As Jessica just wrote, we had a fubulous experience at the Teachers' Conference we attended in Manila. Several of the sessions I attended were related to music and/or dance, which were helpful. Two of the sessions, however, discussed the needs (emotional, social, academic...) of our gifted students. The arguments of the speaker were that gifted students are falling through the cracks in our schools and are not given the attention they deserve. We put lots of energy into the special needs' students (for good reason, of course, since they surely deserve all the love and help we can give them). But, in our focus and attention of the special needs students, we often forget about the needs of our academically gifted ones.
These two sessions on gifted students (one was called, "Why give 'more' to those who already 'have it already'?") greatly intrugued me and caused me to think back to my childhood and upbringing years. I thought about the factors, whether they were environmental or intra-personal, that caused me to pursue certain talents and academic subjects.
You see, we are all gifted in certain areas with the potential to do enormous things with that gift. But, it is only if/when we go through certain processes and developments that the gift evolves into a talent. Why did I pursue some gifts that I had the potential for but did not pursue others? Some gifts never ever became a talent for me--why?! It is very fascinating! Maybe it was environmental, outside conditions, like people in my life who either encouraged me or discouraged me to develop a gift. Maybe some resources and facilities/money were more available for me to hone/develop a certain talent where in other areas the resources were not available so the gift was never developed into a talent. Maybe it was the environment at home (whether negative or positive) that motivated me or discouraged me to develop the talent.
Perhaps the developmental factors in my upbringing years were more intra-personal. Was I internally embarrassed to develop a certain gift? Was I disciplined and motivated in one area more than another? Were there certain fears/anxieties in my heart that blocked me from developing the gift? Did I feel pride (in the positive sense) when I was able to accomplish and develop a certain gift? Did that motivate me to run to the limits and go all out? Or did I over-analyze what others might think and enslave myself to fear?
We know that many gifted students (students with high IQ's or with exceptional potential) often under-achieve and "dumb-down" in their education because they are not challenged enough and can get away with mediocrity. These gifted and naturally intelligent students are our possible future leaders and world-changers, so why do we not better invest in their individual needs to excel to their fullest potential?! Instead, we often allow them to slide through school as average students never ever to realize their full potential. We probably do this because we can get away with it--they won't fall behind, but though won't excel to the heights either.
The speaker also discussed emotional and social issues that gifted students experience because of their differences--we need to meet those needs as well.
A huge argument of the session was for acceleration and/or enhancement of academically gifted students--this is, of course, a major issue in educational circles. The speaker argued that if we accelerate and give special attention to naturally gifted athletes and musicians (by putting them on the varsity teams and having them start in the varsity games, playing them against teams of equal ability, teaching them private music lessons and providing extra music contests and clinics for the talented musicians), why don't we do the same thing with those who are gifted in academics, like the Maths, Sciences, languages, humanities (I realize that we already do this a little but perhaps not enough). These could be our future Einsteins and Ronald Reagans but instead might fall through the cracks if we don't seek them out and meet their needs.
Of course, sports and music seem to be more accepted areas of excellence in the peer-culture of our students (you are practically worshipped if you are a sports star in your school), whereas excellence in academics such as poetry, writing, the Maths and Sciences, and logic are sometimes viewed in a negative light (a students risks being called a nerd or a brain if he excel academically). We as teachers, parents, and adults need to praise academic excellence as much as we do in the sport and music worlds.
Allow me to close with the end of a paper that our Keynote Speaker had written: "If we deny gifted children the right to optimal development of their potential we are not only violating the principles of equity by denying them what Beazley (1984) called 'the courtesy and grace of an appropriate education', but we are failing to provide, for the generation following, the national resource of developed intellectual talent which is essential if our nations are to survive, and grow."
Saturday morning we went on an all day bike ride (or as Nate would say, a walk in the park compared to the bike trip we have planned). I have so many pictures and stories to tell you from all these exciting events, that I can't even think where to begin! Saturday afternoon we went to our Filipina Cebuano teacher's house for a birthday party and then biked home in the rain to change in time for the awards banquet at the high school. Finally we woke up Sunday morning and sang in church for Mother's Day and then got a wonderful nap that afternoon!
