What should be on the tombstone for gifted education? Part 3: Classroom Activities for Gifted Students
In Part 2 of the series, the distribution of gifted programs in school districts was analyzed in terms of the allocation of this resource within a school district. In the vast majority of school districts, gifted students are segregated into dedicated facilities where they have to apply. While this method has advantages for both children and adults in the c=school environment, the main disadvantage is that truly gifted or highly motivated students are excluded by a variety of statistical factors, such as test scores, grades, and age. Not only are statistical factors used, but having a dedicated facility opens up the ability to filter based on human factors such as race, culture, and gender. The best option is to have gifted programs in every school so that many more able students have the access they need to gifted resources.
One of the factors making modern gifted education worse is the level and quality of classroom activities available to these students. The modern classroom is not geared towards the gifted student, but rather the intermediate student who is about to pass the state exam. Second priority in the classroom is the lowest contributing student to the state test failure rate. Gifted students are supposed to pass state tests, so they will be at the bottom of the school’s priorities. For those teachers who are allowed to design their own materials, this forces them to adopt a mode of teaching that focuses on low and middle level students and virtually ignores gifted or highly motivated students. Since most school districts force teachers to use their materials, the district itself sets the stage for ignoring the needs of the gifted student.
In terms of individual classroom placement, gifted students require a higher quality set of goals and objectives to meet. Most assignments are geared toward a lower-quality goal set that relies on reaching goals based on lower-level thinking skills. Most students are operating at the knowledge, understanding, and application levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy. This forces teacher- or district-created homework to be based on simple modes of vocabulary mastery and simple application to prescribed situations. Once this is done, students and teachers move on to the next task. The gifted child, who needs to continue learning at higher levels, is left with an experience that only marginally stimulates her greatest potential.
The tasks provided to gifted children are not adequately designed for their educational needs. They are designed for students who work at much lower levels every day. Gifted students require tasks and activities that stimulate their natural abilities to a much higher level of thinking. This is not to say that lower level assignments are of no value to the gifted student, but if the teacher stops at this point, then the gifted child will walk away with potential unfulfillment.
Coming soon: Part 4- The use of extracurricular activities as a method of realizing potential.
