Gifted Education: Matching Instruction with Needs Chapter 1 Gifted Education: Matching Instruction with Needs

Rationale for Gifted Education Society Reactions Will they make it on their own? “Sounds of Silence” Changes in Attitudes Equity versus Excellence Response to Criticisms Drop-out rates A Nation At Risk Benefits to teachers and other students

History of Giftedness and Gifted Education Over the Centuries Sparta’s athleticism Athen’s disregard of social class Rome’s education of both genders China’s child prodigies and education for all Japan’s social segregation of opportunities Renaissance’s appreciation for creativity

History of Giftedness and Gifted Education In America Sparse in early America Changes in 1920’s and 1930’s In Europe Streaming (aka Ability Grouping) Reaction against class structures

Contemporary History of Gifted Education Sir Francis Galton Heredity Alfred Binet Standardized Tests Lewis Terman Longitudinal Study of Gifted Children Leta Hollingworth Nurturing Talent

Contemporary History of Gifted Education Sputnik Shock to America Call for better programming Debate over IQ The Bell Curve Mental Chronometry Robert Sternberg Successful Intelligence

Gifted Education in the 21st Century National Excellence: A Case for Developing America’s Talent Variability of gifted programming by state Status of gifted education across the world

National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented Joseph Renzulli, founder www.nrcgt.org Distribute “consumer-oriented” research concerning gifted education Funded through Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Education Act

Ability Grouping Debate Types of Ability Grouping Homogeneous Heterogeneous Between-Class Grouping (i.e., Tracking) Cross-Grade Grouping (i.e., Joplin Plan) Within-Class Grouping

Ability Grouping Debate Jeanie Oaks- Against Ability Grouping Tracking is: Ineffective Discriminatory Unfair in Principle Research Concerning Ability Grouping Raises achievement of high ability students Does not lower achievement of low/average ability students Raises self-esteem of lower ability students

No Child Left Behind Focus on lowest performing groups Resulted in gains in math and reading scores Lessened gap for racial minority groups No gains (and less funding) for high-ability students

World Competition for STEM Fields “America Competes Act” Thinking Skills Critical Thinking Problem Solving Also includes emphasis on foreign languages

Definitions of Giftedness Concerns about Definitions of Giftedness Federal Definitions Marland Report (1979) Revised Definitions Variability Across States

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Five Categories of Definitions (Stankowski, 1978) After-the-fact Definitions IQ Percentages Talent Creativity

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Renzulli’s Three Ring Model Above-average Ability Task Commitment Creativity Gifted behaviors versus Giftedness Not necessarily strong in all three areas

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Gange’s DMTG Model Gifts (natural abilities) Talents (specific skills) Influencing Factors Personal Environment Chance

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Tannenbaum’s Who, What, and How of Giftedness Taxonomy of Giftedness A producer of thoughts creatively or proficiently A producer of tangibles creatively or proficiently A performer of staged artistry creatively or proficiently A performer of human services creatively or proficiently Five Interweaving Factors A superior general intellect Strong special aptitudes Supportive nonintellective traits A challenging and supportive environment Chance

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Taylor’s Talent Totem Poles Academic Productive Thinking Communicating Forecasting Decision Making Planning Implementing Human Relations Discerning Opportunities

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences Linguistic Logical-Mathematical Spatial Musical Bodily-Kinesthetic Interpersonal Intrapersonal Naturalist

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Emotional Intelligence/Giftedness Too high empathy A strong sense of moral justice (ideals, beliefs) A lively imagination Overexcitability, High sensuality Intensely positive and negative emotional feelings

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Sternberg’s Triarchic Theory Analytic Synthetic Practical Balance of the three to achieve giftedness Implicit theory of giftedness

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Hierarchy of Intelligence Top Level: general intelligence g Middle Level: broad factors verbal, spatial, etc. Bottom Level: specific abilities reading decoding, expressional fluency, etc.

Explanations and Interpretations of Giftedness and Intelligence Thinking Dispositions (Ritchart, 2001) Creative Thinking Critical Thinking Reflective Thinking Thinking dispositions comprise intellectual character

Summarizing the Research The needs of the gifted are generally not met in America’s classrooms Homogeneous grouping is good for gifted students Acceleration increases achievement for gifted students Enrichment increases achievement Classroom teachers can learn to differentiate for gifted learners Gifted education pedagogy can reverse underachievement (especially among under-represented populations) Some gifted education pedagogy can benefit all students Gifted students with learning disabilities who are not identified suffer emotional stress Gifted programs benefit students long-term (i.e., college aspirations, career goals, and motivation)

Looking Towards the Future Talent Development vs. Gifted Education Agenda for Adminstrators and Teachers VanTassel-Baska, 2007