Gifted Education

Posted by Douglas Parker

When schools are forced to focus on minimum standards, teachers simply don’t have the time or resources to be able to adequately educate the boys and girls that have been identified as gifted or talented.

In its Case for Developing America’s Talent report issued in 1993, the U.S. Department of Education - Office of Educational Research and Improvement estimated that many, if not most of America’s gifted children are failing to reach their full potential. While there are numerous causes for this concern, given that schools customarily place children identified as gifted in regular education classes, the focus then shifts to the teacher’s ability to monitor and adjust instruction to meet the gifted child’s needs.

Given that, schools need to assist our teachers by providing them with the right tools and resources (especially time), or as is seen in many cases today, our gifted students are simply not being challenged enough to motivate them to excel.

Studies show that high-performing students can earn straight ‘As’ by studying as little as one hour a night, and that they have learned up to half of the curriculum before they even walk in the classroom on the first day by reading ahead.

So, what can be done?

A large part of that answer can be found in the curriculum itself. By providing gifted students a more exigent curriculum and allowing for creative and expressive assessments beyond scanned pencil and paper quizzes would be a good start. Any reform along these lines also means that teachers receive the proper training necessary to help them address the needs of gifted and talented students. Then, these teachers need to be given some discretion in their lesson plans to be able to carve out some time to work with their advanced students.

Posted by Douglas Parker

Much of the modern reforms to education are borne from the 1983 report, “A Nation at Risk,” in which the education commission concluded that the educational performance of American schools was abysmal, and that America had to do a better job in educating its children. Since that time, numerous educational reforms have come into favor and then disappear from sight in an attempt to provide quality educational opportunities for all children and to boost the high school graduation rates. Having each boy and girl achieve at his or her potential is a worthy goal; however, is the No Child Left Behind Act the best way to achieve this result?



The answer to that question may exist on the level of standards. As educators know, along with local school district or county academic standards, there exist numerous national, international, and collegiate standards that have been created after long periods of examination and discussions for each field of study. Many independent schools and magnet schools across the world have examined these standards and have chosen the best set of standards and benchmarks to meet the needs of their students. For example, if a school focuses on math and science, there are curricula available that best meets their needs.



The government needs to take a leadership role in establishing a set of well-established, uniform standards for all disciplines, including math and reading, and help the states by appropriately funding and supporting each state’s efforts to raise students’ levels of achievement. Tests need to be used to adjust a school’s curriculum and to help develop a learning plan for boys and girls, and not to just hold them back.

Posted by Douglas Parker

Once families have identified the fact that they have a gifted child, not only can important academic decisions be made, but also vacation time can take on a new focus. It is important tot take that first step of identification, however. On the whole, the one major reason a family would have a child tested for giftedness is to provide him or her with a different kind of educational program that would best meet his or her needs.



Space Camp Rocks!



Once the identification has been made and the school issues are resolved, it’s time to think about some enriching playtime. As a teacher and as a principal, I have taken thousands of students on fieldtrips over the years, and I have seen some very good enrichment programs and some really bad ones. Of all the places I have taken kids over the years, Space Camp will always stand out for me as the best destination yet.

According to their information, “Space Camp uses space to excite and educate children ages 9-11 in the fields of math, science and technology. Teamwork, self-confidence and communication will be achieved through state-of-the-art simulations, missions, rocket building and robotics.”

I simply cannot imagine a more stimulating and exciting opportunity for gifted middle school boys and girls than attending Space Camp. Campers learn all about astronaut training as they prepare for a final blastoff mission. As one of the adults for these trips, I can’t recommend a better experience for the chaperones as well, as the big people get to experience the program right along with the students. I mean, how often do adults get to spin around on a Multi-Axis trainer?

It is worth your time to investigate.

Posted by Douglas Parker

Students in middle grades and high school should be asked several times during the year to work with classmates in reviewing and commenting on each other’s work. Here is a procedure for making that happen. First, separate the students into groups of four or five. If possible, try to include a student from a GATE program in each cooperative group. After students have prepared their rough drafts in whatever class you are teaching, have them take a full sheet of paper and divide it with horizontal lines into four equal sections. On the top section put the student's name, the work and author, and briefly state the thesis. For sections two, three and four, write at the top of the section:



Reader # ____’s Comments. Reviewed By ____________________.



