Who Is Ready for a Grade Skip? Pennsylvania Association for Gifted Education November 2017 Ann Lupkowski Shoplik, Ph.D., Administrator, Acceleration Institute Belin-Blank Center for Gifted and Talented Education
Common Signs that a Student May Need Acceleration Demonstration of precocious learning skills (e.g., reading shampoo bottle at age 3) Child may complain of being bored in school Demonstration of strong abilities or aptitude in one or multiple areas
What Worries Us? Socialization: Will he/she have friends? Will there be inappropriate conversations on the bus or in the cafeteria? Will the student be well-rounded? Going away to college when very young What about athletics? What about missing academic competitions or even losing college scholarships?
What Do We Need to Know? Acceleration works: A strong research base supports acceleration Well-researched methods help families and school personnel make decisions about acceleration (Relying on gut feelings is not required!) Acceleration helps students to be presented with new material rather than studying material already mastered Acceleration raises expectations for the student
Some Research Findings Accelerated students do as well academically as older gifted students. Accelerated students do above-average work in college. Many of them attend graduate school and do very well there. This strong performance at advanced levels of study would not be possible if acceleration created significant gaps in students knowledge. Gifted students do not burn out on academics, as shown by the high rate of college and graduate school attendance.
Benefits of Acceleration Match the curriculum to the level and pace the student needs Provide a systematic progression through the curriculum Long-term research shows us that accelerated students perform better than equally-able, nonaccelerated students, even many years later. This challenge when the students are young teaches them to work hard and rise to challenges (teaching habits of mind ).
Acceleration Comes in Many Different Forms Graphics by Lori Ihrig
Acceleration Supports Students Social Development It puts them in classes with academic peers, who are similar in terms of interests, intellectual level, etc.
What Does the Research Say About the Impact of Acceleration on Socialization? The picture is quite positive. Some studies show that highly gifted students are better accepted by older students than by their age peers. No changes in general self-concept. Self-concept initially may decrease a bit, but these changes are small and don t last long. Accelerated students typically look back on the decision with satisfaction and report positive effects.
How Will Decisions About Acceleration Be Made? Who participates in the decision? How are parents included? Use of objective information to make decisions Trial period
What Happens After the Decision? Communication strategies: How are parents kept informed? Measures of success: How do we know it s working?
Using the Iowa Acceleration Scale Grade-Skipping Decisions K-8 The IAS is a tool to help guide the discussion for whole grade acceleration decisions, K-8. Considers factors including cognitive ability, achievement, physical development, social/emotional development.
Let s dive into testing.
Different Tests for Different Purposes Ability Aptitude Achievement Less exposure More exposure to content to content
Ability tests useful for acceleration decisions Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence-Fourth Edition (WPPSI-IV) Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children Fifth Edition (WISC-V) Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale- Fourth Edition (WAIS-IV) Cognitive Abilities Test (CogAT)
Achievement tests useful for acceleration decisions Woodcock Johnson-Fourth Edition (WJ-IV) Wechsler Individual Achievement Test- Third Edition (WIAT-III) Wide Range Achievement Test- Fourth Edition (WRAT-IV) Iowa Assessments
Measuring Aptitude: Use Above-Level Testing Administer an achievement test designed for older students to younger students Reasoning abilities Above-Level Test Measure of aptitude We can learn about talents in specific areas, e.g., STEM
Above-level testing lengthens the yardstick A 3-foot yardstick measures many things accurately, but Talented students are taller than 3 feet. Taller students need a longer yardstick.
Above-level testing differentiates talented students from exceptionally talented students. It helps us to know who would benefit from acceleration. Section B shows how the above-level test spreads out the scores of the academically talented students. Some students earn low scores, most earn average scores, and some earn high scores.
Above-level tests as a measure of aptitude I-Excel ACT Any achievement test can also be used as an above level assessment (e.g. WJ-IV, WIAT-III)
Social and emotional assessment Mental health professional Behavior Assessment System for Children, III (Reynolds & Kamphaus, Qualification Level B) Piers-Harris Children s Self-Concept Scale, 2 nd edition (Piers & Harris) Interview with parents, teachers, child Decision-making activity
Other information on the IAS School history School and academic factors Interpersonal skills Developmental factors Attitude and support
Things to Consider Especially with whole-grade acceleration, there is an adjustment period. Student might no longer feel like the big fish Issues of dating, being too young to drive are later seen as temporary inconveniences, but they are very real at the time!
Other Things to Consider How will we resolve gaps in the student s background? Preparing the receiving teacher and students Younger students may have more issues (for example, handwriting, stamina) Preparing the parents: Homework may take longer Helping the parents prepare the child
Alternatives to skipping a grade Subject Acceleration Enrichment Experiences On-line programs (e.g. Khan Academy) Summer Programs TAG and Extended Learning Programs
If not grade-skipping Graphics by Lori Ihrig
What Happens if We Don t Accelerate? This is an extremely important question to investigate and discuss. Not only should we consider what the research tells us (acceleration is highly successful for carefully selected students), but also we should understand the consequences of inaction Doing nothing is still a decision If we don t accelerate now, we can still consider this option in the future
Resources www.accelerationinstitute.org First time here? For Parents Questions & answers Acceleration stories A Nation Deceived: Free download, 2004 publication A Nation Empowered: 2015 publication. Can purchase paperback or ebook, free pdf
Additional Resources for Families ditd.org. (Google Davidson Acceleration Resources) Hoagiesgifted.org (Google Hoagies Gifted Acceleration). Google: Hoagies' Blog Hop March 2015 Acceleration. and Hoagies Blog Hop Acceleration Again October 2016
Questions?
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