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Talent Development As A Framework for Gifted Services

Paula Olszewski-KubiliusCenter for Talent Development

School of Education and Social PolicyNorthwestern University

Traditional View of Gifted

Gif

ted

Child

• Ability is inborn. inherent and fixed• Giftedness is general• Once gifted, always gifted regardless of achievement• Gifted have unique and defining social, emotional and

psychological traits• Identify and serve those who have giftedness is the goal

Reasons for Dissatisfaction with Traditional View of “Giftedness”

� We are missing students, under-representation, excellence gaps

� Difficult to demonstrate efficacy of gifted programs for achievement

� Practice not consistent with current research

Seeds of Change1. Efficacy of gifted education

practices with a broader range of students

2. New research on intelligence and specific abilities

3. Better understanding ofcomponents of achievementgaps

4. More research on how talent develops within domains

5. Research on the significant role of non cognitive factors in achievement

Move from a primary focus on identification and labeling and finding

To…...Recognizing and nurturring students’ talents

Comparison of Talent Development Framework and Traditional Gifted

Gif

ted

Child

• Ability is inborn. inherent and fixed

• Giftedness/ability is general• Once gifted, always gifted

regardless of achievement• Gifted are morally superior

and more sensitive--can be defined by psychological traits

• Identify and serve those who have giftedness is the goal Ta

lent

Dev

elop

men

t • Ability is malleable & developmental

• Giftedness becomes increasingly domain specific

• Demonstrated achievement becomes increasingly important

• Giftedness involves both abilities and psychosocial skills--both malleable

• Goal of gifted ed is to increase high performers and creative producers

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Tenets of Talent Development Framework

� Individual abilities matter, specifically domain specific abilities, and are malleable

� Different talent domains have different trajectories/paths

� Opportunities are critical at every point of the trajectory—and must be provided and taken

� Psychosocial skills are critical to the development of talent and can be cultivated

� Outstanding achievement and creative production areviable goals of gifted ed

Ability is Malleable

In the head Static

PersonalGenetic

Permanent

Giftedness

Contextual

Developmental

Situated

GrowChange

Outside of

schoolTimePlace

As Opportunity Increases

So Can Ability

Ability is more malleable than we thought

Programming

• Second Step

Assessment

• First Step

Assessment for further services and programming

• Second Step

Talent Development (early enrichment and

preparatory)

• First Step

High Accomplishment Students

High PotentialStudents

TypicalApproach

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13Giftedness is malleable.

From the National Association for Gifted Children Talent Development Task Force

Report to the Board of Directors (Besnoy, K., Drapeau, P., Felder, M., Horn, C., Krisel, S., Laing, P., McBee, M., Olszewski-Kubilius, P., Roberts, J., Subotnik, R., 2015)

• In order to determine who would benefit from more challenging learning opportunities, it is necessary to judge children’s performance against others who share similar learning opportunities and/or background characteristics.

• Identification procedures reflect the belief that giftedness is relative and defined in terms of a comparison group by using local norms to find the highest performing students in their schools and children who are making rapid progress, once given opportunity

• Advanced classes and other special program offerings are made available to all students whose current levels of achievement or rapid improvement suggest that they would not be challenged appropriately by the general education classes in their schools.

Implications for Practice:Ability Is Malleable

� Ongoing assessment so as to identify late bloomers and students whose talents emerge later due to poverty or lack of early opportunity

� Judgements of ability made with appropriate comparison group

� Creation of multiple opportunities and multiple paths for students to enter gifted programs (e.g. testing and portfolios, local norms)

� Intense frontloading of opportunities in early years for students from poverty, under-identified gifted students

� Reverse the typical process of “identification, followed by programming” to “development, then assessment”

HighAccomplishment

High Potential

Giftedness Becomes More Domain Specific

General Ability

Mathematical

Ability

Verbal Reasoning

Spatial

Ability

Early Elementary

Adolescents/Middle School

Foundational

Domain Specific

“As one picks up domain knowledge and skills, the predictive power of general aptitude measures diminishes” (p. 58).

Mathematical Ability(Spatial Ability)

Verbal Ability

Astronomy and Physics, Mathematics and Statistics,Computer and Information Sciences, MBA,

Engineering, Economics

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Mathematical Ability

Verbal Ability

Social Sciences, Biological Sciences, Arts, History, English Literature

General AbilityAchievement Childhood

AchievementGeneral Ability

Adulthood

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Giftedness tends to be demonstrated more generally initially but becomes more focused over time into particular domains of interest and ability.

