Port Washington-Saukville School District

The Port Washington-Saukville School District's philosophy is to meet the needs of each individual student.

"What Giftedness Is"

Continually identifying student needs and responding to those needs improve the likelihood that potential will be recognized and maximized...this is because gifts and talents are dynamic. This contrasts with the practice of labeling students, a more static model that tends to result in students being "in" or "out" of a gifted program. In a dynamic approach, it is acknowledged that student needs may change over time or be exhibited in a particular context.

- WI Department of Public Instruction

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Talented and Gifted Overview

The Port Washington-Saukville School District is dedicated to providing inclusive programming that fosters the development of all students to their greatest potential. The district focuses on talent development "programming" rather than a talent development "program". The district uses its Equitable Multi-level System of Support (EMLSS) Universal Screening Process as a vehicle to gather information about students with gifts and talents and monitor their progress.

The aim and intent of programming is broader and more powerful than "a program." Our philosophy moves beyond the concept that students are either "gifted" or "not gifted" and that they are either "in" or "out" of a gifted program. Instead, our philosophy embraces that children develop at different rates and that potential and ability are dynamic. It further focuses on addressing student needs within and beyond the general education setting.

Programming is based on student needs, readiness, interest, and learning profiles/individual differences. We are committed to developing, implementing, and monitoring pogramming and supports necessary to fully develop students' capabilities, needs, and potential in one or more of the following categories of giftedness: Specific academic area, intellectual, creative, artistic, and leadership.

While we generally think of our EMLSS in terms of "tiered support" it may be more appropraite to consider the EMLSS as a continuum of supports. The support extends both to students who are having difficulty accessing their education due to learning difficulties and those who need more rigor or enrichment to ensure a year's worth of growth in a year. Figure 1.0 illustrates the continuum of supports at PWSSD.

TAG Program in an EMLSS System

Using an EMLSS approach with gifted education helps our district provide a comprehensive set of responsive services to ensure we identify and meet all students' needs. Talented and Gifted (TAG) programming in an Equitable Multi-level System of Support (EMLSS) is designed to bring together information about a child's strengths and needs using a variety of data sources to ensure that students get what they need within a curriculum that uses evidence-based instructional approaches to support the child's success. Services span all grade levels and areas of gifted and talented identification and provide various opportunities to students with various gifts, talents, and sustained interest. EMLSS components are common factors in talented and gifted (advanced learning) programs.

Major differences, however, exist between former models and EMLSS:

the tiered levels are fluid, not fixed;
a problem-solving approach involves stakeholders;
student data drives instruction and decision-making;
students are monitored more deliberately to determine if the instructional strategy or intervention is improving student learning.

Students' needs are monitored within a balanced assessment system that includes formative, summative, and benchmark assessments. One of the key components of an EMLSS is early intervention before identification. Early recognition of and response to the child's strengths is important for all children, but it is essential for young, gifted children from culturally/linguistically diverse and economically disadvantaged families. A challenge for educators is adjusting to a major national change in the identification process. In the past, the first step in the gifted education process was to identify who was and was not "gifted". The label became the key to services and programming. The need for the gifted label is no longer the gatekeeper to services and programming associated with gifted and talented education. Through EMLSS, when students display the characteristics and/or behaviors associated with giftedness, the school system can respond to students' needs for enrichment or challenge.

TAG Referrals

Initial referrals for gifted and talented services usually come from the screening of student assessments or from the classroom teacher, who has in-depth knowledge and understanding of a student's abilities. Principals, other educational staff, or parents may also initiate screening of student performance based on:

District assessments (e.g., iReady)
Classroom assessments and performance data (i.e. assignments, end-of-unit assessments, classroom observations, performance artifacts, etc.)
Teacher or parent rating scores (e.g., scales for identifying gifted students)

Identification of gifted and talented services for students is an ongoing and continuous process. All students are considered for gifted services in kindergarten through 12th grade. The referral and identification process is included in plans for the ongoing monitoring and evaluation of gifted and talented services

Enrichment Opportunities

Talented and Gifted Guidebook

Gifted and Talented

Departments

Talented and Gifted Overview

TAG Program in an EMLSS System

TAG Referrals