This article discusses concepts related to character strengths and positive youth development and how these ideas can be applied to improve outcomes among gifted young people. A theory with roots in public health, The Theory of Triadic Influence (TTI), is discussed with examples applied to gifted populations. Practitioners and researchers from…

This paper suggests methodologies and guidelines appropriate for evaluating projects in the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Program. The paper aims to help projects carry out their evaluations, assist the Javits staff in determining the success of the evaluations, and aid in long-range program planning. (JDD)

A rationale is presented for the systematic evaluation of gifted/talented education programs, citing the consequences of failure to carry out such evaluation. Historically, evaluation of gifted programs was not emphasized, as the evaluation process involved experimental designs, control groups, and parametric statistics which could only be…

These two newsletters of The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) present articles concerned with research on the education of gifted and talented students. The articles are: "NRC/GT's Suggestions: Evaluating Your Programs and Services" (E. Jean Gubbins); "Professional Development Practices in Gifted Education: Results of a…

A rationale for using better research designs in evaluating gifted programs is considered. Some definitions of research designs are presented along with evaluation results of a summer program at Northwestern University. The role of research design in evaluating course products, and attitudes is examined via a case study. (Author/CL)

The article presents and illustrates use of an evaluation model for assessing programs for the gifted where tight experimental control is not possible. The model consists of four components: ex post factor designs including intact groups; comparative evaluation; strength of treatment; and multiple outcome assessment from flexible data sources. (DB)

This newsletter focuses on six Year 1 research projects associated with the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT). The updates address: "Regular Classroom Practices With Gifted Students: Findings from the Classroom Practices Survey" (Francis X. Archambault, Jr. and others); "The Classroom Practices Study:…

These two newsletters from the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) contain the following articles: (1) "NRC/GT: Professional Development--Not an Event" (E. Jean Gubbins), discusses NRC/GT research-based principles related to professional development and the importance of ongoing professional development; (2)…

The paper describes a naturalistic evaluation study of an enrichment program for gifted learners in Newfoundland. The pull-out program (for two half days out of six) is described in terms of audience concerns and issues, standards, program components, and data-generating techniques (observations and interviews). The evaluation led to a report…

The evaluation of gifted programs is examined in terms of setting group and individual goals, measurement problems (validity, reliability, precision, ceiling effect, and overtesting), comparison groups (national norms or pre- and posttesting), and implementing evaluation strategies. (DB)

Review of solicited gifted program evaluation reports and the literature found a relative paucity of such reports as well as a lack of methodological sophistication, reporting, and utility concerns. Promising practices were seen in some evaluations conducted for program improvement, which employed multiple methodologies, sources, analysis…

The REDSIL model for ongoing evaluation of gifted education programs involves interviewing stakeholders, isolating and categorizing critical study issues, designing a data collection plan that uses several forms of qualitative methods, implementing the plan, analyzing data, searching literature relative to each issue, analyzing data again, and…

A Lesson Plan Evaluation Form was developed to provide systematic quantitative data about classroom functioning in an elementary-level gifted program. Plans (n=137) from 15 teachers were analyzed, and useful information about program functioning was obtained in a cost-effective manner. Data obtained were consistent with data from more traditional…

This document considers both self-examination and external evaluation of gifted and talented education programs. Principles of the self-examination process are offered, noting similarities to external evaluation models. Principles of self-evaluation efforts include the importance of maintaining a nonjudgmental orientation, soliciting views from…

This article describes the database of the National Repository for Instruments and Strategies Used in the Identification and Evaluation of Gifted Programs (University of Virginia). The Scale for the Evaluation of Gifted Identification Instruments is applied to the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children. A sample bibliographic reference from the…