Essentials PEPSI Elementary Adolescence Advanced CD
 

Intellectually Gifted and Talented Youth

"Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight or any experience that reveals the human spirit." - e. e. cummings

There is controversy surrounding education of our best and brightest minds and our most talented youth.. The definition of gifted and talented, adopted by Title XIV, Public Law 103-382 says:

The term "gifted and talented" when used in respect to students, children or youth means students, children or youth who give evidence of high performance capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic or leadership ability, or in specific academic fields, and who require service or activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop such capabilities. ( To read federal material and access the Javits act, click here)

Though the law and definition acknowledge the importance of serving these youth, it does not require that services be provided. Some States and districts do have policies and funding for providing services to gifted and talented youth.

When services are provided, they are usually targeted to the top 2 % of students. Originally, IQ scores were used and students who scored at 130 points or above were eligible to participate. On the bell curve, that is represented by the area that is the tail - from +2 standard deviations above the mean or middle area.

Understanding the gifted and talented youngster is confusing, sometimes. Testing this group of young people and putting them in an accelerated program gives mixed results. Sometimes the students really excel, but lots of times they do not. Being very bright does not mean the same as being smart, or wanting to work hard, or having the ability to use the intelligence in a real life constructive way. This is talked about in an article published in Parent's Magazine called "Little Geniuses" by T. Armstrong.

That's not all. It does not mean that you can earn a good living, that you are more likely to be valedictorian or that you will someday be famous or likely to succeed. No wonder people have trouble paying for more services when we can't prove that it will make society any better or help a specific student more than staying in the class. Being smart doesn't suggest a personality type either. Some are dedicated, some selfish. Some are extroverts, and some are very quiet. Some love to be in a group with others, and some are clannish or reclusive. Just as in the other areas of special education, the child is a child first, and happens to have extraordinary talents, gifts or intellectual prowess.

In fact, what we also found out is that gifted people may be very capable in one area, and quite ordinary or deficient in another and it is a cluster of skills or abilities that comes together to create extraordinary outcomes. That takes us to what Renzulli proposed. He suggested that giftedness involves the interaction of three sets of characteristics: above average intellectual ability, creativity and task commitment.

Intelligence
Creativity
Task Commitment

Advanced vocabulary

Good memory

Learns quickly and easily

Large fund of information

Generalizes skillfully

Comprehends new ideas easily

Makes abstractions easily

Perceives similarities, differences, relationships

Makes judgments and decisions

Questioning; very curious about many topics

Has many ideas (fluent)

Sees things in varied ways (flexible)

Offers unique or unusual ideas (original)

Adds details; makes ideas more interesting (elaborates)

Transforms or combines ideas

Sees implications or consequences easily

Risk-taker; speculates

Feels free to disagree

Finds subtle humor, paradox or discrepancies

Sets own goals, and standards

Intense involvement in preferred problems and tasks

Enthusiastic about interests, activities

Needs little external task motivation

Concentrate on interests, projects

High level of energy

Perseveres; keeps working

Completes, shares products

Eager for new projects,challenges

Assumes responsibility

- Treffinger, 1986

 

Gardner's Seven Intelligences includes capabilities in seven areas.

Linguistic: The ability to use words effectively both orally and in writing (e.g., writer, orator).

Logical-Mathematical: The ability to use numbers effectively and to see logical relationships and patterns (e.g., mathematician, scientist, computer programmer).

Spatial: The ability to visualize and to orient oneself in the world (e.g., guide, hunter, architect, artist).

Bodily, Kinesthetic: The ability to use one's body to express ideas; to make things with hands; and to develop physical skills (e.g., actor, craftsperson, athlete).

Musical: The capacity to perceive, discriminate, transform and express musical forms (e.g., composer, musician).

Interpersonal Intelligence: The ability to perceive and make distinctions in the moods, intentions, motivations and feelings of other people (e.g., counselor, political leader).

Intrapersonal Intelligence: Self-knowledge and the ability to act adaptively on the basis of that knowledge (e.g., psychotherapist, religious leader)

Robert Sternberg (1988) sees intelligence as a layering of different skills that equate to combinations of individual preferences from three levels. These areas include:

1. Functions of governments of the mind - Legislative - creating, planning, imagining, and formulating. Executive - implementing and doing. Judicial - judging, evaluating, and comparing.

