"School districts across the country are spending millions of dollars hiring extra teachers, shrinking class sizes, developing tutoring programs and buying new books in an effort to help struggling students catch up.
[...] While such efforts have paid off in higher test scores, the race to help those traditionally left behind has led to the neglect of another group of students, some researchers now warn: The nation's brightest.
[...] In Lee County, for example, students who fell into the lowest two levels of the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test jumped 129 points in reading between 2003 and 2004. But those considered to be on grade level in 2003 made less progress, gaining 87 points in 2004. Students scoring in the upper two tiers of the FCAT reading test showed the least improvement: a 38-point gain. Results for math FCAT were similar.
[...] 'I think No Child Left Behind, unfortunately, has focused such attention on the underachiever and on meeting the minimum standards that I worry about not only about the very bright kids, but other kids in that once they meet the minimum standard, no one is paying attention to them,' said Jan Davidson, co-founder of the Davidson Institute for Talent Development and author of "Genius Denied: How to Stop Wasting Our Brightest Young Minds."
(http://www.news-press.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041029/NEWS0104/410290469/1075)
"It is classroom suicide to present challenging work to pupils with challenging behaviour. Colouring in graphs and pictures is education�s Prozac, and is the true pathway to chalkface Nirvana."
(Hugh Reilly, November 3, 2004, http://news.scotsman.com/education.cfm?id=1266482004)
"Porath points out that some of these children, initially excited about school, end up being seen as behaviour problems. That�s what happened to Sam. Woods says the notes he sent to the school explaining Sam�s abilities received little response. For Woods, the solution was to have his son tested. But is that the answer for every child?
[...] 'Testing is not always necessary,' says Porath. �Parents are excellent judges of giftedness.� The myth that all parents think their children are gifted doesn�t hold up. She adds that the test results can help persuade principals and teachers to modify programs to better suit a child. Porath also recommends that parents research the tests � some that are timed, can be stressful for a bright child with a �reflective problem-solving style� and may underestimate her intelligence.
[...] 'Children are easier to test at age eight or nine, but by this time, many gifted children have learned to hide their abilities and differences.'
[...] Also, contrary to the belief that children tend to 'even out' by grade three, developmental psychologists have found gifted children maintain their advanced development.
[...] 'These children often feel alone in regular classrooms. Meeting others who think and feel the way they do offers them safety and reassurance.' Porath also points to homeschooling as a good alternative..."
(Is Your Child Gifted?, By Teresa Pitman,
http://www.todaysparent.com/schoolage/education/article.jsp?content=20040206_102448_3972 and http://www.todaysparent.com/schoolage/education/article.jsp?content=20040206_102448_3972&page=2)
Research by Terman & Oden 1947, also Daurio 1979, Janos & Robinson 1985: �As a group, gifted children prefer older friends, show mature patterns of communication and exhibit high levels of social skills and social/moral reasoning� (The Academic Acceleration of Gifted Children; Education & Psychology of The Gifted Series, Borland, 1991)
In a study of �children [aged 6 through 12] of average intellectual ability, moderately gifted children, and highly gifted children� confirmed that children's conceptions of friendship do indeed form a developmental hierarchy of age-related stages, with expectations of friendship, and beliefs about friendship, becoming more sophisticated and complex with age. The five stages appear in order as follows, from the lowest to the highest level in terms of age and conceptual complexity, [�] Stage 1: �Play Partner�� someone who engages the child in play and permits the child to use or borrow her playthings� Stage 2: �People to chat to�� the sharing of interests�conversations� Stage 3: �Help and encouragement�� the friend is seen as someone who will offer help, support or encouragement� advantages of friendship flow in one direction� Stage 4: �Intimacy/empathy�� support flows both ways� deepening of intimacy; an emotional sharing and bonding� Stage 5: �The sure shelter�� friendship is perceived as a deep and lasting relationship of trust, fidelity and unconditional acceptance� a place you go when you need to take off the masks� and still feel safe�� (Dr. Miraca U. M. Gross, "Play Partner" or "Sure Shelter": What gifted children look for in friendship, SENG Newsletter. 2002 May 2(2) 1-3, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ Gross_PlayPartnerOrSureShelter.shtml)
Therefore children, �may not only be seeking the intellectual compatibility of mental age peers; they may also be looking for children whose conceptions and expectations of friendship are similar to their own. [�] Exceptionally gifted children (children of IQ 160+) tend to begin the search for �the sure shelter� - friendships of complete trust and honesty - four or five years before their age-peers even enter this stage. [�] This study suggests that it is in the lower, rather than the upper, grades that placement with chronological peers, without regard to intellectual ability or emotional maturity, is more likely to result in the gifted child experiencing loneliness or social isolation.� (Dr. Miraca U. M. Gross, "Play Partner" or "Sure Shelter": What gifted children look for in friendship, SENG Newsletter. 2002 May 2(2) 1-3, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ Gross_PlayPartnerOrSureShelter.shtml)
There is a common �belief on the parts of the adults that gifted students, to be happy, must become socially astute. Becoming socially astute requires that gifted students spend as much time as possible in heterogeneous classroom environments. Once again, the claimed research that supports this myth is virtually nonexistent. Imagine all the opportunities students have to interact with other people. Church, sports, dubs, meals, camps, are just a few examples. Sacrificing learning and creating frustration based on this myth is unethical�� (Tracy L. Cross, Ph.D., Competing with myths about the social and emotional development of gifted students, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ Cross_CompetingWithMythsAboutTheSocialAndEmotionalDevelopment.shtml)
