Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Identification, Testing & Assessment Choosing Nominator for DYS application

Hi,
I'm beginning the DYS application process for my DS6 and I'm wondering if someone could advise me about who to choose for nominating him. There are 2 people I'm thinking of. One is his tutor who knows him well but is young (20 years old) with her BA. The other person has known him well since he was born but is connected to him socially rather than academically. She's in her 50's and a child psychologist with a PhD so she knows children well. Do you think the Davidson Institute would prefer one over the other? I'm also generally curious about who others chose to write the nominating letter. Thank you!

Does your child go to school? If so, you could ask his teacher for nomination ...

We chose ds's gifted teacher. Good luck!

I can't speak to what Davidson would prefer. We had my daughter's OT write it, and she was able to make some very specific observations about unusual academic abilities. I think that either of the people you describe would be fine, as long as they can describe evidence of higher-than-chronological-age functioning.

Seems like the older person has the credentials and experience to make observations about your child's abilities in relation to other kids his age, as opposed to the 20-year-old.

We asked two GT teachers to write it. They both had worked with him for 3 years in different areas. Unless something has changed I think you can still send multiple letters in.

I would ask the psychologist because Davidson may question the 20 year-old's point of reference. If I rememeber correctly and the form hasn't change in the last couple of years, there were a number of questions on the form that presupposes the writer's ability to compare the applicant to his peers in a meaningful way. As long as the psychologist isn't a family member, I would assume Davidson wouldn't automatically suspect too much bias.

Is the tutor a full-time tutor who works with many students, or is this a part-time job while she goes to school or something? When I said either would be fine, I was imagining the former. If she doesn't work with many students, then I would pick the family friend first.

Thank you so much, everyone, for weighing in! I so appreciate hearing your thoughts and experiences. My son's teacher doesn't understand him so I think going with my psychologist family friend (and the part-time tutor if multiple letters are allowed) sounds like the way to go.