CAYMAN ISLANDS CODE OF PRACTICE
I. Definition of a Child With Gifted and Talented Needs
A gifted and talented student is a child who gives evidence of higher performance capability in such areas as intellectual, creative, artistic, leadership, or specific academic fields and who requires educational provision which is additional to or otherwise different from the educational provision made generally for children of the same age.
Schools shall identify for Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) those pupils who score at or above the 95th percentile on a test approved by the Cayman Islands Department of Education Services in any one of the areas of Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, or Non-Verbal Reasoning.
II. Screening and Assessment for Gifted and Talented Identification
Referrals for assessment for GATE programs may originate from multiple screening sources such as observation of performances, parent input, behavioral checklists, review of school history, results on standardized achievement tests (such as TerraNova, Key Stage tests, etc.), and teacher nomination.
Referrals may therefore come from teachers, parents, school leadership, or program administrators. All students referred must have signed parental consent prior to such assessment. Once identified for eligibility, there is no requirement for reassessment in later years to continue program participation.
Only when a student has been identified through means of formal assessment, should they be placed on an official Gifted and Talented Education register.
III. Provision to Students who are Gifted and Talented
A. Introduction: Graduated Response/Three Tiers
In order to increase the capacity of children who are gifted and talented, schools should practice a graduated response. This approach recognizes that there is a continuum of intervention strategies and, only where necessary, brings increasing specialist expertise to bear. The school should make full use of all on-site resources (Tiers 1 and 2) before expecting to provide exceptional outside resources (Tier 3).
B. Tier 1: Differentiated Instruction Plans
To infuse the core elements advocated in gifted education (e.g. high-order thinking skills, creativity, and personal-social competence) into the curriculum for all students, it is the responsibility of the classroom teacher for providing appropriate instruction for any identified gifted and talented students.
When a child becomes eligible by assessment for Gifted and Talented Education, the following actions should be followed and documented by the classroom teacher on a simple, concise Differentiated Instruction Plan:
Tier 1 Differentiated Instruction Plans should be reviewed at least termly. Reviews need not be unduly formal. Parents’ input regarding their child’s progress should be solicited, and their participation should be encouraged as part of the review process. Whenever possible or reasonable, the child should also take part in the review process and involved in setting or evaluating progress toward targets.
C. Tier 2: Targeted Large-Group Activities
To promote school and community leadership, develop social support systems to promote gifted achievement and production, and establish connections between current academics and future careers, schools will liaise with tertiary educational institutions and other organizations or persons to develop systems of external supports for the exceptionally gifted.
Programs at this tier may include after school activities that promote creative thinking, intensive learning in specific high interest subject areas, or guided instruction for higher level skills. Additionally as a national priority, summer or weekend symposiums or consortiums will be organized using outstanding world leaders/performers from the Cayman Islands or visiting from international settings.
It is the intent that government and private schools will collaborate and coordinate at Tier 2 to maximize potential positive outcomes for the country’s future leaders.
D. Tier 3: Intensive Small-Group or Individual Interventions
Additional to or different from instruction within the regular classroom, intensively-focused instructional interventions may be developed for groups of students who continue to underachieve or underperform despite their abilities. Responsibility for instruction at this level would be assigned to a designated GATE teacher who maintains a close link with regular classroom teacher(s) and the specific curricular area.
I. Definition of a Child With Gifted and Talented Needs
A gifted and talented student is a child who gives evidence of higher performance capability in such areas as intellectual, creative, artistic, leadership, or specific academic fields and who requires educational provision which is additional to or otherwise different from the educational provision made generally for children of the same age.
Schools shall identify for Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) those pupils who score at or above the 95th percentile on a test approved by the Cayman Islands Department of Education Services in any one of the areas of Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, or Non-Verbal Reasoning.
II. Screening and Assessment for Gifted and Talented Identification
Referrals for assessment for GATE programs may originate from multiple screening sources such as observation of performances, parent input, behavioral checklists, review of school history, results on standardized achievement tests (such as TerraNova, Key Stage tests, etc.), and teacher nomination.
Referrals may therefore come from teachers, parents, school leadership, or program administrators. All students referred must have signed parental consent prior to such assessment. Once identified for eligibility, there is no requirement for reassessment in later years to continue program participation.
Only when a student has been identified through means of formal assessment, should they be placed on an official Gifted and Talented Education register.
III. Provision to Students who are Gifted and Talented
A. Introduction: Graduated Response/Three Tiers
In order to increase the capacity of children who are gifted and talented, schools should practice a graduated response. This approach recognizes that there is a continuum of intervention strategies and, only where necessary, brings increasing specialist expertise to bear. The school should make full use of all on-site resources (Tiers 1 and 2) before expecting to provide exceptional outside resources (Tier 3).
B. Tier 1: Differentiated Instruction Plans
To infuse the core elements advocated in gifted education (e.g. high-order thinking skills, creativity, and personal-social competence) into the curriculum for all students, it is the responsibility of the classroom teacher for providing appropriate instruction for any identified gifted and talented students.
When a child becomes eligible by assessment for Gifted and Talented Education, the following actions should be followed and documented by the classroom teacher on a simple, concise Differentiated Instruction Plan:
- use existing information from the child’s educational experience to document starting points or baseline for the development of an appropriate differentiated curriculum for the child.
- develop teaching strategies to be used (e.g. provide different learning materials, special equipment, increased direct instruction time, smaller group instruction, etc.) for no more than two or three short-term measurable targets within the National Curriculum.
- establish who will be responsible for the interventions (teacher, classroom teaching assistant, parent, student) and a reasonable time frame whereupon the Differentiated Instruction Plan will be reviewed to measure student progress.
- clearly state success criteria for each target.
Tier 1 Differentiated Instruction Plans should be reviewed at least termly. Reviews need not be unduly formal. Parents’ input regarding their child’s progress should be solicited, and their participation should be encouraged as part of the review process. Whenever possible or reasonable, the child should also take part in the review process and involved in setting or evaluating progress toward targets.
C. Tier 2: Targeted Large-Group Activities
To promote school and community leadership, develop social support systems to promote gifted achievement and production, and establish connections between current academics and future careers, schools will liaise with tertiary educational institutions and other organizations or persons to develop systems of external supports for the exceptionally gifted.
Programs at this tier may include after school activities that promote creative thinking, intensive learning in specific high interest subject areas, or guided instruction for higher level skills. Additionally as a national priority, summer or weekend symposiums or consortiums will be organized using outstanding world leaders/performers from the Cayman Islands or visiting from international settings.
It is the intent that government and private schools will collaborate and coordinate at Tier 2 to maximize potential positive outcomes for the country’s future leaders.
D. Tier 3: Intensive Small-Group or Individual Interventions
Additional to or different from instruction within the regular classroom, intensively-focused instructional interventions may be developed for groups of students who continue to underachieve or underperform despite their abilities. Responsibility for instruction at this level would be assigned to a designated GATE teacher who maintains a close link with regular classroom teacher(s) and the specific curricular area.
