to:
(a) Serve gifted students in grades four (4) through twelve (12) in specific
academic areas (such as a magnet school in science and mathematics); or
(b) Develop specific areas of giftedness such as visual and performing
arts.
(30) “Specific academic aptitude” means possessing either potential or
demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in one (1), or
very few related, specific academic areas significantly beyond the age,
experience or environment of one’s chronological peers.
(31) “Talent pool” means a group of primary students informally selected as
having characteristics and behaviors of a high potential learner and further
diagnosed using a series of informal and formal measures to determine
differentiated service delivery needs during their stay in the primary
program.
(32) “Travel study options” means academically-based United States and
overseas travel which may result in high school or university course credit.
(33) “Underachieving” means the development of a significant gap between a
student’s potential ability and demonstrated achievement to a degree that there
is an overall diminished ability to achieve at the expected level of
ability.
(34) “Visual or performing arts ability” means possessing either potential or
demonstrated ability to perform at an exceptionally high level in the visual or
performing arts and demonstrating the potential for outstanding aesthetic
production, accomplishment, or creativity in visual art, dance, music, or
drama.
Section 2. Policies and Procedures. A local school district shall have in
operation and available for public inspection local board approved policies and
procedures which address each requirement in this administrative regulation and
are consistent with KRS 157.200, 157.224, 157.230 and 703 KAR 4:040.
Section 3. Identification and Diagnosis of Gifted Characteristics, Behaviors,
and Talent and Determination of Eligibility for Services. (1) A district shall
adopt policies and procedures which shall provide for identification and
diagnosis of strengths, gifted behaviors and talents through:
(a) Informal selection and diagnosis in the primary program;
(b) Formal identification and continuous diagnosis of a student in grades
four (4) through twelve (12); and
(c) Provision of multiple service delivery options in primary through grade
twelve (12).
(2) A local school district shall establish a procedure that identifies
students displaying gifted and talented behaviors and characteristics as defined
in KRS 157.200 and Section 1 of this administrative regulation and allows for
determination of eligibility for services based on the student’s individual
needs, interests and abilities. This procedure shall include a combination of
informal measures, formal measures and objective-based eligibility criteria.
Determination of appropriateness of level and type of services provided to a
student shall be subject to continuous assessment.
(3) A local school district shall provide a system for diagnostic screening
and identification of strengths, gifted behaviors and talents which provides
equal access for racial and ethnic minority children, disadvantaged children,
and children with disabilities.
(4) District identification and diagnosis procedures for appropriate services
shall be based upon a balanced multiple criteria approach, continuous and
multiple long-term assessment, and early identification and diagnosis of
strengths, gifted behaviors and talents.
(5) A local school district shall implement a procedure to obtain parental or
guardian permission prior to the administration of an individual test, given as
a follow-up to a test routinely administered to all students, used in formal
identification and prior to official identification and placement.
(6) Beginning with the 2001-2002 school year, a local school district shall
implement a procedure to obtain information related to the interests, needs, and
abilities of an identified student from his parent or guardian for use in
determining appropriate services. A parent or guardian of an identified student
shall be notified annually of services included in his child’s gifted and
talented student services plan and specific procedures to follow in requesting a
change in services.
(7) In the primary program, formal, normed measures may be used for
diagnosing the level of instructional service needed by a student and for
evaluation of student progress. Data from formal, normed measures shall not be
used for the purpose of eliminating eligibility for services to a child in the
primary program but may be used to discover and include eligible students
overlooked by informal assessment.
(8) A single assessment instrument or measure shall not be the basis for
denying services once a child has been informally selected and placed in the
talent pool.