Instruct the students: Paper clip this work sheet on top of the rough draft. Remember to number and date each draft. Keep all of your drafts together and attach them to your final graded paper.



Next, say this to the students: Feel free to offer whatever insights you feel may help the writer reach a best piece. You may want to consider major issues such as: logical organization, focus of the thesis, meaning of the paper, supporting materials via cuttings from the piece, appropriate research, and voice and tone. You may also want to narrow your vision) and zero-in on grammar, diction and use of English, spelling, paragraph construction. Peer review comments must be recorded on the review. Please do not write on the original draft!



Take at least one class period to conduct peer editing sessions for each major paper that is assigned. As students work with each other, call each student to your desk to discuss the paper to keep you in the loop.

Posted by Douglas Parker

More so than others, gifted students need to have a strong, positive relationship with a caring adult that will work with him or her in making the best possible academic and social decisions as a function of personalized instruction. In this regard, many schools have advisors or coaches for students. Rather than making this report an expository declaration, I decided instead just to list off some of the behaviors of being a good advisor that I have observed over the years.

Some of the qualities of good advising include:

-Being the adult connection with the student.

-Helping the student want to stay in school.

-Communicating often with the parents. Will call well ahead of end of marking period if the student is in any danger of failing or dropping a significant amount.

-Having the “big picture” about a student.

-Helps with college counseling.

-Provides a safe place for students to vent their concerns.

-Helps break down cliques.

-Has an easy sense of humor.

-Is not critical, yet gives honest feedback.

-Provides a place for a student to belong.

-Advocates for the student.

-Works with the assistant principal on any and all discipline issues.

-Will initiate peer-mediation when conflicts arise.

-Reads research on gifted education, and understands the special needs.

-Is aware of local and national gifted issues.

-Always is on the lookout for chances for differentiated instruction.

-Tries to enrich every teaching assignment.

-Provides academic and personal advisement.

-Coordinates and records all grades, special projects, accomplishments, etc.

Posted by Douglas Parker

In public schools, individualized education refers to a student being assigned an IEP, or an Individualized Education Program. According to today's research, what some schools that value gifted education mean by Personalized Instruction is that each student has a special relationship with an adult, either as an advisor or homeroom teacher, that will work with him or her, his or her parents, and the school in making the best possible academic and social decisions.

What does this kind of school culture look like, and what does it mean? Personalized Instruction means being there for the students with special needs – making the instruction appropriate and meaningful for the learners, communicating with parents, tutoring, providing extra help, having teachers being trained to address the learning styles that gifted children employ, knowing about ADD and 2e learning disabilities and the individual learning needs of all children. For example, a school that focuses on personalized instruction offers individualized plans, helps with homework, reading and math diagnostics, and all aspects of supplemental education in a safe, nurturing environment. The school understands when a student has a time conflict due to pullouts and makes individual arrangements with the families. The school uses Computer Assisted Instruction to help with individually monitored and designed independent practice of the teachers' curriculum, a 24x7 interactive computer network server for communications between students and their teachers, and improved physical and technological infrastructures through the syllabus.

And like most important changes in a school, it all begins with the curriculum.

Posted by Douglas Parker

For over a year now, national organizations that support gifted children, including the umbrella organization of almost all other programs, the National Association of Gifted Children, or NAGC, have been warning everyone about the U.S. Department of Education’s plans to emasculate the only federal program that supports gifted students.

The fact of the matter is that the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act of 1994 was written and designed to support children who have been identified as gifted and talented. While some of the principals of gifted education can help some other students in the classroom, the spirit behind the Act has been to support gifted children.

It Does Not Stop There...

Further, the president has once again proposed cutting the Javits Act altogether in the 2009 budget, claiming that the work is already being done by the states. This seems like an expos facto argument, however. If the federal government were doing anything to support our greatest national resource, gifted and talented children, the states wouldn’t have to shoulder the entire burden in the first place.

