Great gifted education articles from 2022

Here are a few of my gifted education faves for 2022 (in no particular order). These Top 10 articles challenge pre-existing concepts and include views of twice-exceptionalities, the excellence gap, personality types, and the lasting effects of an inadequate education.

How to narrow the excellence gap in early elementary school

"the excellence gap appears long before high school. It looks much the same as far back as fourth grade..."

Schools are killing curiosity: Why we need to stop telling children to shut up and learn

"Promoting curiosity is a foundation for early learning that we should be emphasizing more when we look at academic achievement.”

Smart kids, personality types, and how they adapt - or not - to school

"...within the student population, there were many gifted children whose personalities allowed them to cooperate in school even when it contributed to their own underachievement..."

Gifted students need a "continuum of services" now more than ever

"Systems need to be in place to support teachers facing such a range of achievement levels by providing a continuum of services... This requires flexibility in services, placements, and programming to allow for continual entrance, exit, and re-entry points."

Gifted, on the spectrum, or both?

"Both giftedness and autism fall on a spectrum, so while there may be individuals who clearly fit into one box or another, some behaviors might be more ambiguous and require additional information, context, or professional opinions."

When the "gifted" kids aren't alright

"[Studies] confirm the detrimental effect of a gifted mind left unchallenged, proving that 'busy work' does more than simply leave the child bored... Gifted children will regularly underperform academically against peers later in life, despite a heightened skill set."

Autism treatment shifts away from "fixing" the condition

“We’ve moved away from thinking of autism as a condition that needs to be eliminated or fixed to thinking about autism as part of the neurodiversity that exists across humankind.”

How can the United States better support gifted education?

"...some of the most important steps we can take as a country would be to ensure that all qualified students have access to gifted programs... to provide appropriate training for teachers who work with gifted students, and to allow gifted students to learn at their own pace."

Why ADHD in women is routinely dismissed, misdiagnosed, and treated inadequately

"ADHD in women does not comply with stereotypes. Its distinct symptom presentation is skewed toward inattentiveness – a feature that explains, in part, why ADHD in women is still largely misunderstood, overlooked, and inadequately studied."

A top researcher says it's time to rethink our entire approach to preschool

"...we've simply asked too much of pre-K, based on early results... We might actually get better results, she says, from simply letting little children play."

Do you want more thought-provoking articles related to giftedness, twice-exceptionality, and gifted education? Follow me on Facebook, Twitter (at least for now...), and Instagram, where I routinely post interesting articles I come across and then share them with you.

Wishing all of you a healthy and happy New Year!

Gifted education: Why is it still so controversial?

Research and gifted education experts have emphasized the benefits of enriched or accelerated instruction for gifted and highly able children. Yet, many school districts balk at the possibility and refuse to provide gifted services. Citing concerns that struggling or neurotypical students (or their parents) might resent ability grouping or enrichment offered to gifted students, gifted services are curtailed or limited. Instead, differentiated instruction within the regular classroom setting is proposed as a panacea, placing unprecedented additional stress on teachers and resulting in limited benefits for gifted students.

Why is there so much resistance to gifted education?*

Services for children with other exceptionalities (such as learning disabilities) are rarely questioned or challenged. Yet, gifted education incites controversy. It would seem that the concept of gifted education itself evokes a range of complex feelings; it becomes a projection screen onto which parents, educators, and political leaders project their hopes, prejudices, bitterness, and fears. I would suggest that the drive to eliminate gifted services often stems from an emotional reaction. Often, the adults in charge - the policy-makers, administrators, and even fellow members of your community - refuse to acknowledge that some children have advanced learning needs. The concept of giftedness - the "G-word" - becomes a dirty word, linked to assumptions related to elitism and status rather than an emotionally-neutral diagnostic label used to inform learning potential.

Of greatest concern is when the "G-word" evokes contempt, envy, and disturbing assumptions about a child's inherent worth. We all want children to receive the education they deserve; yet, some people squirm when considering that children progress at different rates. Many parents, teachers, and administrators worry that supporting gifted education might imply that a child is more of a "gift" to their parents or is somehow "better" than other children. Those with students or children whose intellectual needs fall within the middle or the lower end of the bell-shaped curve (used to group IQ scores and abilities) somehow could be deemed "less than," instead of the wonderful and amazing children they are! Rather than challenging this distorted perspective about abilities, and accepting and loving each child regardless of their academic strengths, some may hope that the whole controversy would disappear if we just eliminated any reference to advanced intellectual abilities. 

