scholarly journals Universal screening increases the representation of low-income and minority students in gifted education

2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (48) ◽  
pp. 13678-13683 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Card ◽  
Laura Giuliano
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Minority Students ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Gifted Education ◽  
Limited English Proficiency ◽  
Universal Screening ◽  
English Language ◽  
Screening Program ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Eligibility Criteria

Low-income and minority students are substantially underrepresented in gifted education programs. The disparities persist despite efforts by many states and school districts to broaden participation through changes in their eligibility criteria. One explanation for the persistent gap is that standard processes for identifying gifted students, which are based largely on the referrals of parents and teachers, tend to miss qualified students from underrepresented groups. We study this hypothesis using the experiences of a large urban school district following the introduction of a universal screening program for second graders. Without any changes in the standards for gifted eligibility, the screening program led to large increases in the fractions of economically disadvantaged and minority students placed in gifted programs. Comparisons of the newly identified gifted students with those who would have been placed in the absence of screening show that Blacks and Hispanics, free/reduced price lunch participants, English language learners, and girls were all systematically “underreferred” in the traditional parent/teacher referral system. Our findings suggest that parents and teachers often fail to recognize the potential of poor and minority students and those with limited English proficiency.

scholarly journals Underrepresentation of English-Language Learners in Gifted Education and the Influence of Gifted Education Policy

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Todd Kettler ◽  
Yasmin Laird
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Gifted Education ◽  
English Language ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
The United States ◽  
Relative Difference ◽  
School Enrollment ◽  
Nationally Representative

English Language Learners (ELL) are the fastest growing population in United States public education and are likely underrepresented in gifted education. This study analyzed a nationally representative sample of the largest school districts (n=311) in the United States accounting for approximately 35% of the total public school enrollment of K12 education. Five pre-registered hypotheses were tested to explore the nature of ELL underrepresentation in gifted education. Eighty-six percent of the schools had ELL relative difference in composition index (RDCI) scores in the large underrepresentation category (< -60), and the pattern of underrepresentation was consistent in all four census regions of the U.S. Underrepresentation in schools with state policy mandates to identify gifted students was no different that ELL underrepresentation in non-mandated policy states. Variables of gifted program inclusiveness (r = .07) and prevalence of ELL student populations (r = .05) were not associated with variation in ELL underrepresentation.

Validity Evidence of The HOPE Scale in Korea: Identifying Gifted Students From Low-Income and Multicultural Families

2021 ◽  
pp. 001698622110245
Author(s):  
Hyeseong Lee ◽  
Marcia Gentry ◽  
Yukiko Maeda
Keyword(s):  
Factor Analysis ◽  
Confirmatory Factor Analysis ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Gifted Education ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Factor Loading ◽  
Social Characteristics ◽  
Confirmatory Factor ◽  
Gifted Education Teachers ◽  
Low Income Families

The underrepresentation of students from low-income families and of culturally diverse students is a longstanding and pervasive problem in the field of gifted education. Teachers play an important role in equitably identifying and serving students in gifted education; therefore, the Having Opportunities Promotes Excellence (HOPE) Scale was used in this study with a sample of Korean elementary school teachers ( n = 55) and their students ( n = 1,157). Confirmatory factor analysis and multigroup confirmatory factor analysis results suggested the HOPE Scale shows equivalence of model form, factor loading, and factor variances across different income and ethnic groups. A follow-up interview with teachers ( n = 6) revealed they acknowledged the importance of using the HOPE Scale as an additional method for identifying gifted students; however, they indicated less confidence about rating gifted students’ social characteristics compared with academic components in the HOPE Scale.

scholarly journals Martínez v. State of New Mexico: The Right to a Sufficient Education

2017 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 106
Author(s):  
Diana Torres-Velásquez
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
New Mexico ◽  
Public Education ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Low Income ◽  
School Finance ◽  
English Language ◽  
District Court ◽  
Education Department

Plaintiffs in the Martínez v. State of New Mexico lawsuit are 51 students, parents, and guardians from seven public school districts across New Mexico. This is a school finance case that goes beyond seeking more funds for public education to arguing that providing a sufficient education for New Mexico’s 338,307 students enrolled during the 2016-2017 school year (New Mexico Public Education Department, 2017) involves more than increasing the amount of money allocated for pupils across its 89 school districts. Although the plaintiffs in this case represent low-income and high-need families of many ethnic backgrounds in New Mexico, students who are English Language Learners, and students with disabilities, the outcome has the potential to affect every student, teacher, and administrator in the state. The trial will begin on June 12th of 2017. When the case was originally filed in 2014, New Mexico’s Public Education Department (NMPED)—the defendants in this case—immediately countered with a motion to dismiss. In October of 2014, as First District Court Chief Judge Sarah Singleton rejected the motion to dismiss, she also used the opportunity to declare public education a fundamental right in New Mexico. Martínez v State of New Mexico (2014a) has the potential to transform not only the definition of equal protection and educational equity under the law, but also to correct the discriminatory and punitive practices of current reform agendas. The author examines the possibilities of law as a form of social resistance using Martínez v. State of New Mexico (2014a)—a legal case on school finance—and the concept of sufficient education as guaranteed by the New Mexico State Constitution.