From the National Association for Gifted Children Talent Development Task Force Report to the Board of Directors (Besnoy, K., Drapeau, P., Felder, M., Horn, C., Krisel, S., Laing, P., McBee, M., Olszewski-Kubilius, P., Roberts, J., Subotnik, R., 2015)

• At the beginning stages of talent development, gifted education programs should place greater emphasis on identifying potential, particularly with individuals who have had limited opportunities to develop the knowledge, skills, or other characteristics that are assessed in determining gifted program eligibility.

• As children mature, the gifted program services they receive should be adjusted to provide a real-time match to their current levels of demonstrated need, gradually placing more emphasis on achievement and productivity within domains.

Implications for Practice:Domain Specific Abilities

� IQ tests and general ability tests are useful, especially with young children and with students who have had limited opportunities to learn, e.g. low income students

� Domain specific assessments need to be used no later than middle school but a variety of assessments can be used, depending upon the domain, e.g. tests, auditions and judgments by professionals and experts, portfolios

Pote

nti

al

Universal screening on general IQ

Response to challenging enrichment/problem-based units

Enrichment for all

Local Norms

Com

pete

ncy

Domain specific tests

Domain specific achievement

Developing psychosocial skills E

xpert

ise Domain specific

achievement

Domain specific psychosocial skills

As one picks up domain knowledge and skills, the

predictive power of general aptitude measures diminishes” (p. 58)

Giftedness is Developmental

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Ability/Potential

Competency

Expertise

Artistry, Scholarly Creative Productivity

Talent Development Is A Continuous Process

Transition points

Early exposure and playful engagement through family activities, formal enrichment activities

School-based and outside-of-school programs that develop foundational knowledge and skills at appropriate (accelerated) pace

Independent research and projects, mentorships, apprenticeships, authentic work in domain

Talent DevelopmentProgramming

Math games and puzzles, math enrichment

Acceleration in math in school, math clubs and competitions, math courses in summer programs, early access to AP Calc, Dual enrollment

Independent research and projects, mentorships, apprenticeships, authentic work in domain, exposure to math oriented careers

Talent Development

Process in Math

Features of Talent Development Programming

� Domain oriented as students get older

� Matched to the stage of talent development

� Incorporate psychosocial skills development

� Exposure to more authentic work in the domain at higher stages

� Services not A PROGRAM!!!

I. Services for ALL StudentsExamples: Creative and critical thinking skills and tools, individual

learning styles, field trips, guest speakers

The Levels of Service [LoS] Model

II. Services for MANY Students Examples: Extended group projects, Destination

ImagiNation®,Future Problem Solving, mini-courses, inventing programs

or contests, science fair, interest or hobby groups

III. Services for SOME Students Examples: Honors or advanced classes, acceleration in classrooms or grade advancement, advanced programs

at school or in the community, performing groups

IV. Services for a FEW Students Examples: early admission, grade advancement, dual enrollment, early graduation, mentorships,

advanced independent research or inquiry projects, internships

©2003, Center for Creative Learning

Implications for Practice:Developmental Paths� Early exposure to domains for all students via

enrichment in early grades, especially for low income students

� Levels of Service approach

� Articulated sequence of programs K-12 within major domains enable students to move ahead at a faster pace and provide continuous skill development

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Implications for Practice:Developmental Paths� Earlier exposure to some fields, such as philosophy or

engineering, typically not studied until college

� More varied program models for secondary students (e.g. mentorships, research opportunities, apprenticeships)—beyond AP and IB.

� Ways to capture late bloomers via multiple entry points to talent development paths--constant talent mining

Psychosocial Skills Are Critical to Talent Development

Talent is how quickly your skills improve when you invest effort(Duckworth)

Talent X effort = skill

Skill X effort = achievement

34Giftedness is multi-dimensional, involving both abilities and critical psychosocial skills.

From the National Association for Gifted Children Talent Development Task Force

Report to the Board of Directors (Besnoy, K., Drapeau, P., Felder, M., Horn, C., Krisel, S., Laing, P., McBee, M., Olszewski-Kubilius, P., Roberts, J., Subotnik, R., 2015)

• If gifted programs are to help high-ability children progress successfully through the stages of talent development, educators must recognize the importance of social-emotional well-being and intentionally develop psychosocial variables such as persistence, strategic risk taking, and self-confidence.

