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TCA 49-10 and IDEA '97In 1972, the Tennessee General Assembly passed the "Weldon bill," which funded grants to serve disabled and gifted students. Memphis was the first school system to establish a gifted program with these grants; the program was founded by Jo Patterson and was called CLUE. Today, Tennessee includes gifted education under the umbrella of special education by extending federal laws to include gifted students. Between 1975 and 1990 the federal law mandating services for disabled students was known as the Education for the Handicapped Act (P.L. 94-142). P.L. 94-142 was reauthorized in 1990 and was re-titled the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). TCA 49-10 extends the definition of "disability" in IDEA to include intellectual giftedness (TCA 49-10-102). Tennessee receives no federal funds for gifted education. However, school districts in Tennessee receive a portion of the state's funds allocated for disabled students, averaging about $220 per gifted student. Tennessee's interpretation of IDEAThe state's special education laws are further expanded and interpreted by the State Board of Education in Rules 0520-1-9. IDEA, state laws, and SBE rules give gifted students significant rights, including the right to a free and appropriate public education (FAPE), the right to the least restrictive environment (LRE), the right to an individualized education program (IEP) if needed, and a formal appeals process. These rights are summarized in "Rights of Children With Disabilities and Parent Responsibilities." One often misinterpreted concept is LRE. Some administrators believe that the LRE implies that all disabled (and gifted) students must be educated in the regular classroom with their age-peers, i.e., "same-age mainstreaming." However, LRE does not eliminate pull-out classes, acceleration, special classes, dual enrollment and all other options for a student *IF* it can be shown that the student's needs (academic or social) cannot be met in the regular classroom. Civil Rights Act of 1964The Office of Civil Rights and the TN DOE signed an agreement that requires TN DOE gifted education policy to conform with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (TN DOE/OCR agreement: 1 2 3 4 5). The basic principles in the agreement are that (1) gifted identification must not discriminate and (2) all qualified students in a school district must have access to gifted programming if the district offers it. Tennessee can no longer exclude students using tests that have been shown to be culturally biased and school districts can't offer gifted programs only to students in wealthy schools.
TN DOE's IEP Procedure ManualThe process of writing an IEP is described in the recently published 50-page TN DOE IEP Procedure Manual. Parents should familiarize themselves with the process. Tennessee DOE's Special Education Policies and Procedures Manual, "Intellectually Gifted" chapterAnother very important document is the Tennessee DOE Special Education Policies and Procedures Manual chapter titled "Intellectually Gifted."
This manual chapter was published in July 2001 and contains new guidelines for testing, identification, and services for gifted students. The new multi-option identification criteria system is designed to reduce the chances that minority and under-privileged students will be excluded, and to bring the guidelines into conformance with an agreement with the Office of Civil Rights. The alternate IQ scoring in the context of subtest scatter will help with the identification of GT/LD students as well as visual-spatial and reflective thinkers. The required child screening will help identify students and educate teachers about the characteristics of gifted students. And the suggested services in the second half of the chapter will give parents and teachers new ideas for meeting children's needs. Overview of Rules and LawsLocal school district practices regarding gifted education are based on the Special Education Policies and Procedures Manual. The chapter in the manual titled "Intellectually Gifted" was created to conform with two foundational laws: (1) IDEA 1997 and (2) the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Gifted Teachers Employment StandardsState Boards of Education Rules 0520-1-2-.03 explains what coursework and licenses teachers of gifted students need to have. It should be noted that the intent of the rule is to place several teachers who meet these qualifications in every school at all grade levels, and these teachers are supposed to be regular classroom teachers who differentiate and compact the curriculum as well as deal with social/emotional issues related to giftedness. With enough of these teachers in each school, it would be much easier to support the needs of the gifted. The rule has a loop hole which allows teachers to merely consult with a gifted specialist or special education teacher, and many districts have used this to avoid hiring people who have coursework in gifted education. Teachers with Extended ContractsDistricts might also require teachers with extended contracts to teach gifted enrichment programs during the summer (see TCA 49-5-5209). Dual enrollment in Tennessee collegesTennessee public colleges must admit (with the university's consent) qualified gifted students in grades 9 through 12 who have not yet graduated from high school. There is no age specified, so young accelerated students should also qualify. See TCA 49-6-3111. Read more...For the complete text of the Tennessee laws mentioned above, go to Lexis. For the complete text of the rules and regulations of the Tennessee Department of Education State Board of Education, go to the SBE Rules. DisclaimerSpecial education law is a highly complex field that includes federal and state legislation, agency rules and regulations, and court decisions. The reader is cautioned not to make legal decisions based only on the information on this web site. The purpose of this web page is to give parents a basic overview of the laws and regulations pertaining to gifted education in Tennessee. |
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