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 "Simply put, the significant and constant increases in both the number and proportion of racial/ethnic minority and economically disadvantaged children in the public school population are not reflected in programs for the gifted and talented." -Mary Frasier & Harry Passow

= JULIE KRISTIN =

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=INTRODUCTION: =

Looking for information on gifted and culturally diverse students has been a challenge. You can type in almost anything in Google and immediately get hundreds (if not thousands) of websites, videos, and images. However, as I searched the internet for culturally diverse gifted students, I had a hard time finding a lot of information. I could not find many videos of school faculty, students, or parents discussing students who are culturally diverse AND gifted students. I believe this lack of information accurately reflects the lack of attention these students are given in the classroom and in particular, the gifted programs. There is an underrepresentation of disadvantaged minority students in gifted programs.

Parents and educators must recognize that these students are gifted //and// culturally diverse. Like gifted students, they need to have their abilities recognized and they need to be challenged. Like diverse students, they need to have their culture (e.g., values, traditions, customs, etc.) acknowledged, respected, and otherwise affirmed. For diverse gifted children to develop optimally, they must be challenged and appreciated.

The underrepresentation of diverse students in gifted education is primarily a function of educators holding a deficit perspective about diverse students. Deficit thinking exists when educators hold negative, stereotypical, and counterproductive views about culturally diverse students and lower their expectations of these students accordingly. Until deficit thinking becomes dynamic thinking, the unnecessary underrepresentation of diverse students in gifted education will continue.

MULTICULTURALISM:
Many people are ignorant of all the various cultures that are represented in the world, the U.S., and even in their own classroom. I believe the first step to help your multicultural gifted students (and all students for that matter) is to try to understand them. In order to do this, you can create a curriculum and learning environment that is multicultural. A lot of students are inaccurately judged as having a learning disorder because of their cultural differences. A lot of students are also perceived as being quiet or weird because teachers and students don't understand their cultural differences.

To give a multicultural learning experience, teachers can create a multicultural classroom environment by putting up maps, posters, celebrating important holidays, and commemorating important cultural events. Teachers can also incorporate multiculturalism into their curriculum by assigning projects to explore different cultures, creating activities that center around different cultural music, art, dance, etc. Learning about other cultures is not only fun and interesting, but it will help all students understand that differences are not bad things, but they are something to be appreciated.

I believe that if multiculturalism is incorporated more into our schools then culturally diverse gifted students (and all students!) would benefit greatly. They would be understood more by other students which could boost their social life and self-concept, and teachers would be able to identify their differences as just that, and not as a disorder, which could make a positive difference in the education they receive.

Here is a short video that illustrates the importance of multiculturalism in education. It seems to focus on African American culture, but the main point is clear: learning about other cultures is crucial to giving all students the best education possible.

media type="youtube" key="UhGsy3QUSow" height="383" width="467" align="center"

STATISTICS:
The percentage of diverse students in gifted education programs does not match their representation in U.S. schools. *Estimates of the underrepresentation of minority students in gifted programs vary between 30% and 70% *Black students represented 16.2% of public school students in 1993, but only 8.4% of students in gifted programs; Hispanic students represented 9% of public school students, but only 4.7% of those identified as gifted. Both groups tend to be underrepresented in gifted programs by 50%.

*IQ cut of f scores effectively preclude the identification of disadvantaged and culturally diverse gifted students, including many African Americans

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">The statistics are startling. And it makes sense that IQ tests do not accurately reflect some culturally diverse students because some are still learning English and trying to understand our culture (these tests are given in English and are biased toward American culture obviously). Tests measure familiarity with American culture and English proficiency, not intelligence. This almost guarantees low test scores for immigrants (and culturally diverse groups) who are unfamiliar with U.S. customs, traditions, values, norms, and language. These culturally diverse students are considered "disadvantaged learners."

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*Only 29% of schools surveyed indicated that a race or ethnicity variable was heavily emphasized in programs serving disadvantaged gifted learners <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*A lot of these children also have other risks, like poverty, troubled homes, and parents who lack education themselves

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=<span style="background-color: #ffff00; color: #267826; font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 150%;">RESILIENT CHILDREN: =

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Despite their circumstances, many of these children are "resilient" and are able to be successful in life. **//The critical factor that led them to success was their informal support networks that created a sense of personal control over their lives//**.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Support Networks include: <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*teacher who was a role model and mentor <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*youth leader <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*participation in clubs and sports

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">When we discussed important traits of gifted students a few weeks ago, gifted students mentioned the personal/social aspect of their teacher as one of the most important traits. A gifted teacher who possesses this personal trait will be able to spot culturally diverse gifted students more easily than those who don't get to know their students well and who aren't able to form a connection with them.