�In general, the more time gifted children have to learn with other gifted children, the greater the academic benefits.� (Re-Forming Gifted Education, Karen Rogers PhD., 2002) "Meta-analytic reviews have shown that gifted students gain little from programs of minimal instructional modification (multilevel classes), more from greater modifications (cross-grade and within-class programs) and the most from those involving the greatest amount of curricular adjustment (enrichment and acceleration)." �Talented students from accelerated classes out perform non-accelerates of the age and IQ by almost one full year.� (Kulik, An Analysis of the Research on Ability Grouping: Historical and Contemporary Perspectives: Research-Based Decision Making Series 1992)
�There are several benefits of providing accelerative opportunities. The most obvious benefit is the provision of appropriate curriculum challenge. Acceleration will reduce the amount of time a child is forced to study concepts that he or she already knows. Another benefit of acceleration is the opportunity for flexible curricular options. If a student could combine the content of two years into one year, there would be additional time in future schedules to pursue additional areas in the curriculum. There are also advantages in terms of reduced educational costs for both the school system and the student. If students spend less time in school, the cost of educating them will decrease. Currently in Calgary, schools are adopting year-round school scheduling tracks to accommodate more students without building additional school buildings. If acceleration were a common practice, the need for these administrative arrangements would decrease. Cost savings to the student can be quite dramatic when the accelerative approach saves the costs of university tuition. In addition to cost savings, acceleration can provide competitive advantages. As students compete for places in competitive undergraduate and graduate schools, their accelerative accomplishments will help them compile an impressive application package. Finally, there are benefits in terms of self-esteem. If an eighth grade student completes a university course with a grade of A, that accomplishment will help that student internalize an "ability" attribution. Rather than explaining the accomplishment, in terms of luck or simply hard work, the student would likely recognize ability as an instrumental factor. [�] Longitudinal studies have supported the effectiveness of AP [advanced placement] courses for mathematically gifted students. [�] For some students, early entrance to universities (two years earlier than normal), part time university courses, correspondence courses and distance learning opportunities provide effective acceleration experiences.� (Acceleration: Strategies and Benefits, Michael C. Pyryt, Centre for Gifted Education, University of Calgary, http://www.ucalgary.ca/~gifteduc/resources/articles/pyryt2.html)
"Of small group strategies, cluster grouping and regrouping have the most powerful academic effects, followed by cross grading, pull-out classes, within-class grouping, like-ability dyads, and cooperative tasks.� (Re-Forming Gifted Education, Karen Rogers PhD., 2002)
�Constant repetition of the regular classroom, necessary for mastery among the general population is detrimental to long-term storage and retrieval of technical content for gifted students. The learning rate of children above 130 IQ is approximately 8 times faster than for children below 70 IQ. Gifted students are significantly more likely to retain science and mathematics content accurately when taught 2-3 times faster than "normal" class pace. Gifted students are significantly more likely to forget or mislearn science and mathematics content when they must drill and review it more than 2-3 times.� (Re-Forming Gifted Education, Karen Rogers PhD., 2002)
Gifted �Students should be matched with curriculum that is appropriate for their levels. For learning to occur, instruction should be above the learner's current level of performance.� (Serving Gifted & Talented Students: A Resource for School Personnel, Genshaft, Birely, Hollinger, 1995) �Third through sixth-grade mathematically talented students enrolled in a flexibly paced mathematics course made achievement gains far beyond the normative gains expected over a one year period. When compared to students several grade levels higher, these highly able students gained as much as 46 percentiles points from pre- to post- testing. Above-average-level testing revealed that the students possessed a wide range of mathematics knowledge prior to entering the course, with some students scoring at exceptionally high levels. With an individualized learning pace, some students as young as 4th grade completed the arithmetic/prealgebra sequence in their first year and returned the second year to successfully complete the beginning algebra sequence. Restricting such students to a rigid instructional pace and a "grade-appropriate" curriculum may place them at risk for declines in motivation and achievement.� (Academically talented students' achievement in a flexibly paced mathematics program, Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 25, 495-511 Mills, C.J., Ablard, K.E., & Gustin, W.C. 1994) �Appropriate developmental placement aims to enhance children�s achievement by providing a closer match between their needs and abilities and the curriculum they receive, and to allow them to socialize more successfully as there will be a closer intellectual match between them and their older classmates (Benbow, 1991, Rogers & Kimpston 1992) � [�] �Other means of meeting gifted learner�s needs � such as enrichment � must also be set in place, as simply offering the children the same curriculum earlier is unlikely to meet their needs adequately.� (Educating Young Children With Special Needs, Louise Porter, 2002)
"Chintan Hossain used to dread walking down his middle school's halls. Students teased him for taking eighth-grade math in the seventh grade, but the classes still bored him senseless. "I wondered how I would make it through five more years of school," he says.