2. Stylistic preferences - Internal means preferring to work alone, or external, meaning a preference for collaboration

3. Forms of mental self-government - Monarchic people prefer goals to be singular, and deal best with one goal or need at a time. Hierarchic people enjoy focusing on multiple goals simultaneously and recognize that all goals cannot be fulfilled equally. These people can prioritize goals easily. Oligarchic people deal with goals that are of equal weight well, but they may have difficulty prioritizing goals of different weights. Anarchic people depart from expected thinking and organizing, neither liking or understanding the need for rules and regulations. They operate without rules or structure, and tend to work most effectively when creating their own problem-solving techniques. - Sternberg, Robert (1988) The Triarchic Mind: A New Theory of Intelligence. NY: Viking Press.

His theory has expanded beyond this model and in work with Li-fang Zhang (1995) he suggests five criteria as being necessary:

Excellence - superior in comparison to peers in at least one dimension

Rarity - ability is not only superior, but quite unusual and rare compared to others who have a similar gift

Productivity - accomplishments, not just the promise of potential products and outcomes

Demonstrability - assessments can be given that validate the existence of the gifts and unusual ability

Value - the culture desires and appreciates the ability and honors, acquires or appreciates the gifts and productivity

Try surfing some of these areas about gifted and talented youth.

Subject

Defining and describing gifted plus links

Identification process

Comprehensive bibliography

Gifted resources home page

Gifted program in a high school

National Association of Gifted and Talented

Overview and discussion of Gardner and Renzulli

TAG Family Network

Family Resource List

Links to material about Gifted and Talented

Curriculum links

Resources and information for gifted and talented

Bibliography on Limited English Proficiency and giftedness

 

Meeting needs of Students with a minority language

Bibliography from Johns Hopkins

Career Planning

Tools and activities plus great links - "On the right track"

SERI links on gifted

Center for Gifted Education

Australian education of gifted and talented

GT World - parent link

National Research Center on gifted and talented

Teacher skills for working with gifted and talented

Gifted and LD

Gifted and ADHD

What kind of thinking do you do best? Inventory

 

Early signs that might alert parents or teachers to consider a child for identification:

Abstract reasoning and problem-solving skills Advanced progression through developmental milestones Strong, advanced vocabulary for chronological age Heightened Curiosity Early and extensive language development Early recognition of parent figures (for example, smiling) Outstanding memory - sometimes eidetic, often recalling large and complex sets of facts and ideas Intense to the point of total absorption at times Perceives subtle cause / effect relationships and may intuitively utilize them in stories, jokes, play on words May be aware of others with an advanced sense of justice or fairness earlier than peers Often aware of global issues and interconnectedness of seemingly disparate ideas Enjoyment and rapidity of learning Excellent sense of humor, awareness and use of irony, even sarcasm Extraordinary memory High activity level and unusually coordinated for age Intense reactions to noise, pain, as frustration and distraction Less need for sleep in infancy Long attention span Sensitivity and compassion Unusual alertness in infancy Vivid imagination (for example, imaginary companions) Multiple layers of interest and expertise

Findings outlined in the work "Toward a New Paradigm for Identifying Talent Potential" by Dr. Mary M. Frasier, Dr. A. Harry Passow

* Youngsters with talent potential are found in all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor.

* New constructs of giftedness reflect a multifaceted, multicultural, multidimensional perspective and are defined by traits, aptitudes and behaviors to be nurtured rather than by static test performance.

* There are absolute attributes of giftedness, traits, aptitudes, and behaviors which characterize high performance cross-culturally as well as specific attributes or behaviors which manifest themselves in particular cultural contexts or settings.

* Increased sensitivity to and understanding of culturally determined and environmentally affected behaviors will help educators to recognize and interpret performance indicators of talent potential in the context in which they are displayed.

* The use of multiple criteria and authentic assessment techniques--instruments and assessment tools other than intelligence and achievement tests--is widely advocated.

* The provision of rich learning opportunities for all students provides a means for children to display their gifted behaviors and talent potential.

http://www.ucc.uconn.edu/~wwwgt./fraspass.htm

Sometimes gifted children are also learning disabled. There are also a number of behaviors that can be misunderstood or misread as ADHD. The following lists help distinguish between behaviors that are associated with each:

BEHAVIORS ASSOCIATED WITH ADHD (BARKLEY, 1990)

Poorly sustained attention in almost all situations

Diminished persistence on tasks not having immediate consequences

Impulsivity, poor delay of gratification

Impaired adherence to commands to regulate or inhibit behavior in social contexts

More active, restless than normal children

Difficulty adhering to rules and regulations

BEHAVIORS ASSOCIATED WITH GIFTEDNESS (WEBB, 1993)

Poor attention, boredom, daydreaming in specific situations, especially commonly repeated settings

