Giftedness & Gifted Education
In order to be identified as gifted, a student must achieve a qualifying test score on an Ohio Department of Education (ODE) approved standardized assessment for gifted identification. The OAA, OST, OCBA assessments are not approved tests for gifted identification by the ODE.
As a result of the Federal government allowing individual states to determine the nature and scope of gifted education, gifted identification and services vary widely among the states. Some states have a mandate and funding for identification and services while other states may offer virtually nothing. Ohio is in the middle of the continuum in that there is a mandate to identify gifted students but no mandate to serve. As a result, gifted services among the local districts vary as much as the states differ in their requirements.