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Gifted education is a broad term for special practices, procedures and theories used in the Education of Children who have been identified as Gifted or Talent ed. Programs providing such education are sometimes called '''Gifted and Talented Education''' (GATE) or '''Talented and Gifted''' (TAG) programs. Youth s are sometimes identified as gifted by placing highly on certain Standardized Test s, although sole reliance on this method is often inappropriate, and educators are shifting towards broader means of identification. In order to preclude Tracking or Gate Keeping , programs of gifted education often use student interest, parental request, and teacher recommendations as additional criteria for entry. Gifted programs are often cut when budgets are tight, partly because they are seen as a luxury, which suggests that they continue to have marginal political support in many communities. The History Of Gifted Education In The US , however, shows continued support from national policy makers since the mid-twentieth century. JUSTIFICATION Advocates of gifted education argue that gifted and/or talented youth are motivationally or perceptually or intellectually prepared for a challenge not offered in the standard curriculum, so that it is appropriate to pace their lessons more aggressively by encouraging them to participate in honors courses, Advanced Placement courses, International Baccalaureate courses, or other sources of educational enrichment and acceleration. They also claim that the needs of many gifted students are still neglected, as schools tend to place emphasis on improving education for the mainstream. Some argue that too many resources are diverted from gifted education to the other end of the special education spectrum, disabled students. This may be an unintended consequence of the development of Disability Rights Litigation , which some Pundit s argue has led to the Disabled receiving escalating resources at the expense of needed growth for gifted programs (see Special Education ). However, many advocates believe that both Special Education and gifted education deserve more resources, on the general principle that each child should receive a challenge appropriate to his preparedness and motivation. Both gifted and disabled students are often dissatisfied with the education system, which, while it may suit the majority of students, doesn't suit their needs. HISTORY Gifted and talented education dates back thousands of years. This kind of education dates back at least to China's Tang Dynasty (circa 618 B.C.), where child prodigies were summoned to the imperial court for specialized education (Colangelo & Davis; Davis & Rimm). A more common reference point in the West is Plato (c. 427–c. 347 BCE), who advocated providing specialized education for the gifted (Colangelo & Davis, 1997; Davis & Rimm, 1989). Throughout the Renaissance, those who exhibited creative talent in art, architecture, and literature were supported by both the government and private patronage (Colangelo & Davis; Davis & Rimm; Hansen & Hoover, 1994). United States The United States has moved slowly toward the idea that specialized educational services should be provided to all who can profit from them, regardless of wealth (Colangelo & Davis, 1997; Davis & Rimm, 1989; Newland, 1976). In the 19th century, new provisions were made for the education of the gifted and talented in the U.S. One early step was Flexible Promotion , implemented in the St. Louis Public Schools in 1868; in Woburn, MA in 1884; in Elizabeth, NJ in 1886; and in Cambridge, MA in 1891 (Colangelo & Davis; Piirto). The St. Louis Public Schools plan allowed students to complete a six-year curriculum in four years (Piirto, 1999). By 1920, two-thirds of major U.S. cities had some type of educational programming for gifted students (Colangelo and Davis, 1997). During the 20th century, gifted and talented education became a national issue. Mensa was founded in 1946 , the American Association For The Gifted was in 1947 , the National Association For The Gifted in 1953 , and the Association For The Gifted in 1959 . The 1957 Sputnik was a seminal event, creating a national sense of urgency to educate more advanced students in mathematics and science. This has been linked to the National Defense Education Act of 1958 (Piirto, 1999). Nevertheless, in the 1972 Marland Report , Congress expressed concern about the inadequate state of gifted and talented education (Delisle, 1999; Piirto), and in 1993, the Department Of Education published National Excellence: A Case for Developing America's Talent . FORMS OF GIFTED EDUCATION They usually fall into the following categories: Separate classes Gifted students are educated in either a separate class or a separate school. Classes like this are sometimes called "Congregated Gifted Classes". Separate or independent schools are schools with a primary mission to serve the needs of the academically gifted. Such schools are relatively scarce and often difficult for families to locate. Such schools often need to work to guard their mission from occasional status-seeking parents and charges of inappropriate elitism, support the professional growth and training of their staff, write curriculum units that are specifically designed to meet the social, emotional, and academic talents of their students, and educate their parent population at all ages. Montessori method In the Montessori Method children are in classes of three age groups, giving them the opportunity to advance among children of their own age. The Montessori method provides an additional degree of freedom, beneficial for gifted children capable of learning at a highly accelerated rate. Acceleration Pupils are advanced to a higher-level class covering material more suited to the pupils' abilities. This may take the form of Skipping Grades or completing normal curriculum in a shorter-than-normal period of time. Partial acceleration is a very flexible approach which can advance a student in one field, such as mathematics or language, without changing other studies, such as history and sports. Some colleges offer Early Entrance Programs that give gifted younger students the opportunity to attend college early. In the U.S., many Community Colleges allow advanced students to enroll with the consent of school officials and their parents. Acceleration presents gifted children with academic material commensurate with their ability, and is a low-cost option from the perspective of the school. However, just like bright children may or may not feel accepted by typical children of their age, individual students in an acceleration program may or may not feel like they are socially accepted by much older students. The social disconnect is most apparent when a profoundly gifted young child is enrolled in classes with teenagers and young adults. It is least apparent when a moderately gifted student is advanced by only one or two years. However, in general, the disadvantages of being retained in a standard mixed-ability classroom are substantially worse, as psychologist Miraca Gross reports: "the majority of these children in a typical classroom are socially rejected, isolated and deeply unhappy their same-age peers with typical academic talents . Children of IQ 180+ who are retained in the regular classroom are even more seriously at risk and experience severe emotional distress."