The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Public school board delays change in gifted screening by Dominik Kurek Oakville Beaver Staff 7 | Friday, April 5, 2013 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Just a few years after implementing its gifted program in primary grades, the Halton District School Board may change the program's entry process. At their Wednesday meeting, trustees deferred making the anticipated April 17 decision. Instead they deferred it to the fall, pending a consultation process. A full gallery of parents and their children was at the meeting and Oakville trustee Kathryn BatemanOlmstead, a fan of the primary gifted program, said trustees can't act on the staff recommendation without more information. The Association of Bright Children of Ontario (ABC Ontario) and its Halton chapter sent out a press release earlier this week asking trustees to reject the change. At issue is the screening process for giftedness. Historically, the public board has done a blanket screening of all its students in Grade 4 for a possible Grade 5 entry into a self-contained gifted class. In the spring of 2010, the board rolled out a primary gifted pilot program in Burlington -- followed across Halton in 2011 -- where students as young as those in Senior Kindergarten were also screened for giftedness after a teacher nomination. Screening is done in the first few months of the school year and students scoring at or above the 98th percentile in a psycho-educational assessment are eligible to enter a self-contained gifted class. Board staff is now asking for the mass screening to be done a year earlier, in Grade 3, and that the primary screening process be changed. Any early primary student showing traits of giftedness, but who is struggling, could be referred for assessment, by a teacher through a school resource team, at any grade level, at any time. Board staff indicated some children screened in later grades are being identified as gifted despite not being so assessed earlier in their school career. Superintendent of Education David Boag said several concerns exist. He said many students have been missed by the earlier screening process and many more assessment nominations have been made (394) than identifications made (124) -- which is a 31.5 per cent efficiency rate. It costs $135,000 for testing. Data indicates teachers are much more able to identify giftedness in students as students age -- a success rate of 26 per cent in SK, compared to 51.1 per cent in Grade 2. Boag said children's assessment becomes more accurate as they age. His report noted a child's IQ becomes more stable at ages eight to 10. Burlington trustee Donna Danielli said some parents are worried primary screening would be phased out and student numbers in self-contained classes would not be steady. Burlington trustee Jennifer Hlusko said some parents of gifted students fear Grade 1 placements will be removed or may only address students with behavioural problems or children whose parents pay for a child's assessment. Hlusko said the change could result in fewer placements, reducing self-contained class numbers -- possibly having one for all of Halton. The trustee said parents may then either pull a child out if they knew they had to ride the bus two hours a day, or others could enroll their children in private school. Bateman-Olmstead said delaying assessment could adversely affect gifted students, some of whom display unique behaviours in class and without early intervention could be at risk of behavioural or mental health issues. Trustees also questioned the adequacy of training Kindergarten and Grade 1 teachers for identifying giftedness in their students. Based upon correspondence with teachers, Hlusko said her opinion is most teachers don't know how to look for giftedness. Boag said the board offers two voluntary training sessions per year to teachers. When asked how many teachers attend, Boag said he didn't know, as attendance is not taken. Milton trustee Nancy MacNeill said moving the blanket assessment up one year is a good move, as it would capture gifted students sooner. Furthermore, she said removing the deadline for teacher nominations for primary screening was also good, as some individuals don't respond well to deadlines. "I like this. I think it's a step forward," MacNeill said, adding early years teachers need improved training to look for giftedness. SECTIONALS FROM $ 1899 MADE TO FIT YOUR ROOM MANY STYLES TO CHOOSE FROM MADE IN CANADA CANADIAN MADE DINING ON SALE MADE IN CANADA HUGE SELECTION OF BARSTOOLS Spring is Here! SLIPCOVER DOWN-FILLED SOFAS ARE HERE! See Trustees on p.9 A STEP BEYOND IN CARE DO YOU HAVE: Salima Kassam Reg. Chiropodist · Foot/Arch Pain? · Ingrown Toenails? · Diabetes? · Swollen Ankles? · Corns, Calluses? Spring Sale On Now 1029 Speers Road, Oakville (Speers & 4th Line) 10,000 SQ. FT. SHOWROOM CALL FOR AN APPOINTMENT 905-632-1414 905.842.3739 www.joshuacreekfurniture.com HOURS: MON. TO WED. 10-6 · THURS. & FRI. 10-8, SATURDAY 10-6 · SUNDAY CLOSED 728 Burloak Drive www.footandhealthclinic.com