As a TAG Coordinator of 10 years, I love and agree with all you say. Some schools do have a pull out program, and this is unfortunate. Most gifted students do ot like to be pulled out, nor do their teachers like it. I love that you wrote about working with the primary teacher, because that would solve a lot of problems. I do believe putting gifted students in classes with like gifted abilities would be perferred, but in many schools, that would not work. I have just heard this week that one school dropped their TAG program because students were getting a big head. They believed that classroom teachers differentiated very well, and are trying to just work with gifted students that way. I am a bit leary of that, because I think the gifted stdents can be lost due to the more overwhelming needs ot the other students in the classroom. Too often gifted students are used to tutor the others instead of being challenged themselves. I worked in one school that wanted me to work with the students in the subjects they were pulled out of, but the students were still expected to do the regular classroom work plus more. Also, the TAG teacher may not be able to help them in that area as well as say, the music teacher, because they don't have that training. I had a lot of programs that involved contests, and even though some teachers would not send their students to the scheduled TAG time classes, the school and teachers still expected them to be ready for the, say, Mock Trial Contest. I had to go in before school, on days I was not scheduled to work as I was 1/2 time, week-end and holidays. I lived 45 miles away for the school, so I did ask for compensation for gas, not time. The administrators did not like this, but they also did not require the TAG students to come to class as the times scheduled for them. I did always work with teachers that asked for support for the TAG students, but too many just complained about students being pulled out of their core classes. Gifted students have a right to be taught as they need to be in their areas of giftedness, but too many teachers and administrators do not seem to understand this. I agree wholeheartedly that teachers, administrators, and the TAG Coordinator must work together. Unfortunately, teachers today have many expectations, and adding one more meeting working together for the gifted students in their school seems to be too much for them. They are already stretched for time to plan and teach their classes. If administrators do not take the time to understand TAG needs, and support the TAG students and Coordinators efforts to teach TAG students, the TAG students will be the ones that have needs that are not addressed. Your article was well researched and I totally agree with you. I am just sorry that one school where I worked did not support the gifted students needs, and because of the school that dropped the TAG program due to not wanting the gifted students to get a" big head" and the parents were complained and did not understand the needs of gifted students, I believe TAG programs may still have a batle on their hands due to too many educators and parents not understanding the reason that some students do need to be challenged so they don't develop bad habits and are given chances to live up to their potential.
Thank you for this article, Deborah. During July, August, and early September of this year, I had the privilege of interacting with a young man at my hospital (he was volunteering over the summer) who is going into his senior year at a gifted magnet high school: it is called Allied Health which is a special school that prepares its students for careers in the health care field (he is interested in becoming a neuroscientist). Not long after meeting him, I just knew that he was highly gifted. We would often encounter each other at lunch, and on one occasion, the topic of SATs came up: his performance was right around where your levels four and five tend to perform on the ACT or SAT. As is characteristic of the gifted, he has a wide array of interests, and I really found it stimulating and fulfilling to talk to him.
Also, during our conversations at lunch, he expressed an interest in mathematics and was looking forward to his AP calculus course. One day, out of curiosity, I asked him if he ever saw a proof of the quadratic formula in school, and he said that he had not. He remarked that teachers don't often go very deep into the details of why various concepts work: for the most part, they are given the material and taught how to apply it. Consequently, I wrote up a proof of it, along with clarifying notes and explanations of steps, and gave it to him on a later occasion. Upon giving it to him, he looked very excited, so I decided that the next time I saw him, I would bring one of my proof-related math books (it was an extra copy of mine) with me to the hospital and see if he would be interested in it. My motivation for doing this was to provide an additional means of enrichment for him.
The next time I saw him at lunch, I explained that he would likely encounter proofs of various theorems and math results in his calculus book, and that the book itself is not designed to teach students how to read and do proofs: if he wished to understand what was going on in the proofs, then he would need access to other resources. Thus, I showed him my book, which covered key proof techniques along with including some cool tricks for proofs from calculus and other undergraduate math subjects, and he readily accepted it. On a later occasion, I also gave him another book called "How to Read and Do Proofs" by Daniel Solow. He seemed to like the fact that Solow's book contained concise summary outlines of the key proof techniques on its inner front and rear covers.
That said, it is my hope that my attempt at providing him with enrichment was helpful to him. I believe in his potential and hope that he finds a good fit in this world and experiences a fulfilling life.
This is great, Lex. Both you and this younger person got to share something you both love. I'm so glad you reached out and that he was open to your sharing. Very satisfying, I'm sure.
"Don’t worry that helping your gifted student know himself (or herself) better
… will lead to a “big head,” a know-it-all attitude, or undo vanity. True giftedness that is understood by the possessor leads to a more open understanding and acceptance of others (if it has been explained well)."
