(PUBLIC) 17 April 2018 Report No. 18-041 Secondary Gifted Specialized
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SEAC 11 April 2018 COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE (PUBLIC) 17 April 2018 Report No. 18-041 Secondary Gifted Specialized Program Class Transition to the Geographic Model Key Contact: Olga Grigoriev, Superintendent, Learning Support Services, 613-596-8211 ext. 8254 PURPOSE: 1. To present staff recommended options for the secondary gifted specialized program class transition into the Geographic Model and to obtain Board approval of a consultation process and timeline. CONTEXT: 2. At the Board meeting of 20 December 2016, the Board approved the following motions: A. THAT staff work with SEAC and an Advisory Group that would include SEAC representation to expand options to be presented to the public to improve the effectiveness of services for Gifted students and to increase equity of access for under-represented groups; B. THAT the Congregated Gifted Program transition to a specialized class location model using geographically defined catchment areas (Geographic Model); C. THAT staff bring forward an interim report on the development of options by the end of May 2017 and a final report including a plan for the Geographic Model transition, including costing, no later than the end of December 2017; D. THAT staff bring forward a report with a plan, including costing, of implementing a universal screening tool, once the Ministry of Education has released a new Gifted definition, no later than end of October 2017; E. THAT staff bring forward a plan, including costing for professional development/coaching support for school based staff working in the regular class with elementary Gifted students, no later than March 2017. Initial considerations regarding the transition of the secondary gifted specialized program class to the Geographic Model and the need for consultation were Report 18-041 Secondary Gifted Geographic Model Transition and Consultation Plan Page 1 identified in Report 17-092 Gifted Geographic Model Transition. The transition to the Geographic Model for elementary gifted specialized program classes was not recommended in Report 17-092 due to the continued work of the Gifted Advisory Group and pending Ministry definition of giftedness. KEY CONSIDERATIONS: 3. Geographic Model Since 2013-2014, the Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) has been implementing a new specialized program class model based on geographically defined catchment areas and designated home schools called the Geographic Model. For the purpose of distributing specialized program classes geographically, the District has five geographic zones (Far West, West, South, East and Far East). Please see Appendix A for a District map of the five geographic zones. The number of zones used varies by specialized program class type and is influenced by a range of complex factors including: ● the number of classes required to meet District needs; ● enrolment trends and projections; ● legislative requirements (i.e., staffing ratios by exceptionality); ● school configurations; ● school space availability; ● current/future student transition considerations; and ● alignment with District program policy (e.g., availability of English and French Immersion). To implement the Geographic Model by exceptionality, the District must consider this range of factors and determine the appropriate number of program classes and locations to ensure access, stability, and sustainability. Applying the Geographic Model to secondary gifted specialized program classes presents unique challenges and includes: ● large number of students that access the specialized program class (e.g., approximately 600); ● no defined total specialized program class limit; ● no method to predict enrolment for the specialized program class at a site (e.g., are students/families choosing the specialized program class or the site?); ● limited secondary schools with the site capacity to accommodate; and ● no method to predict long term the geographic distribution of students accessing secondary gifted specialized program classes. 4. Current Secondary Gifted Specialized Program Class Currently, the OCDSB offers secondary gifted specialized program classes at the following schools: Bell High School; Glebe Collegiate Institute; Lisgar Collegiate Institute; and Merivale High School. Two of the high schools offer specialized program classes in both English and French Immersion (Bell H.S and Merivale H.S.), one school offers English gifted specialized program classes (Lisgar C.I.), Report 18-041 Secondary Gifted Geographic Model Transition and Consultation Plan Page 2 and one school offers French Immersion gifted specialized program classes (Glebe C.I.). Discussion Report 17-092 provided additional background on our overview of current secondary gifted specialized program classes including: ● practice to determine designated gifted sites (e.g., boundaries); ● implications of the Secondary School Review; ● discussion of the critical mass of students required to provide robust course offerings; and ● inequity of specialized program class structure across current sites due to enrolment and program offerings (e.g., English vs French Immersion). Following Discussion Report 17-092, additional information was requested with respect to current secondary gifted specialized program class enrolment in English and French Immersion. The following information was presented in Memorandum 18-023 Secondary Gifted Student Count. Secondary Gifted Specialized Program Class Student Count Site Gifted Gifted Total English Immersion Students Bell High School 159 48 207 Glebe Collegiate Institute 0 68 68 Lisgar Collegiate Institute 363 0 363 Merivale High School 19 10 29 As a result of the Secondary School Review, policy changes were made to ensure that all secondary schools offer French as a Second Language programming in Core French and French Immersion. To align with this policy direction, where gifted programming is offered in secondary schools, it should be offered in both English and French. The current enrolment in both Glebe C.I. and Merivale H.S. gifted specialized program classes does not allow for equivalent course offerings and programming within the specialized program class format as can be provided at Lisgar C.I. and Bell H.S. Therefore, the student experience across sites is quite different. Enrolment at Bell H.S. provides the critical mass of students to support gifted specialized program classes for English and French Immersion programming where students complete all compulsory credits for their Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) in the gifted specialized program class format. English and French Immersion gifted specialized program classes at one site offer timetabling efficiencies with respect to English and Math credits. Some gifted Report 18-041 Secondary Gifted Geographic Model Transition and Consultation Plan Page 3 electives can be offered in grades 11 and 12. In addition to the timetabling benefits and ideal course offering in the specialized program class format, a larger gifted student cohort allows for different student groupings across courses allowing for a more authentic secondary school experience. Moving forward, it is the staff recommendation that secondary gifted specialized program classes will be available in English and French Immersion at each site in order to align with District policy. 5. Number of sites Determining the ideal total number of secondary gifted specialized program class sites has been examined. The following factors were considered: ● current student enrolment; ● viability of current number of sites (e.g., two with insufficient enrolment); ● introduction of Western International Baccalaureate (IB) program; ● ideal geographic distribution; and ● site capacity in specific zones of the District (e.g., limited sites with capacity to accommodate the number of students required for ideal programming). Based on aforementioned considerations, staff recommends the District move toward two secondary gifted specialized program class sites. All students currently enrolled in the program would be allowed to complete the program at their current location. Beginning in September 2019, students in grade 9 would enter the program at one of two sites. The programs at the other two sites would be phased out by the end of the 2021-2022 school year. 6. Site Selection Staff is recommending that the secondary gifted specialized program sites be located at Bell High School and at Lisgar Collegiate Institute. Bell High School The gifted specialized program class at Bell H.S. has supported robust programming in both English and French Immersion for many years and is well located to serve the West, Far West and South zones of the District. Bell H.S. was a part of the Western Area Pupil Accommodation Review completed in 2017 and the gifted specialized program class was included from a student population perspective. With the completion of the review, no further changes to Bell H.S. are anticipated. From an accommodation perspective, there would be little flexibility in finding an alternative secondary site to serve the West, Far West and South zones of the District. Lisgar Collegiate Institute is the secondary gifted specialized program class currently serving the East and Far East zones of the District. Lisgar C.I. has supported robust gifted specialized program classes for many years and the gifted population is a valued part of the school community. In addition, the site is well served by public transportation. Currently, Lisgar C.I. has the highest number of students enrolled in the gifted specialized program