[http://www.gt-cybersource.org/Record.aspx?NavID=2_0&rid=10586] Pull-out Students spend a portion of their time in a gifted class, and the rest of their time with same grade students of varying abilities. These programs vary widely, from carefully designed half-day academic programs to a single hour each week of entertaining fluff. Their effectiveness is difficult to measure because of the diversity of programs, and is highly debated. A positive outcome likely depends on the level of challenge a student receives during the majority of their time at school. Enrichment Students spend all class time with their peers, but receive extra material to challenge them. Enrichment may be as simple as a modified assignment provided by the regular classroom teacher, or it might include formal programs such as Odyssey Of The Mind , Destination Imagination or academic competitions such as Brain Bowl , Future Problem Solving , National History Day , Science Fair s, or Spelling Bee s. Homeschooling An umbrella term encompassing myriad educational options for gifted children: part-time schooling; school at home; classes, groups, mentors and tutors; and Unschooling . In many states, the population of gifted students who are being Homeschooled is rising quite rapidly, as school districts responding to budgetary issues and standards-based policies are cutting what limited gifted education program remain extant, and families seek educational opportunities that are tailored to each child's unique needs. Summer school This covers a variety of courses, such as CTY and CTYI that take place in the summer. Hobby Games like Chess , foreign languages, art, or music give an extra intellectual challenge outside of school hours. STUDIES OF GIFTEDNESS Differences in intelligence have been known for recorded human history, but the development of early intelligence tests by Alfred Binet led to the Stanford-Binet IQ Test which was developed by Lewis Terman , who began long-term studies of gifted children with a view to checking if the popular view "early to ripen, early to rot" was true. He showed this popular belief was false and many of the children (dubbed "Terman's termites") were studied for decades. Modern studies by James and Kulik {Link without Title} conclude that gifted students benefit least from doing reasonably typical studies in a mixed-level class, and benefit most from learning with other similarly advanced students in accelerated or enriched classes. COMMONLY USED TERMS IN GIFTED EDUCATION {Link without Title} Differentiation Modification of a gifted student’s curriculum to accommodate their specific needs. This may include changing the content or ability level of the material. Affective Curriculum A curriculum that is designed to teach gifted students about emotions, self-esteem, and social skills. This can be valuable for all students, especially those who have been grouped with much older students, or who have been rejected by their same-age, but academically typical, peers. Heterogeneous Grouping A strategy that enables the grouping of students of all ability levels to learn in the same classroom environment. Homogenous Grouping A strategy that enables the grouping of students by specific ability, interest, or subject area. Individualized Education Plan (IEP) A written document that addresses the gifted student’s needs. It may include specific accommodations, materials or classroom instruction. IEPs are generally used with students with disabilities, who are required by law to have an IEP when appropriate. Most states are not required to have IEPs for students who are only identified as gifted. Some students may be intellectually gifted in addition to having learning and/or attentional disabilities, and may have an IEP that includes, for instance, enrichment activities as a means of alleviating boredom or frustration, or as a reward for on-task behavior. In order to warrant such an IEP, a student needs to be diagnosed with a separate emotional or learning disability that is not simply the result of being unchallenged in a typical classroom. CONTROVERSIES There are several controversies concerning gifted education. They are as basic as agreeing upon a common definition of what constitutes giftedness in a person: performance vs. inherent intelligence as many students do not exhibit both at the same time. The forms of measuring general intelligence are also controversial: many IQ tests are notorious for identifying intelligence in privileged races and classes, while underreporting intelligence in disadvantaged subgroups. Gifted programs are seen as being elitist in places where the majority of students receiving gifted services are from a privileged background. Definition of giftedness Many educational authorities define Giftedness differently — even if two authorities use the same IQ test to define giftedness, they may disagree on what Gifted means - one may take top 2% of the population, another would take top 5% of a population, which may be within a state, district, or school. Difficulties arise when even within the same district, what is the top percentile at one school is not in another, lower performing school. Some schools and districts accept IQ tests only as evidence of giftedness, bringing scrutiny to the fact that many parents can "buy the test" privately by hiring an educational psychologist to test their children, whereas families with a limited income cannot afford the test and must depend on district resources that are often restricted to students who cause difficulty in the classroom. In ''Identifying Gifted Children: A Practical Guide'', Susan K. Johnsen (2004) explains that gifted children all exhibit the potential for high performance in the areas included in the United States federal definition of gifted and talented students: The National Association for Gifted Children defines giftedness as: This definition has been adopted in part or completely by the majority of the states in the United States. Most have some definition similar to that used in the State Of Texas , whose definition states:
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