• Appropriately challenging opportunities for learning and achievement, including specific instruction and coaching on psychosocial skills, both promote talent development and enhance psychological health.

Do gifted children have a unique psychological profile?

Can gifted children have unique psychological needs?

Probably Not!

YES!!

The Psychology of High Performance

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Critical Psychosocial Skills for Olympic Athletes

(Gould, Dieffenbach & Moffett, 2001)

� Ability to focus

� Mental toughness

� Hope/goal setting ability

� Sport intelligence

� Ability to cope

� Competitiveness

� Confidence

� Coachability

� High drive

� Intrinsic motivation

� High optimism

� Adaptive perfectionism

� Automaticity: The ability to click into automatic performance

� Emotional control: Ability to relax and activate

Psychological Skills for High Academic Performance

� Ability to spend time alone

� Teach-ability-Being open to feedback, focused on improvement

� Daring to be different—courage

� Being able to work on the edges of your competency

� Being able to handle competition and criticism

� Being able to rebound from setbacks

� Coping skills for perfectionism, pressure/stress, performance anxiety, threats to self-confidence

� Developing strategies to resist negative peer pressure, negative stereotypes.

� Appropriate interactions with peers, teachers, gatekeepers

� Having a social support system

� Being able to set goals for improvement

Implications for Practice:Psychosocial Skills are Critical� Should be actively and deliberately cultivated via

programming, counseling, and mentoring of students

� Can involve parents in assisting with psycho-social skill development at home

� Develop a plan for what skills to focus on at different stages of talent development (e.g. attitudes towards effort and ability, attitudes towards competition, resiliency and coping skills, a scholar identity)

� Build resilience through offering “challenge + support”

Outcome of Gifted Education(Dai and Chen, GCQ, 2013)

� Serving the gifted, thinking and leadership qualities as the goal…or

� Diagnosis of strengths and needs for educational purposes in a particular educational context

� Supporting domain excellence and innovation, modeling after authentic professions and creativity…

Using best practices in classroom and school to move

students to next stage of talent development

Immediategoal of gifted

education

Creative producers in adulthood

Long term goal of gifted

education

Outcomes In A Talent Development Program

� Teaching for falling in love or for technique

� Facilitating positive mindsets and attitudes towards ability and effort

� Using acceleration and other best practices

� Providing experiences that build foundational knowledge

� Getting students to the next stage of talent development

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Stage Curriculum & Instruction Psychosocial Skill Development

Programming Focus

Emergent Talent Foundational knowledge and skills in core subjects. Academic skill development.

Self-regulation of emotions and behavior. Development of attention and focus. Socializing with peers.

Enrichment that is interdisciplinary, inquiry-based, hands-on. Opportunities to explore a variety of subjects and define interests in core subjects. Early access to advanced content in areas of demonstrated strength.

Competence Explicit knowledge in core academic areas (facts, formulas, major ideas). Advanced content in areas of interest and talent. Academic skill development, focus on meta-cognitive skills (thinking about one’s learning). Problem-solving ability.

Growth mindset (ability is malleable) and beliefs that support achievement (achievement requires effort). Executive functioning skills (time management, organization, etc.) Openness to being taught. Internal motivation and persistence. Willingness to take risks. Ability to overcome failure. Engagement with peers, empathy.

Acceleration in areas of advanced competency. Continued exposure to areas of interest through enrichment opportunities. Introduction to university and career fields of study.

Expertise Advanced, in-depth content. Exposure to related content or skills needed for high-level achievement. Early entry into professional and creative domains.

Formation of an integrated identity in the talent area. Self-promotion, learning the rules of the field (explicit and tacit), social skills, including arriving on time, being prepared, being courteous, accepting success and failure with resilience.

Opportunities to do authentic work in talent domains guided by professionals and experts. Exposure to career fields through mentorships, internships, apprenticeships.

Scholarly/Creative

Productivity

Content and skill mastery, innovative thinking and creating new knowledge.

Passion for the field. Identity as a creative producer, trailblazer, or expert. Commitment,

creativity, innovation. Risk-taking and self-confidence.

Creation, innovation, production. Collaborations with peers of similar expertise.

StageCurriculum and Instruction

Psychosocial SkillDevelopment

Programming Focus