In February 2013 the FCPS School Board outlined a process for a review of the County's Advanced Academic Program to assist the School Board in future program planning. At the June 27, 2013 work session, a final report and supporting documents were presented.
In spring 2012, 10 Fairfax County Public Schools participated in the OECD Test for Schools Pilot. The OECD Pilot is based on the internationally recognized PISA (Programme for International Assessment) which measures the applied knowledge and competencies in reading, math and science from a sample of 15-year-old students. FCPS provides details of the pilot here. Each of the schools received school level results comparable to the main PISA scales that can be used for international benchmarking.
Read this MCPS document that's remarkably forthcoming with open discussion/analysis of the issues: Deputy Superintendent's Advisory Committee On Gifted and Talented Education.
"Curriculum differentiation has been a central strategy in gifted education, allowing gifted students to explore and pursue different and higher level activities beyond regular classroom instruction." Read this paper by authors Mehmet Ali Ozturk and Charles Debelak
The Brookings Institute has published a report concluding that many of the 8th grade students taking Algebra 1 do not yet know their arithmetic, and that this effort to push more unprepared students into Algebra 1 may limit the ability of math teachers to challenge their more advanced students.
THE MISPLACED MATH STUDENT Lost in Eighth-Grade Algebra
The Gifted and Talented Advisory Committee has issued its staff-supported majority report as well as a minority report for 2006-07. The majority report supports base school GT classes. The minority report concurs that base school GT classes benefit many children, but urges the School Board to create a new "Level 5" program for highly gifted elementary and middle school students. [Read the minority report.] This Level 5 program could be similar to the GT programs for highly gifted students in Montgomery County, MD, which are described in our June 2007 newsletter.
Following are copies of the Annual Report of the Advanced Academic Programs Advisory Committee to the Fairfax County School Board (formerly known as the GTAC - Gifted/Talented Advisory Committee to the School Board):
The 2011 Annual Report The 2011 report contains a review of the committee's activities, recommendations of the committee, and other concerns of the committee.
The 2010 Annual Report
The 2010 report contains an overview of the year, budget implications and recommendations, and recommendations for 2010-2011.
The 2009 Annual Report
The 2009 report has two components: recommendations for the 2009-10 school year and a review of the Local Plan for the Education of Gifted Students.
The 2008 Status Report Final
The 2008 report has two components: the Status Report for the 2007-08 year and a review of the Local Plan for the Education of Gifted Students.
The 2007 Annual Report
This 2007 report reports on changing the name of Gifted and Talented Programs, guidelines for offering Local Level IV Services(formerly school-based centers), and the 2006-2011 Local Plan for the Education of Gifted Students. Recommendations are made to the school board in these areas.
The 2007 Minority Report
This 2007 report reports on the changing composition of traditional GT Center classes, meeting the needs of exceptionally advanced students, and the possibility of Level 5 instructional programs. Recommendations are made to the school board in these areas.
The 2006 Annual Report
The 2006 report reports on managing expectations, communication, and respect; special populations; and the teacher recruitment process. Recommendations are made to the school board in these areas.
The 2004 Annual Report
The 2004 report reports on the young scholars model,
elementary school math acceleration, options for highly
gifted high school students, and AP and IB high school
programs. Recommendations are made to the school board
in these areas.
The 2003 Annual Report
The 2003 report reports on Middle School Honors Programs
which will be implemented in six schools this coming year,
increasing the GT resource teacher staffing time, and using
the eighth grade mathematics SOL to determine readiness
for Algebra 1 in seventh and eighth graders. Recommendations
are made to the school board in these areas.
The 2002 Annual Report
The 2002 report reports on the revised screening procedures
for GT Center Identification, the G/T curriculum for grades
3 through 6, boundary changes impacting GT Centers, and
informing parents about AP/IB programs. Recommendations
are made to the school board in these areas.
The 2001 Annual Report
The 2001 report reports on the GTAC study of minority
representation in the G/T student population in FCPS, and
presents an analysis of the G/T curriculum for grades 3
through 6. Recommendations are made to the school board
in both areas.
The 2000 Annual Report
The 2000 report makes recommendations on a range of
improvements to G/T services in base elementary schools,
and reviews the status of challenging curricula for high
school students, especially the AP and IB programs in FCPS.
The 1999 Annual Report
This 1999 report calls for renewed value on IQ tests in
screening for the GT Center program, and calls for
improvements to the school-based GT program in FCPS.
Montgomery County Public Schools, unlike FCPS, has special magnets for students who are twice exceptional — both gifted and learning disabled. They also publish an informative flyer on twice exceptional students.
A Cornell University researcher describes how FCPS shifted resources away from gifted and affluent children, to pay for other programs. Read the Jones-Correa report.