1. Gifted/Talented Programs Opening Meeting
Los Angeles Unified School District Office of Curriculum, Instruction, and School Support
Gifted/Talented Programs
Opening Meeting
Overview and Planning for GATE/SAS Coordinators

2. twitter.com/LAUSDGATE
Contact Information
District Coordinator LaRoyce Bell
District Specialists Catherine Estrada
Dr. Lucy Hunt
Erin Yoshida-Ehrmann
District Specialist Wynne Wong-Cheng
Psychological Services
Phone: (213)
Fax: (213)
333 S. Beaudry Ave., 25th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90017
twitter.com/LAUSDGATE

3. Gifted/Talented Programs Goal
To identify gifted and talented students, including those from diverse racial, socioeconomic, linguistic, and cultural backgrounds, and provide high-quality differentiated opportunities for learning that meet students’ particular abilities and talents.
California Department of Education (CDE)

4. It’s All About Differentiation!
Differentiated instruction occurs when the standards-based core curriculum is modified and includes these non-negotiables:
Acceleration (pacing)
Depth
Complexity
Novelty
Expectations appropriate to individual assessed interests, needs, abilities, and learning styles

5. How are differentiated instructional needs met?
Implementing articulated programs that provide more rigorous standards
Organizing classrooms to provide differentiated curriculum as an integrated part of the regular school day
Providing differentiated instruction for gifted/talented students that builds on and supplements the core curriculum

6. Clustering Models
To adhere to State/District policy, a local school must cluster students in a well-defined way and provide a differentiated program. A cluster is a minimum of 5-8 gifted students per class in elementary and gifted students per class in secondary. SAS schools not clustering students will lose their funding. The clustering models are as follows:
Model 1: Team-Taught Cluster
Consists of two or more teachers working as a team with flexible grouping strategies in core subjects
Model 2: Full Day
Consists of clusters, can be designated as Honors or AP (on the secondary level), and are composed of 1) identified gifted students, 2) students who are being screened for recommendation, and 3) students who are recommended for continued screening and advanced instruction
Model 3: Self-Contained
Consists of all identified gifted students with an emphasis on acceleration and continuous progress that is appropriate to individual needs (i.e. highly gifted or individualized honors programs)
Model 4: Alternative Program Model
Schools with unique circumstances or requirements and cannot meet the clustering options defined in the first three models (subject to approval by the Gifted/Talented Programs office)

7. Model 2 (Full Day) is the MOST COMMON form of clustering found in schools where clusters of identified GATE, potentially gifted, and students currently being screened are grouped together all day.

8. Elementary Clustering Recommendations
Clusters should be 5-8 identified gifted students per classroom (students should not be scattered by design or chance); Students being screened for identification may also be included in these classes
Students who are identified mid-year must be provided a differentiated curriculum, even if they are not in a “GATE” class

9. Secondary Clustering Recommendations
Clusters should be identified gifted students per classroom (students should not be scattered by design or chance); Students being screened for identification may also be included in these classes
Students who are identified mid-year must be provided a differentiated curriculum, even if they are not in a “GATE” class (or efforts should be made to provide appropriate mid-year placement)
Students should be placed in classes that meet their academic needs (i.e. Honors, AP, etc.) as appropriate; A student identified in Specific Academic Ability Math does not necessarily need to be placed in Honors English
Classes designated as “Highly Gifted” should be filled as follows:
Identified Highly Gifted students*
Highly Gifted Applicable students
Other identified gifted students as appropriate
* The term “Highly Gifted” refers to those students scoring 99.9% on a District psychologist-administered Intellectual assessment

10. FAQ Regarding Cluster Grouping
Q. Isn’t “cluster grouping” the same as “tracking”?
A. No. In a tracking system, all students are grouped by ability much of the school day, and students tend to remain in the same track throughout their school experience. Gifted students benefit from learning together, and need to be placed with similar students in their areas of strength (Hoover, Sayler, & Fedlhusen, 1993: Kulik and Kulik, 1990; Rogers, 1993). Cluster grouping of gifted students allows them to learn together, while avoiding permanent grouping arrangements for students of other ability levels.
Winebrenner and Devlin (2001), Cluster Grouping of Gifted Students: How to Provide Full-time Services on a Part-time Budget.

11. Research Synthesized by Dr. Karen Rogers: Dr
Research Synthesized by Dr. Karen Rogers: Dr. Rogers used a “meta-analysis” approach and compiled all published and unpublished studies on specific strategies or practices and calculates the “effect size” (ES) of each study outcome and averaged the effect sizes together. (+.33 would be 3 grade equivalent school months of additional achievement)
Research-Based Strategy
Effect Size
Gifted “Track”
.49 elementary secondary
Full Time Gifted Program
.33 K-12
Early Entrance to School
.49 academic social
Grade Skipping
.46 academic social
Cluster Grouping
.62 academic
Subject Acceleration
.57 academic
Advanced Placement
.27 academic social
Pullout for Enrichment
.65 academic critical thinking creative
Mentorships
.47 academic social
Regrouping by Achievement Level for Instruction
.79 math/reading
Compacting
.83
Independent Study
Peer Tutoring/ Remediation
0 academic
Dr. Karen Rogers (1991). The Relationship of Grouping Practices to the Education of the Gifted and Talented Learners.

12. Recommended Guidelines for Grouping Gifted/Talented Students from Dr
Recommended Guidelines for Grouping Gifted/Talented Students from Dr. Karen Rogers
Gifted and talented students should spend the majority of their school day with others of similar abilities and interests
Cluster grouping of a small number of students within an otherwise heterogeneously grouped classroom can be considered
Gifted and talented students might be offered specific group instruction across grade levels
Gifted and talented students should be given experiences involving a variety of appropriate acceleration-based options
Gifted and talented students should be given experiences which involve various forms of enrichment
Mixed-ability cooperative learning should be used sparingly for gifted and talented students, perhaps only for social skills development programs