What's So Special About Special Populations of Gifted?
The Education of Special Populations of Gifted Students course provides an overview of the challenges and issues that face diverse populations of gifted students as they struggle to gain acceptance, recognition, and access to appropriate gifted education to meet their individual needs. It incorporates central issues in multicultural education that examine questions of equality and excellence; prejudice and stereotyping of special populations; and lack of awareness, understanding, and recognition manifested in discriminatory practices on the national, state, and local levels. It examines policies and procedures to screen, identify, and provide appropriate modifications to curriculum for these diverse gifted students.
The course provides an overview of types of diverse perspectives and their impact on the development of gifted abilities, such as ethnic heritage and culture, minority status, language, diverse physical and mental abilities, gender and age, socio-economic status and poverty, and diverse family structures.
Online learning is an exciting format that is a great way to learn, develop new skill sets, and share ideas with colleagues. It’s flexible (you can set your own hours), and it’s convenient (you can be just about anywhere you have an Internet connection to participate).
If you are a general education teacher or guidance counselor, this course will help expand your awareness and knowledge in order to more effectively find a program for gifted students who have been missed in the current identification processes. If you are a teacher of the gifted, the course will help you adjust your instructional practices to address the unique needs of the special populations of gifted.
The true test of the benefits that each participant derives from this online course will ultimately be measured by how many educational lives are positively affected by you.
As you make your way through the content of this course, keep in mind that parents will prove to be one of your strongest allies in the identification and education of children from these special populations. The National Association for Gifted Children’s (NAGC) website has a “Parent” section (http://www.nagc.org/resources-publications/resources-parents) that is filled with many valuable resources and links that the parents of your gifted students will find helpful. Encourage them to visit this site and tap into the information and resources that are available.
Before moving on to this week’s content, take this quiz about the myths and realities of gifted children. This quiz is based on research from The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT). Do you know the realities from the myths of identifying gifted children? Click on the graphic on the left to launch the quiz, "Distinguishing Myths From Realities," in another window. When you have finished the quiz, close the window to return to the course content.