Of course, gifted education is far from perfect. There are rampant problems with gifted under-identification and how (and even if) gifted services are provided.  For example, a twice-exceptional condition - when students are intellectually gifted but also possess a learning disability or a diagnosis such as ADHD, anxiety, or Autism Spectrum Disorder - can obscure gifted identification. Well-meaning advocates for the underserved have raised pointed, necessary questions about how students are identified and placed in gifted programs. The heightened and much-necessary awareness that marginalized groups (e.g., racial minorities, students from impoverished or rural backgrounds, English Language Learners) have been underrepresented in gifted programs has fueled these concerns.

Unfortunately, the baby and the bathwater have been tossed; platitudes about the presumed benefits of heterogeneous class grouping or watered-down attempts at differentiation burden teachers unnecessarily and merely ignore the issue. Attempts to protect and support marginalized groups and struggling students by eliminating gifted services masks the problem, penalizes those students in need of enrichment or acceleration, and perpetuates the excellence gap, where underserved gifted students are overlooked. Essentially, those hurt the most by such policies are those children who would benefit the most from enrichment. 

As more adults in charge become educated about the neurodiversity of the gifted, how they learn at a different pace and with greater depth than their peers, and the detrimental effects that result when their learning needs are ignored (e.g., underachievement, increased executive functioning difficulties), the sooner a coherent discussion will arise, along with improved strategies for meeting these children's needs. Improved identification through universal screening, using local norms, and educating teachers and parents about giftedness would be a start. Truly acknowledging that gifted children exist within all racial and economic groups is essential; eliminating gifted services in schools populated by minority and low-income students perpetuates an ugly bias that they do not warrant the academic enrichment available to their wealthy counterparts. 

Gifted education should never be considered a privilege; it is a basic right for children to receive the education they deserve, tailored to their individual learning needs. As parents, educators, legislators, caretakers, and those in the helping professions, we must continue to advocate for these children. 

(*Please note that I am a psychologist and not an educator. The opinions in this article are based on my review of the literature, my experience with families of the gifted through my psychotherapy and coaching/consultation practice, and my involvement as a parent in advocating for gifted education.)

** For more insights about giftedness from a parenting perspective, please see my new book, The Gifted Parenting Journey. Available through the publisher and on the usual bookseller sites, this book addresses a previously neglected topic in the literature: the needs and emotional life of parents of gifted children and teens. Readers are encouraged to discover the emotions that influence their attitudes and expectations; understanding and distinguishing these emotions from what their child truly needs is key to informed parenting decisions. The latest research, theory, clinical wisdom, and results from an extensive survey of gifted parents’ attitudes are combined to provide supportive tools for parents seeking greater self-awareness, confidence, and clarity.**

 

Why does giftedness remain unrecognized among some gifted children?

Why are some gifted kids' talents ignored? What happens when your child doesn't "look gifted" - when they don't conform to widely held notions of giftedness and high achiever stereotypes? What contributes to the under-identification of giftedness?

There is a widespread assumption that giftedness is readily noticed and that parents and teachers easily recognize when a child is gifted. However, giftedness remains unidentified and ignored among many gifted children. 

Yes, there are some gifted kids who burst forth right out of the starting gate, displaying their precocious talents at a very young age. As they mature, their advanced abilities are so apparent that few could deny their giftedness. However, others are late bloomers, or their strengths are more visual-spatial than verbal, or their passions are skewed toward only one area of interest. Parents may doubt their perceptions when developmental milestones seem to zig-zag along a haphazard path. A child might be delayed with motor skills, for example, yet speak before their first birthday. They might be able to name every dinosaur or perform advanced math calculations, yet cannot tie their shoes.

This uncertainty about whether a child is gifted may persist for years. Parents may doubt the accuracy of their observations. They are especially likely to question their perceptions when their child is neither highly verbal nor an early reader. For example, Silverman and Golon noted that: “Children with advanced visual-spatial abilities may not be perceived as gifted by their parents or teachers unless they also demonstrate verbal precocity. When children develop speech later than their siblings, parents often worry that the children are developmentally delayed, even if they display extraordinary facility with puzzles, construction toys, creating things from odds and ends, disassembling items, and spatial memory” (p.3).

Just as some parents doubt their perceptions, overworked teachers (or those with little training in gifted education) often fail to notice gifted children who do not fit stereotypes of cooperative, high achieving, and highly verbal students. Gifted children who frequently remain unidentified may be found among students who are quiet or shy or rambunctious, who underachieve, who cannot adapt to the slow, regimented pace of traditional classrooms, or whose passions are skewed toward only one area of interest. A bored gifted child who constantly chats with other students or acts out in class may receive reprimands rather than a further investigation into what drives them. A shy gifted child may want to avoid any fanfare or attention and hide their giftedness so they can be like everyone else.

