Perceived Challenges for Rural Gifted Education

2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (3) ◽  
pp. 184-198 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katie D. Lewis ◽  
Cecelia Boswell
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Gifted Education ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Rural Culture ◽  
Rural School Districts ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Educational Decisions ◽  
Gifted Programming ◽  
Rural Settings

Rural communities and school systems are the heart of many states across the nation. Yet, many of the challenges facing rural gifted education remain unanswered. There is limited research or policy focused on gifted students, teachers of the gifted, or gifted programming in rural settings. Understanding how culture defines rural communities and influences educational decisions is key in overcoming challenges within gifted programs. This study seeks to explore some of the perceived challenges and the influence of rural culture in providing gifted services in four rural school districts in Texas. Findings highlight the struggles of rural gifted programs to identify and serve gifted students. These struggles fall into three categories: limited funding, limited time, and limited resources available for gifted programs.

scholarly journals Reflections on Rural Gifted Education in Texas

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-139
Author(s):  
Katie D. Lewis ◽  
Cecelia Boswell
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
Gifted Education ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Education Policies ◽  
Rural Districts ◽  
Gifted Learners ◽  
Gifted Program ◽  
Gifted Programming ◽  
Policies And Procedures ◽  
Pedagogy And Curriculum

Rural gifted education historically has struggled with its own identity. Limited research exists on rural gifted programming, effective ways to implement gifted pedagogy and curriculum, and how to maximize limited time, resources, and funding. Rural communities are complex, dynamic entities, full of nuances and guided by a sense of place and rural culture. Faced with limited funding, resources, and time, rural gifted programs struggle to provide consistent quality enrichment to gifted learners. This study reflects on how rural gifted education policies and procedures in Texas have evolved over the last 30 years and the realities of providing gifted programs in rural school districts. Findings highlight a need for written policies and procedures for gifted programing, challenges gifted teachers face in rural districts, and the positives of being educated in a rural gifted program.

scholarly journals The Fiscal Effects of Tax Increment Financing on Rural School Districts: The Case of Iowa

AERA Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 233285842199114
Author(s):  
Phuong Nguyen-Hoang
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Property Tax ◽  
Rural School ◽  
Tax Rates ◽  
Rural School Districts ◽  
Tax Increment Financing ◽  
Tax Base ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Development Tool

Tax increment financing (TIF)—an economic (re)development tool originally designed for urban cities—has been available to rural communities for decades. This is the first study to focus solely on TIF in rural school districts, to examine TIF effects on school districts’ property tax base and rates, and to conduct event-study estimations of TIF effects. The study finds that TIF has mostly positive effects on rural school districts’ property tax base and mixed effects on property tax rates, and that TIF-induced increases in tax base come primarily from residential property and slightly from commercial property. The study’s findings assert the importance of returned excess increment if rural school districts in Iowa and many other states are to benefit from TIF.

Providing Equity in Gifted Education in a Single-State Country

2021 ◽  
pp. 001698622110405
Author(s):  
Sema Tan
Keyword(s):  
Gifted Education ◽  
Teacher Candidates ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Equal Opportunities ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Careful Planning ◽  
Entire Country ◽  
Single State ◽  
Delivery Options ◽  
Unequal Opportunities

Turkey adopts a single-state (centralized/unitary) system that results in following the same identification procedures and providing similar service delivery options for the entire country. At first glance, this might seem like a fair way to achieve equity within public school gifted programs. However, a close look at this system reveals several handicaps such as implementing the same teacher training program for all teacher candidates, ignoring the unequal opportunities provided in the most (İstanbul) and least (Şırnak) economically developed cities, and the accessibility of services delivered to gifted students. Turkey has paid much attention to the education of the gifted and taken several important steps for improvement in the last three decades. However, a need for bigger changes to achieve equity in gifted education is clear. With a careful planning and implementation, appropriate changes might pave the way for gifted students to access more equal opportunities to fulfill their potential.

Determining Attitudes Toward Ability: A New Tool for New Understanding

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonia Szymanski ◽  
Laurie Croft ◽  
Brian Godor
Keyword(s):  
Teacher Attitudes ◽  
Gifted Education ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Reliability And Validity ◽  
Curriculum Policy ◽  
Gifted Programming ◽  
Precise Understanding ◽  
Grade Skipping ◽  
Psychometric Evidence

The purpose of this study is to explore teacher attitudes toward gifted students in several distinct areas and to provide psychometric evidence of reliability and validity for the use of an instrument titled “Determining Attitudes Toward Ability” (DATA) to measure specific components of teacher attitudes. Subscales of Focus on Others, Problems With Acceleration, Grade Skipping, Identification, and Curriculum/Policy and ranking the goals of gifted programming allow precise understanding of teacher attitudes regarding important factors in gifted education. This study represents the initial efforts to provide a psychometrically evaluated instrument that reflects developments in the field of gifted education.

Using Community Conversations to Inform Transition Education in Rural Communities

2020 ◽  
pp. 002246692095033
Author(s):  
Erik W. Carter ◽  
Michele A. Schutz ◽  
Shimul A. Gajjar ◽  
Erin A. Maves ◽  
Jennifer L. Bumble ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Rural Communities ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Students With Disabilities ◽  
Postsecondary Education ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Community Partnerships ◽  
Rural School ◽  
Rural School Districts ◽  
Youth With Disabilities ◽  
Transition Outcomes

Nearly one quarter of all youth with disabilities attend rural schools. Supporting the successful postschool transitions of these youth can be a complex and challenging endeavor. In this study, we used “community conversation” events as a methodology for identifying the practices and partnerships needed to improve transition outcomes for students with disabilities in rural school districts. We analyzed the diverse ideas ( n = 656) for preparing youth with disabilities for adulthood generated by a cross section of the local community in five participating rural school districts. Although practices related to employment and family engagement were prominent, fewer suggestions addressed postsecondary education and community living. Perceptions of existing school–community partnerships varied within and across districts. We offer recommendations for research and practice aimed at strengthening the capacity of rural communities to prepare their students with disabilities well for life after high school.

