Gifted Children and Gifted Education Publisher - Prufrock Press

NCLB Stagnates the Progress of Some Gifted Learners

JMcIntosh — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 21:08:00 GMT

Under NCLB, the academic progress of high-ability learners who are economically disadvantaged, English Language Learners, or historically underprivileged minorities has stagnated. That is the conclusion of a new report from the Indiana University Center for Evaluation and Education Policy. The report, Mind the (Other) Gap! The Growing Excellence Gap in K-12 Education, concludes that after nine years of NCLB, these students "represent a smaller proportion of students scoring at the highest levels of achievement."

In fact, the report makes it clear that while high-ability students from traditionally "over-represented groups" faired relatively well under NCLB, high-ability students from traditionally under-represented groups have made little progress. The report concludes, "whatever the effectiveness of ESEA/NCLB in shrinking the achievement gap at the level of minimum competence, there appears to be little comparable improvement at the advanced level."

From the report, "the final conclusion is clear: there has been little progress in substantially reducing excellence gaps since the passage of NCLB."

Download Mind the (Other) Gap! The Growing Excellence Gap in K-12 Education (PDF format, 1.7 MB)

Connect With Gifted Education Advocates Via Social Networking

JMcIntosh — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 23:48:00 GMT

As a teacher or parent of gifted children, you know that finding others who share your passion for gifted education can be difficult. Finding information, resources, and support for gifted children can be a struggle. However, I believe that the growth of social networks offers a way to overcome the isolation that many advocates for gifted children feel.

The opportunities to become involved with other gifted education advocates using the Internet and social networking are numerous and rapidly growing.

For example, one gifted education advocate with whom I recently corresponded, Deborah Mersino, organizes weekly online chats during which gifted supporters from across the globe join in something called a "Twitter chat." If you are interested, join Deborah for a Twitter chat tonight to discuss "Delving Into the Digital Age: Tools & Tips for Teachers and Parents of Gifted Kids" at 7:00 p.m. EST. If you miss tonight's chat, simply visit Deborah's blog to find the date and topic for the next chat. Anyone can join the discussion, and doing so is very easy. To participate in tonight's chat, simply visit TweetChat, follow the set-up instructions, and use the special "hashtag" #gtchat in step 2 of the setup process.

Yesterday afternoon at Prufrock Press, my staff and I launched two exciting opportunities for our customers to connect and discuss gifted education topics of interest. As of yesterday, we began using both Twitter and Facebook to help our customers and other gifted education supporters to reach out to one another.

Twitter
Follow the ongoing discussion about gifted education and advocacy for gifted education by following our Twitter feed. My staff and I have started posting lots of interesting ideas, resources, and comments related to gifted education. By following us on Twitter, you can join in that discussion. All you need to do is join Twitter and follow our Twitter feed. Click the icon below to join the discussion on Twitter!

Facebook
Become a fan of Prufrock Press on Facebook. We have big plans for building interesting and engaging content for our Facebook page. My editors will be encouraging discussions, posting pictures from gifted education conferences, and keeping you updated on the latest news in gifted education. We want our Facebook page to be a rich source of news and information about advocating for and teaching gifted children. However, don't just become a fan of our page--visit the page, post your ideas, and join in the discussion. Click the icon below to join the discussion on Facebook!

I want to emphasize that my staff and I want to use our Twitter and Facebook presence to help connect our customers and fans with each other. We will use these tools to build an exciting, interactive social network focused on friendships, information, resources, and support. The more gifted education supporters who join us, the more exciting the experience will be. So, get involved today by joining Ms. Mersino's weekly chats, following Prufrock Press on Twitter, or becoming a fan of our page on Facebook.

Our Shameful National Commitment to Gifted and Talented Children

JMcIntosh — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:07:00 GMT

The National Association for Gifted Children recently released its "State of the Nation in Gifted Education" report. The report offers a frustrating picture of this nation's commitment to providing a quality education to our most talented students.

The report concludes. . .