Complicating the picture even further, some gifted children display social and emotional delays where their maturity lags well behind their intellect. A five-year-old might possess the vocabulary of a teen, yet sometimes act like a toddler (often at the worst possible moments!). Asynchronous development is viewed by many as a hallmark of giftedness, and is described by the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) as a “mismatch between cognitive, emotional, and physical development of gifted individuals.” These varying strengths and developmental lags confuse parents and teachers alike, and confound decisions regarding school placement or options for academic acceleration. Stephanie Tolan claimed that “gifted children are on a developmental trajectory that is outside of norms from infancy onward. They reach recognized milestones of development on a schedule that is unique to them, putting them out of sync with society's expectations. In addition, they may be out of sync internally, with cognitive, social, and emotional development on separate and sometimes quite different timetables.” (p. 2). She further commented that:

“The young gifted child may appear to be many ages at once. He may be eight (his chronological age) when riding a bicycle, twelve when playing chess, fifteen when studying algebra, ten when collecting fossils, and two when asked to share his chocolate chip cookie with his sister. This variability in behavior and perception is difficult for parents and schools to handle and difficult for the child as well” (p. 2).

Gifted identification also can be clouded by a variety of developmental, learning, and social/emotional factors. Gifted abilities can be overlooked when twice-exceptional concerns (such as anxiety, learning disabilities, speech or motor delays, or signs of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Autism Spectrum Disorder) coexist along with giftedness. The intellectual strengths of an anxious gifted child, hesitant to speak up in class, may not be noticed. A gifted child with ADHD or a hidden learning disability might utilize their intelligence to compensate for distractibility or struggles with reading or math. Yet, their gifted abilities allow them to coast through school with average grades. As a result, their ADHD may remain hidden and untreated, and their needs as a gifted learner are ignored. 

Gifted under-identification often occurs among persons of color, children raised in impoverished environments, English Language Learners, and those who are culturally different from the school’s norms (as noted here and here and here). The failure to identify giftedness in underrepresented minorities has sparked a call to action for change with how giftedness is defined and conceptualized, how gifted children are selected for enriched programming, and how gifted education is implemented (as noted here and here and here).
 The under-identification of gifted children within these populations has contributed to an “excellence gap”, where potential is neglected, enrichment is not provided, and later accomplishments never materialize. These are the children who are most in need of gifted services, yet rarely receive it. 

What can you do?

1. Educate yourself. Learn as much as possible about the intellectual and social/emotional needs of gifted children, as well as twice-exceptional concerns. Read books, articles, and research publications. Listen to podcasts, watch webinars, attend gifted education workshops, and join (or form) a gifted parents advocacy group. If your child has not yet received a cognitive evaluation, insist that testing will be provided. The more you and the school know about your child's strengths and challenges, the more you can advocate for the services they need. Parents of homeschooled children also benefit from the knowledge obtained through cognitive testing. The more you know, the more you can support your child. 

2. Make a commitment to advocate for your child. You are launched into the role of advocate - something you may not have expected, and even might resent. Yet, you know more than most about the challenges gifted children face. Advocacy does not stop with addressing academic problems at school, though. It falls on you to tactfully and persistently educate others who hold misconceptions and stereotypes about the gifted. This might include friends, extended family, neighbors, teachers, healthcare professionals, coaches, babysitters, camp counselors, and anyone else who shrugs, glares, or rolls their eyes in exasperation when your asynchronous child acts out. Approach your child's teacher as an ally and as someone who shares your goals for providing the best possible education. Gather as much information as possible, and express your concerns. And if your child is not yet identified, learn about testing and educational options that may best meet their needs. 

3. Speak up about giftedness. The "gifted" word may be fraught with controversy; it irritates those who assume the label implies that someone is "better" or more privileged. Our job involves educating others about neurodiversity, asynchronous development, and the complexities inherent in raising and educating a gifted child. Move past any possible ambivalence associated with speaking up about giftedness. Advocate for the gifted with the school administration, the school board, and state legislators (especially if gifted education is not a legally protected right in your state). Keep in mind that school policy not only affects academics but peer relationships as well.  Even more, when the school faculty become more aware that gifted abilities may remain hidden (and learn how to notice those children who have been overlooked), gifted children will have more opportunities to receive the education they need.

Some passages in this blog post are taken from an upcoming book with Gifted Unlimited Press, "The Gifted Parenting Journey: A Guide to Self-discovery and Support for Families of Gifted Children." 

This blog post is part of GHF Writer Collective's Blog Hop on "What people don't get about gifted."