THE AT-RISK GIFTED STUDENT THE AT-RISK GIFTED STUDENT FRIDAY NOV. 20, 2009.

THE THE “AT-RISK” “AT-RISK”

GIFTED STUDENT GIFTED STUDENT FRIDAY

NOV. 20, 2009

"AT-RISK" GIFTED "AT-RISK" GIFTED STUDENT:STUDENT:

What it is?What it is? Definitions of UnderachievementReis and McCoach (2000):a “discrepancy between ability and performance”

McCoach and Siegle (2003): “students who come to school without books or homework, students who appear to choose not to study for exams, students who seem unfazed by parents’ and teachers’ pleas that their grades now will affect the rest of their professional lives.”


What it is?What it is? Questions:

• Is a student who is excelling in one area but failing in another “at-risk”?

• Is a student who is underachieving at school but excelling in an extra-curricular activity “at-risk”?

• Is a gifted student who is passing grade level classes “at-risk”?

• Are we using the right measures?


Who it is?Who it is? StatisticsSeeley (1993): “Nationwide, it is estimated that 15-40% of

identified gifted students are ‘at-risk’ for school failure or significant underachievement.”

Peterson and Colangelo (1996): “Some researchers have estimated that the

percentage of students with high ability who do not achieve well is as high as 50%.”

Time Magazine (2007):• Gifted students drop out of school at the same

rate as non-gifted youngsters—about 5%. • 1/5 of dropouts test in the gifted range.


Who it is? Who it is? GroupsGirls:• May be limited by stereotypes• May see social disadvantages to being smart

Boys:• May underachieve at twice the rate of girls • More prone to chronic underachievement

(Peterson & Colangelo, 1996)

Children in Poverty:• Lack experiences • Inhibited talents are not recognized

GroupsTwice-Exceptional:• Often receive services only related to their

disability and not their giftedness• Giftedness goes unrecognized

Highly/Profoundly Gifted:• Socialization takes precedence to

advancement• Expecting a child with an IQ of 160 to

achieve at the same pace as a student with an IQ of 100 is the same as asking the child with a 100 IQ to achieve at the same pace of the child with an IQ of 40. (Time Magazine, 2007)


Who it is?Who it is?

GroupsGifted Minority Students:• More likely to underachieve than white

students (Ford, Grantham, Whiting, 2008)• Achievement = “Acting White”• “Acting Black” associated with behaviors

that negatively effect achievement• Affects African American boys more than

girls


Who it is?Who it is?

"AT-RISK" GIFTED STUDENT:"AT-RISK" GIFTED STUDENT:

Profiles in Profiles in AchievementAchievement


Why’s it Why’s it happening?happening?

The Cost of Achievement:Akeelah and the Bee:To Achieve or not to Achieve• Achievement brings pressures

• Underachievement is a way of coping

A Dream DeferredWhat happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore-- And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over-- like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?


Langston Langston Hughes?Hughes?



Disturbing Events• Chicago Murder

• Richmond High School

• Columbine

• Unabomber

The Cost of Achievement:

The Call of the Street vs. the College Path



The Call of the Street vs. the College Path:The Call of the Street• Immediate Gratification

• Immediate Recognition

• Adrenaline/Adventure



The Call of the Street vs. the College Path



The College Path• A-G Requirements• Rigorous Coursework• PSAT, SAT, (and later on: GMAT, LSAT,

MCAT)• 17+ Years of your life (K-Bachelors)• Thousands of dollars in cost• Delayed Rewards:

• Global Competition• Debt

The Garden of LoveI went to the Garden of Love,And saw what I never had seen:A Chapel was built in the midst,Where I used to play on the green.

And the gates of this Chapel were shut,And "Thou shalt not" writ over the door;So I turned to the Garden of Love,That so many sweet flowers bore;

And I saw it was filled with graves,And tombstones where flowers should be;And Priests in black gowns were walking their rounds,And binding with briers my joys and desires.


Langston Langston Hughes?Hughes?


What’s What’s Causing it?Causing it?

Educational Priorities• Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)

• IDEA vs. Javitts

• The Bar is Set at “Proficient”

• Tier 3 funding

• Grade Level Standards

• Intervention

Children who are fit to proceed to a higher class may be artificially kept back, because the others would get a trauma - Beelzebub, what a useful word! - by being left behind. The bright pupil thus remains democratically fettered to his own age group throughout his school career, and a boy who would be capable of tackling Aeschylus or Dante sits listening to his coeval's attempts to spell out A CAT SAT ON A MAT.

C.S. Lewis, Screwtape Proposes a Toast


What’s What’s Causing it?Causing it?

Educational Priorities

Suggestions for Gifted Advocates


What can be What can be Done?Done? The 3 Rs

• Rigor: Learning is not attained by chance. It must be sought for with ardor and attended to with diligence. Abigail Adams

• Relationship:Richard Mullen, 2009 Teacher of the Year

• Relevance:When I first saw Yosemite at 16, I was blown away. I didn't think it was possible to have a place like this. It changed how I saw nature and my place in nature.Mauricio Escobar, Park Ranger

Suggestions for Gifted Advocates• Don’t reward mediocrity:

It’s psychotic. They keep thinking of new ways to celebrate mediocrity, but if someone is genuinely exceptional…Bob Parr, aka Mr. Incredible

• Teach Persistence It’s not enough to have a good mind. The main thing is to use it well. Rene Descartes


What Can What Can be Donebe Done

• Focus on Effort not IntelligenceThose congratulated for their intelligence…shied away from a challenging assignment…far more often than those applauded for their effort.Carol S. Dweck

• Encourage ReadingThe Ben Carson Story

• Expect More




• Teach Entitlement

• Service Learning

• Mentoring




THE AT-RISK GIFTED STUDENT THE AT-RISK GIFTED STUDENT FRIDAY NOV. 20, 2009.

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