Gifted programs are embarrassingly underfunded--Gifted education is without support at the federal level, and states do a poor job of funding programs. Thirteen states have no gifted education funding at all, and most other states provide only token support.
Teachers are untrained and underprepared--Training in gifted education identification and teaching methods is seldom a requirement for teachers, even teachers working in specialized programs for gifted students.
Services offered to gifted students are haphazard and piecemeal--Gifted students often can expect fragmented and uncoordinated services and opportunities.
Gifted education has no accountability--Absent any reporting or accountability measures to ensure that services are delivered equitably, there is no way that local districts or states can monitor and improve gifted education services.

The report's "Executive Summary" concludes that:

Our nation needs a comprehensive, national gifted education policy in which federal, state, and local leaders work together to ensure that all gifted and talented students are identified and served by well-trained teachers using challenging curriculum to meet their advanced learning needs. Supporting teacher training and professional development, designing and sharing model identification and service programs, and eliminating policies that obstruct students from receiving appropriate instruction are core elements of a national strategy to support our most advanced learners. A greater investment in these children is a greater investment in our nation's future. (p. 4)

"Amen," I say. But I have little optimism that this problem will find its solution on the national level. My experience with gifted education over the last 20 years leads me to believe that there is little will at the national level to tackle this problem. Politicians and special interest groups discount gifted education as elitist and unnecessary, regardless of the realities that gifted kids are facing in our schools.

On the other hand, at the local level, parents of gifted children hear such nonsense and call it ridiculous. These parents have real kids who are gifted and need quality services. They push schools and administrators to implement programs at the local level. As a result, we have a patchwork of quality programs and wide disparities in gifted education from one school district (or even one school) to the next.

I wish I had more optimism about gifted education leadership and funding at the national level. However, over and over, it seems that truly effective advocacy is wielded by parents at a grassroots level. Unfortunately, this fact will continue to cause wide disparities in gifted education until we find the national will to face this country's shoddy approach to educating gifted children.

Three Prufrock Press Books Win Prestigious Gifted Education Awards

JMcIntosh — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 20:50:00 GMT

I'm so proud to announce that three outstanding books published by Prufrock Press have been named winners of the prestigious 2009 Legacy Book Awards, which recognize outstanding books published in the United States that have long-term potential for positively influencing the lives of gifted children. The Legacy Book Awards are sponsored each year by the Texas Association for the Gifted and Talented (TAGT), the largest state advocacy group of its kind.

This year, the Legacy Book Awards recognized three outstanding books for educators, parents, and students. Strategies for Differentiating Instruction: Best Practices for the Classroom (2nd ed.), by Julia L. Roberts, Ed.D., and Tracy F. Inman; Raising a Gifted Child: A Parenting Success Book, by Carol Fertig; and Social-Emotional Curriculum With Gifted and Talented Students, edited by Joyce VanTassel-Baska, Ed.D., Tracy L. Cross, Ph.D., and F. Richard Olenchak, Ph.D., are the winners of the 2009 Legacy Book Awards.

For more information, visit our 2009 Legacy Book Award announcement page.

Nine Research-Supported Facts About Gifted Education

JMcIntosh — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 22:13:00 GMT

In 2008, Dr. Sally M. Reis (University of Connecticut) prepared a National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) position paper listing facts that we know to be true about gifted education.

She limited this list to include only conclusive statements that can be supported by many years of research findings about gifted education. Certainly, she could have included others; however, the idea behind this list was to collect those statements that had so much solid support, they could be considered established facts.

As I read over Dr. Reis' list, I found it frustrating that what we do in schools diverges so radically from what we know is best for gifted kids. How many gifted children attend schools where most, if not all, of the facts listed below are ignored? How many parents have heard a school administrator reject acceleration as an option for gifted kids? How many untrained general education teachers "differentiate" for gifted students by just giving them more work? How many schools ignore high-ability learners in order to myopically focus exclusively on teaching minimum skills to struggling learners?

