2. A NEW DEFINITION OF OUTSTANDING TALENT Children and youth with outstanding talent perform or show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared with others of their age, experience, or environment. These children and youth exhibit high performance capability in intellectual, creative, and/or artistic areas, possess an unusual leadership capacity, or excel in specific academic fields. They require services or activities not ordinarily provided by the schools. Outstanding talents are present in children and youth from all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor. (National Excellence: A Case for Developing America's Talent, U.S. Department of Education, 1993) This definition W purposely does not use the term gifted and embraces the terms outstanding talent and exceptional talent W reduces the focus on IQ scores W implies that environmental factors are at least as critical to the presence of outstanding talent as are genetic predispositions W states that outstanding talents are to be found across all cultural and socio-economic groups W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 14.2

3. CHARACTERISTICS OF GIFTED AND TALENTED STUDENTS Learning and intellectual characteristics of persons who are gifted and talented include the ability to: WRapidly acquire, retain, and use large amounts of information WRelate one idea to another WMake sound judgments WPerceive the operation of larger systems of knowledge than the ordinary citizen WAcquire and manipulate abstract symbol systems WSolve problems by reframing the question and creating novel solutions Characteristics of the highly gifted (IQ scores > 145) include: WIntense intellectual curiosity WFascination with words and ideas WPerfectionism WNeed for precision WLearning in great intuitive leaps WIntense need for mental stimulation WDifficulty conforming to the thinking of others WEarly moral and existential concern WTendency toward introversion Many highly gifted children experience asynchronous development—in which mental, physical, emotional, and social development occur at dramatically different rates. W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 14.3

4. CREATIVITY Guilford (1987) described these dimensions of creative behavior: WFluency The creative person is capable of producing a large number of ideas per unit of time. WFlexibility A wide variety of ideas, unusual ideas, and alternative solutions are offered. WNovelty/Originality Unique, low probability words and responses are used; the creative person has novel ideas. WElaboration The ability to provide details is evidenced. WSynthesizing ability The ability to put unlikely ideas together. WAnalyzing ability The ability to organize ideas into larger, inclusive patterns. WAbility to reorganize or redefine existing ideas The ability to transform an existing object into one of different design, function, or use. WComplexity The ability to manipulate many interrelated ideas at the same time. W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 14.4

5. IDENTIFICATION OF GIFTED AND TALENTED STUDENTS Use of IQ as the sole criterion for giftedness has been out of favor for many years. Intelligence tests may be part of the identification process, but no single index or procedure can identify all gifted and talented children. Identification should involve a multifactored assessment approach, including: WIntelligence tests WCreativity measures WAchievement tests WPortfolios of student work WTeacher nomination based on reports of student behavior in the classroom WParent nomination WSelf-nomination WPeer nomination Feldhusen and Moon (1995) suggest that all identification efforts be aimed to identify talent that represents both precocity and potential. W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 14.5

7. MULTICULTURAL ASSESSMENT AND IDENTIFICATION Current best practices for identifying gifted and talented students from diverse cultural groups involves a multifactored assessment process that meets these criteria: WIdentification should have a goal of inclusion rather than exclusion. WData should be gathered from multiple sources providing both objective and subjective data. WA combination of formal and informal testing techniques, including teacher referrals, the results of intelligence tests, and individual achievement tests should be used. WA generally greater sensitivity to aspects of acculturation and assimilation that allows for multiple perspectives to be identified and honored should be demonstrated. WIdentification procedures should begin as early as possible—before children are exposed to prejudice and stereotyping—and be continuous. WUnconventional measures involving arts and aesthetic expression such as dance, music, creative writing, and crafts should be used. WInformation gathered during the identification process should be used to help determine the curriculum. W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 14.7

8. ACCELERATION AND ENRICHMENT Acceleration means providing students with opportunities to move through required curriculum at a faster pace. The many acceleration options include: W Early admission to school W Grade skipping/advancement W Content acceleration in one or two subjects while remaining with age peers W Testing out of courses W Curriculum compacting or telescoping W Concurrent enrollment in both high school and college W Advanced placement tests W Early admission to college Curriculum compacting involves compressing the instructional content and materials so that academically able students have more time to work on more challenging materials. Enrichment experiences let students investigate topics of interest in greater detail than is ordinarily possible with the standard school curriculum. W Generally involves adding new and different information from a variety of disciplines outside of the traditional curriculum. W The strategy of choice by most regular education teachers when attempting to provide additional opportunities for gifted and talented students in their classrooms. W Not a "do-your-own-thing" approach with no structure or guidance. W Enrichment projects should have purpose, direction, and specified outcomes. W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 14.8

9. THE SCHOOLWIDE ENRICHMENT TRIAD MODEL The Schoolwide Enrichment Triad Model uses a multifactored assessment approach to identify a talent pool of high ability students (usually about 15% to 20% of the school's enrollment) (Renzulli & Reis, 1986). 1. Interest and learning styles assessments are used with talent pool students to create and/or identify individual student's interests and to encourage students to further develop and pursue their interests in various ways. 2. Curriculum compacting is offered to all eligible students by eliminating redundant or repetitious information and materials. 3. Three types of enrichment activities offered to students: WType I, general exploratory experiences WType II, purposefully designed instructional methods and materials WType III, advanced-level studies with greater depth and complexity A "revolving-door" identification model allows all children in the talent pool to participate in Type I and Type II enrichment activities. Only students who show serious interest in a specific topic evolve into Type III investigators. W. L. Heward, Exceptional Children, 6e,  2000 by Prentice-Hall, Inc. All rights reserved. T 14.9