Students in elementary and middle schools attend gifted classes and high school students take advanced classes, such as Honors and Advanced Placement, that may include nongifted students. Advanced Placement classes are offered at all the high schools. There are no magnet programs or International Baccalaureate programs in Cherokee County.

The following is a list of frequently asked questions about the gifted education program.

Q: How is a student nominated for the gifted education program?

A: Classroom teachers often make nominations; however, any responsible person who has knowledge of a student's intellectual functioning or academic performance may nominate the student for further consideration. This may include parents, teachers, administrators, peers or self-nomination. Referrals for nominations are made through school-based personnel, a teacher or an administrator.

After a nomination, students are screened using current data to determine the need for further assessment.

Q: How are students identified as eligible for a gifted education program?

A: The definition of a gifted student is a child who demonstrates a high degree of intellectual and/or creative ability, exhibits an exceptionally high degree of motivation and/or excels in specific academic fields, and who needs special instruction and/or special ancillary services to achieve at levels commensurate with his or her abilities.

The Cherokee County School District's gifted education program follows these guidelines in its eligibility process. The process outlines the four categories for assessment (mental ability, achievement, motivation and creativity) and the performance standards that must be achieved in each category for a student to become eligible for gifted education services.

Once a student has been assessed there are two ways to establish eligibility:

• The student may qualify on the basis of mental ability and achievement assessment results only (regardless of the assessment results in creativity and motivation). In this case, the mental ability test score must be a composite or full-scale (age) score on a nationally normed standardized test. The composite score must be at a 99th percentile for students in grades k-2. The composite score may be at the 96th percentile or higher for students in grades 3-12.

In addition, students (grades k-12) must meet at least one of the achievement standards: 90th percentile for total reading, 90th percentile for total math or 90th percentile for total achievement test battery. No student may qualify on the basis of a mental ability test score alone.

• The student may qualify by meeting the standards in any three of the four data categories, at least one of which must be on a nationally normed standardized test. Component scores, as well as full-scale score, may be used in the area of mental ability.

These abilities (mental ability, achievement, motivation and creativity) may be demonstrated in a variety of ways.

Q: If a student has been identified as gifted in another county in Georgia, will he or she be eligible for a gifted program placement in Cherokee County?

A: A student who qualified and was placed in a gifted education program in a public school system within Georgia has the right to automatically qualify for placement in the Cherokee County gifted education program.

Q: If a student has been identified as gifted in another state, will he or she be eligible for a gifted program placement in Cherokee County?

A: There is no reciprocal eligibility from state to state, as each state establishes its definition of giftedness and its own rules governing gifted education services. However, many states' definitions are similar, so every attempt is made to establish transferring students' eligibility for gifted program placement here in Georgia with little or no testing.

Q: How long will the eligibility process take to complete?

A: The eligibility process may take a few weeks or many months. Many factors dictate the length of time it may take to proceed through the eligibility process. These factors include but are not limited to the various grade levels needing assessment, districtwide testing schedules, the return of testing results, the number of students needing additional testing, etc.

Q: If my child does not qualify, can he be reconsidered?

A: A student's standardized test scores are reviewed annually. An eligibility referral occurs any time a student's scores meet specified criteria.

Source: Cherokee County School System