=<span style="background-color: #f8ff00; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 150%;">IDENTIFICATION: =

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*not easy to ID due to cultural bias in test <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*ID must be based on superior potential instead of superior performance! <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*32 states advocate the use of multiple criteria for ID of gifted, but only 10 states have specific instruction to include the special needs of culturally diverse and disadvantaged populations <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*only 9 states include definitions for ID of gifted students taking English as a second language

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Identification problems result because of: <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">1. differences in test performance among racial, cultural, or ethnic groups <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">2. the effects of cultural economic and language differences or deprivations on the ability of <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">minority students to achieve at levels associated with giftedness

=<span style="background-color: #fffc00; color: #12baba; font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 150%;">TESTING: =

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*Should NOT be based solely or predominantly on intelligence/aptitude tests or achievement tests

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*Any assessment based on IQ will surely under-identify disadvantaged gifted students, students with underdeveloped potential (IQ is from a test) <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*Creativity Tests can be helpful for accurately testing disadvantaged gifted students (Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking, Group Inventory for Finding Talent) Click Here to find information on these and many other tests!

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*Frasier Talent Assessment Profile: accommodates both the children we are missing and the children we are finding; it combines tests and non test criteria Click Here for more info.

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*Teacher Nominations - it's a little "iffy" but the most popular; can be good and bad for minority and disadvantaged students; some teachers only pick "teacher's pets" yet some are knowledgeable about characteristics of gifted children and may be the very best identifier of the culturally different gifted child. Click Here for an example of a teacher nomination.

=<span style="background-color: #fffc00; font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 150%;">PERSONAL EXPERIENCE: =

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 150%;">Although I have not taught yet, I have experience tutoring two immigrant high school boys from Burma. These boys had only been in the U.S. for about 8 months. They were learning English for the first time, and while it was rough, I was quite impressed with their English skills given the circumstances. These brothers were very bright, but were struggling in school because of their language and cultural barriers. It was heartbreaking at times working with them because I knew that their mother, who spoke no English, had no clue what was going on in school. The boys (in 10th and 11th grades) came to me with basic questions about school and college. They did not feel comfortable talking to their school counselor because they said that they felt stupid that they could not understand a lot of what she was saying. These boys are extremely intelligent, and not only were they learning English, but they were both in Spanish classes for their high school language requirement. I found this to be absurd since they were struggling with their English as it was. However, they were doing well in Spanish. These boys could very well be gifted (they are definitely brighter than any of the other high school students and some college students that I've tutored over the years). Despite their intellectual potential, they will probably go unnoticed and just barely get by in high school because they are not given the most appropriate education at their high school. They both have come to me asking about college, and I can hopefully help them prepare for college and be an advocate for them as best I can.

=<span style="background-color: #f8ff00; color: #ff0000; font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 150%;">DEDUCTIONS: =

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">Teachers should: <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*get to know your students as best you can <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*not be quick to judge a student who appears to have some sort of learning disorder; it could just be a cultural difference <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*create a multicultural learning environment; get the class involved in learning about students' and their cultures <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">because there is no such thing as a homogeneous classroom, for students in classrooms differ by gender, race, socioeconomic status (SES), achievement, interests, and so forth. With forecasts projecting a growing minority student population, teachers will have to bear a greater responsibility for demonstrating multicultural competence. <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*try to get to know the family of the gifted student and get them involved in his/her education <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*not just use IQ to measure gifted students <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*look for the culturally different gifted child that our tests may miss <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;">*be an advocate and support system as best we can for those who don't have family who can support them

<span style="font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 150%;">I know we (teachers) have enough on our plates as it is, and we are expected to be super human at times. But if you remember these key points as you get to know your class, it could make a real difference in a student's life!

= Reference =

=<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; text-align: left;">Davis, G.A., Rimm, S. B., Siegle, D. (2010). //Education of the gifted and talented (6th Edition).// = =<span style="display: block; font-family: 'Palatino Linotype','Book Antiqua',Palatino,serif; text-align: left;"> New York: Prentice Hall. =

<span style="background-color: #ff0000; color: #fffc00; font-family: 'Lucida Console',Monaco,monospace; font-size: 150%;">Additional Resources:
<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> //Gifted Child Today// offers timely information about teaching and parenting gifted and talented children. The journal provides critical information for **teachers and administrators involved with gifted children**. //Gifted Child Today// includes articles about topics such as teaching strategies in gifted education, building a more effective gifted and talented program, and working with gifted children with learning disabilities. //Gifted Child Today// also offers thought-provoking articles for **parents of gifted and talented children**. The journal features information about raising a gifted child, how to tell if your child is gifted, and effective strategies for parenting a gifted child. There are sample articles available to read as well!
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Short, informative article from University of Connecticut: "Intelligence Testing and Cultural Diversity"
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Long, but very informative and insightful article on how schools can recruit and retain culturally diverse gifted students.
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> "The all things gifted page" - lots of interesting links and resources to all types of gifted articles and information
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Resources on multicultural education. Activities, ideas, suggestions, etc. on how to create a multicultural learning environment. Great resource!
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<span style="font-family: 'Lucida Sans Unicode','Lucida Grande',sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Decorate your room with multicultural to foster a multicultural learning environment.
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