Gifted Students

Prevalence of Gifted Students

It has been estimated that 3% to 5% of the population are gifted. However, confusion persists over the question of whether that means 3% to 5% in each category or across all categories. The data provided to the Office of Civil Rights indicate that there is great variation across states, with some states identifying more than 13% of their population as gifted, while other states serve only 1%. In many cases, the proportion of identified gifted students reported is determined by state regulations specifying that funding will only be provided for a given percentage of students in a school district.

Identification

Most school districts focus on general intellectual ability (IQ) to determine giftedness, which relies on the results of intelligence and achievement tests, in combination with teacher rating scales and sometimes grades. Reliance on these assessment tools has been criticized on the grounds of narrowness of conception of intellectual abilities and the bias in using these strategies for assessing students from minority groups, low socioeconomic groups, and students for whom English is a second language.

Guidelines offered for the appropriate identification of gifted students to counter these criticisms include:

• Use instruments and procedures that are reliable and measure giftedness according to the definition of giftedness the school has adopted.
• Use separate and appropriate tools to measure different aspects of giftedness (i.e., artistic ability, intelligence tests, creativity).
• Use multiple criteria for the identification of giftedness, not a single test score or rating scale. Do not use matrices for combining scores from different assessment tools.
• Use appropriate measures and criteria for assessing underserved populations, including children from minority groups, low socioeconomic status, and those who may be both gifted and handicapped. Consider expanding sources of evidence to multiple sources of information, and include both school and nonschool performance.
• Consider assessments that reflect how students respond to instruction rather than simply snapshots of performance at one period in time (e.g., portfolios [collections of students' work], classroom observations, and responses to high-level instructional activities).

The process of identification should be a process that begins with a Child Find or a nominating process for students who may need special services because of their high ability or achievement. The nomination stage could involve multiple methods for selecting children, including scores on achievement or aptitude measures, nomination by teachers or other school personnel, and any other available valid data regarding talent. A complete profile of each nominated child is then created. A qualified placement team (e.g., a school psychologist, an expert in gifted education, a classroom teacher, an administrator) should then determine whether the profile of the student suggests a need for a different school program and/or curriculum. The identification process should lead to recommendations for placement and curricular modifications that address the identified educational or other needs of the students.

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