For us "pullout" IS the GT class....no one gets in under 130 (full scale), and there are no higher levels for HG+. I would love a full time self-contained option!

Parent, I would definitely pursue the entrance criteria, along with a more in-depth look at your son's qualifications, etc. They at least owe you that.

Has anyone faced the same situation and applied for an appeal? I want to know how I should contact Central GT Team, Is there any particular person to meet? Should I have to take GMU test?
Will I get a proper answer from the central team? Please discuss your experience.

I didn't know what GMU was, and after googling, landed here....does this fit? It claims the cutoff is typically in the 130's.

http://www.fcps.edu/DIS/gt/faqsprocess.htm

There are a lot of good Q&A's at that link.

Dear parent, to my knowledge a score above 138 in the NNAT automatically qualifies a child into the GT curriculum. I very strongly feel that you should approach the concerned officials and get an explanation as to why your son was denied GT. Ask them what is the rubric with which they measure the Gifted Potential in a child ? Do press for a proper reasoning for the denial.

As our friend Dottie has said, with such good scores of 138 and 128, your child is a very strong cnadidate for the GT curriculum.

Dottie will have her own response but some pull-outs advance kids academically. Others just "give" kids work to do. Might be interesting work but it may be geared away from any core subject so they aren't advancing in areas in the traditional classroom.

It is part of the reason the state of ohio's ODE placed some mandates around gt services so that pull-out or other services didn't equate to a handful of worksheets. Again, Dottie will have her own answer.... but sometimes getting "in" the gt program doesn't pan out to be the saving grace some are hoping for.

Or maybe her school in located in the dairy belt and they study the various forms and textures of cheese :-P

If Parent1 is in Fairfax County (which it sounds like), the best bet is to approach the school's principal and ask to appeal the decision of the local screening committee. This is done through the local school's GT resource teacher:

http://www.fcps.edu/DIS/gt/faqsprocess.html
What are procedures for appealing an ineligibility decision?

Parent/guardians of students not selected for the GT center program may submit an appeal. Only parents or guardians may submit an appeal. Appeal information is contained in the ineligibility letter. Appeals must contain new information not contained in the original screening file. Parents/guardians of an FCPS student may obtain a copy of the screening file from the local school GT resource teacher. The new information along with the GT Center Appeal Form, available at www.fcps.edu/DIS/gt/forms.html, is submitted to the GT Programs coordinator according to the timeline.

How is the appeal decision made?

The new data is added to the original screening file for review by the appeals committee. The GT Programs office notifies the parents/guardians and the local school of the appeals committee decision by the end of July. The decision of the appeals committee is final.

Can ineligible students be screened again?

Yes, students found ineligible for the GT center may be considered for school-based gifted services at the local school. Parents/guardians of ineligible students may also refer their child for GT center screening the following year according to the published timeline.

Gifted Talented is not only based on the IQ of the child, it is also based on the grades. If the IQ is high but the grades are low, the people may think the child is not ready. A child can be perfectly average but as long as they have good grades and are not stupid, they are considered for Gifted Talented.

Services may also be based on your district's budget. I'm a GIS (Gifted Intervention Specialist) & there are about 1000 identified middle school students between 2 GISs. Needless to say, the 2 of us can't work with everyone, so our district uses criteria to narrow the pool to a more manageable number. The criteria are objective (not based on grades, recommendations, etc.) & quantitative(number of areas of ID based on nationally-normed assessments, etc.) to determine need (as best as we can). I know that not all kids test well, but this does help ensure gifted underachievers (who also can benefit from services) are on the same footing with teacher-pleasers. If anyone has the perfect formula for determining "need," please share!

There are still a LOT of cognitively identified kids in my district who don't receive formal gifted services. It stinks, but there just isn't the funding for it.

I can't stress talking to your student's classroom teachers enough! Most teachers really do want all their kids to learn--they just don't always have ideas for how to do it. Susan Winebrenner's book _Teaching Gifted Kids in the Regular Classroom_ is a resource that can help make it less overwhelming for classroom teachers. If the regular classroom teachers are on board, this can mean services for your student every day!

I am not in fairfax county, but read the info on their system because a friend is dealing with them.
Apparently the cutoff is a moving target, based on the scores of the group for the year. So one year your kid could be totally in and another year, totally not 'eligible'. Seems a bit harsh, but I guess they have a set number of slots. Still, with a score in the 99%ile I would imagine it would be hard to fall below the cutoff in any year. ????

I think I also read that retesting can be done every single year if a parent asks.

GISDeb, what you describe sounds similar. I imagine you are doing the best you can with what you've got, but it's still a sad state of affairs.