Because of limited staffing and funding, teachers of talented and gifted programs in southeastern Ohio school districts oversee larger numbers of students than regular instructors, local gifted teachers said.
Trimble School District has one gifted and talented class teacher who teaches about 60 students, said superintendent Cindy Johnston.
Federal Hocking School District has about 300 students involved in the talented and gifted program, said gifted and talented program coordinator Linda Burson.
Of the 118 elementary school pupils involved, only 60 of them are given help from the district's only gifted and talented class teacher and access to the resource room, the gifted and talented classroom, Burson said.
The Ohio Department of Education tests students in elementary school to determine whether they should be placed in a talented and gifted program, Jones said.
Teachers, parents and the talented and gifted class teacher are consulted in making the decision to enroll students in these programs, she said.
Each school has different talented and gifted programs. Trimble School District offers accelerated programs that allow students to take classes such as reading and mathematics with children in higher grade levels on a daily basis, Jones said.
Federal Hocking School District offers creative programs like cooking, photography and writing classes for students in second through fifth grades. The talented and gifted teacher plans to add architecture and ancient civilization classes next year, Burson said.
According to the Ohio Department of Education, it annually provides $47 million to pay for teachers' salaries and talented and gifted testing.
When funds are invested in talented and gifted children
society will reap the benefits said Virginia Buzzard, the department's regional coordinator of gifted programming. These children are the leaders of tomorrow and there are as many talented and gifted students in impoverished communities as in affluent ones.
For schools with more than 5,000 students, the department funds the salary of a coordinator who acts as an administrator and its liaison with a school, she said.
The problem with this system is that schools must pay for teachers' benefits, retirement and health insurance, Buzzard said.
Some schools lack the money to afford these extra expenditures and instead pay for the benefits with funds earmarked by the state for hiring an assistant gifted teacher, she said.
For Federal Hocking schools, about $7,000 needed for supplies, guest speakers, training gifted teachers and other costs associated with gifted programming is taken from the title funds from federal taxes, Burson said.
17
Archives
Jessie Balmert
