This document provides state education agencies (SEAs) and districts with guidance about how to assess a district's readiness to support school turnaround initiatives. First published in 2013, the guide has been updated in this edition to highlight how its approach to assessing district readiness embeds and reflects key components of "Four…

This article focuses on the underrepresentation of African American males in gifted and talented programs, and offers a number of key recommendations to practitioners and researchers who seek viable strategies to circumvent this problem. Beyond the focus on underrepresentation, several additional topics for discussion are excogitated to provide a…

This article describes a set of 10 positively stated commandments designed to guide professionals responsible for the academic talent development of K-12 students. The first four target identification procedures, the "who" of talent development; they ensue directly from the conceptual framework of my Differentiated Model of Giftedness and Talent.…

A program is described which was designed to develop talents among young black students. The curriculum materials are explained to be language based with emphasis on students' oral response to open ended questions. Five essential language areas are covered: expressive language, central meaning, prediction beyond the present experience, reasoning,…

Piccolo Spoleto is the youth outreach arm of Charleston's annual international culture festival; it seeks to involve young performers and young audiences in the performing arts. (SK)

Discusses the impact of technology on music education and its implications for curriculum development. Recommends a curriculum for the musically gifted based on aural skills, electronic instructional tools, and a skilled musician as instructor. Offers suggestions on how this curriculum can be implemented and expounds on the use of electronic…

This paper describes an established model leadership talent development program based on a weekend retreat combining experiential and seminar components. The conception and evolution of the program is outlined, and key components contributing to its success are described. Follow-up activities in regular academic settings throughout the year are…

Providing a rationale for continued research into the importance of art and creativity, the author decries the lack of national encouragement for the arts and urges identification and support for young artists. Indicates that continued research may lead to more positive attitudes toward art, artists, and art education in schools. (JN)

The program for academically gifted and talented at Kellogg Elementary School in Michigan includes an open house for parents. Students teach workshops in activities like painting and weaving, and parents become the students. Parents learn how to encourage creativity and how to help their children learn. (CS)

This paper describes how secondary teachers can use the Purdue Three-Stage Model as a framework for instruction that facilitates talent development in both heterogenous and homogenous classrooms. In the first two stages, students master the core content of a discipline and practice thinking creatively and critically about the content. In the third…

This paper describes mentorship programs for adolescents gifted in sciences and the creative arts in Singapore. Both programs operate under the WISE model, standing for Whole person development, Individual interests, Scholarship with support and supervised skills training, and Experiential exposure to expectations and demands in the field. (PB)

High school reform has moved to the top of the education policy agenda, commanding the attention of the federal government, governors, urban school superintendents, philanthropists, and the general public. All are alarmed by stubbornly high dropout rates, by the low academic achievement of many high school students, and by the large numbers of…

This paper was prepared as an introduction to the proceedings of a 1988 Conference on Academic Talent. The paper summarizes current National Science Foundation (NSF) policy in regard to the development of new science and mathematics curricula and describes the work of the Duke University Talent Identification Program in its efforts to reach and…

Emphasizes that music educators need to learn the terminology of the gifted and talented programs in order to be recognized as one source of such programs. Explains terminology such as enrichment, acceleration, differentiated curriculum, and the use of these terms in curriculum development. (SLM)

Although 70 percent of the 1,600 schools responding to a survey by the Sid Richardson Foundation in Forth Worth, Texas provides some sort of program for the gifted, this was often found to be only "enrichment." An example of a school system that has gone beyond enrichment is that of Frederick County, Maryland. The system provides an…