Referral window open for DCSD 2024-2025 Gifted and Talented program
The Darlington County School District’s (DCSD) referral window for the 2024-2025 Gifted and Talented program opened on Monday, Jul. 31, and willclose Friday, Sept. 8.
Parents who would like their child in grades 3-11 to be screened for the Gifted and Talented program must complete the online screening referral form by Sept. 8. Every child is automatically tested as a second grader. In order to be retested, the child must have scored in the 70th percentile or higher on the last administration of the approved tests for Gifted and Talented.
DCSD will administer the Iowa Test of Basic Skills (ITBS) and the Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT) to second grade students and any other eligible grade-level students that have been referred for testing. The testing is a screening for placement in the district’s Gifted and Talented program for the 2024-25 school year.
The testing will be administered in two areas: achievement and aptitude. The ITBS will be administered for achievement, and the CogAT will be administered to determine the aptitude criteria. Students who meet the required criteria (Achievement: 94th national age percentile in reading comprehension or math concepts and problem solving; Aptitude: 93rd national age percentile in either verbal, non-verbal, quantitative, or total) may be eligible to participate in the Gifted and Talented program beginning in the 2024-25 school year. Students who meet one-half of the criteria will be eligible to participate in the Performance Task Assessment in late February and March.
If parents would like students in grades 3-11 to be retested, please visit the district website for more information.
The district will notify parents of a student who qualifies for Gifted and Talented by letter in the late summer of 2024.
For more information about the Gifted and Talented Program, please contact the Office of Arts and Innovative Programs at 843-398-2242.