Joyce VanTassel-Baska, College of William and Mary

National Science BoardAugust 24, 2009Washington DC

The general educational landscape

The intersections with gifted education

Research on giftedness and talent development

Applications to policy and practice

Special issues and problems

Content standards have been reduced to lower level skill attainment in many states.

Instruction is driven by the use of low level materials implemented with rigidity to prepare for state assessments.

Equity and excellence are still viewed as dichotomies.

Individual differences are obscured by group norms.

Little teaching of science, social studies or the arts occurs.

Discouragement of innovation/experimentation in teaching practices,

Attention focused on a few students who may make AYP,

Students losing valuable instructional time in unchallenging curriculum dominated by reading,

A climate of fear for teachers and principals with little reward, less so in our current economy.

Languid performance on NAEP across the last ten year period (Loveless, 2008)

Lack of attention from teachers (Farkas & Duckett, 2008)

Little differentiation of curriculum or instruction being actualized (Westberg et al, 1993, 2004)

Gifted services have been cut or curtailed in many states. (State of the States, 2006-7)

US students lag in advanced math and science course-taking and achievement (TIMMS, 1995)

Challenging curriculum, instruction, and assessment

Teacher quality International competitiveness Working with students from poverty

What do we know?

PERSONALITY

AutonomySelf-ConfidenceSelf Esteem, etc.

SIGNIFICANT FACTORSPersonsPlaces

InterventionsEventsChance

GIFTEDNESSAptitude Domains

Intellectual {

Creative {

Socioaffective {

Sensorimotor {

Others {

_________

_________

_________

_________

_________

MOTIVATIONInitiativeInterests

Persistence

ENVIRONMENTAL CATALYSTS

INTRAPERSONAL CATALYSTS

TALENT

Fields of Talent(sample)

ArtsAthletics & Sports

Business & CommerceCommunicationsCrafts & Trades

EducationHealth Services

Science & TechnologyTransportation

Learning/Training/Practice

Student Challenge

Extensive Research Agenda

Diagnostic-PrescriptiveInstruction

High Quality

Teachers Efficient UseOf Time

SystemicAdministrative

Procedures

Personalized Learning

Careful Assessment Of Learning

PersonalizedLearning

PurposefulTesting

Talent Search Model

Younger students can perform at levels comparable to older students in a shorter amount of time in areas of strong aptitude (Stanley, 1976; Olszewski-Kubilius , 1998; Colangelo , Assouline & Gross, 2004).

Accelerative, short term, and intensive learning experiences are retained well by gifted learners and allow them to advance academically in math, science, the humanities and social science coursework (Lynch, 1992; Stanley et al. 1991; Stocking & Goldstein, 1992; Swiatek , 2007).

Scoring in the top 1% of students in ability on the SAT at middle school and accelerating one’s studies predicts creative achievement over 30 years later, career tilt, and areas of accomplishment (Wai, Lubinski & Benbow,2009; Lubinski , 2009).

Early exposure to the field Right teacher at the right time (romance,

rigor, master) Role of schools as facilitative or blocking

(not directly nurturing) Progressive development characterized by

high standards, much time and much hard work

Role of home environment in developing work ethic and sense of excellence (parental modeling)

Talented students have personality traits conducive to concentration (e.g., achievement and endurance) as well as to being open to experience (e.g., awareness, or sentience, and understanding)

Families providing both support and challenge enhance the development of talent.

Talented teenagers liked teachers best who were supportive and modeled enjoyable involvement in a field.

Early exposure to like-minded children and adults is propitious for talent development (Cox, 1926; Simonton, 2000)

Serious study with a tutor/mentor/coach followed by intensive practice over time leads to high performance in selected domains (Bloom, 1985; Gardner, 2004; Ericcson, 2007)

Psychological states and habits of mind positively or negatively impact the talent development process (Csiksenmihalyi, 2000; Oschle, 2000; Dweck, 2007).

Enhanced use of critical and creative thinking and student-centered work produces higher academic achievement for gifted students across years (Moon & Feldhusen, 1994; Delcourt, 1994; VanTassel-Baska et al., 2004).

Compacting and grouping studies continue to suggest the benefits of both approaches (Rogers, 2007; Reis et al, 1998; Gentry & Owen, 1999).

