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Heights AEP and PACE |
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FAQThis page contains answers to frequently asked questions about gifted education.
AEP is the Academic Enrichment Program for gifted students in grades 3-8 in the Madison Elementary School District. How does a student qualify for the AEP Program? Students must qualify for the program by scoring in the 95th percentile on a state approved test. The Cognitive Abilities Test is used to qualify students for services in grades 3-8. The Cognitive Abilities Test measures three areas - verbal abilities, qualitative abilities and non-verbal abilities. Students must score in the 95th percentile in at least one of those three areas in order to enter the program. How and when can a student get tested for AEP? The district offers three testing opportunities. First, all second graders are tested in February on the Cognitive Abilities Test for placement the following year. Students in grades and 3-8 may also take the Cognitive Abilities Test in February if they need to be retested from a prior year or if they are new to the district. Second, the district provides two additional testing windows for new students in August and in November. Finally, families may choose to have their student participate in an independent test with a board certified psychologist outside of the district. The school will honor the scores of students who have met the qualification criteria through such independent tests. Please note, the school district will not test a child on the same test more than once every 12 months. If a student qualifies, what can he/she expect in the program? The degree and type of services varies from school to school within the Madison School District. These are the services for students at Madison Heights. Third and fourth grade students are placed into cluster groups according to the area of the test where they qualified, language arts or math. Students who qualified in the non-verbal area are placed with either the language arts or math cluster based on the student's area of strength as shown by a score above 90 in the language or math portion of the Cognitive Abilities Test. These clusters of students receive differentiated instruction on a regular basis with their classroom teacher. In addition, they participate in weekly lessons with the gifted resource teacher focusing on accelerated concepts and/or enrichment projects. Does my child have to take the test every year to stay in AEP? No. If your student demonstrates good performance in the program, then she/he will automatically continue in the program in the Madison School District, even in the middle schools. PACE is the Program for an Advanced and Challenging Environment. It is the gifted program for students in grades K-2 in the Madison School District. How does a student qualify for the PACE program? All kindergarteners will take the Naglieri Non-verbal Test in February. Students who score in the 95th percentile or above to qualify for the program. Additionally, students are evaluated using the Kingore Observation Inventory in kindergarten. This assessment tool also identifies students who are in the 95th percentile in for the PACE program. What happens in the PACE program? Students are grouped into cluster groups in classrooms in first and second grade. The teacher will provide differentiated activities for the PACE cluster group. The focus is on logical thinking, non-verbal reasoning, creativity, critical reading, and some acceleration in math. If a student is in PACE will they autmatically be in AEP in 3rd grade? No. The PACE program concludes at the end of second grade. It is a program based on thinking skills and creativity, whereas AEP is a content based program. Students must qualify for AEP on a content based test. My child just missed qualifying for a gifted program. What are my options? Using a test to identify young children for a gifted program can be tricky. Some children may not have developed the maturity, physical skills or attention stamina that is required of some testing settings. Despite being very intelligent, they may not qualify for the program. In this situation, there are some options. The student may retake the test. Note, the Madison School District will only test a child once per twelve months. This allows the child to grow and develop the skills that may have prevented him/her from being successful the first time. Also, parents may seek outside testing from and independent, board-certified psychologist. These test results will be evaluated by the district for possible placement into the gifted programs. Can I help my child prepare for a gifted test? There are two kinds of tests that students encounter in school: achievement tests and ability tests. Achievement tests measure what a student has been taught and what he/she has remembered or mastered. Achievement tests require study and practice to enable students to demonstrate what they have achieved. The AIMS tests is a prime example. Ability tests measure innate ability related to thinking skills. A child cannot study for this type of test. The tests used for gifted program identification are ability tests which have gone through years of validity testing. The best ways to prepare your child are to simply discuss the purpose of the test and the importance of doing your best work without feeling stressed about the outcome. Proper sleep and nutrition before the test also help. Are there other gifted programs? The Madison School District also offers the REACH program. The REACH program is for highly gifted students and is located at Madison Park School. It is a self contained "school within a school" for students in grades 1-8. Students must score at least a 99, 98 and 97 on the three areas of the Cognitive Abilities Test or a score in the 99th percentile on a state approved intelligence test in order to qualify for this program. Madison Simis Elementary School also provides some enrichment services for talented learners in all grades. My student finishes his homework so fast. What else can he do?
What does it mean to be spatially gifted? Everyone has a part of their brain responsible for visual processing, but some students favor that mode of processing. Think about the adults that you know who are artists, engineers, architects or graphic designers. These people tend to be spatially gifted. They can quickly and easily visualize geometric shapes. They are generally good at manipulating things with their hands, and they prefer to learn new things by seeing and doing, not just reading or hearing. Whether spatially gifted or not, being able to think spatially is an important skill. Every time you read a book, you are asked to develop a mental image. When directions are given over the phone, you have to picture the route in your mind. In school, teachers ask students to build their understanding of math concepts by using manipulatives. Having the ability to process information spatially is important for learning in school as well as daily living. Spatial thinking can be nurtured in children. Try providing these kinds of games at home: mazes, jigsaw puzzles, arts and crafts projects, origami, coloring books, and building toys such as Legos, K- nex, Lincoln Logs or blocks. What are the characteristics of a gifted learner? Advanced vocabulary Excellent memory Quick learner Many interests and hobbies Intense involvement with preferred activities Strong sense of justice or fairness Sensitivity Unique and creative ideas Sense of humor that surpasses peers Should I be worried if my child tends to be a perfectionist? Perfectionism is a common trait among gifted learners. It can be both an asset and a problem at times. Children need to learn to keep a balance between striving to do good work and not overly stressing themselves. When the balance shifts towards the negative, students may exhibit these behaviors: avoiding work for fear of failure, degrading oneself for not having achieved a high enough standard, repeating a task until it�s done correctly, or being moody. To help them cope, try these strategies. � Model acceptance of your own mistakes. � Share famous people�s failures as well as their successes. � Accept excellent performance, rather than dwelling on how it could still be better. � Encourage students to self reflect on their performance. � Provide specific feedback about what they have done well, rather than blanket praise like �good job.� � Encourage activities that don�t mandate winners and losers. � Provide clear guidelines for tasks. What are other ways to learn more about gifted education? The Madison Supporters of the Gifted is a parent group organized to help support families of gifted learners. They host monthly education seminars, and they are also a part of the Arizona Gifted Alliance. To learn more visit www.azgifted.org. |
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