The Virginia Plan for the Gifted now provides that "Using multiple criteria, local staff members should regularly search for students ,,, [with] potential and/or demonstrated abilities and who give evidence of high performance capabilities (which may include leadership) in one or more of the following categories:

"• General Intellectual Aptitude. ...

"• Specific Academic Aptitude. ...

"• Technical and Practical Arts Aptitude. ....

"• Visual or Performing Arts Aptitude. ..."

Some Divisions, however, submit plans under which students who fall into a single one or more of the above categories may NOT necessarily be identified - because they choose NOT, for example, to recognize students with high potential performance in "General Intellectual Aptititude" as gifted..  Divisions apparently choose which of the above categories they choose to recognize.  It would seem contrary to the Plan for students who were eligible under any one of the categories to be excluded simply because of a choice of this nature by the Division.

In addition, some Divisions effectively require evidence of "enthusiasm", "leadership", or the like to obtain certain services under division gifted plans.  A particular, demonstrated level of enthusiasm or leadership is not relevant to the question of ability to benefit from (or need for) gifted services.  Divisions should not be permitted to considered such criteria in assigning levels of services to GT students (except that leadership and so forth may be defined as an independent form of giftedness).

All instruments or scales used to assign students to service levels within a GT program should be validated for that purpose.

Divisions should be cautioned that according to well-accepted research, introversion is associated with high degrees of giftedness and that introverted students may not appear to be engaged and enthusiastic -- the sort of students teachers tend to suppose to be gifted.

Divisions should be cautioned that a lack of performance on school tasks may be a sign that a student is not being challenged, rather than a sign that a student is not able to perform.

Divisions should be given criteria to help them identify twice-exceptional and highly- or profoundly-gifted students.

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Identification and services should start earlier and continue longer.

Divisions should be urged to consider grade-skipping and other forms of acceleration more frequently.