AACPS Gifted and Talented Programs Restructured

Parents learned about the new structure of Anne Arundel County Public School (AACPS) programs targeting their gifted and talented children Thursday at Lindale Middle School.

The meeting was given throughout the county and focused specifically on Primary Talent Development (PTD) and Advanced Learner Programs (ALP) in county elementary schools.

Carol Ann McCurdy, senior manager of Advanced Studies and Programs for AACPS, said the informational sessions were designed to share details with parents about changes to both programs.

“We want parents to have an understanding that every school is an ALP school to some degree,” McCurdy said. “The goal is to provide parents with the knowledge of both what they can expect from the programs and what they can discuss with their children at home to continue the educational process when they leave the school.”

Patie White, coordinator of elementary ALP, said gifted and talented students are often the group of students who are least likely to experience one year of full growth in their grade level. White said gifted students often start their grade level knowing 40 to 50 percent of the content and skills for the year.

“We've got to stop teaching our kids what they already know or their potential skills will plateau or even deteriorate,” White said.

White explained that advanced learners have specific needs such as interaction with their intellectual peers, a more rapid pace of instruction and instruction with a greater level of difficulty. Teachers need to instruct advanced learners in a complex and abstract way that involves less linear thinking, she said.

White stressed to parents in attendance that schools cannot depend on one teacher to meet the needs of every child in their classroom throughout every day of the school year and that dilemma prompted AACPS to press forward with the ALP and PTD programs.

According to White, the PTD portion of the curriculum includes all students, regardless of ability. The program applies to students in pre-K through second grades and encourages inquisitiveness, resourcefulness, persistence and leadership. Using a science-based curriculum, PTD encourages students to solve open-ended questions and take intellectual risks, she said.

During this time, White said, a portfolio will be developed on each student to help identify which learners are in need of gifted and talented instruction in order to excel in grades three through five.

White explained that ALP, which is for third- through fifth-graders, focuses on more rigorous instruction for all students and a fully advanced curriculum for gifted and talented learners.

“All students will pass through at least one of three ALP trails set up within the program,” White said. “The exploratory trail will provide all students with instruction with higher-level questioning, hands-on equations and more, making up about 20 percent of their time in the classroom. Gifted and talented students will also be directed to trails that focus on language arts and mathematics specifically.”

Maureen McMahon, assistant superintendent of advanced studies and programs, said all schools are at least partly immersed in the program and that over the next three years all 77 elementary schools in the county will become fully implemented.

McMahon assured parents that principals and teachers county-wide are attending in-services and participating in webinars, bringing their training in the programs up to speed as quickly as possible.

“There are no schools that are not ready. There are no schools that are doing nothing,” McMahon said to parents. “Everyone is doing at least what they have done in the past, but most are doing much more.”

McMahon encouraged parents to think of themselves as stock-holders in the process and said they should contact their school and AACPS offices if they have concerns or questions.

“We never want your students to come home saying, 'It's boring at school,'” McMahon said. “Our goal is to engage your students so that they're coming home telling you stories about all of the exciting things they are learning in school.”

The slides presented at the informational sessions will be posted to the AACPS website next week, in addition to a frequently asked questions section outlining concerns and questions from parents about the ALP and PTD programs.

The school system will hold another information session Monday from 6 to 7:30 p.m. in the cafeteria of Magothy River Middle School in Arnold.