Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Regions Gifted Legislation

I see your revenue point. I disagree with the proficiency tests though. I see GS9 reading more into a 3rd/4th grade question, and getting it wrong, than I see him having problems with 5th/6th grade questions. An indepth knowledge of a typical 3rd/4th grade subject will have the child questioning some of the answers more than a surface knowlege might present.

Hi Mark,

I know I've mentioned this before, but New Mexico is in the process of radically changing its gifted legislation (big step backwards) by removing it from the special education umbrella. Districts will be required to identify gifted students and provide "gifted programs" but there will not be add-on funding (we know what this means!). Currently House Bill 241 has no individualized plan requirement, so the programs offered could be inclusion, enrichment, or whatever--left up to the districts' discretion.

There are a series of legislative committee sessions going on this fall to get input from the community about the bill and a specific inquiry about how it will affect gifted children (comments are due Aug 29th). The NM Association for the Gifted is rallying advocacy (see www.nmgifted.org).

Hi Kickball,
Sorry to be late to respond, but yes, I agree that Gradeskipping isn't the final answer, or good for everyone, and that 'having a policy' isn't the same as having a good policy. But I'm still excited, as I believe that the atmousphere at a school changes for the better for almost every kid when one kid skips successfully.

One of the key weirdnesses of schools in general is this "All grouped together by age all the time" thing which is so seldom questioned.

I like policies explicit. When we asked our local public school, they didn't even have a clue where to start. They gave IQ and achievement tests and then denied even subject acceleration, and tried to convinse us that in the Middle School they had 'handfuls of kids just like him.' I'm not kidding or exagerating here. ((LOL - I didn't think to ask that if there were handful of kids who are 'like' my 4th grader, shouldn't my 4th grader be in Middle school? OR If there are handfuls of kids in the Middle School who are 'like' my son, where are they now in the elementary school? Is there some magic dust that is distributed at the 5th grade graduation ceremony?))

Anyway - the real magic is that most kids doesn't need school to be a perfect fit. It's like the difference between personally taylored clothing, off the shelf clothing, and wearing a plastic bag with holes for your head and hands. For my son, pre-skip, It was as if I was sending him to school in a plastic bag with holes. After I advocated for him, it was as if the school provided duct tape to hold the bag in place. After the skip is was as if we had a whole row of ready made clothing for him to try on and see if they fit. A big improvement. Enough? We'll see.

((For those of you who are totally confused, my son left the public school after 4th grade, and got his skip at a private school. This year he is returning to the public school district and keeping his skip. I'm thinking things will go really well..))

Love and More Love,
Grinity

Has anyone heard about this:

U.S. Sen. Grassley: Gifted and Talented Education Provisions Included in Higher Education Bill that Clears Senate
7/31/2008

For Immediate Release
Friday, August 1, 2008

Grassley Gifted and Talented Education Provisions Included in Higher Education Bill that Clears Senate

WASHINGTON � Senator Chuck Grassley today said that provisions for gifted and talented education that he has pushed for were included in the Higher Education Authorization Bill that passed the Senate today. The bill has already passed the House of Representatives, so it will now go to the president to be signed into law.

The bill includes Grassley provisions that would require teacher preparation programs receiving grants through the bill to improve the knowledge of new teachers about the unique needs of gifted and talented students.

�The vast majority of teacher preparation programs do not require prospective classroom teachers to have coursework in gifted education. If teachers aren't exposed to information about the needs of gifted students in their pre-service training, they may never acquire the necessary knowledge,� Grassley said. �This is a common-sense provision to ensuring teachers are exposed to the needs of gifted students, who have distinct approaches to learning and interacting socially.�

Current law provides funds to partnerships among teacher preparation institutions, schools of arts and sciences and high-need school districts to strengthen new teacher education and allows these partnerships to use funds for preparing teachers to work with diverse populations. The Grassley provisions included in the Higher Education Authorization bill require that any teacher preparation institution receiving a grant reform its curriculum to ensure that prospective teachers develop the skills to identify and meet the specific learning needs of gifted and talented students, as well as other special populations of students.

Grassley has been the leading advocate for talented and gifted children in the U.S. Congress and has worked to ensure that they have access to the education needed to reach their full potential. Grassley advanced legislation that would expand the availability of gifted education services and he was successful in expanding the benefits available for gifted students through the No Child Left Behind Act.

Uh... good but what actionable benefits to gt in nclb. not being snide but am i missing something?

Not sure if the NCLB cow will ever give milk for our kids, but I am excited about a move to get teacher training to include training to meet the needs of their gifted children.

LOL!!!!!!!!!

Why pay for the milk if you can reach through the fence and milk the cow for free??

I think the biggest thing is to ID the kids before they fall through the cracks. This is the first step.

I'm not sure I agree 100%. So the school says your gifted but provides zero services. I almost think it is more criticial in areas where the parents may be more overwhelmed with 'life' to realize their child's gifts or have time to enrich... but again how do they not fall between cracks if they have a labble but no demand to serve? It continues to be steps in the right direction. I'm still wistfully optimistic that in ohio where the language keeps getting stronger... that funding and legislation will follow demands to id.

Kickball, Grinity and Cym - Thank you for the legislative info you provided!

FYI - here is a link to the eNews-Update that just went out: http://news.ditd.org/August_08/eNews_August08_web.htm.

To sign up for the eNews, click on the "Subscribe to e-Newsletters" link under "Links" in the top-left corner of this page.

Thanks,
Mark