New Report: Benefits of "Acceleration" for Gifted Students

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A seemingly eternal debate in education is: what do we do about the student who is capable of working well above grade level? Does he become a “tutor” within the classroom, for example? Is he allowed to complete his grade-level work quickly and then pursue something he is more interested in, on his own? New research on the topic suggests that neither strategy is adequate.

At the Belin-Blank International Center for Gifted Education and Talent Development at the University of Iowa’s College of Education, these issues have long been particular areas of concern.  The Center’s 2004 report, “A Nation Deceived: How Schools Hold Back America’s Brightest Students,” provided research demonstrating that gifted students nationwide are, far too often, being poorly served or left drifting, rather than being empowered and challenged.

The report argues that acceleration strategies – from Advanced Placement courses or advancement in one subject, like math or science, to grade-skipping and early graduation – are precisely what gifted students need, but are often seen as either unnecessary or potentially harmful to the student’s social and emotional development. Skipping a grade might cause a child to be unable to start or maintain friendships, for example; or, taking too many Advanced Placement courses might cause a gifted student to “burn out.” This is simply not the case for the vast majority of gifted students, according to evidence in the report.

This year’s recent follow-up, “A Nation Empowered: Evidence Trumps the Excuses Holding Back America’s Brightest Students,” contains some encouraging stories about successful acceleration efforts, but they are mainly anecdotes; the report’s authors remain frustrated that little has changed in terms of policy at the district, state, or national levels.

“Only nine states have policies explicitly permitting acceleration of gifted students,” they write, and one state, Louisiana, prohibits it. “Sixteen states prohibit early entry to kindergarten.”

The research shows that many biases against acceleration, such as the fear that children will feel awkward with older classmates, are unfounded. Worries about grade skipping are still very common among educators, however, and parents who attempt to advocate in favor of acceleration – either for their own children or in broader policy debates – tend to meet a great deal of well-intentioned resistance.

With very few teacher general-training programs offering more than a cursory look at gifted education policy and the pedagogy of working with gifted students, many teachers simply have not seen the research or had the conversations that might open up their opinions about acceleration or at least allow for more coherent school- and district-level policymaking.

What is happening in your school or district around issues of accelerated learning? Have you encountered any particularly-compelling research or stories on the different sides of the issue? What questions would you like to ask educators, parents, or other stakeholders about the risks and benefits of acceleration?