Gifted Education Commons^™

An Investigation Of Teachers’ Awareness And Willingness To Engage With A Self-Directed Professional Development Package On Gifted And Talented Education, Kylie T. Fraser-Seeto, Steven J. Howard, Stuart Woodcock

Australian Journal of Teacher Education

Despite recognising the importance of educators in meeting the needs of gifted and talented students, research indicates that teachers often lack the essential knowledge, skills and confidence to identify and meet the needs of gifted and talented students. Evidence suggests this lack of preparation may be related to teachers’ professional development. This quantitative study of 96 primary school teachers aimed to provide an initial insight into the knowledge and uptake of the 2005 DEST/GERRIC Gifted and Talented Training Package. It further aimed to give some insight into teachers’ opinions and behaviours as it pertains to this mode of professional ...

Each One, Teach One: A Blackprint For Mentoring Postsecondary “Twice Exceptional” Student Scholars In “Search Of Education, Elevation And Knowledge”, Selena T. Rodgers, Tiffany Cudjoe

Journal of Research Initiatives

Through the prism of a faculty-student mentoring relationship, this article highlights best practices to gain insight into resources for “twice exceptional” student scholars. Practical application stands at a position of intersecting domains—changing the tapestry of scholarly service and undergraduate research mentoring, and as an Each One, Teach One black-print model for mentoring. The article concludes with recommendations for best practices for post secondary mentors, educators, and counselors invested in developing student scholars in Search of Education, Elevation, and Knowledge.

The Correlation Between Self-Efficacy And The Academic Success Of Students, Emily E. Taylor

Senior Honors Theses

Research reveals that gifted students at Springfield Middle School in Williamsport, Maryland possess stronger levels of self-efficacy than average students. For the purpose of this study, the term “gifted students” refers to students who are enrolled in above-grade-level classes at Springfield Middle School. Students must score high in tests and interviews in order to be placed in above-grade-level classes. According to Albert Bandura’s social cognitive theory, increased levels of self-efficacy contribute to a person’s ability to complete a task. Using the Children’s Perceived Academic Self-Efficacy subscale from The Morgan-Jinks Student Efficacy Scale (MJSES), the study conducted at ...

The Value Of Problem Posing In Developing Creatively Gifted Mathematicians, Eric L. Mann

Faculty Presentations

The task of problem posing is often overlooked as a means to develop creatively gifted mathematicians. Silver (1997) suggested that problem posing was an instructional tactic used worldwide to develop creativity in mathematicians. More specifically, Silver advocated that deliberate instructional tactics had to be employed to precipitate creative solutions. Problem posing is often correlated with the aesthetic nature of mathematics.

In this cutting-edge session, participants’ objective is to learn about the value of problem posing through a brief presentation and have an opportunity to generate their own mathematical problem solving tasks given a mathematical concept. The intent is to encourage ...

An Exploration Of The Factors That Motivate Black And Latino Students To Engage In Stem (Science, Technology, Engineering And Mathematics), Adrienne Coleman

Adrienne Coleman

No abstract provided.

Dare To Care: Teaching Leadership To Gifted Students, Sarah E. Fox

Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This thesis details the creation and execution of the class “Dare to Care: Teaching Leadership to Gifted Students,” which was offered through a Saturday enrichment program to gifted middle school students. The class combined the study of leadership skills with the idea of being a change agent—a leader who uses his or her abilities to make a positive difference. This thesis documents the lesson plans of the class and students’ reactions to each lesson.

Field Trip Partnerships: Student-To-Student Mentoring, Aziza Darwish, Robyn Lee-Diaz

Publications & Research

Children running wild enjoying a day of freedom, exhausted chaperones, budget-conscious, hand-wringing administrators back at school -- all of these conjure troubling images for educators about field trips. These are far from the enjoyable, state-of-the-art, educational experiences that field trips could be for today's teachers and students.

For several years, the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy® (IMSA) has had longstanding partnerships with school districts throughout the state which have involved designing STEM field trip experiences that serve middle school educators and students. These field trips to the Academy are led by IMSA high school students who are enrolled in the ...

The Influence Of Advanced Cognitive Ability On The Development Of Psychological Defenses And In Understanding And Managing Affect: A Study Of Latency-Aged Gifted Students, Kahlila Ife Robinson

Dissertations and Theses, 2014-Present

The present study examines the influence of advanced cognitive ability on the development of psychological defenses and in understanding and managing affect, using the lens of Emotional Intelligence (EI). Theories of psychological defense maturity state that defense mechanisms are influenced both by the cognitive level of the individual and by the cognitive complexity of the defense itself (Cramer, 1999; Cramer, 2009). Individuals with exceptional cognitive ability may therefore show a corresponding "match" with complex defense use. In addition to defense use, how well one is able to identify, understand, manage and use emotion to facilitate thought, abilities often labelled Emotional ...

Parting Thoughts - So Much More To Discover, Eric L. Mann

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Negotiation Of Deaf Culture: Alternative Realities In The Classroom, Drew A. Hoffman '15

Student Publications

In a increasingly globalized world, family members of deaf individuals increasingly are faced with a dilemma between identification with Deaf culture or pursuing biomedical intervention in order help deaf children hear sounds artificially. The importance of this dilemma is critical at the earliest age of deaf individuals' lives, not only in early childhood, but in their school career as well. This poster attempts to not only inform about this issue, but argues for the expansion of programs at the school district level to offer equal resources and information about both options for families with deaf individuals. In so doing, it ...

Rigor And Academic Achievement: Career Academies Versus Traditional Class Structure, Linda Kyees

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this study was to determine if students who attended high school Career Academy classes, as part of Career and Technical Education, showed greater academic achievement than students who attended traditional high school classes. While all participants attended schools in the same school district, and were seeking the same goal of graduation with a standard diploma, the Career Academy students had the benefit of all classes being directed by a team of teachers who helped them connect their learning to their desired career through collaborative learning projects and assignments. The traditional high school classes taught each subject independent ...