Using instructional approaches that match aptitudes produces stronger learning effects for the gifted (Rogers, 2007; Sternberg, 2006)

Using inquiry-based approaches to learning enhances both motivation and achievement (Gallagher, Stepien & Rosenthal, 1992; VanTassel-Baska et al., 1998)

Early models and mentors Challenging school programs and

opportunities Competitions Collaborators Access to science resources Internal curiosity, commitment, and spirit

of creativity--Subotnik et al,

1993; Simonton, 1992; Feiss, 2004

Advice to those who wanted to pursue a career in science or math:

Get in on all the contests you can; it’ll teach you what you’re good at and where your limits are. And we do all have limits, and that’s okay, so don’t panic if you don’t win them all. And don’t forget to have fun, either.

Take as many advanced classes as you can as early as possible; don’t listen to others when they try to tell you what you can and cannot do. Try to earn recognition in science, competitions, and seize any research opportunity you can find. If you get discouraged because your school’s scientific community is a community of one, seek refuge in your studies until you can find peers you identify with, but never compromise who you are to fit in with your school community.

Seize your own opportunities—create a niche for yourself and above all, Do Not let the dogma of the educational system encumber your interests, talent, and dreams.

Cite the factors that most inhibited the development of your science talent:

Inability to accelerate, parents believe more in having fun than in working hard, advanced courses unavailable before high school, no opportunity for me to do extensive research near home.

The elementary schools gifted program consciously avoided any accelerated learning. When I was young, I connected the idea of school less with learning than with laborious projects that must be meticulously colored in.

What doses of intervention (intensity) are necessary for gifted learners to thrive in a school learning context?

How late can interventions occur and still have an important impact on life trajectory?

What combination of interventions is most propitious for the gifted at differential stages of development?

Between the idea and the reality falls the shadow.

--T.S.Eliot

Advanced Placement Dual enrollment Waivers for coursework Testing out

School systems that align all facets of the school (e.g., finance, curriculum, instruction, decision-making) produce higher achievement gains among students (Hoy & Miskel, 2001).

Systems of curriculum, instruction, assessment, and professional development must work together to enhance achievement (Clune, 1993; Ball & Cohen, 2000; McLaughlin & Mitra, 2001).

Little intensive time is committed to the professional development of teachers (2 days per year on average in their specialty area)

Professional development is often not related to other aspects of the instructional system.

Lack of follow-up at the school and classroom level hinders teacher change in practices.

--Stanford and NSDC Report, 2009

New knowledge is constructed based on existing conceptions and beliefs

Usable knowledge is connected and organized around important concepts that support transfer of learning

The use of deliberate learning strategies to scaffold instruction

- National Research Council, 2000

Using concept maps Articulation of thinking Promoting higher level thinking Making connections Using metacognition

Source: William and Mary curriculum units of study, 1996-2009

ContentStandards

DifferentiatedTask Demands

DifferentiatedProduct Demands

Use ofOverarching

InterdisciplinaryModels

Acceleration ofStandards

Fidelity Lack of sufficient and consistent

professional development Teacher knowledge and skills in content

pedagogy Leadership Sustained innovation

Features: Acceleration Complexity Depth Creativity

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

3 4 5 6 7 8

Student A

Student B

Standard

We must expect progress for all students.

Student A

Student B

Proficient

Off-level testing with high ceiling Performance-based assessment Portfolio of work

Self P

erc

ep

tion

Self P

erc

ep

tion

Self P

erc

ep

tion

Educational Attainment

Occupational Attainment

AdultCreative

Productivity

High achieving students from poverty less likely to graduate and go on to college or graduate school than more advantaged counterparts.

Students from poverty more likely to choose careers commensurate with background rather than ability or achievement.

--The Achievement Trap, 2007

Traditional measures (ability and achievement)

Non-traditional measures (nonverbal tests and performance-based assessment)

Nomination by knowledgeable community members (e.g. pediatrician, social worker)

Use of individual profile data

Early identification and nurturance Personalized Learning

Tutoring, mentoring, counseling Value-added Learning Opportunities

Extended time, out-of-school opportunities Family Involvement Access to intellectual, cultural, and social

capital

Learning is not attained by chance. It must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence.

– Abigail Adams

Joyce VanTassel-Baska, Ed.D.Professor Emerita

427 Scotland StreetWilliamsburg, VA. 23185

(757)221-2362cfge@wm.edu

www.cfge.wm.edu