He could have buried his talents. Instead, five years later, Hossain has won national recognition for such projects as using non-linear mathematics to predict a pacemaker's effect on cardiac cells. He landed on the U.S. Physics Olympiad team last year and helped it win first place internationally.
Hossain credits the change to one thing: attending the Charter School of Wilmington, Del.
Unlike his middle school, this high school for gifted students paired him with master teachers - experts in their subjects who know how to train talented young people - and let him race through math and physics lessons as fast as his mind could go." (By Laura Vanderkam, Online learning: A smart way to nurture gifted kids, September 28, 2004, http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=679&ncid=742&e=18&u=/ usatoday/20040928/cm_usatoday/onlinelearningasmartwaytonurturegiftedkids)
"While more than half of U.S. high schools offer some Advanced Placement classes, almost no schools offer math courses beyond that, or have the teachers or equipment to accommodate an interest in independent scientific research.
So it's little wonder that Bernard Khoury, executive officer of the American Association of Physics Teachers, reports that three of five 2003 U.S. Physics Team members attended public schools for the gifted, like Charter. These schools 'recognize that the kid is extraordinary - and get out of the way,' he says. They create courses, send kids to universities, or do whatever it takes to keep them challenged.
These are extraordinary schools. But virtual learning can help ordinary schools replicate their methods. For the past few years, back-to-school feature stories have predicted a surge in online education.
True, 90% of public colleges offer online learning, but only 25% of public K-12 schools have caught on, Education Week reports.
This is slow progress, given what distance learning can do. Stanford University, for instance, reaches more than 3,000 youngsters through its Educational Program for Gifted Youth (EPGY). Students take anything from grammar to quantum mechanics, grouped by mastery, not by age. Interactive programs mimic a classroom vibe, and virtual sessions let students and teachers chat in real time.
Any state education department could team up with a university to create content as Stanford has, and hire master teachers who shine online. Schools could identify their most promising scientists and mathematicians and urge them to enroll. Students could meet their teachers and fellow students at area university labs once a month to learn how science really works.
Schools already have the technology to make this happen. All states have Internet access in more than 90% of schools; in all but five states, more than 70% of schools have high-speed Internet lines. "Schools don't need to make huge new investments," says Chris Dede, a professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. "They don't need to pass another bond issue" to make virtual learning reality."
