A Review of Assessment Issues in Gifted Education and Their Implications for Identifying Gifted Minority Students
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DOCUMENT RESUME ED 388 024 EC 304 379 AUTHOR Frasier, Mary M. And Others TITLE A Review of Assessment Issues in Gifted Education and Their Implications for Identifying Gifted Minority Students. Research Monograph 95204. INSTITUTION National Research Center cn the Gifted and Talented, Storrs, CT. SPONS AGENCY Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED), Washington, DC. PUB DATE Feb 95 CONTRACT R206R00001 NOTE 46p.; Executive Summary on p.vii-xiii also published separately. AVAILABLE FROMNRC/GT, University of Connecticut, 362 Fairfield Road, U-7, Storrs, CT 06269-2007. PUB TYPE Information Analyses (070) Viewpoints (Opinion/Position Papers, Essays, etc.)(120) EDRS PRICE MF01/PCO2 Plus Postage. DESCRIPTORS *Ability Identification; Economically Disadvantaged; Elementary Secondary Education; Ethnic Groups; *Evaluation Methods; *Gifted; Limited English Speaking; *Minority Groups; Referral; *Student Evaluation; Teacher Attitudes; Test Bias IDENTIFIERS *Disproportionate Representation (Spec Educ) ABSTRACT This review of research and literature examines issues related to the identification of potentially gifted students from groups most likely to be underrepresented in gifted education programs, including racial and ethnic minority groups,economically disadvantaged students, and those with limited English proficiency. Three major reasons for underrepresentation are identified and discussed: (1) test bias (the most frequent attribution for underrepresentation in programs);(2) selective referrals (usually because of teacher attitudes and knowledge about minority students and the type of school students are likely to attend); and (3) reliance on deficit-based paradigms (making recognition of the strengths of minority children less likely). Recommendations for modifying traditional assessment procedures include the use of multiple criteria and nontraditional measures and procedures and modification of selection criteria. Four aspects of assessment are discussed: the construct of giftedness, the referral process, the identification process, and the process by which decisions are made using assessment information for curriculum and instructional planning. (Contains approximately 140 references.)(DB) *********************************************************************** Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made from the original document. * *********************************************************************** U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION THE NATIONAL Office ot Educattonat Research andImplovement C.) EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC, RESEARCH CENTER 00 TX; document hasteen reproduced as 00 received !torn lee person or orgamsahon ongmahng tt C Minor changes have be. ,n made to .mprove ON THE GIFTED C2) rproduchon push ty 1.11 NRC1GiT Roods ol vte 0 op.monss:atedtn ins dOCu meet dO net eeCeSerinly fewesent official OERI posttmn or pohcy AND TALENTED The University of Connecticut The University of Georgia The University of Virginia Yale University A Review of Assessment Issues in Gifted Education and Their Implications for Identifying Gifted Minority Students I 7 8 S Mary M. Frasier The University of Georgia Jaime H. Garcia The University of Georgia Athens, Georgia A. Harry Passow Teachers College, Columbia University New York, New York 7z- ;II-dilly 1995 Number 12 M)5204 BEST COPY AVAILABLE A Review of Assessment Issues in Gifted Education and Their Implications for Identifying Gifted Minority Students Mary M. Frasier Jaime H. Garcia The University of Georgia Athens, Georgia A. Harry Passow Teachers College, Columbia University New York, New York February 1995 Number RM95204 ti THE NATIONAL RESEARCH CENTER ON THE GIFTED AND TALENTED The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) is funded under the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, United States Department of Education. The Directorate of the NRC/GT serves as the administrative unit and is located at The University of Connecticut. The participating universities include The University of Georgia, The University of Virginia, and Yale University, as well as a research unit at The University of Connecticut. The University of Connecticut Dr. Joseph S. Renzulli, Director Dr. E. Jean Gubbins, Assistant Director The University of Connecticut Dr. Francis X. Archambault, Associate Director The University of Georgia Dr. Mary M. Frasier, Associate Director The University of Virginia Dr. Carolyn M. Callahan, Associate Director Yale University Dr. Robert J. Sternberg, Associate Director Copies of this report are available from: NRC/GT The University of Connecticut 362 Fairfield Road, U-7 Storrs, CT 06269-2007 Research for this report was supported under the Javits Act Program (Grant No. R206R00001) as administered by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education.. Grantees undertaking such projects are encouraged to express freely their professlonal judgement. This report, therefore, daes not necessarily represent positions or policies of the Government, and no official endorsement should be inferred. Note to Readers... All papers by The National Rnsearch Center on the Gifted and Talented may be reproduced in their entirety or in sections.All reproductions, whether in part or whole, should include the following statement: Research for this report was supported under the Javits Act Program (Grant No. R206R00001) as administered by the Office of Educational Research and Improvement, U.S. Department of Education. Grantees undertaking such projects are encouraged to express freely their professional judgement. This report, therefore, does not necessarily represent positions or policies of the Government, and no official endorsement should be inferred. This document has been reproduced with the permission of The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented. If sections of the papers are printed in other publications, please forward a copy to: The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented The University of Connecticut 362 Fairfield Road, U-7 Storrs, CT 06269-2007 A Review of Assessment Issues in Gifted Education and Their Implications for Identifying Gifted Minority Students Mary M. Frasier Jaime IL Garcia The University of Georgia Athens, Georgia A. Harry Passow Teachers College, Columbia University New York, New York ABSTRACT This review examines research and literature that deal with assessment, with the focus on issues related to die identification of potentially gifted students from racial and ethnic minority groups, economically disadvantaged students, and those with limited English proficiency. This is the population given the highest priority in the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act of 1988the students deemed to be at the highest risk for going un-ecognized and not being provided with appropriate and adequate educational services. The review provides background information concerning the issues that affect the identification of gifted minority students, suggests implications for developing more effective identification procedures, and proposes directions for formulating a new approach to the resolution of the problems of identifying gifted minority studentsa population that is seriously underrepresented in programs for the gifted. The literature reviewed ranges from research to speculative opinion, from theory to practice, all of which is deemed relevant and important to the discussion of assessment issues and implications for identifying gifted minority students. Although there is consensus that gifted children can be found in every level of society and in every cultural and ethnic group, there is little question that minority and economically disadvantaged students are not found in programs in proportionate numbers. Their underrepresentation has bmn attributed to a variety of historical, philosophical, psychological, theoretical, procedural, social, and political factors. Each of these factors, singularly and in combination, has impacted the assessment of giftedness in minority student populations. Three major reasons for underrepresentation are discussed: (a) Test Bias. By far, underrepresentation of minority participation in programs for the gifted is most frequently attributed to biases in standardized testingcharges that tests are, for various reasons, prejudiced or unfair to ethnic minorities, the economically disadvantaged, and individuals whose first language is not English. (b) Selective Referrals. Minority and economically disadvantagecl students are not referred for programs for the identification of gifted to the same extent as majority students and are thus denied further consideration. Two factors have a significant influence on the underreferral process: teacher attitudes toward and knowledge about minority students and the type of school these students are likely to attend. 6 (c) Reliance on deficit-based paradigms. The focus on deficits makes recognition of the strengths of minority children difficult and, in addition, detracts from needed structural changes in schools and the manner in which they are organized and operated. In addition to proposals for dealing with assessment-related problems by designing strategies for reducing or eliminating test bias, improving the referral process strategies, and stressing cultural strengths rather than cultural deficits, other recommendations for modifying traditional assessment procedures include: (a) the use of multiple criteria