The NAGC position paper is helpful for gifted child advocates because it explicitly establishes what we know to be true about gifted education. Let me share the information included in Dr. Reis' report:

The needs of gifted students are generally not met in American classrooms where the focus is most often on struggling learners and where most classroom teachers have not had the training necessary to meet the needs of gifted students.

Grouping gifted students together for instruction increases achievement for gifted students, and in some cases, also increases achievement for students who are achieving at average and below average levels.

The use of acceleration results in higher achievement for gifted and talented learners.

The use of enrichment and curriculum enhancement results in higher achievement for gifted and talented learners, as well as other students.

Classroom teachers can learn to differentiate curriculum and instruction in their regular classroom situations and to extend gifted education strategies and pedagogy to all content areas.

Gifted education programs and strategies are effective at serving gifted and high-ability students in a variety of educational settings and from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic populations. Gifted education pedagogy can also reverse underachievement in these students.

The curriculum and pedagogy of gifted programs can be extended to a variety of content areas resulting in higher achievement for both gifted and average students. Some enrichment pedagogy can benefit struggling and special needs students when implemented in a wide variety of settings.

Some gifted students with learning disabilities who are not identified experience emotional difficulties and seek counseling. High percentages of gifted students do underachieve, but this underachievement can be reversed. Some gifted students do drop out of high school.

Gifted education programs and strategies benefit gifted and talented students longitudinally, helping students increase aspirations for college and careers, determine postsecondary and career plans, develop creativity and motivation that they can apply to later work, and obtain more advanced degrees.

Read the entire NAGC position paper, "Research That Supports the Need for and Benefits of Gifted Education." The position paper includes references to the research studies that support each of the conclusions listed above.

NAGC Virtual Convention Delivers Captivating Speakers Live at Home

JMcIntosh — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 20:50:00 GMT

Can't attend gifted education's largest convention? Not a problem! Now you can watch the National Association for Gifted Children's most captivating convention speakers at home on your computer.

This year, for the first time, NAGC is offering a convenient and inexpensive "Virtual Convention." As a virtual conference participant, you will be able to hear and see important presentations during the conference from any computer that has Internet access.

In fact, I am so excited by this concept that I contacted NAGC and offered for Prufrock Press to sponsor the Virtual Convention this year.

Don't let shrinking budgets and travel restrictions keep you from being a part of the largest and most informative national conference devoted to classroom innovation, gifted education, and high-ability learners. Register for the NAGC Virtual Convention and experience a full-day of content-rich sessions on Saturday, November 7. Attendees will have access to 17 live convention sessions. NAGC is offering three different convention strands: practical ideas for teachers, support for parents, or a focus on critical issues.

Those who register to participate virtually will also be given access to an online portal in which they can discuss topics, post documents, etc. in order to reach out to fellow attendees in advance of the live webinars.

Update [10/15/09]: NAGC Virtual Convention attendees can receive one university continuing education unit (CEU) throught the University of California at Irvine. This CEU may be used to document professional development hours and can be submitted to your district to meet requirements for salary advancement.

Visit NAGC's Virtual Convention home page for more information or to register.

Building Differentiated Learning Objectives With Web Tools

JMcIntosh — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 23:10:00 GMT

For some teachers, building differentiated learnings objectives, lesson plans, and units is part of the fun of teaching. It comes naturally for these teachers. For others, it can be a real challenge. For either group, writing learning objectives can require a commitment of time. As schools increasingly emphasize the use of varied, differentiated learning objectives, a teacher's planning time can be stretched.

For those wanting to save a bit of time or add a spark of creativity to their learning objectives ... enter Ian Byrd, a creative and energetic California teacher. Ian has developed a clever Web application called "The Differentiator." This is a fun little tool that allows you to use a Web interface to build learning objectives by choosing from a set of predefined thinking skills, content, resources, student products, and group sizes. For example, using Ian's site, I created the following in a matter of seconds:

Students will contrast [thinking skill] the multiple points of view of green energy [content] using newpapers [resource] to create a press conference [product] in groups of three [group size].

You may need to do a little additional editing after you build an objective.

The Differentiator is free, and it is certainly worth giving it a try.

