Snapshot

Gifted/Talented Snapshot

I. Statement of Disability

Giftedness, intelligence, and talent are fluid concepts and may look different in different contexts and cultures. Even within schools you will find a range of beliefs about the word "gifted," which has become a term with multiple meanings and much nuance.   Gifted children may develop asynchronously: their minds are often ahead of their physical growth, and specific cognitive and social-emotional functions can develop unevenly.  Some gifted children with exceptional aptitude may not demonstrate outstanding levels of achievement due to environmental circumstances such as limited opportunities to learn as a result of poverty, discrimination, or cultural barriers; due to physical or learning disabilities; or due to motivational or emotional problems.  This dichotomy between potential for and demonstrated achievement has implications for schools as they design programs and services for gifted students. Definitions provide the framework for gifted education programs and services, and guide key decisions such as which students will qualify for services, the areas of giftedness to be addressed in programming (e.g., intellectual giftedness generally, specific abilities in math), when the services will be offered, and even why they will be offered.  There is no universally accepted definition of giftedness.

II. Diagnosis and Evaluation of Disability

General education teachers are usually the first to recognize that a student may be gifted. For this reason, teachers need to recognize some of the behaviors and share these observations with parents.

Behaviors of Gifted Students teachers should be aware of:

Cognitive:

· Child asks a lot of questions.

· Have lots of information on many things.

· Want to know why or how something is so.

· Refuse to drill on spelling, math, facts, flash cards, or handwriting.

· Seems bored and often has nothing to do.

· Child sticks to a subject long after the class has gone on to other things.

Academic:

· Shows unusual ability in some area, perhaps reading or math.

· Shows fascination with one field of interest and manages to include this interest in all discussion topics.

· Get math answers correct, but find it difficult to tell you how.

· Enjoy graphing everything. Seems obsessed with probabilities.

· Invent new, obscure systems and codes.

Creativity:

· Try to do things in different, unusual, imaginative ways.

· Have a really zany sense of humor.

· Enjoys new routines or spontaneous activities.

· Loves variety and novelty.

· Seem to never proceed sequentially.

Leadership:

· Organize and lead group activities

· Enjoys taking risks.

· Seems cocky, self-assured.

· Enjoys making decisions.

Teachers, parents, special educators as well as diagnosticians would be involved in the next step, which would be the referral process and assessment. The information assembled will help determine whether the student should receive special services. There are a variety of screening instruments to help identify gifted students to include:

· Individualized intelligence test

· Individualized achievement test

· Creativity assessment

· Checklists of gifted characteristics

· Anecdotal records

· Curriculum-based assessment

· Direct Observation

· Visual and performing arts assessment

· Leadership assessment

· Case-study approach.

III. Characteristics of Disability

Gifted students generally have unusual talent in one or occasionally two areas. Below are six areas where we will find giftedness. No child will be gifted in all six, but some may be in more than one area. Within specific academic ability, students again usually have one or two subjects that they are best in and passionate about. The six areas are:

· Creative Thinking

· Independent thinker

· Exhibits original thinking in oral and written expression

· Comes up with several solutions to a given problem

· Possesses a sense of humor

· Creates and invents

· Challenged by creative tasks

· Improvises often

· Does not mind being different from the crowd

· Leadership

· Assumes responsibility

· High expectations for self and others

· Fluent, concise self-expression

· Foresees consequences and implications of decisions

· Good judgment in decision making

· Likes structure

· Well-liked by peers

· Self-confident

· Organized

· General Intellectual Ability

· Formulates abstractions

· Processes information in complex ways

· Observant

· Excited about new ideas

· Enjoys hypothesizing

· Learns rapidly

· Uses a large vocabulary

· Inquisitive

· Self-starter

· Specific Academic Ability

· Good memorization ability

· Advanced comprehension

· Acquires basic skill knowledge quickly

· Widely read in special interest area

· High academic success in special interest area

· Pursues special interest with enthusiasm and vigor

· Visual/ Performing Arts

· Outstanding in sense of spatial relationships

· Unusual ability in expressing self, feeling, moods, etc., through dance, drama, music, etc.

· Good motor coordination

· Exhibits creative expression

· Desire for producing “own product” (not content with mere copying)

· Observant

IV. Treatment

Ensuring that highly able learners are recognized and subsequently served through systematic programming is of the highest priority. All teachers must be able to recognize a high-ability student who needs more depth and complexity in instruction or may need a referral for further assessment and services.  Teachers in specialized programs for gifted learners or those who coordinate gifted and talented programs and services should be familiar with the theory, research, curriculum strategies, and educational practices necessary to develop and sustain high quality classroom-based opportunities for advanced student learning

V. Classroom Modifications/Coping Mechanisms

The challenge for educators is to allow gifted and talented students to work at higher instructional levels, at a faster pace, and with a variety of materials. To better meet the needs of gifted and talented students, the classroom environment should be a positive place where students may:

· ask many questions

· discuss information in detail, elaborate

· thrive on complexity

· begin assignments with only basic guidelines (don’t try to over teach)

· experiment and venture

· employ a variety of approaches

· find acceptance for unique ideas and responses

Possible strategies to modify, differentiate, and enrich the curriculum for all students:

· identify students’ interests, strengths, styles, and preferences

· categorize the curriculum objective

· evaluate the quality of the curriculum components

· brainstorm ways that the curriculum is connected to the real worlds (e.g., roles, problems, representative topics, products, and resources)

· connect the curriculum to the fields of knowledge

· escalate the objective

· create an enhanced set of introductory activities (e.g. advance organizers, concept maps, concept puzzles)

· choose active teaching/learning opportunities

· incorporate authentic components

· involve parents in learning objectives and activities

· use diagnostic tools (e.g., KWL, journal)

· provide options, alternatives and choices to differentiate and broaden the curriculum

· organize and offer flexible small group learning activities

· provide whole group enrichment explorations

· teach cognitive and methodological skills

· use center, stations, or contracts

· organize integrated problem-solving simulations

· debrief students

· propose interest-based extension activities

· organize and offer enrichment clusters

· connect student to related talent development opportunities outside the classroom

Teachers should also consider using the following strategies:

· rephrase the learning objective as reflective, guiding questions

· consider the criteria you will use to assess novice, intermediate, and advanced learners’ initial knowledge

· brainstorm and select representative topics, problems, roles, scenarios, resources, or products that encompass the revised objectives

· promote questioning, hypothesizing, analyzing, reflecting, and problem solving (experiments, interviews, photographs, editorials, maps)