(By Laura Vanderkam, Online learning: A smart way to nurture gifted kids, September 28, 2004, http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=679&ncid=742&e=18&u=/ usatoday/20040928/cm_usatoday/onlinelearningasmartwaytonurturegiftedkids)
Introversion & The Gifted: �Introversion is not a pathological condition; it is not an abnormal response to the world. It is simply a personality trait found in a [�] �minority in the regular population but a majority in the gifted population� (Gallagher, 1990; Hoehn & Birely, 1988). [�] The introvert's main focus is within his/her head, in the internal world of ideas and concepts; the extravert's primary focus is on the external world of people and activities (Myers & Myers, 1980). Such preferences or personality traits impact many other elements such as perception, learning style, judgement, and sociological preferences (Meisgeier, Murphy & Meisgeier, 1989; Dunn & Dunn, 1978). [�] Introverts get their energy from themselves and are drained by people; extraverts get their energy from other people and are drained by being alone. [�] Modern schools seem to be designed for extraverts. From the beginning of the day (especially if they have to ride the bus), the day is full of large groups and large areas, large classes, lunch in a common area, physical education in a large group and in a large gym, locker rooms, assemblies, homeroom, etc. [�] Many teachers report being extraverts. It is very difficult for an extravert to understand an introvert. Therefore the teacher may see the introverted student as someone with a problem, not as simply someone with a different personality type. This may lead to attempts to get them to be 'friendlier,' to work in larger groups, to talk more often and more spontaneously, and to be more outgoing and interactive. There is nothing wrong with being an introvert. It does not need to be cured. It simply needs to be understood and accepted. Of course teachers need to be able to tell when the introversion (or extraversion) is dysfunctional, but introverted students don't need to be changed to match other students. If social skills are lacking, teach them. Instruction for the introvert should differ from that provided for the extravert. Methods should utilize that internal reflective focus and honor the need for structure, quiet, and small groups. Such strategies include: independent studies, small group instruction, collaborative learning activities, tiered instruction, debate, dramatics or role-playing, journaling, quiet time, and book clubs, to name a few. Many of these students like lectures and expository and deductive modes of instruction. Most introverts need wait time, warning about what they are expected to do, activities with minimal noise and stimulation, down time built into the schedule, and moderate amounts of small group work. These approaches, however, have to be combined with ones appropriate for the extravert who needs high stimulation, movement and activity throughout the classroom, lots of contact with others, and open spaces for working. Most extraverted students like open discussions and discovery activities. When different students need different methods and environments for optimal performance, the teacher must differentiate more than just the content of the lesson. Much of the curriculum currently in use seems to have been written for the 'typical' student. This means that many of the needs of introverted students are missed unless the teacher specifically modifies the curriculum for them. In some classrooms this is relatively easy because of a focus on different learning styles and ability levels. In other classrooms very little is made available to that learner except constant advice on becoming more social and gregarious, 'like the rest of the students.' We talk frequently about differentiating the curriculum for multiple diverse learners especially the gifted; differentiating for the gifted introvert must also be advocated.� (Jill D. Burruss and Lisa Kaenzig, Introversion: The Often Forgotten Factor Impacting the Gifted, Virginia Association for the Gifted Newsletter, 1999 Fall 21(1), on-line at http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ BurrussKaenzig_IntroversionTheOftenForgotten.shtml)
�What if part of being very bright, extremely bright, has a dark side that eats away at youth? What if part of the burden of brilliance is the roller coaster of knowing too much, seeing too much, feeling too much? By too much, I refer to the times children ask questions that we regard at face value and thus perceive as shallow, and since they are young we 'spare' them depth, so they continue in the loop of horror. Or, we assuage them rather than listening deeply enough to engage the profundity of the issues and concerns being expressed? [�] The morass of existential dread and the concomitant lure of deadly escapes is no less threatening to gifted youth. Augmenting the depth of educational progress for gifted adolescents may have social ramifications. Providing youth with the education to make moral and psychological gains that are commensurate with our scientific gains may provide an emotionally healthy and socially adept intelligencia to steer us through the next years, not moral pygmies and self appointed social outcasts who find little to value in the human condition and little comfort in fellow humans. So, extra attention to gifted youth may enhance their passage through adolescence and provide benefits to humanity as well.�
(J'Anne Ellsworth, [email protected], November 2003, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_counseling/ Ellsworth_AdolescenceAndGiftedAddressingExistentialDread.shtml)
Dabrowski�s (1964) Theory of Positive Disintegration:
"Dabrowski identified five areas of intensity-Psychomotor, Sensual, Intellectual, Imaginational, and Emotional. A person may possess one or more of these. [...] One who manifests several forms of overexcitability, sees reality in a different, stronger and more multisided manner" (Dabrowski, 1972, p. 7). Experiencing the world in this unique way carries with it great joys and sometimes great frustrations.
(Overexcitability and the Gifted, Sharon Lind, August 2002, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ Lind_OverexcitabilityAndTheGifted.shtml)
"Levels of development may lead one to believe that TPD is a type of stage theory similar to well-known theories of development, such as Erikson�s (1963) theory of life span development and Piaget�s theory of cognitive development (Piaget and Inhelder 1969). There are some significant differences between Dabrowski�s use of level and the notion of stage. For one thing, progression beyond level one, primary integration, is by no means universal in the population. In addition, progression through the levels is not accomplished in a linear, invariant sequence. The concept of level allows for progression and regression, for unique patterns of development.
