The Education of Special Populations of Gifted
Students module provides an overview of the challenges and issues that face
diverse populations of gifted students as they struggle to gain acceptance,
recognition, and access to appropriate gifted education to meet their
individual needs.
The module infuses the NAGC-CEC Teacher Preparation
Standards in Gifted Education in its objectives, as presented by the
National Association for Gifted and Talented Children and the Council for
Exceptional Children.
The Special Populations module features a review of
central concepts of giftedness in relation to diversity and current
practices in identification. It is structured into three perspectives:
- Socio-cultural issues that examine
global and geographical differences; ethnicity, religion, and linguistic
diversity
- Personal issues that examine
underachievement, physical disabilities, behavioral and emotional
disorders, and learning disabilities
- Community issues that examine economic
and educational disadvantages; diverse family structures and pressures;
the young gifted, highly gifted, and precocious; and gender differences
The four Key Questions are:
- Who are they?
- How do you find and identify them?
- Why do diverse gifted students need different
programs and curricular options?
- How can you judge the effectiveness of the
programs for diverse students?
Completing this module will help the participant
develop an awareness of the following:
- The teacher’s own prejudices and stereotypes
concerning students who are diverse gifted
- The development of intercultural competence in
the teacher and advocacy for underserved populations of gifted students
- The cognitive, physical, and affective
characteristics of diverse gifted children
- Skills to assist in the screening and
identification process
- The process and content of individual
psychological testing and alternate assessment in the identification of
the gifted
- The roles and functions of various systems that
support teachers working to meet the needs of children from diverse
populations who are gifted
- The basic issues involved with the planning,
development, and implementation of programs for diverse gifted children
Module Implementation Guidelines
Module: Education of Special Populations of Gifted Students: