Sample+Questions

1. __State and compare the federal definition of giftedness to the theories of Asynchronous Development (Columbus Group) and Gardner's Multiple Intelligenciences. Explain how recent findings in neuroscience contribute to revised paradigms (D. JLove).__ //__Federal Definition of Giftedness__:// Students, Children, or youth who give evidence of high achievement capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who need services or activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop those capabilities//. __Asynchronous development__// refers to uneven intellectual, physical, and emotional development. In average children, intellectual, physical, and emotional development progresses at about the same rate. That is, the development is in "sync." An average three-year-old has the intellectual and physical abilities as well as the emotional maturity most other three-year-olds have. However, in gifted children, the development of those areas is out of "sync." They do not progress at the same rate. (L Howard) __Gardener’s Multiple Intelligences__ proposes 7 intelligences: linguistic, musical, logical-mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal, and intrapersonal Additional candidate intelligences are naturalistic, spiritual, and existential. Howard Gardener believed that we all have multiple intelligences, rather than a general intelligence. Different activities performed using different intelligences will render different results in a person. (J. Bumpers) Has anyone had any luck with this part of the question? __ Explain how recent findings in neuroscience contribute to revised paradigms. __ A famous American neuroscientist, Karl Lashley, spent time experimenting on rats, by training them to find their way through mazes. His theory was that all neurons in the cortex were equally involved in long-term memory. He discovered that the rats lost some of their memory when he removed some of the cortex from their brains. His study was flawed.

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__2. Discuss the following individuals' contributions to gifted education: Dabrowski, Dacey and Lennon, Feldhusen, Frasier, Gagne, Gardner, Guildford, Hollingworth, Maslow, Piirto, Reis, Renzulli, Silverman, Sternberg, Terman and Torrance. Describe and compare their theories and models. (D.JLove__)

3__. Diversity should be celebrated not just tolerated. Giftedness in atypical students is not always easy to identify. Choose three groups of gifted atypicalities and discuss their chracteristics and needs.(D.JLove)__ __Minorites/African American__: Stronlgy influenced by family belief systems, tests are not cultrually sensitive, rating scales are often biased, exposure to different early childood experiences, sometimes irregular family dynamic, problems of gaining acceptance of his or her giftedness by both society and members of an academic group. __Poor children__: Low birth weight, poor nutrition, inadequate home care, fewer meaningful early cognitive and emotional experiences, little value placed on education in the home, often shy or withdrawn, lack of positive school experiences, often solve problems using violence and are labeled trouble makers. __Profoundly Gifted__: Mothers tend to beolder than the norm, often require fewer hours of sleep,had imaginary playmates, learns rapidly, has extensive vocabulary, confident, keen senseof humor and observation, would rather be with people older than themselves, speak using remarkable complexity, precosity in speech, movement, and reading.(amazing development at a rapid rate) (L. Howard)

4__. Discuss and explain the process from reccommendation to placement of gifted/talented children in your state. (D.JLove)__ **__Alabama State Definition of "gifted & talented__"**: “Intellectually gifted children and youth are those who perform at high levels in academic or creative fields when compared to others of their age, experience, or environment. These children and youth require services not ordinarily provided by the regular school program. Children and youth possessing these abilities can be found in all populations, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor.” (Alabama Admin. Code r. 290-8-9-.14) Child Find was intitated to identify 2nd graders who exhibit gifted characteristics. The Checklist used attempts to ensure that students from all populations and socioeconomic groups, as well as students with disabilities, and students who are limited-English proficient, are given the opportunity to be considered for gifted services. The Checklist identifies behaviors often found in gifted children and requires the teacher to observe the student and record information about the student. Students must be enrolled in a public school and at least six years of age in order to be referred, evaluated and served. A student may be referred for gifted services by teachers, counselors, administrators, parents, or guardians, peers, self or any other individuals with knowledge of the student's abilities. In the state of Alabama, children are eligible to be tested for the gifted program if they are 5 years of age and enrolled in a public school kindergarten.  A student may be referred for consideration for gifted services by teachers, counselors, administrators, parents, or guardians, peers, self, or any other individuals with knowledge of the student's abilities. Additionally, all second grade students will be observed as potential gifted referrals using a gifted checklist.  For each student referred, information is gathered in the following three areas: aptitude, which is the students score on a test of intelligence or creativity, characteristics which is a behavior checklist completed by the general education teacher, and performance on at least three indicators.  The scores from each area are entered into a matrix where points are given due to particular preassigned criteria.  The total number of points given determines if the student is eligible for the gifted program. If they are eligible, they will be able to participate in the gifted program at their school.  There are several programs available for them.  Resource rooms/Pull-outs are most commonly seen in the elementary classroom.  Students are taken into the gifted program for an hour per their grade level. (examples: 3rd grade=3 hours, 4th grade=4 hours, etc.)  <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">Alabama schools also offer acceleration, curriculum compacting, mentorship, elective classes, guidance and counseling, AP courses, cluster grouping, joint enrollment, independent study, seminars, and self-contained classes for the gifts. <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; mso-spacerun: yes; msospacerun: yes;"> <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif';">These programs and their availability vary throughout the state. (J. Bumpers)

