ABSTRACT
The Arkansas Evaluation Initiative (AEI) in Gifted Education is a model for developing, implementing and conducting formative gifted program evaluations. The AEI model was developed in response to an explicit request for data to demonstrate the necessity and effectiveness of gifted programs. The AEI in Gifted Education model has four components: the Program Baseline Assessment, the Evaluation Institutes, the Evaluation Exemplars, and the Statewide Evaluation Teams. The Evaluation Exemplars are templates for developing evaluation plans for small, mid-sized, and large metropolitan districts. The AEI Model in Gifted Education incorporates a train-the-trainers component to establish instate teams of evaluators. Teams include three persons: gifted and talented coordinator from a school district, gifted and talented supervisor from an educational cooperative service center, and representative from a higher education institution.
