Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums GT Research Reason for GT denial

My son scored 139 in NNAT, whereas the benchmark score in second grade GT is 132.He had also got many "O"'s in his report card and he is also a good artist and his art is also been published in newspaper. Apart from this there are many other qualities to be considered for GT.

But we have received a letter stating he is not selected for GT. There is no proper reason mentioned. Will anyone let me know how they grade gifted talent? How should I proceed?

There is no standard from one state to another or even from one district to another. You will probably have to contact the district office to find out why your son was not accepted.

I think you have to look at the program and see what kind of students they are trying to service. I did a quick search of NNAT and the Wikipedia article was not positive. I know many places use it. It's a non-verbal test so if you have a highly verbal kid, it might not be a true reflective of his abilities. Given that he was above the cutoff, I would at least ask why he was denied.

139 is actually a very high score for the NNAT. I believe it above the 99%. The NNAT ceilings out at 150 and anything above 140 is considered in the "ceiling zone". We use it in our district and I've talked to lots of people on the NNAT. I've heard about it testing kids low, but never high. The people I know who've done further tested have only had HIGHER results. Of course that's not a scientific survey, but just an observation I've had in the past year.

Anyway - I would definitely follow up with the school! Find out why exactly he was denied. In our school district, you wouldn't only have access to GT services, you may even have grounds to ask for services above and beyond the standard ones. We live in an urban district and have a pretty liberal GT definition.

What does the GT program do for you? In our district, in 1 - 3 grade, it means 1 1/2 hours a week of pullout from the classroom. They are "studying" Ancient China. It really seems more like an arts and crafts day where they make things relating to China (Wall, Bamboo hats) and they watch movies and read books about China. It's all well and good, but, in my opinion, it's not something for which it would be worth fighting. Think about why you want him identified as GT and if the program is not very good you might want to wait until he retests. Sometimes you have to pick your battles.

I also have a similar case. My daughter has scored 138 in NNAT and 128 in COGAT. Her work is also published in newspaper and she has got very good grade in her report card and from her teacher also. Even then they have refused GT.
They are suggesting me to take another test(psychological) in GMU,
which is optional to appeal for GT board. I do not understand why she should take this test, if she had surpassed the benchmark score already.

Even if they deny GT, why can't they give some proper explanation such as what factors they considered, what is she missing?
If they just say gifted skills why do they need a benchmark score to test the intelligence of kids rather than gifted skills alone?
Who is the responsible person to give me a proper figure as I strongly feel as a parent I should know more info about my kid?

Thanks for your response. But I do not understand what you mean by"Cheesy pullout"

And I do love cheese!

"Cheesy pullout", here's an example. 2 or 3 times a week(alternates), for 1 hour, GS8 goes to the pullout. They were supposed to build some model planes, but no funding. They never even asked if we parents would kick in $20 a piece. So, they've done some stuff with Roman Numerals & different Bases in math. That was a let down, but still OK. Now, here's the real cheesy part; they are measuring their room. GS8 is frustrated because he really doesn't want to use a 12" ruler to measure the room, then record the measurements. I think that's worse than 'drill & kill'. He'd rather sit in his regular classroom and read.

Oh yes, one more thing. He's in for the whole semester, or he's out. And if he opts out when it gets boring then he might not be allowed back in next year.