Inspiring Teacher Candidates to Embrace Cultural Diversity

2020 ◽  
pp. 120-139
Author(s):  
Judi Simmons Estes ◽  
Judith Lynne McConnell-Farmer
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
English Language ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Cultural Learning ◽  
Underserved Students

One of the challenges facing teachers in the United States is providing high-quality education for all students met in the classroom, including those who too often are underserved: students of color, low-income students, English-language learners, as well as students in urban and rural settings. Teachers report feeling unprepared and lack confidence in teaching students from culturally different backgrounds from themselves. This chapter suggests that in addition to becoming certified teachers, teacher candidates need to be inspired by teacher educators who are passionate about cultural learning and willing to share their own journey. Through sharing, teacher educators can provide practices that build cultural knowledge and increase cultural experiences of teacher candidates.

Inspiring Teacher Candidates to Embrace Cultural Diversity

2021 ◽  
pp. 879-898
Author(s):  
Judi Simmons Estes ◽  
Judith Lynne McConnell-Farmer
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
English Language ◽  
Teacher Educators ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cultural Knowledge ◽  
Cultural Learning ◽  
Underserved Students

One of the challenges facing teachers in the United States is providing high-quality education for all students met in the classroom, including those who too often are underserved: students of color, low-income students, English-language learners, as well as students in urban and rural settings. Teachers report feeling unprepared and lack confidence in teaching students from culturally different backgrounds from themselves. This chapter suggests that in addition to becoming certified teachers, teacher candidates need to be inspired by teacher educators who are passionate about cultural learning and willing to share their own journey. Through sharing, teacher educators can provide practices that build cultural knowledge and increase cultural experiences of teacher candidates.

Preparing Pre-Service Teachers' Expectations and Resilience

2017 ◽  
pp. 24-47
Author(s):  
Christine Rosalia
Keyword(s):  
English Language Learners ◽  
Service Learning ◽  
Language Learners ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Culturally Responsive ◽  
English Language ◽  
Graduate Program ◽  
Responsive Teaching ◽  
Subway Train

The purpose of this study is to describe an ongoing service-learning project that brings pre-service teachers in an MA graduate program in Teaching English as a Second Language to tutor English language learners in a low-income urban high school. Excerpts from nine different teachers on sessions with the same learner offer snapshots of the learner's progress as he interacts with them. Impact on teacher expectations and demonstrated resilience working with this student is evaluated in concert with how well the project embodies the standards of service-learning as mutually beneficial practice. An analogy will be drawn between the behaviors of passengers in a stopped subway train and the varied ways teacher candidates and the project as a whole embodies culturally responsive teaching.

Phonological working memory and non-verbal complex working memory as predictors of future English outcomes in young ELLs

2020 ◽  
pp. 136700692094813
Author(s):  
Michelle J White
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
English Language Learners ◽  
Low Socioeconomic Status ◽  
Limited English Proficiency ◽  
English Language ◽  
Formal Schooling ◽  
Phonological Working Memory ◽  
Low Socioeconomic ◽  
Language Measures ◽  
Verbal Complex

Aim of the study: The aim of this longitudinal study was twofold: first, to determine whether the relationship between working memory measures and language performance in young English language learners (ELL) remains constant over the year. The second aim was to determine if performance on working memory tasks predicts future performance on language measures. Methodology: The participants were 27 ELLs between the ages of 5 and 6 years who were in their first year of formal schooling and attended the same mid-low socioeconomic status school in South Africa. The participants were tested three times throughout the year on tasks of working memory and an English assessment battery. Data analysis and results: Mixed effects models and multiple linear regression were used to address the aims of the study. The first aim of the study showed that there are significant correlations between all working memory measures and all language measures in varying strengths across the year. The second research aim further elaborated on this by showing that both phonological working memory and non-verbal complex working memory are implicated in the acquisition of syntax, semantics and pragmatics at different points throughout the year. Implications and originality: Language acquisition in ELLs is not a stand-alone process and working memory measures may be able to predict future language outcomes. This could indicate that working memory measures may be used as an indicator for who may need language intervention, at a time when the ELL only has limited English proficiency and limited English exposure. This research is the first of its kind to originate from Africa, with a sample from low socioeconomic, culturally and linguistically diverse circumstances who are exposed to English consistently for the first time and are tested with working memory tasks with less strong language components.

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