I have said this before - if you have a gifted child or teach a gifted child, don’t rely on big government to help you out. You have a very special and valuable ‘gift’ in your home or classroom, and your good efforts will help. Get as much support as you can from the advocacy groups, stay strong and stay your course!

Posted by Douglas Parker

In 1929, the Yankees became the first baseball team to use player numbers on the uniforms so the fans that were sitting high up in the stands could tell who was making a play or who was at bat. “You can't tell the players without a program,” the concession owners would bark out since then fans would want to have a list of player numbers to keep things straight.

For parents trying to navigate education issues in general, and gifted education topics in specific, sometimes they must feel like the fans up in the balcony before Babe Ruth wore number 3. To help mitigate this concern, understanding some of the more common terms and abbreviations used in gifted education is important.

Parents need to be able to understand what their teachers and administrators are talking about when entering a discussion about gifted education. Parents and teachers who have worked with gifted children know that in many cases, raising and teaching a gifted child is not an easy task, so the sooner the identification can be made, the sooner the parents and the school can get to work. It is especially important to focus on gifted children in their early years as this is when a great deal of the cognitive growth occurs.

Perhaps even more importantly, this is the age when children are forming their self-images about themselves. It is during this period when children decide if being gifted is okay for them, if it’s really bad, or somewhere in between. It might be that once identified, keeping the gifted stdeuent in the regular education class is the best option; however, without having the discussion the parents will not even know their options.

Posted by Douglas Parker

When asking a gifted student to demonstrate a skill, we can observe, record, and assess the content piece. The teacher will then place the materials demonstrating the students' mastery of the individual benchmarks in that student's portfolio for further assessment. Once again, the use of rubrics for evaluating and reporting on performance assessment devices is pivotal to the success of the program. This is another issue altogether - that rubrics and benchmarks can be used effectively on report cards that reflect if the students are obtaining the standards.

It is at the benchmark level where schools can make connections with nationally established standards, such as the learning goals that are found in Project 2061's Benchmarks for Science Literacy. By following this approach schools can assure each gifted student's progress towards exit-level standards by providing observable and measurable outcomes that fit within the curriculum and are substantiated by national standards! Any number of assessment devices can be used to substantiate a student's progress towards exit-level standards including the use of portfolios, rubrics, self-evaluations, traditional testing materials, teacher/student conferences, computer technologies, running records, literature logs, peer conferences, journals, logs, and a number of other similar tools.

Because each student needs to move towards these standards, individualized performance standards and performance targets can be established by GATE and regular classroom teachers, parents, counselors, and administrators for each student according to his or her developmental level by using a different combination of benchmarks as exemplars. When the school has done a quality job of producing assessment and content standards that are valid, reliable, measurable, and observable; and when these standards have been explained well enough to all staff members, all of the community members will have a responsibility to assess the gifted students against the standard of "personal best."

Posted by Douglas Parker

When GATE teachers attempt to integrate core content into their programs, the question arises as to how to assess those curricular strands. Is the standard evaluated in the regular classroom, or in the GATE class? If a history lesson is acted out in the GATE class to support that section being taught in social studies, where does the assessment (and grade) come from? Since these standards need to be observable and measurable, teachers need to take special care when constructing the scope and sequencing of the programs. This is the phase where several districts around the country might have some questions. Exit outcomes for all courses, and especially gifted programs need to be defined in curricular terms and not as goals in and of themselves. As they are developed, the curricular content standards can be cross-referenced to the District's exit-level standards assuring a level articulation between program designs and exit outcomes.

The first step in this process is moving the emphasis away from developing curriculum standards and more towards content standards. In this respect, through the use of rubrics, we can authentically assess if the student can do the things he or she should be able to do by their displaying an understanding of a piece of the content standard.

Specifically, by asking the student to demonstrate a skill, we can observe, record, and assess the content piece. The students can also be asked to display small subsections of the content standard in benchmarks. For example, a gifted student may be asked to display three out of five benchmarks under a certain content standard as an exemplar to be assessed as understanding the standard on a quality, or mastery, level – which is then recorded and reported as the assessment.