The Gifted Learner
When I say gifted, I truely mean gifted. Several tests have been administered, observations made, and some of those quick gifted generalizations are present. I know, I know, there is no such thing as the “typical’ gifted child. I just spent the last two weeks teaching some gifted individuals. These kids are testing in the top 5% of their school population. I was teaching 6 year olds how to exchange Ruppees into Euros. I just finished up teaching 7 year olds about independent and dependent probability. Some of them were ready for reducing ratios and double coincidence. WOW!!
I’ve been teaching at a program that is through Northwestern University called Center for Gifted Development. I had students from all over the country, and several from Korea, China, and a few other countries. The kids enjoyed the class. They looked forward to coming in every day. They were hungry for information. These students aren’t ‘perfect’ by any stretch of the imagination. About 60% need to move, constantly. Others need to be standing while I teach. Still others need fidgets and quick transitions, while a few others, need plenty of warning before moving on to something new. A great deal of differentiation is still needed. Those people who say that teaching the gifted population in easy need to try for a day. Some of the kids didn’t know some basic skip counting techniques, while others were ready to exchange currency. I love the challenge that this population gives me. I love the support I’ve felt all week teaching these gifted kids. Sometimes the parents are more intense than others. But, they just want what’s best.
As I reflect on the past two weeks I wonder what direction our government is going in to help our gifted youth. There are so many misconceptions regarding these high learners (they’ll teach themselves, they’ll get it eventually…) These are NOT true statements. These kids need direction too. From kindergarten on up they need appropriate education. We have this new law that’s all the rage right now. RTI = response to intervention. This is written for the special ed. population. But, what it states is: Any student not getting their needs met in a regular ed. classroom should get additional services. Can’t this be applied to our gifted learners. There is NO money in the IL budget for gifted education. We need to get it back. This week I was surrounded by people who believe in gifted education. I loved the empowerment I felt when discussing these children with professionals who really understood the educational AND socio-emotional needs these children have. Don’t get me wrong, many people get the gifted thing- but just not enough. I hope some of you read this and know what I’m talking about. I am always looking for fellow gifted educators to learn from and share ideas. Please feel free to comment.
on July 28th, 2008 at 7:26 am
Hello! I’m not sure how I found you on Plurk, but the g/t in your profile caught my eye. I used to work as a g/t facilitator for several years, and I still work on the Board of Directors for the KS Ass’n for Gifted, Talented, and Creative.
I’m not sure if you’re familiar with the Gifted Education 2.0 network? http://giftededucation.ning.com/ Come join us talking about the next generation of gifted ed! The community could use your voice!