EDUCATION OF THE GIFTED CHILDwww.drlakshmisharma.com

Dr Lakshmi Sharma Workshop on Giftedness Part 5

NO LIMITS TO LEARNING! BELIEVE & YOU CAN ACHIEVE!

Overview

• What to look for in a school• Primary Education• Grade skipping• Enrichment programmes • Secondary Education• Acceleration Programm• Models & strategies/theorists on gifted education/learning/teaching

Fact

• Schooling of a gifted child is the biggest issue for parents whether the child is in a private or state school!

Myths• Better education for gifted children in private school• All schools cater for gifted children• Schools don’t cater for gifted children• Your child’s school can identify giftedness

The Truth• Majority of teachers do their best to cater for gifted children• Few teachers have qualifications in gifted education but this does NOT mean they can’t

teach gifted students• Gifted qualifications, being gifted or having gifted children make better gifted educators.• Gifted programmes tend to be outsourced – parental charge• Now a trend to recognise & input gifted education• Many schools piloting internal gifted & talented programmes• Majority of schools DO NOT favour acceleration (grade skipping)• Those favouring acceleration – need IQ test• Private schools allow early entry compared to state for gifted students. (B’day falls after May 1st-year entry deadline)

• Ethos of the school – Principal

• Principal-most important

• Principal that understands Gifted Ed/Child -

instigated throughout school

Choosing Your School

Look for & Ask

1. Population of tested high IQ kids

2. Gifted Education training in teachers

3. Schools gifted policies & evidence that policy is instigated within school

4. INTERNAL gifted programmes

5. Does the school accelerate child (grade skip)

6. Does the school accelerate in subjects – maths grade 5 class for grade 2

7. How does the school scaffold the learning for a gifted child?

8. How does the school identify the zone of proximal development for a gifted child & ensure that it is always met

Primary School

• Start of formal education

• Lays the foundations of learning & education

• Most important - great beginning

• Affects the way gifted child sees education & schooling

• Issues need to be immediately addressed

How it works – Primary School

• School will test your child along with everyone & may determine gifted• If IQ test done by parent - submit to school• Teacher & you will discuss Individual Learning Plan• The child will follow the ILP – this is revised as & when required• Child invited internal & external gifted programmes• Also school may consider acceleration in grade or subjects

Important fact: Many parents want to believe their child is gifted. Teachers hear “my child is gifted” frequently – so forgive that look of dismissal!

Gifted parents children >98th percentile experience

1. “The teacher isn’t addressing my child’s needs”2. “ I have given the IQ test but still nothing has changed”3. “Teacher states oh don’t worry we have other gifted children in the class”4. “Teacher states oh your child is intellectually brilliant but her fine motor

skills are inadequate for her age”5. “Your child is brilliant but can’t socialise well”6. “We can’t accelerate your child as we can cope with her in her present

grade”

NO ONE IS LISTENING TO ME

Parents Common Experiences - Child identified gifted IQ>98th

STAGE ONE

• Teacher cannot differentiate learning

• Teacher sets ILP – ineffective – will state “X is being

taught at the ZPD”

• Teacher states we have other gifted children in class –

put parents at ease – does NOT address situation

STAGE TWO

• Child bored – needs not addressed

• Parents now go to principal

• Parents ask school for subject acceleration -

sometimes this can work - schools can be flexible

• Parents ask school for grade acceleration

most schools against this

STAGE THREE

• Child still bored & now refusing to go to school

• Parents go to educational board for child’s needs

Or

• Parents change schools- acceleration granted

How to get the best from your school

1. Find the gifted policy that the school has to adhere to set by the state/county

2. Try to work with your child’s teacher, ensure gifted policy is addressed

3. Document all meetings with the teacher

4. Note all her/his actions in addressing the child’s educational needs

5. Monitor your child’s progress at home & school

6. Make suggestions that you feel will address your child’s needs e.g acceleration, gifted programmes etc

7. If you are not satisfied refer to the principal, but only as a last resort

8. If you are still not satisfied refer to the Education Board/Department with all documentation

My Personal Journey

Getting the correct education for my child was a battle!

Constant stress

Took 2 other primary schools to find the right one !

My advice:

You are the best advocate for child

You know that child inside & out

Only accept the best education for your child

Do not accept excuses from yourself or the school

Acceleration - Grade skipping !My child was grade skipped - development & speed of learning advanced

Positives:

• Prior to acceleration was bored now extremely happy child• Loves being with older children• No bullying at all • Older children shielded my child from teasing etc• Educationally challenged• No longer way ahead at the top – Brilliant self efficacy – grit factor!

Negatives• Could not perform at grade level in sports – oldest child 2yr 4

months older

• Age for sport - extremely good

• Will start University at age 16 – too young for student life!!!

• Once accelerated - can’t de-accelerate !

Secondary schools don’t allow for this!

Enrichment Programmes

Before you part with your dollar…………Make sure your child is really going to be enriched !!!

My child’s comment:

“Mummy why did you pay $80 for me to be enriched when you enriched them with your cash & I learnt nothing new!”

After that my child never wanted to go to any “enrichment programmes”!

Secondary Schooling

• Most secondary schools have selected “accelerated classes”• To be selected you do NOT sit an IQ test • The test combination of Maths & English type • “Educational” companies run intense classes for students to practice test • Most kids in these classes are NOT highly gifted or gifted at all• These classes in general increase the workload but do not increase the

depth of knowledge.• Seal Co-ordinator “No Correlation between VCE result (Australia) & Seal

programme.”(!)

