ROCK SPRINGS – In order to best meet the needs of the students within the District, Sweetwater County School District No. 1 continues to evaluate the programs and processes within our organization.
Recently, a task force comprised of parents, teachers, District staff, and administrators met to evaluate the effectiveness of our Gifted and Talented program. During their meeting time, the task force was able to gain valuable information from the current Quest teacher’s perspective, students’ perspective, parents’ perspective and District staff perspectives.
The task force reviewed current practices, relevant research and dialogued prior to making recommendations for the program. Areas that were highlighted and prioritized from the task force include:
● Both Gifted and Talented opportunities and acceleration are needed
● Provide professional development for all teachers and administrators
● Establish qualifying criteria and screening processes involving many students
With these recommendations in mind, a gifted and talented teaching position will be posted and hired to serve students in grades third through sixth starting in the 2016-2017 academic year. The gifted and talented program will be located at Eastside Elementary.
In addition, professional development opportunities will be provided to support this new teacher and the District will continue to review scheduling options to increase the number of identified students to have access to this program.
Students in the gifted and talented program will continue to have enriching opportunities, problem-solving challenges, and authentic learning experiences to enhance their education.