Enrichment Programming For Secondary School Gifted Students: A Narrative Inquiry, Melissa D. Gollan-Wills

University of Western Ontario - Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The current constructivist interpretive narrative inquiry study considered the ways in which recently implemented enrichment programming on a system level was experienced by gifted secondary school learners and designated gifted teachers or contacts at the secondary schools. Through an in-depth exploration of stories of experiences that gifted students told about enrichment programming, this study offered significant insight into the unique learning needs and challenges of gifted adolescents in today’s secondary classrooms. Methods included an initial demographic questionnaire followed by a maximal variation sample of 12 participants for the second phase of the study with follow-up focus groups. Focus group ...

Code Switching: A Tool In The Classroom, Karen Marie Algarin-Ruiz

Education and Human Development Master's Theses

Abstract

There has been a tremendous growth of the Hispanic population in the United States leading to a large population of Spanish heritage speakers in our schools. Language diversity in the United States has been maintained primarily because of continuing immigration from non-English speaking countries (Gollnick & Chinn, 2009). Many school districts have adopted several types of programs to educate this growing population. One of the major issues being faced in the classroom concerns language development of learners using code switching. “Code switching, or the alternation of two languages within a single clause, sentence or turn is a complex, rule-governed use ...

Elementary School Teachers' Interpretation And Promotion Of Creativity In The Learning Of Mathematics: A Grounded Theory Study, Yinjing Shen

Open Access Theses and Dissertations from the College of Education and Human Sciences

Creativity is important for young children learning mathematics. Comparing the investment theory of creativity and national standards and principles for early mathematics shows that doing mathematics is more than applying rules and procedures; rather, learning mathematics takes a lot of creativity. However, much literature claimed that creativity for young children in the learning of mathematics was not adequately supported by teachers in the classroom due to teachers’ poor college preparation in mathematics content knowledge, teachers’ negativity towards creative students, teachers’ occupational pressure, low quality curriculum, and the like. The purpose of this grounded theory study was to generate a model ...

An Exploration Of The Factors That Motivate Gifted And Talented Black Males To Engage In Science, Technology, Engineering And Mathematics In A Gifted, Residential Community, Adrienne L. Coleman

Publications & Research

This study was an exploration of the factors that motivated gifted and talented Black males to engage in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). The specific problem addressed was the lack of motivation among Black males to become gifted and talented learners engaged in STEM. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the factors that motivate gifted and talented Black males to engage in STEM at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA), a residential academy for gifted/talented students. Qualitative methodology was used to interview focus groups of 20 gifted and talented Black males who currently attended ...

Exploring The Multiple Dimensions Of Intelligence Identity In High-Achieving Students, Amy A. Holland

Educational Administration: Theses, Dissertations, and Student Research

The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the important elements reported by second-year undergraduates at Midwestern University (MU) as they renegotiated their intelligence identity of being the smart one. The five participants were members of the 2012-2013 first-year cohort of Jumpstart Business Community (JBC). Per inclusion in JBC, the students identified as high-achieving students and/or were classified as accelerated learners in high school. The reconceptualized model of multiple dimensions of identity from Abes, Jones, and McEwen (2007) informed this study in the examination of renegotiation of the intelligence identity.

The main research question of this study was ...

Student Engagement And Action In Classroom And Community: Place-Based Education And Social Action For The High-Achieving Student, Rachel M. Jank

Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research: Department of English

This paper briefly discusses the work done in a college-preparatory, Senior English class to combat the disengagement present in many educational institutions. This disconnect does not allow for learning retention and, therefore, does not allow for students to apply the moment of learning to life outside of the secondary classroom. The work I do is based off of Jessica Singer Early, Bruce Bigelow, Linda Christensen, and many other master teachers who work with the educational designs of Place Consciousness and Social Action within their respective classrooms. The theories of John Dewey and Paulo Freire suggest that a non-traditional style of ...

Increasing Interest Of Young Women In Engineering, Diane Hinterlong, Branson Lawrence, Purva Devol

Publications & Research

The internationally recognized Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy (IMSA) develops creative, ethical leaders in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. As a teaching and learning laboratory created by the State of Illinois, IMSA enrolls academically talented Illinois students in grades 10 through 12 in its advanced, residential college preparatory program. IMSA also serves thousands of educators and students in Illinois and beyond through innovative instructional programs that foster imagination and inquiry. IMSA also advances education through research, groundbreaking ventures and strategic partnerships.

Case Study Of A Successful Educational Partnership: University Of Illinois At Urbana-Champaign And The Illinois Mathematics And Science Academy, Dave Devol

Faculty Publications & Research

This article describes partnerships between an NCSSSMST member institution and a research university and the use of student-generated survey data as a means of both professional self-reflection and asking further questions. As a chemist, I have been trained to write in the style of scientists, and in fact I teach a course at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy on the methods of science and scientific writing. This article is intentionally not written in a scientific style; rather is written to convey a story of how a partnership between institutions naturally progressed into my current area of research into motivational ...

The Value Of Creating An Innovation Talent Pipeline, Britta Mckenna

Publications & Research

Investing in the innovation pipeline today translates to Illinois business tomorrow. Somewhere between the rise of “STEM” and “staying globally competitive” in a time after Millennials is Generation Z. Gen Z digital natives are now making their way to and through primary and secondary education and we need to be ready to nurture the emerging talents of these and other future innovators. This is particularly important in Illinois where developing – and retaining – top talent will be a key driver of the state’s knowledge-based economy. There is hard work ahead reimagining what education should look like to support this budding ...