Serious Issues with Acceleration Class• With accelerated child (grade skipped)- high pressure at young age (10)• Majority of Kids selected are not highly gifted – competitive culture• Most do not address high order thinking & gifted learning• Size of programme bet 25-75 kids with no IQ test (!) Yet claim to be for “gifted students”- no differentiation• Kids not gifted but highly pushed cannot keep up, slows class down• The only way for these programmes to work is to test the IQ – thus gifted

children in gifted programme! – Schools can’t financially justify as few highly gifted kids applying for that programme – class of less than 10 !

Learning Gifted Students(the following 4 slides info from WA Edu Dept)

Teaching and learning adjustments should: Teachers should expect that gifted and talented students are capable of learning how to:

be flexible to match students’ knowledge, abilities, needs and phrases of learning

direct, manage, negotiate and evaluate their own learning

include a range of group and individual activities to accommodate different abilities, skills and learning rates

consider relationships and generate new ideas, hypotheses and creative solutions

  enable the development of generic skills

and higher order thinking skills and strategies

become producers, rather than reproducers, of knowledge

allow negotiation of self-selected topics for learning within established curriculum parameters

develop skills of critical analysis and creativity; apply analytical processes for problem solving and decision making

be open-ended, encouraging questioning and tasks which allow studenttto construct knowledge

make defensible judgements and evaluate their own ideas and those of others

demonstrate logical, critical, creative, lateral and parallel forms of thinking

work confidently in independent and cooperative situations

pay attention to product and the demonstration of achievement in student’s learning

enjoy learning 

encourage students to help other students with their learning

 

explore the possibilities of open learning, telematics, multi-campus developments, external education sites and other reso urces

 

Principals and teachers should . . .Ideas to consider

understand and implement the department’s gifted and talented policy

Nominate a gifted and talented coordinator to promote the policy and help monitor its implementation.

ensure procedures are in place for the ongoing identification of gifted and talented students, as well as identification for placement in school and supplementary programs

Use identification procedures in the Teaching TAGS. Teachers monitor student’s progress carefully to identify possible

gifted and talented students, gather information on identified students using a range of strategies, confirm the information is correct and ensure no student or group of students has been omitted, and ensure the information is incorporated into the school’s management information system.

provide an appropriate and challenging learning program based on a range of strategies which match the learning styles and needs of gifted and talented students

Devise strategies to use in day-to-day programs to provide a differentiated curriculum (enrichment, extension or acceleration) for identified students.

Provide access to appropriate supplementary programs. participate in professional development about the education of

gifted and talented students Work through and implement strategies in the Teaching TAGS. Access information from professional associations to keep abreast of

gifted and talented initiatives.

collaborate to share resources within and between schools Develop networks. use school development planning processes to collect and review

data relevant to the achievement of gifted and talented students and to set priorities and targets which address their needs

Make provision in the school management information system to identify gifted and talented students and to report on the performance of these students as a sub-group of the school population.

Include gifted and talented provision as a school priority if warranted. encourage parents of gifted and talented students and community

stakeholders to participate in the education of gifted and talented students

Communicate strategies adopted by the school to cater for gifted and talented students.

Involve parents in curriculum resource developments. Draw on community experts to assist with school-based and

supplementary programs.

THE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF PRINCIPALS AND TEACHERS- Gifted Children

Gifted Learning & Teaching - Strategies & Models Gifted students require specialised teaching & learning:high order thinking.

Maker in Teaching Models in Education of the Gifted: "a teaching-learning model is a structural framework that serves as a guide for developing specific educational activities and environments" (1982).

List of theorists & use for curriculum framework

• Krathwohl - Taxonomy of affective domain

• Betts - Autonomous Learner

• De Bono - Lateral & Creative Thinking

• Taylor- Multipe talent model

• Dabrowski - Over excitabilities

• Bloom - Taxonomy of cognitive domian

• Osborn-Parnes – Creative Problem solving process

• Renzulli - Enrichment Triad

Bett Autonomous Learner Model1. Orientation - understanding giftedness2. Individual Development -3. Enrichment 4. Seminars 5. In-Depth Study

Osborn-Parne'sCreative Problem Solving ProcessObjective (Mess) Finding 2. Fact Finding 3. Problem Solving 4. Idea Finding 5. Solution Finding 6. Acceptance Finding .

Renzulli's Enrichment Triad

TYPE I - General Interest / Exploratory ActivitiesTYPE II - Group Training Activities / Skills DevelopmentTYPE III - Individual and Small Group Investigation Real Problems

Lateral and creative thinking de Bonolateral thinking, parallel thinking The Six Thinking Hats and CoRT Thinking.

Taylor's Multiple-Talent ModelGifted very top of any talent area, Talented students above averageIQ tests alone insufficient - giftedness .• Development of open-ended activities • focus on talent development• knowledge • varied learning approaches • a smooth transition to the "real world"

Dabrowski's Over-ExcitabilitiesGifted extremely sensitive:PsychomotorSensualImaginationalIntellectualEmotional

Krathwohl's Taxonomy of the Affective DomainRelates to the complexity of thinking.1.Receiving2.Responding3.Valuing4.Organising5.Characterising by a Value or set

Bloom's Taxonomy Cognitive Processes1.Knowledge2.Comprehension3.Application4.Analysis5.Synthesis6.Evaluation

Gifted Learning & TeachingStrategies & Models

HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PRESENTATION!

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NO LIMITS TO LEARNING! BELIEVE & YOU CAN ACHIEVE!