Gifted Education and the Threat of Irrelevance

1996 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 129-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
James H. Borland
Keyword(s):  
Gifted Education ◽  
Educational Philosophy ◽  
Critical Appraisal ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Major Topic ◽  
As If

In this paper, I argue that, when one subjects the field of gifted education to critical appraisal, the most important finding that emerges is a sense that the field is increasingly irrelevant in the educational scheme of things. At a time when education is a major topic in the discourse of the nation and when fundamental issues of educational philosophy and practice are being raised, our field has been largely marginal. Instead of asking the questions that are and ought to be basic to our field, we have left that task to others, contenting ourselves instead with defending gifted programs as if they were an end, not a means to an end. I develop this argument in the context of a number of fundamental questions that bear on the theory and practice of educating gifted students, questions that have, for the most part, been raised by individuals outside the field of gifted education.

Use of SOMPA in Identification of Gifted African-American Children

1992 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 344-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Janice L. Matthew ◽  
Anne K. Golin ◽  
Mary W. Moore ◽  
Carol Baker
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
Minority Students ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Disadvantaged Children ◽  
Placement Decisions ◽  
Gifted Programming ◽  
American Students ◽  
Iq Scores ◽  
American Children

To increase the proportion of elementary minority students identified as gifted, the System of Multicultural Pluralistic Assessment (SOMPA) was employed with minority disadvantaged children in a large urban school district. A group of African-American students in second through fifth grades became eligible for gifted programming when their IQ scores were adjusted using SOMPA procedures. The performance of these SOMPA students on the Ross Test of Higher Cognitive Processes and other measures did not differ from that of a group of African-American gifted students who were identified on the basis of traditional criteria. There were also no significant differences between the groups in Ross subtest scores seven months later. The SOMPA procedures used to identify these gifted students may provide an alternative method to increase the proportion of minority students in gifted programs; particularly in states that use IQ cut-off scores for placement decisions.

scholarly journals Learning from the voices and life trajectories of our most able students: A listening guide analysis

2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 26-49
Author(s):  
Harry Killas ◽  
C Owen Lo ◽  
Marion Porath ◽  
Yuen Sze Michelle Tan ◽  
Chia-Yen Hsieh ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gifted Education ◽  
Original Film ◽  
Qualitative Method ◽  
Early Adulthood ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Listening Guide ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Life Trajectories ◽  
The Listening Guide

The “Superkids,” a group of highly gifted students, were first portrayed in a 2004 documentary. In response to the question of what happened to these students after the original film, a second documentary has been produced. The sequel focused on these individual’s lives, their retrospective insights about gifted education, their educational and career choices, and their reflections on their early adulthood. Transcripts of filmed interviews were analyzed using The Listening Guide, a qualitative method for understanding and interpreting voices. The researchers further highlighted first-person voices that may not have been apparent in interviews. This information was used to identify contrapuntal voices among the participants that reflected their views on the meaning of giftedness and their experience of studying in full-time congregated gifted programs. These voices provided a foundation for understanding the variety of pathways to accomplishment, the meaning of the gifted label, and the purpose of education at large.

Curriculum-based assessment: An alternative approach for screening young gifted children in rural areas

1987 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 9-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bonnie G. Joyce ◽  
William D. Wolking
Keyword(s):  
School Districts ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Standardized Test ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Achievement Test ◽  
Gifted Children ◽  
Rural School Districts ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Trained Personnel ◽  
Metropolitan Readiness Test

The present study evaluated the criterion validity of a curriculum-based assessment (CBA) used in the identification of gifted children. Scores on the CBA were compared to scores on standardized test measures (Metropolitan Readiness Test and the Metropolitan Achievement Test) to determine which procedure better identified gifted students. Predictive validity of the two procedures were comparable; however, the practical advantages of the CBA are important considerations for students, teachers, and administrators in rural school districts where funds and trained personnel may be limited.

Assessment in Gifted Education: A Review of the Literature From 2005 to 2016

2017 ◽  
Vol 28 (3) ◽  
pp. 163-203 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thuy Hong Cao ◽  
Jae Yup Jung ◽  
Jihyun Lee
Keyword(s):  
Gifted Education ◽  
Gifted Students ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Assessment Instruments ◽  
Gifted Programs ◽  
Gifted Identification ◽  
Research Attention ◽  
Gifted Program ◽  
Crucial Component ◽  
Gifted Education Programs

Assessment is a crucial component of gifted education. Not only does it facilitate the recognition of the potential and specific needs of gifted students, it also monitors the progress and growth of gifted students, and allows for the evaluation of gifted education programs. In the present review, we synthesize the literature on assessment in gifted education published in the period from 2005 to 2016. We suggest that gifted assessment research has witnessed notable advances, which are apparent in both the extensive range of assessment instruments/methods that now exist and the diverse ways in which assessment data are now used. Future research attention nevertheless appears to be necessary on the optimal approaches to (a) use multiple criteria in gifted identification, (b) address the disproportionate representation of disadvantaged groups in gifted programs, and (c) promote the development of guidelines for gifted program evaluation.

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