Overview Definition of Gifted & Talented Gifted Students in Alt. Schools Case Study The 5-D Process Summary of General Findings Identification Assessment Tools Web Resources Reflections Sourcebook (pdf) Differentiated Units

Are There Gifted Students In Alternative Schools? The Iowa Alternative Schools Project arose from the question of whether there are academically gifted and talented students in alternative schools. The project team as well as many alternative school teachers believe there are, but little, if any, research has been conducted as proof. The following information, while not specifically addressing alternative school students, supports that an initiative like The Iowa Alternative Schools Project is necessary. In their frequently referenced article, "Profiles of the Gifted and Talented," educators George T. Betts and Maureen Neihart combine observations, interviews, and literature reviews to develop six theoretical profiles of gifted and talented students. They state that gifted students vary greatly in terms of behavior, feelings, and needs and should not be perceived as one group characterized by one set of descriptors. Below is Betts and Neiharts’ varied list of gifted and talented profiles. The Successful the majority of identified gifted students successful in school popular with teachers extrinsically motivated and dependent The Challenging divergently gifted creative nonconformists who question teachers not as frequently identified as "gifted" have lower self-esteem The Underground underachievers too often female resist identification as "gifted" identify with "non-gifted" peers need alternatives and support The Dropouts angry and depressed perceive school as irrelevant pursue outside interests need counseling The Double-Labeled (most commonly referred to today as Twice-Exceptional) less-often identified physically or emotionally handicapped view weaknesses rather than gifts a priority need challenging academic experiences The Autonomous self confident and enthusiastic successful in school popular with teachers intrinsically motivated and independent risk takers While students who could be described as "successful" or "autonomous" are often easy to identify, the other four types of gifted learners ("challenging," "underground," "dropouts," and "double-labeled") frequently go unrecognized as gifted. It is possible that these are precisely the types of gifted students who are likely to attend alternative schools. Betts, G.T., & Neihart, M. (1988). Profiles of the Gifted and Talented. Gifted Child Quarterly, 32(2), 248-253. In "Gifted Dropouts: The Who and the Why," educators Joseph S. Renzulli and Sughee Park discuss their findings from comprehensive longitudinal studies of gifted high school drop outs. Below are some of their significant discoveries. A comparable percentage of gifted and non-gifted students dropped out of school between eighth and twelfth grade - indicating that students of all abilities levels could be at risk of dropping out of school 5% of the 3,520 gifted students they followed from eighth grade through high school ended up dropping out of school 5.2% of non-gifted students within the same study ending up dropping out of school Renzulli and Park’s "results indicated that many gifted dropouts were from low socioeconomic-status families and racial minority groups; had parents with low levels of education; and participated less in extracurricular activities. Also, reasons for gifted male dropouts were more related to economic issues, while reasons for gifted female dropouts were more related to personal issues, although both males and females were likely to offer school-related reasons" (p. 261). Renzulli, J.S., & Park S. (2000). Gifted Dropouts: The Who and the Why. Gifted Child Quarterly, 44(4), 261-271. While the researchers of these two articles discuss the significant issues concerning the types and prevalence of at-risk gifted students, The Iowa Alternative Schools Project is unique in that it focuses on whether or not such students in Iowa are turning to alternative schools as a means of continuing their education rather than dropping out of school. As of August 2005, The Iowa Department of Education reports that there are a total of 114 alternative schools and/or programs in Iowa. According to estimates in "Iowa Success Stories of Alternative Schools and Students" Iowa alternative schools and programs are educating between nine and ten thousand students annually (IAAE, 2004). At the national level, the 2001 "District Survey of Alternative Schools and Programs," conducted by the National Center for Educational Statistics (NCES), reported that there are 10,900 alternative programs in existence serving 612,900 students nationally. If state and national trends continue, the number of alternative schools and programs will continue to rise. It is a goal of The Iowa Alternative Schools Project to match this rise by providing alternative school educators with the ability to both identify and serve their talented students at an academic level appropriate to their ability.