(9) For children in the primary program, the procedure for selecting a high
potential learner for participation in the primary talent pool shall include use
of a minimum of three (3) of the following recognized or acceptable assessment
options to assess the degree of demonstrated gifted characteristics and
behaviors and to determine level of need and most appropriate service
interventions:
(a) A collection of evidence (e.g., primary portfolios) demonstrating student
performance;
(b) Inventory checklists of behaviors specific to gifted categories;
(c) Diagnostic data;
(d) Continuous progress data;
(e) Anecdotal records;
(f) Available formal test data;
(g) Parent interview or questionnaire;
(h) Primary review committee recommendation;
(i) Petition system; and
(j) Other valid and reliable documentation.
(10) Exit from the primary program shall be based on criteria established by
703 KAR 4:040.
(11) For a student in grades four (4) through twelve (12), a local school
district’s procedure for identifying and diagnosing gifted and talented
behaviors, and the level of services needed, shall include:
(a) A valid and reliable combination of measures to identify strengths,
gifted behaviors and talents which indicate a need and eligibility for service
options;
(b) At least three (3) of the following recognized or acceptable assessment
options for identification and diagnosis:
1. A collection of evidence from portfolios demonstrating student
performance;
2. Inventory checklists of behaviors specific to gifted categories;
3. Continuous progress data;
4. Anecdotal records;
5. Peer nominations;
6. Formal testing data specific to gifted categories;
7. Parent interview or questionnaire;
8. Primary review committee recommendation for those entering the fourth
grade;
9. Self-nomination or petition system;
10. Student awards or critiques of performance or products specific to gifted
categories; and
11. Other valid and reliable documentation;
(12) To qualify as a gifted and talented student in grades four (4) through
twelve (12), the following criteria shall be met in one (1) of these gifted and
talented categories:
(a) General intellectual ability shall be determined by a student score
within the ninth stanine on a full scale comprehensive test of intellectual
ability. If a student scores low on formal group measures of intellectual
ability, yet other documentation shows potential, the district shall administer
an individual mental ability test. Evidence of general intellectual ability also
may include:
1. High performance on additional individual or group intellectual
assessment;
2. Observation of applied advanced reasoning ability; or
3. Checklist inventories of behaviors specific to underachieving or
disadvantaged gifted learners.
(b) Specific academic aptitude shall be determined by composite scores in the
ninth stanine on one (1) or more subject test scores of an achievement test. If
a student scores low on a formal group measure of academic strength, yet other
documentation shows potential, the district shall administer another
standardized normed achievement test. Evidence of specific academic aptitude
also may include:
1. High performance on an additional individual or group test of academic
aptitude;
2. Student awards or critiques of performances;
3. Off-level testing;
4. Portfolio of high academic performances; or
5. Student progress data.
(c) Creativity shall be determined through the use of informal or formal
assessment measures of a child’s capacity for originality of thought, fluency,
elaboration, and flexibility of thought. Documented evidence of creative
thinking ability also may include:
1. Creative writing samples;
2. High scores on tests of creative ability (e.g., Williams or Torrance,
etc.);
3. Behavioral checklists or observations specific to creative behavior;
or
4. Observation of original ideas, products or problem-solving.
(d) Leadership or psychosocial abilities shall be determined by a variety of
informal measures and the documentation of the willingness of a student to
assume leadership roles in class, in a student organization, and in a community
activity. Evidence of psychosocial or leadership ability also may include:
1. Sociograms (i.e., questionnaires designed to assess leadership
characteristics);
2. Peer recommendations;
3. Behavioral checklists or observations specific to leadership behavior;
4. Portfolio entries which display leadership qualities; or
5. Offices held by student in extracurricular activities and class
government.