5. __Reflected in the law, attitudes in the United States toward gifted children have swung like a pendulum, back and forth. List the Federal Laws (number and title) related to gifted education (chronologically) and discuss the role of the federal government during the past fifty years. Be sure to include how "Leave No Child Behind" is affecting gifted/talented education.__ http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=607 Gifted History Timeline http://www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=999 No Child Left Behind and Gifted Education 1964-The Civil Rights Act passes, emphasizing equal opportunities including those in education. 1972-The Marland Report- The first formal definition is issued encouraging schools to define giftedness broadly, along with academic and intellectual talent the definition includes leadership ability, visual and performing arts, creative or productive thinking, and psychomotor ability. 1975-Public Law 94-142 The Education for all Handicapped Children Act. This Act establishes a federal mandate to serve children with special education needs, but does not include children with gifts and talents. 1988-Congress passes the Jacob Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act as part of the Reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. 2002-The No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB ) is passed as the reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act. The Javits program is included in NCLB, and expanded to offer competitive statewide grants. The definition of gifted and talented students is modified again.

In 1957, the Soiet Union launched Sputnik alerting the US to the fact that American children are not prepared to compete in Math and Science. Substantial amounts of money pour into identifying the brightest and talented students who would best profit from advanced math, science, and technology programming. Over the next 20 years, there was more progress made in the areas of equal education along with academic and intellectual talent. This definition includes leadership ability, visual and performing arts, creative or productive thinking, and psychomotor ability. In 1974 and 1975, gifted education finally gains status, but is excluded fron PL 92-142 which is written to serve special education polulations other than gifted and talented. A Nation at Risk once again points out that Gifted American students cannot keep up wiht their international counterparts. The report includes policies and practices in gifted education, raising academic standards, and promoting appropriate curriculum for gifted learners. Over the next 10 years there were ups and downs including the reissue of the Jacob-Javits Act and The National Excellence report outlining the ways that America neglects its gifted youth. In 1998 NAGC publishes guidance in 7 key areas for programs serving gifed and talented students. In 2002 NCLB issued a new definition of giftedness in the US. The Javits program is included and offers competitie statewide grants. In 2004 -[|A Nation Deceived: How Schools Hold Back America’s Brightest Students], a national research-based report on acceleration strategies for advanced learners. (L. Howard) No Child Left Behind allows the federal government to provide less than $10 million for gifted programs, and only half the states offer additional money. Gifted education programs are therefore being robbed of resources in the form of millions of dollars. The focus is on reading and Math (proficiency by 2014) which causes staes to reallocate their funding into areas that will improve those scores. The brightest and most creative students and teachers are once again trying to move a mountain with a shovel. With these challenges, it is very difficult for them to compete globally against same age peers.

6__. Creativity, referred to by some scholars as the "highest form of giftedness" is viewed from at least three perspectives: (1) the person, (2) the process, and (3) the product. Discuss each of these perspectives and explain how Csikzentmihalyi's theory of flow fits. Discuss pros and cons of placing a highly creative child in an accelerated academic program.__ People usually know if they are creative. This creativity can be fostered and thrive or it can be thwarted and kept from achieving its full potential. The creative process involves the generation of new [|ideas] or [|concepts], or new associations of the creative mind between existing ideas or concepts, creativity is fueled by the process of either conscious or unconscious insight. The products of creative thought (sometimes referred to as [|divergent thought]) are usually considered to have both originality //and// appropriateness(producing many ideas or ideas that are different from the norm) These products are representative of the persons willingness to branch out and expand beyond a normal or average level of creativity. The Flow theory says that if you challenge students they will become focused in the activity they are doing. Once the students have been challenged to a certain level you must challenge them again at a higher level for them to return to the state of flow.

Creativity is generally addictive for a very good reason -- the sensation of being in a state of full concentration or hyper-concentration is both pleasant and productive.

