MTES+Gifted+Education+Mission+Statement

**The mission statement of Mansfield Township Elementary School:**
===//The Mansfield Township Elementary School District partners with the community to provide a **meaningful and rigorous education** that instills the value of lifelong learning, and **empowers all students to reach their full potential** and become productive citizens, in accordance with the comprehensive standards of our state.//===

==The MTES Gifted and Talented Program builds on the mission statement of the school, recognizing that “//all students//” includes those with exceptional abilities, for whom the //“rigorous education//” empowering them “//to reach their full potential//” requires challenges beyond those specified in the standards for general education. As students’ individual potential extends beyond the domain of content knowledge, the MTES Gifted and Talented Program strives to promote the development of these student outcomes:== ==These goals are hallmarks of productive citizenship. To these aims, the MTES Gifted and Talented Program will provide content-based challenges to support, supplement, and extend classroom instruction, as a forum to foster these life skills.==
 * ==Critical thinking – Logical and evidence-based reasoning, with attention to depth and accuracy==
 * ==Creativity – Applications in problem-solving as well as artistic expression==
 * ==Communication skills – Verbal and written, to varied purposes and audiences==
 * ==Metacognition – Awareness of goal-setting, task processes, and reflection on outcomes==
 * ==Constructive, critical evaluation – Assessment of depth and validity of work by self and peers==
 * ==Self-regulation – Responsibility and task commitment==
 * ==Self-efficacy and empowerment – Activate and apply skills to real-life contexts==

=__Our Program Structure:__=

The MTES Gifted and Talented Program consists of a continuum of services, in a variety of formats and components to meet student needs. Program design varies to meet the emerging needs of students and is subject to ongoing revision, in order to optimize effectiveness. Mansfield Township Elementary provides:
 * **// Enrichment opportunities by interest //** - These opportunities are potentially available to all students, and refer to those activities for which participants self-select by interest, such as clubs and individual student competitions. Such opportunities are publicized through the weekly newsletter and home-school communications.
 * **// Enrichment opportunities by aptitude //** - These opportunities are potentially available to all students, and refer to those positions for which students are selected by aptitude, such as through teacher or guidance counselor nomination, or by classroom competition. These opportunities include positions of student leadership and opportunities to represent MTES in intermural competitions.
 * **// WCCSE intermural opportunities //** – MTES students participate in several events through Warren County Consortium for Student Enrichment each year. Participation for some of these events is self-selected by interest or aptitude; others build on thematic G&T instructional units (see below).
 * **// Differentiation in the regular classroom //** – Such differentiation for higher levels of challenge is managed by the classroom teacher and supported by the G&T teacher. This may include alternate practice activities, adjusted assignments, or curriculum compacting where sections of content are pretested, for possible enrichment or replacement with more challenging material. Differentiation may be individualized or managed by groups, as best suits students’ needs.
 * **// Team Teaching in the regular classroom //** – Team teaching provides whole-class challenge, where the classroom teacher and G&T teacher together plan and deliver enriched instruction. Depending on the content being addressed, the teachers may work together with the entire class, or may break into smaller groups to target instruction to student readiness.
 * **// Pull-out Enrichment to extend grade-level content //** – When a number of teachers identify individual students who are ready for additional challenges, these students may gather for an enrichment group, managed by the classroom teacher(s) and supported by the G&T teacher, or, in some cases, managed by the G&T teacher. For example: Mathematics enrichment groups in the upper grades provide opportunities for students with strong math aptitude to develop critical thinking, problem solving, and mathematical communication skills.
 * **// Thematic semi-replacement units //** – Such instructional units are typically offered to all academic G&T students at a particular grade level; participation may be individualized to meet students’ needs. As such units meet regularly during classroom instructional periods, participation is limited to those students who have met G&T eligibility criteria. Student work in such units will be shared with classroom teachers and may be considered as a factor in classroom grades.
 * **// Accelerated replacement classes //** – Such classes may be formed to meet the needs of clusters of students who demonstrate mastery of curriculum standards well beyond grade level, for whom classroom instruction would be inappropriate, as has occasionally occurred with upper grades mathematics. Accelerated replacement classes follow and extend the state-required curriculum, with an increased emphasis on critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication, and an expectation that students will be responsible and productive within an environment of greater autonomy.


 * __ Eligibility Determinations Policy for Gifted and Talented Programs at MTES __**

Nominations are collected each April from teachers and parents, with the call for nominations publicized via staff email and in several consecutive weekly bulletins. Nominated students participate in online self-adjusting skills tests in Language Arts and Mathematics, and their classroom teachers complete profile forms describing the students’ learning styles and classroom performance. In addition, standardized test scores are reviewed on a yearly basis, as these results become available. When exceptional test scores indicate additional nominations, these students take the online skills tests in September.

Based on skills tests, standardized tests, and teacher input, students who show a reasonable likelihood of G&T eligibility are identified as candidates. Parents of such candidates are asked to provide profile information and permission for their child to participate in qualifying tests, typically scheduled in mid-September. The qualifying tests require several small-group sessions, using an evaluation instrument specifically designed for this purpose. If a child is determined to not meet eligibility criteria after participating in the qualifying tests, there is a **two-year waiting period ** before these tests can be repeated. However, after a period of one year, the determination of ineligibility may be reviewed in light of new standardized test scores, which may provide sufficient cause for reconsideration.

Eligibility determinations are based on each child’s overall profile, which includes 75% objective data gathered from skills tests, standardized test records, and qualifying test results, and 25% subjective information as reported by classroom teachers and parents. Subjective information is scored according to set criteria. Eligibility is determined by total points accumulated across all areas, allowing for diverse strengths to be considered. All eligibility determinations are reviewed by committee, this committee consisting of multiple teachers and one administrator. **__Final decisions are made by administration.__**


 * __ G&T Arts __**

Nominations for the G&T Arts programs typically come from the arts teachers. These special area teachers are already familiar with the child’s abilities and are in the unique position of being able to identify what is truly outstanding among elementary students.


 * __ Exit Criteria __**

Students who have previously been found eligible for the Gifted and Talented Program do not need to be retested to maintain eligibility. Program participation may be customized to meet the needs of particular students.