(e) Visual and performing arts talent shall be determined through evidence of
performance which may include auditions, letters of recommendations, or product
or portfolio assessment by specialists or professional artists. Evidence of
visual or performing arts also may include:
1. Awards or critiques of performance; or
2. Portfolio of visual or performing arts ability.
Section 4. Procedure for Determining Eligibility for Services. (1)
Identification of gifted
characteristics, behaviors and talent shall be based
on the following process:
(a) Data gathering. A district shall develop a system for searching the
entire school population on a continuous basis for likely candidates for
services using both informal and available formal, normed, standardized
measures, including measures of nonverbal ability;
(b) Data analysis. A district shall develop a system for analyzing student
data for the purposes of a comparison of the students under consideration for
identification to local or national norms, including those required in this
administrative regulation, and to district-established criteria of eligibility
for each category of giftedness;
(c) Committee for determination of eligibility and services. A school
district or school shall assemble a selection and placement committee which
shall have four (4) purposes:
1. To provide feedback on the adequacy of the district’s identification and
diagnostic procedure;
2. To ensure that a variety of views are heard during the selection and
placement process;
3. To determine which students meet identification criteria and which
services, at what level, shall be included in each identified student’s gifted
and talented student services plan; and
4. To help provide communication and support in the schools and
community;
(d) Provision of services. A district shall implement articulated services
from primary through grade twelve (12) which provide multiple delivery options
matched to diagnosed behaviors, strengths and characteristics of individual
students; and
(e) Petition and appeal for services. A district shall provide a petition
system as a safeguard for a student who may have been missed in the
identification and diagnosis procedure.
(2) Exceptions and special considerations for eligibility. School personnel
shall take into consideration environmental, cultural, and disabling conditions
which may mask a child’s true abilities that lead to exclusion of otherwise
eligible students, such as a student who qualifies as:
(a) An exceptional child as defined in KRS 157.200;
(b) Disadvantaged; or
(c) Underachieving.
Section 5. Program Evaluation. (1) District policies and procedures shall
ensure that a program evaluation process shall be conducted on an annual basis
and shall address:
(a) Overall student progress;
(b) Student, parent, and faculty attitudes toward the program;
(c) Community involvement;
(d) Cost effectiveness;
(e) The incorporation of gifted education into the regular school
program;
(f) Overall quality of instruction and program personnel credentials; and
(g) Future program directions and modifications.
(2) Data collected in the annual program evaluation shall be utilized in the
school and district instructional planning process.
(3) Beginning with the 2001-2002 school year, local district policies and
procedures shall ensure that the school personnel report to a parent or guardian
the progress of his child related to the gifted and talented student services
plan at least once each semester.
Section 6. Service Delivery Options. (1) A student diagnosed as possessing
gifted characteristics, behaviors or talent shall be provided articulated,
primary through grade twelve (12) services which:
(a) Are qualitatively differentiated to meet his individual needs;
(b) Result in educational experiences commensurate with his interests, needs
and abilities; and
(c) Facilitate the high level attainment of goals established in KRS
158.6451.
(2) For a student in a primary program, services shall be provided within the
framework of primary program requirements and shall allow for continuous
progress through a differentiated curriculum and flexible grouping and
regrouping based on the individual needs, interests, and abilities of the
student.
(3) Emphasis on educating gifted students in the general primary classroom,
shall not preclude the continued, appropriate use of resource services,
acceleration options, or the specialized service options contained in subsection
(5) of this section. A recommendation for a service shall be made on an
individual basis.
(4) Grouping for instructional purposes and multiple services delivery
options shall be utilized in a local district gifted education plan. Student
grouping formats shall include grouping for instructional purposes based on
student interests, abilities, and needs, including social and emotional.
(5) There shall be multiple service delivery options with no single service
option existing alone, districtwide, at a grade level. These service delivery
options shall be differentiated to a degree as to be consistent with KRS
157.200(1). Both grouping for instructional purposes and multiple service
delivery options may include:
(a) Various acceleration options (e.g., early exit from primary, grade
skipping, content and curriculum in one (1) or more subjects from a higher grade
level);
(b) Advanced placement and honors courses;
(c) Collaborative teaching and consultation services;
(d) Special counseling services;
(e) Differentiated study experiences for individuals and cluster groups in
the regular classroom;
(f) Distance learning;
(g) Enrichment services during the school day (not extracurricular);
(h) Independent study;
(i) Mentorships;
(j) Resource services delivered in a pull-out classroom or other appropriate
instructional setting;
(k) Seminars;
(l) Travel study options; or
(m) Special schools or self-contained classrooms, grades four (4) through
twelve (12) only.