[...] Overexcitabilities (OEs) are by far the most frequently encountered components of TPD (for example, Tolan 1994; Gallagher 1985; Piechowski, Silverman and Falk 1985; Piechowski and Colangelo 1984; Piechowski and Cunningham 1985; Lewis, Kitano and Lynch 1992) but they are often presented out of the context in which TPD discusses them. Dabrowski�s (1972) notion of overexcitability is anchored to the sensitivity of the nervous system and is seen as above-average responsiveness to stimuli. Overexcitability (OE) is a fundamental but not a sole indicator of the foundational concept of developmental potential. OE has five manifestations: psychomotor, sensual, imaginational, intellectual and emotional.
[...] When all five are present, emotional intensity results: 'These overexcitabilities, especially the latter three (intellectual, imaginational, and emotional), often cause a person to experience day to day life more intensely and to feel the extremes of the joys and sorrows of life profoundly' (Tillier 1998, 50)."
(Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration: Some implications for teachers of gifted students, Sal Mendaglio, AGATE, Fall 2002 15(2) 14-22, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ Mendaglio_DabrowskisTheoryOfPositiveDisintegration.shtml)
"When feeling emotionally tense, individuals strong in Psychomotor OE may talk compulsively, act impulsively, misbehave and act out, display nervous habits, show intense drive (tending towards "workaholism"), compulsively organize, or become quite competitive. They derive great joy from their boundless physical and verbal enthusiasm and activity, but others may find them overwhelming. At home and at school, these children seem never to be still. They may talk constantly. Adults and peers want to tell them to sit down and be quiet! The Psychomotor OE child has the potential of being misdiagnosed as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
[...] Those high in Intellectual OE [overexcitability] have incredibly active minds. They are intensely curious, often avid readers, and usually keen observers. They are able to concentrate, engage in prolonged intellectual effort, and are tenacious in problem solving when they choose. Other characteristics may include relishing elaborate planning and having remarkably detailed visual recall. People with Intellectual OE frequently love theory, thinking about thinking, and moral thinking. This focus on moral thinking often translates into strong concerns about moral and ethical issues-fairness on the playground, lack of respect for children, or being concerned about "adult" issues such as the homeless, AIDS, or war. Intellectually overexcitable people are also quite independent of thought and sometimes appear critical of and impatient with others who cannot sustain their intellectual pace. Or they may be become so excited about an idea that they interrupt at inappropriate times.
[...] Often children high in Imaginational OE mix truth with fiction, or create their own private worlds with imaginary companions and dramatizations to escape boredom. They find it difficult to stay tuned into a classroom where creativity and imagination are secondary to learning rigid academic curriculum. They may write stories or draw instead of doing seatwork or participating in class discussions, or they may have difficulty completing tasks when some incredible idea sends them off on an imaginative tangent."
(Overexcitability and the Gifted, Sharon Lind, August 2002, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ Lind_OverexcitabilityAndTheGifted.shtml)
"Dabrowski proposes that developmental potential is determined by heredity and fixed at birth. According to TPD, we are all born with a certain level of developmental potential. Whether the level is low, moderate or high, it is out of our control. While our level of developmental potential interacts with the environment, the environment cannot alter the level we inherited. In this sense, developmental potential is analogous to intelligence. Both are genetically determined but influenced significantly by the environment.
[...] Dabrowski�s OEs are not gifts that can be created by people in a social environment, no matter how loving and supportive it may be. To be sure, the quality of the social environment is implicated in their elicitation, but not in their creation. OEs, as part of developmental potential, are created by heredity, not by facilitative parents or educators.
[...] Positive disintegration is an emotionally painful process resulting in psychological reintegration at a higher level of human functioning. Experiencing negative emotions, such as shame, guilt and anxiety, under certain conditions is indicative of positive disintegration. However, we need to see emotions in the context of developmental potential. When developmental potential is low, emotions, including intense negative emotions, are simply experienced with short-term effects on a person. In contrast, intense emotionality in the context of high OEs yields profound, life-changing experiences contributing to positive disintegration. Inner conflict is associated with such intense emotionality: life events and introspection become catalysts to painful experiencing of the discrepancy between the way the world ought to be and the way it is. Negative emotions triggered by inner conflict propel a person into higher levels of personality structures."
(Dabrowski's Theory of Positive Disintegration: Some implications for teachers of gifted students, Sal Mendaglio, AGATE, Fall 2002 15(2) 14-22, http://www.sengifted.org/articles_social/ Mendaglio_DabrowskisTheoryOfPositiveDisintegration.shtml)