As a TAG Coordinator of 10 years, I love and agree with all you say. Some schools do have a pull out program, and this is unfortunate. Most gifted students do ot like to be pulled out, nor do their teachers like it. I love that you wrote about working with the primary teacher, because that would solve a lot of problems. I do believe putting gifted students in classes with like gifted abilities would be perferred, but in many schools, that would not work. I have just heard this week that one school dropped their TAG program because students were getting a big head. They believed that classroom teachers differentiated very well, and are trying to just work with gifted students that way. I am a bit leary of that, because I think the gifted stdents can be lost due to the more overwhelming needs ot the other students in the classroom. Too often gifted students are used to tutor the others instead of being challenged themselves. I worked in one school that wanted me to work with the students in the subjects they were pulled out of, but the students were still expected to do the regular classroom work plus more. Also, the TAG teacher may not be able to help them in that area as well as say, the music teacher, because they don't have that training. I had a lot of programs that involved contests, and even though some teachers would not send their students to the scheduled TAG time classes, the school and teachers still expected them to be ready for the, say, Mock Trial Contest. I had to go in before school, on days I was not scheduled to work as I was 1/2 time, week-end and holidays. I lived 45 miles away for the school, so I did ask for compensation for gas, not time. The administrators did not like this, but they also did not require the TAG students to come to class as the times scheduled for them. I did always work with teachers that asked for support for the TAG students, but too many just complained about students being pulled out of their core classes. Gifted students have a right to be taught as they need to be in their areas of giftedness, but too many teachers and administrators do not seem to understand this. I agree wholeheartedly that teachers, administrators, and the TAG Coordinator must work together. Unfortunately, teachers today have many expectations, and adding one more meeting working together for the gifted students in their school seems to be too much for them. They are already stretched for time to plan and teach their classes. If administrators do not take the time to understand TAG needs, and support the TAG students and Coordinators efforts to teach TAG students, the TAG students will be the ones that have needs that are not addressed. Your article was well researched and I totally agree with you. I am just sorry that one school where I worked did not support the gifted students needs, and because of the school that dropped the TAG program due to not wanting the gifted students to get a" big head" and the parents were complained and did not understand the needs of gifted students, I believe TAG programs may still have a batle on their hands due to too many educators and parents not understanding the reason that some students do need to be challenged so they don't develop bad habits and are given chances to live up to their potential.
All this is true and common. I spent a year, too, as a .5 gifted teacher for grades K-5. A pull-out program. We have a long way to go.
Thank you for this article, Deborah. During July, August, and early September of this year, I had the privilege of interacting with a young man at my hospital (he was volunteering over the summer) who is going into his senior year at a gifted magnet high school: it is called Allied Health which is a special school that prepares its students for careers in the health care field (he is interested in becoming a neuroscientist). Not long after meeting him, I just knew that he was highly gifted. We would often encounter each other at lunch, and on one occasion, the topic of SATs came up: his performance was right around where your levels four and five tend to perform on the ACT or SAT. As is characteristic of the gifted, he has a wide array of interests, and I really found it stimulating and fulfilling to talk to him.
Also, during our conversations at lunch, he expressed an interest in mathematics and was looking forward to his AP calculus course. One day, out of curiosity, I asked him if he ever saw a proof of the quadratic formula in school, and he said that he had not. He remarked that teachers don't often go very deep into the details of why various concepts work: for the most part, they are given the material and taught how to apply it. Consequently, I wrote up a proof of it, along with clarifying notes and explanations of steps, and gave it to him on a later occasion. Upon giving it to him, he looked very excited, so I decided that the next time I saw him, I would bring one of my proof-related math books (it was an extra copy of mine) with me to the hospital and see if he would be interested in it. My motivation for doing this was to provide an additional means of enrichment for him.
The next time I saw him at lunch, I explained that he would likely encounter proofs of various theorems and math results in his calculus book, and that the book itself is not designed to teach students how to read and do proofs: if he wished to understand what was going on in the proofs, then he would need access to other resources. Thus, I showed him my book, which covered key proof techniques along with including some cool tricks for proofs from calculus and other undergraduate math subjects, and he readily accepted it. On a later occasion, I also gave him another book called "How to Read and Do Proofs" by Daniel Solow. He seemed to like the fact that Solow's book contained concise summary outlines of the key proof techniques on its inner front and rear covers.
That said, it is my hope that my attempt at providing him with enrichment was helpful to him. I believe in his potential and hope that he finds a good fit in this world and experiences a fulfilling life.
This is great, Lex. Both you and this younger person got to share something you both love. I'm so glad you reached out and that he was open to your sharing. Very satisfying, I'm sure.
"Don’t worry that helping your gifted student know himself (or herself) better
… will lead to a “big head,” a know-it-all attitude, or undo vanity. True giftedness that is understood by the possessor leads to a more open understanding and acceptance of others (if it has been explained well)."
THANK YOU 🙌🏼✨