 * Flow can only occur when the optimal experience in which the individual is engaging in, contains the potential for skills and challenges above a certain level.” In other words, a person must have a challenge that requires them to stretch their abilities beyond their normal limits in order for flow to occur. If the students are motivated and challenges of the same or higher skill level are given to them then flow can continue to occur and the student will grow. Mihaly’s theory shows away that students can grow. Students have the potential for growth if teachers expect it of them and challenge them with new tasks. If a student continues to enter the state of flow it will become repetitious and the student will grow every time. ||
 * The pros of a highly creative child engaging in an accelerated academic program are that they would be paried wiht students who are at the same mental age as opposed to the same chronological age. Another pro might be that the advanced curriculum and differentiated instruction might be more stimulating for those who are oragnaized and focused on task completion. The cons involve feelings of isolation or being emotionally hurt by non acceptance, feelings of inadequacy when they cannot complete things on a satisfactory academic level, the level of organization and focus inclovled to complete many twasks may beoverwhelming. fewer opportunities to show their work on a highly creative levle, may not be slef motivated enought to follow through with a task that does not peak creative interests. ||

This website is very helpful.* (D.JLove)

Ed Psych Central http://homepages.luc.edu/~hweiman/Gifted.html

//Sample Questions (J.Snow)// <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">//Q: As a new Gifted Coordinator in your district, outline your plan to gain the support of a principal who does not believe in ‘gifted education.// //A: There are many principals who don’t give credibility to the area of gifted education (GE). Some see GE as a form of elitism. ( Sternberg, 1996; Clark, 2002; Davis and Rimm, 2004.) Others are so overwhelmed by other major concerns, such as test scores, discipline issues, and funding, that they choose to not resource the time and efforts for the gifted students. They are left to fend for themselves. (Feldhusen, 1989). As a new Gifted Coordinator in my district, I would online a plan to gain support from a principal who does not believe in gifted education.// //Assuming that I would have access to a conference format, my plan of action would begin with a presentation of the No Child Left Behind Act. I would cite in which we as educators must meet the needs of all students, including the gifted students. (DeLacy, 2004) In addition to this, I would present research from various theories, such as in multiple intelligence (Howard,1988) and flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1995) to support my position. I would also inform the principal on the characteristics of gifted children and how they use them to learn. (Seagoe, 1974; Feldhusen, 1989) In this way, it would be my hope that the principal would realize the validity of gifted education. My research would also include data on results of not addressing the needs of gifted children ( Ford, 1993; Reis, 1995, 1998) // //My plan of action would continue with the identification of various assessments to identify potentially gifted students, such as the F-TAP and WISC. (Feldhusen,1992; Patton, 1992; Frasier 1993) I would also include various successful implementations of gifted programs to convince the principal that identifying and nurturing gifted students would benefit not only the students, but the school itself. (Jones and Southern, 1992; Renzulli, 1992) Lastly, I would invite the principal to visit a school that is similar to his/hers that uses programs that enhance the abilities of gifted students. In a presentation of this nature, I would hope that a principal would consider gifted education a valid area of education.// ___ <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">//Q: Many schools and districts continue to use IQ tests as primary criteria for G/T program selection. Consider political realities, political correctness, and your conscience. What do you think about other criteria, such as self nominations, parent nominations, teacher nominations, grades (achievement), observed art or science talent, or even a high interest?// //A: As we gain more information on gifted individuals through research, the definition of gifted tends to change. (Renzulli, 1978) We rely on the experts to give us a frame of reference to make judgments. In the past, IQ tests have been used to identify G/T students because it was assumed that they were “fair and accurate” tools of measurement. (Feldhusen, 1992; Patton, 1992; Frasier, 1994, 1997.) Research suggests, however, that many of the IQ tests may be biased and other forms of criteria should be included in the identification and assessing of the gifted and talented. (Sternberg, 1986; Suter and Wolf, 1987; Frazier, 1997) I agree with the idea of using other criteria in addition to traditional IQ tests. However, I believe we as educators should be very careful in the usage of types of other criteria to identify gifted and talented students.// //Although a gifted individual may have a keen sense of self knowledge, criteria, such as self/parental nomination, may not be accurate because it comes from a personal point of view. Grades can be indicators of gifted abilities as well (Gardner, 1997), however this criterion should be one of many. High grades could also be a result of great organization and study skills and old fashioned hard work. // //I think that if other criteria are used, the observations and anecdotal notes from a teacher without prior connections to the potentially identified student may be the most reliable. I feel this way because// s/he will be unbiased in his/her opinions. I believe that teachers should be trained in recognizing gifted characteristics in many different areas, such as art and science. In this way, their lessons can enhance the gifted and talented.