Talent Development and Gifted Education

Talent Development and Advanced Learner Education

Vision:
  All students recognize and develop their talents as a result of enrichment and appropriately challenging learning opportunities.
 

Beliefs

• All students at all ages have relative talent strengths, and schools should help them identify, develop and understand their own special abilities. 

• The development of ability or talent is a lifelong process requiring effort and support.

• Schools can and should be places for developing the talents of all students. 

• Advanced learners demonstrate outstanding achievement or show potential for high levels of accomplishment relative to others of similar age, experience, and environment.

• Advanced learners have cognitive and affective needs requiring differentiated and challenging educational programs/services beyond those provided in the general education program.

• Advanced learners represent the diverse populations of our communities, and can be identified throughout their PK-12 program to provide the appropriate instruction and support for continuous growth.

MInneapolis Public School's Commitments

• Providing opportunities for all children to develop and demonstrate advanced learning behaviors, including children from groups underrepresented in advanced programs.

• Building a profile of student strengths which can be used to document the need for differentiated curriculum and instruction.

• Identifying advanced learners for the purpose of providing appropriate instruction and support which meet these students’ unique academic and social/emotional needs.

• Building the capacity of MPS teachers, leaders and families to recognize, nurture and accelerate talent development.

   Aligning our program with the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) PK-12 Gifted Program Standards.

The above commitments will be delivered through Levels of Service 

What is Levels of Service? 


Many experts in the field of education have called into question why we often provide enrichment opportunities only to our identified gifted students.  Traditionally, gifted education programming has consisted of high-interest and dynamic options such as chess and robotics clubs, hands-on problem solving and creativity programs like Odyssey of the Mind and Inventor's Fair, and differentiated curriculum that allows students to learn through interests and learning preferences.  Leaders have asked, "Don't all children deserve this level of programming?"  On the other hand if all students deserve to learn in an enriched, differentiated curriculum and to develop unique talents, what do gifted or advanced learners need?  How do we provide programming that shares with all students the best practices from gifted education while recognizing some students truly have advanced learning needs?  How do we meet those needs while raising the levels of achievement for all students?  Levels of Service is a progressive answer to these questions.

Levels of Service is:

•  A school-wide model 

•  A commitment to deliberately developing talent in all students 

•  A system that evaluates and meets the needs of students with advanced learning needs, promotes and supports differentiated instruction for all students,  and puts the focus on what our students can do 

•  A process of organizing and harnessing community resources

•  A challenge to incorporate creative thinking, critical thinking, problem solving, and decision making on a daily basis (Treffinger et al., 2004)

•  Proven to be effective across the country in large, multicultural, urban school districts

Levels of Service is not:

•  Just for advanced learners

•  A model that promotes the belief that all children are gifted or advanced

•  The end of "gifted education"

•  A wild, new, untested model

•  A pull-out program  
Advanced Learner screening

November 5, 2012

Today students in 3rd and 4th grades received a letter from the Office of Talent Development & Advanced Learner Education.  This letter states that if your child has not been identified as an advanced learner and would like to have them screened this year, please read, sign and return the referral and consent form  to your child's teacher no later than November 14, 2012.
Contact Information

Voicemail: 668-8958
kim.kirk@mpls.k12.mn.us
LC Room: 104
UC Room: 208 (classroom) & 209 (office)