(6) With the exception of an academic competition or optional extracurricular
offering, services shall be provided during the regular school hours.
Section 7. Curriculum. (1) A comprehensive framework or course of study for
children and youth who are diagnosed as possessing gifted characteristics,
behaviors and talent shall be based on a district or school’s curricula required
to meet the goals established in KRS 158.6451.
(2) A school shall differentiate, replace, supplement, or modify curricula to
facilitate high level attainment of the learning goals established in KRS
158.6451 and to assist students identified and diagnosed as gifted and talented
to further develop their individual interest, needs and abilities.
Section 8. Personnel. A local school district shall ensure that direct
services to students identified as demonstrating gifted and talented behaviors
and characteristics shall be provided by professionally qualified and certified
personnel as required by the Education Professional Standards Board.
(1) A teacher shall be appropriately endorsed in gifted education in
accordance with 704 KAR 20:280 if the teacher works:
(a) directly with identified gifted pupils in addition to the regularly
assigned teacher; or
(b) For at least one-half (1/2) of the regular school day in a classroom made
up only of properly identified gifted students.
(2) All other personnel working with gifted students shall be prepared
through appropriate professional development to address the individual needs,
interests, and abilities of the students.
Section 9. Budget; Funding. (1) State funds for gifted education shall be
used specifically for direct services to students who are gifted and talented.
Direct services to students identified as demonstrating gifted and talented
behaviors and characteristics shall be provided by professionally qualified and
certified personnel as required by the Education Professional Standards Board in
704 KAR 20:280. Seventy-five (75) percent of a district’s gifted education
allocation shall be used to employ properly certified personnel to provide
direct instructional services.
(2) A local district budget decision impacting state funds for gifted
education after the annual submission of the local district education plan shall
be coordinated through the district gifted education coordinator. If the change
will cause a major or significant adjustment to the district gifted education
budget, the change shall be submitted to the Kentucky Department of Education
for approval as an amendment.
(3) A district receiving state gifted education funding shall designate a
gifted education coordinator to:
(a) Oversee the district gifted education operation;
(b) Serve as liaison between the district and the state;
(c) Ensure internal compliance with state statutes and administrative
regulations; and
(d) Administer and revise the gifted education program budget.
(4) State funding to a district shall be contingent upon:
(a) Employing properly certified personnel to administer and teach in the
program;
(b) The annual submission of a local district gifted education year-end
report;
(c) A summative evaluation of the program and student progress; and
(d) Complying with this administrative regulation.
Section 10. Procedural Safeguards. A school district shall establish a
grievance procedure through which a parent, guardian or student may resolve a
concern regarding the appropriate and adequate provision of talent pool services
or services addressed in a formally identified student’s gifted and talented
student services plan. This districtwide grievance procedure shall address:
(1) How, and by whom, the grievance procedure is initiated;
(2) The process for determining the need to evaluate or reevaluate the child
for appropriate services;
(3) The criteria for determining if placement of the child needs
revision;
(4) Procedures for ensuring that appropriate services are provided to all
identified students consistent with KRS 157.200 and 157.230; and
(5) Procedures for ensuring the participation of the parent or guardian, a
regular education teacher of the student, a gifted education teacher or
coordinator, administrator, and a counselor in addressing a grievance. (4 Ky.R.
528; eff. 7-5-78; Am. 9 Ky.R. 40; eff.8-11-82; 17 Ky.R. 111; eff. 9-13-90; 20
Ky.R. 1685; 2350; eff. 3-9-94; 26 Ky.R. 203; 608; eff. 9-1-99.)