The Role of Advanced Learning Plans in Gifted Education
According the the Colorado Department of Education, the ALP is "a written record of gifted and talented programming utilized with each gifted child and considered in educational planning and decision making." It links the student's profile of gifted identification, which parents receive when their child is initially identified gifted, and the services and programming that match the student's identified strengths. According to the CDE fact sheet, ALPs are "a planning guide for making instructional decisions about materials, programming options, and assessments for gifted students based upon strengths, interests, and social-emotional needs."
See Poudre School District's ALP Overview.
When a school offers programming that aligns with a student's strengths and interests, the ALP may seem like unnecessary paperwork. However, since the ALP is a record of a student's programming based on that students' strengths and interests, ALP goals do not necessarily need to expand on existing gifted programming. It may be helpful in these cases to realize that ALPs have helped to drive the creation and implementation of gifted programming. For example, schools in Poudre School District implemented affective programming during the 2013-2014 school year in response to the requirement that students identified gifted must have an ALP goal that addresses affective needs. ALPs can also serve as a focal point for discussion and reflection for students, parents, and teachers.
If a school does not have programming that aligns to a student's strengths or interests, then the ALP provides an opportunity for the student, parent(s), and teacher(s) to brainstorm programming options that both meet the student's needs and can be accommodated within the school day.
For more information about ALPs, please refer to the CDE's "Fast Facts," PSD's webpage about ALPs, or contact Emily Vangermeersch, the gifted education specialist at Kruse.
See Poudre School District's ALP Overview.
When a school offers programming that aligns with a student's strengths and interests, the ALP may seem like unnecessary paperwork. However, since the ALP is a record of a student's programming based on that students' strengths and interests, ALP goals do not necessarily need to expand on existing gifted programming. It may be helpful in these cases to realize that ALPs have helped to drive the creation and implementation of gifted programming. For example, schools in Poudre School District implemented affective programming during the 2013-2014 school year in response to the requirement that students identified gifted must have an ALP goal that addresses affective needs. ALPs can also serve as a focal point for discussion and reflection for students, parents, and teachers.
If a school does not have programming that aligns to a student's strengths or interests, then the ALP provides an opportunity for the student, parent(s), and teacher(s) to brainstorm programming options that both meet the student's needs and can be accommodated within the school day.
For more information about ALPs, please refer to the CDE's "Fast Facts," PSD's webpage about ALPs, or contact Emily Vangermeersch, the gifted education specialist at Kruse.