Once Ian realized how popular The Differentiator was, he spent some time this summer building a more comprehensive tool called ExtendAMenu. This new tool allows you to build differentiated learning objectives using various types of extension menus and keep a record of those objectives stored online.

Ian has posted a screencast demonstrating the use of ExtendAMenu. ExtendAMenu costs $20.

Win a Free Set of Differentiating Instruction With Menus

Ian and I have worked up a special drawing that will allow four lucky teachers to win a free set of Laurie E. Westphal's elementary-level Differentiating Instruction With Menus or her middle school level Differentiating Instruction With Menus (each set is a $79.80 value). To enter the drawing, visit the ExtendAMenu contest page.

Finally, if you just want to read Ian's thoughts and practical ideas for the gifted education classroom, you can visit his Web site Byrdseed: Practical Ideas for Your Gifted Classroom. The Web site if full of solid information about gifted education and gifted children.

Addressing Back-to-School Social Anxiety

JMcIntosh — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 21:08:00 GMT

Education.com just posted a great article on "Addressing Back-to-School Social Anxiety" with your children. From the article:

Many preteens and teens are less than enthusiastic about the prospect of returning to school in the fall. But how can parents know when anxiety about the social challenges of the new school year is more serious than normal back to school jitters?

Is your child just shy and introverted, or does she not want to return to school because she has social anxiety? Is it “just a phase” or does it constitute a disorder?

The article includes several important insights from Dr. Bonnie Zucker, the author of Prufrock Press' Anxiety-Free Kids: An Interactive Guide for Parents and Children. In the article, Dr. Zucker offers great tips for overcoming social anxiety and several suggestions for using the summer months as an opportunity for preteens and teens to work on their social skills.

Recently, the Washingtonian magazine named Dr. Zucker one of the top 10 therapists in Washington, D.C. I'm very proud to have her as one of our authors.

Immediate Action Needed to Save Federal Gifted Education Funding

JMcIntosh — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:33:00 GMT

The National Association for Gifted Children has called for "emergency" action to save federal funding for gifted education. However, if you wish to help, you must act before the end of business today.

Federal funding for gifted education is on the chopping block, and your action is needed. The only federal funding for gifted child education is known as the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act. While small in comparison to other education programs, this funding supports important programs and research focused on identifying and serving disadvantaged gifted students. These limited funds were cut out of the proposed 2010 federal budget.

Please consider e-mailing or calling your congressperson and asking that at least $7.5 million be reinstated in fiscal year 2010 for the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act.

Please suggest to your congressperson that funds currently earmarked for local special projects be directed to fund the Javits Act. These special projects funds have already been budgeted, so ask that some of these dollars be allocated toward gifted education. By simply shifting these funds, federal spending would not be increased.

The National Association for Gifted Children has posted detailed instructions related to contacting your representative in Congress.

Keep in mind that you must act today.

Macbeth: The Monster Interview

JMcIntosh — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:44:00 GMT

Prufrock Press recently released Advanced Placement Classroom: Macbeth, the last installment in its four-part Advanced Placement Classroom series. Like the series' previous installments, including volumes devoted to Romeo and Juliet, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and Hamlet, this teaching resource focuses on developing advanced reading comprehension and analytical skills while providing students with a greater historical context for understanding the story and its tempestuous cast of characters.

Co-author, Daniel Lipowitz has taken this a step further, hosting none other than Macbeth, who, fresh from the battlefield, joins him in this episode of his podcast series Lip On-Line. In this "Monster Interview," Lipowitz transcends time acquiring affectations of Elizabethan linguistics to create an interview persona appropriate for his Shakespearean subject. Set immediately after the murder of MacDonwald, the interview primarily focuses on Macbeth's (and to a lesser extent Lady Macbeth's) literary reputation, to which the Scottish rogue supplies a unique perspective. Not unlike the exercises in AP Classroom: Macbeth, Lipowitz's podcast offers an interactive and introspective method of examining the play. And it's fun.

Listen to the Podcast

Click here to listen to the podcast

(approximate length: 14 minutes)