Low tolerance for persistence on tasks that seem irrelevant

Judgment lags behind development of intellect

Intensity may lead to power struggles with authorities

High activity level; may need less sleep

Questions rules, customs and traditions

from http://www.kidsource.com/kidsource/content/adhd_and_gifted.html

 

Tips and Strategies

Educational Interventions
Personal Notes

Career planning for youth who are gifted

Adolescence, peers and adjusting to giftedness

Supporting emotional growth in children who are gifted

Supporting social growth

Nurturing giftedness

Mathematical talent - identification and nurturing

English teaching and gifted

Fostering academic creativity

Leadership development in gifted

Interventions for underachievement in gifted

Resources for gifted and talented

Blue ribbon learning sites

Self assessment of gifts and talents

Lesson plans and resources for teaching gifted and talented

 

Development is quite advanced in some ways, and fairly normal in other areas. The intellectually gifted youngster often has a strong interest in philosophical questions and may spend a great deal of time questioning systems, customs, traditions, rules and laws including religious beliefs. It is not unusual for these youth to explore world religions and develop an interest in a myriad of rituals and belief structures.

Since so many students are involved in philosophical development, a process curriculum that supports growth toward high ideals can be a real support for gifted and talent youth. These ideals are suggested by L. Silverman (1993).

Moral courage Compassion Authenticity Altruism
Reflective judgment Responsibility Commit to goals Integrity
Sense of self efficacy Global awareness Moral development Wisdom
Contribute to society Self-actualization Ethical behavior Creativity
Emotional wellness High ideals Sense of wonder Autonomy

Student action

Needs

Creative solution
Student has all the answers and yells out responses to questions

Student needs validation, attention, stimulation and may see adult as a peer

Start a notepad for student to dialogue answers or add dimension to questions and then give separate time to the student to discuss perspectives
Always 3 assignments ahead

Needs more stimulation and challenge, faster pace to learning

Consider putting the child in charge of developing a curriculum and working in several intelligences on concepts rather than rapid linear progress
Student is sarcastic Emotional development and social insightfulness Many gifted youth spend their childhood in an adult mode, not learning how to relate to peers. In addition, many do not "play" with peers, since their interests do not match age mates, so may not learn empathy, but can be helped to gain servant leadership skills

Fill in the next three cell rows, using the ideas you gain from experience, from materials in the text and in your web searches. Identify a likely student behavior that may hamper learning and then go through the process of defining needs, then finding a solution that allows everyone to get needs met

Education for gifted and talented youngsters has evolved over the past decade.

The Current Ideal Model

Identification
Goals
Programming
A wide range of exceptional gifts Nurture potential Encourage gifted behavior
Find strengths Enhance quality of abilities Flexible options
Include those who wish support Provide wide range of options Enhance current curriculum
Look at talents and multiple intelligences Enhance potential Inclusionary
Validate leadership and emotional IQ Motivate growth and empowerment Responsive to variety

Book Lists

Clark, R.W. (1971). Einstein: The life and times. NY: World Publishing.

Churchill, R.S. (1988). Winston S. Churchill. London: Heinemann.

Delisle, J.R. (1984). Gifted children speak out. NY: Walker & Co.

Eberstadt, F. (1991. Isaac and his devils. NY: Knopf.

Goertzel, V., & Goertzel, M.G. (1962). Cradles of eminence. Boston: Little, Brown, & Co.

Kerr, B.A. (1985). Smart girls, gifted women. OH: Ohio Psychology Publishing Co.

L'Engle, M. (1962). A wrinkle in time. NY: Farrar, Straus, & Giroux.

Meir, G. (1975). My life: by Golda Meir. NY: Putnam.

Stone, B. (1988). Been clever forever. NY: Harper & Row.

Stone, I. (1961). Agony and ecstasy. NY: Doubleday.

Vonnegut, K. (1968). Welcome to the monkey house. NY: Delacorte Press.

Videos and Movies

Little Miss Marker Wee Willie Winkie National Velvet
Paper Moon Goonies Weird Science
Little Man Tate Powder Class Act
Searching for Bobby Fischer Good Will Hunting Amadeus

Bibliographies

Selected bibliography Gifted Ed articles Papers and presentations
Multi-linguistic reading sites Teaching and parenting gifted SERI sites
Yahoo sites Gifted readers, article and bib. K-12 gifted ed links and bib.

 

How do we recognize and protect genius?

How many gifts are lost through education?

How many gifts and talents are ignited through great teaching and mentoring?

We are the future - we teach!

 

 

 


E-mail J'Anne Affeld at Janne.Affeld@nau.edu

Course developed by J'Anne Affeld


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