Key definitions for gifted

Definition of key terms in gifted education

Ability grouping: Ability grouping refers to the “system of grouping in which students are assigned to classes based on their measured ability or their achievements” (Hollifield, 1987).

Acceleration: This method either shortens the number of years a child spends learning the K-12 curriculum or allows a child to work ahead in curriculum that is above her current grade level (Rogers, 2002).

Cluster grouping: Gifted students are grouped together in their areas of strengths, along with a heterogeneous mix of other students (Winebrenner, 1992); An administrative procedure in which identified gifted students at a grade level are assigned to one classroom with a teacher who has special training in how to teach gifted students. The other students in their assigned class are of mixed ability (Rogers, K. 2002); A group of five to eight identified students who are ready for a program of unusual rigor or pace, are placed in the classroom of one teacher who has training in how to teach exceptionally capable students. The other students in that class are of mixed ability (Gentry, 1999).

Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) students: Students from early childhood to grade 12 who represent inter- and intradiversity in cultural or ethnic minority groups, including language backgrounds other than English. For the most part, these students learn English as their second language (Castellano & Diaz, 2002). Differentiated Instruction: Instruction that is adaptable to varying levels of individual learning (Parpart, 1995); Varying the pace of instruction and learning, varying the level of rigor, and varying the complexity of material, in accordance with the needs, readiness and capabilities of students (Gentry, 1999); When several children are at about the same place, or have similar educational abilities, it is much easier to provide a challenging curriculum targeted to the needs of those students (Gentry, 1999). English Language Learners (ELL): Students for whom English is not their native language.

Enrichment: Any educational procedure beyond the usual ones for the subject or age or grade that does accelerate the student’s placement in the subject or grade (George, Cohn, Stanley, 1979).

Gifted: Students, children or youth who give evidence of high achievement capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who need services and activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop those capabilities (Education and Secondary Education Act, ESEA, 2001); Children and youth with outstanding talent who perform or show the potential for performing at remarkably high levels of accomplishment when compared with others of their age, experience, or environment. These children and youth exhibit high performance capacity in intellectual, creative, and/or artistic areas, and unusual leadership capacity, or excel in specific academic fields. They require services or activities not ordinarily provided by the schools. Outstanding talents are present in children and youth from all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in all areas of human endeavor (U.S. Department of Education, 1993); For the purposes of education, gifted children are those students in a given school or school district who are exceptional by virtue of markedly greater than average potential or ability in some area of human activity generally considered to be the province of the educational system and whose exceptionality engenders special-educational needs that are not being met adequately by the regular core curriculum (Borland, 1989); A child who is of lawful school age, who due to superior intellect or advanced learning ability, or both, is not afforded an opportunity for otherwise attainable progress and development in regular classroom instruction and who needs special instruction or special ancillary services, or both, to achieve at levels commensurate with his or her intellect and ability (A.R.S. 15-761.7).

Homogenous grouping: Grouping students of similar abilities (Rogers, 2002).

Heterogeneous grouping: Mixed ability grouping of students (Rogers, 2002).

Multi-tracked program: An adaptive form of homogenous grouping that allows students to be grouped with gifted students only in those subject areas in which they demonstrate high achievement or aptitude (Borland, 1989).

Pullout program: In this approach to providing gifted services, students spend most of their time in a regular heterogeneous classroom, but are removed or pulled out for a given period of time each week for special instruction with gifted students (Borland, 1989).

School within a school: A completely separate entity within the building in which it is housed. In this model, gifted students pursue a differentiated course of study under the tutelage of special teachers (Borland, 1989).

Self-Contained: A plan for the education of the gifted in which students are grouped into homogenous class units in which they receive all or most of their instruction (Borland, 1989).

Tracking: The process of grouping students by offering courses in academic subjects that reflect differences in students’ prior knowledge (Hollifield, 1987); A system wherein all students are grouped by ability for much of the school day, and students tend to remain in the same track throughout their years in school (Winebrenner, 1992).

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