Knox County shifts gifted-and-talented services to teaching-and-learning; elementary model emphasizes daily small-group enrichment

The Knox County Schools board heard details of a reorganization that moves services previously labeled “gifted and talented” (GT) into the teaching and learning department and into school-based delivery. Dr. Phillips, representing the teaching and learning department, told the board that former GT coaches have been reassigned to support ELA and math content teams and that the district will increase frequency of small-group academic enrichment, particularly at the elementary level. “Under the former model, our students who had advanced learning needs met with a GT coach one time per week for a pull out small group support session,” she said. “The goal is that we increase the amount of small-group support moving from one time a week to multiple times a week.” Key points and limits: Dr. Phillips said there will be no change to services…