Currently many parents find it hard to identify the talents of their children and thus they depend on teachers and other career counselors for help. Therefore, it is imperative that these people know the procedures behind identifying the gifted children (Johnsen, 2009, p.9). According to the Improving America’s Schools Act of 1994 (Johnsen, 2009,p.10), a talented or gifted child is referred to as an individual with special abilities which enable him/her to excel in specific academic fields, extracurricular activities or display leadership qualities through participation in teamwork (Johnsen, 2009, p.10). Since most schools in America do not provide avenues for developing such skills, most states have different characteristics that are employed in identifying gifts and talents. Professionals in the field of gifted education have however identified a number of external and internal factors that influence development of these abilities. These include: IQ, special abilities, an individual’s immediate environment, opportunities/chances, and non-academic factors such as a strong will and commitment (Johnsen, 2009, p.10). According to Gagne (cited in Johnsen, 2009, p.10), a gift is a natural human ability related to a specific field that is nurtured into a talent. However, there are factors that facilitate the talent development process. These are: the genetic endowment of an individual and the immediate surrounding of an individual (Johnsen, 2009, p.11).
In the identification process, a number of factors are considered. These are: an individual’s interest in a specific field, provision of opportunities that allow individuals to display their abilities, consideration of an individual’s State or local description of talents and gifts, and early identification of gifts (Johnsen, 2009, pp.12-13). Considering these factors, a number of best practices should also be included in the identification process. These are: consideration of different contexts of data collection, provision of referral services prior to assessment, and involving parents in the process. The identification process takes place in three main phases. These include: the nomination phase, the screening and identification phase and the selection or placement phase (Johnsen, 2009, pp.12-14).
This paper seeks to give a reflection on the impact of the best practices for identifying gifted students on education.
The impact of the article on education
Since there is no universally accepted definition of giftedness and the existence of diverse talents among different individuals, schools find it hard to match their curriculums to different talents. Most school principals would rather take intellectual giftedness into contemplation rather than considering a wide range of gifts (McCoach et al., 2001, p.404). Keeping these challenges in mind, schools can find it a lot easier to incorporate the best practices in gift identification given in this article into their day-to-day teaching objectives. There are many practices being implemented by many schools which should take the best practice procedures into consideration. These practices include: ability grouping and differentiation of curriculums among others. Incorporation of the best practices into the school’s teaching objectives entails gift assessment/testing, improvement and enrichment of the talents. In this way, the schools would find it much easier to match gifts and talents to curriculums after the identification process has been done (McCoach, 2001, pp.404-406).
The best practices in identification of gifted students can help parents and teachers in planning and implementing course subjects that enable their children and students to excel in fields of their interest and abilities. For instance, many parents have the behavior of looking at their children’s abilities in terms of test scores on report forms. However, application of the best practices of talent identification gives the parent or the teacher a clear picture of the student in terms of his/her unique abilities that may not be displayed academically. This is achievable through the gift/talent identification or testing process. The process entails both intelligence and achievement tests followed by observation of the child which can also include interviewing the child being tested. This then gives way to development of a curriculum that befits the special abilities as identified in the child.
The practices can also be employed by institutions in order to allow for identification of special talents other than academic excellence. Some educational institutions are known to employ the acceleration strategy as a reward for those students who excel academically. The strategy is employed under subject and grade acceleration whereby those students who excel at a certain level are given credit transfers which allows them to jump other stages in the learning process. Unfortunately, this process favors the exceptionally intelligent students only since credit is given to those with intellectual gifts. However, with the best practices in place, it is possible for schools to develop curriculums that enable their students to excel in their respective fields of interest.
Conclusion
This paper provides a summary of the article, “the best practices for identifying the gifted students” by Susan K. Johnsen. The subsequent discussion provides a deliberation on the impact that this article has on education. In this article, it is documented that the best practices for identification of gifted students would allow parents and teachers to identify the most unique abilities of their children and students so that curriculums are developed that can allow these students to utilize their unique skills fully in a specific field of interest.
Reference List
- Johnsen, S.K. (2009). Best practices for identifying the gifted students.
- McCoach, B.D., Kehle, T.J., Bray, M.A., and Siegle, D. (2001). Best practices in the identification of gifted students with learning disabilities. University of Connecticut. Psychology in the Schools, 38(5):403-411.