Issues connected with knowledge acquisition through the development of complex computer programs--Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITSs)--are discussed. The components of such a system and its applications are considered, including: elicitation of knowledge, tutoring with incomplete/uncertain knowledge, self-improving tutoring systems, and…

Undergraduate education students (n=111) and graduate students (n=79) with teaching experience indicated resemblances among 20 different kinds of abilities in which 12-year-olds might excel. Both groups of teachers agreed on five categories of giftedness: analytic/cognitive ability, personality and social skills, creative arts, motor skills, and…

Describes how an undersupported rural elementary school in Mississippi became a model school with the unique Voyages curriculum. Under the dynamic, professional leadership of its principal, the school and teachers involved the entire community, local legislators, and others to gain support and funds for its innovative program that created an…

Suggests ways to desegregate education programs for the gifted and to redress inequities in gifted education. The usefulness of contemporary definitions of giftedness, theories of intelligence, and assessment practices in identifying gifted students are discussed. Retaining African Americans in gifted programs is also considered. (SLD)

The responses of 194 fifth graders to a questionnaire assessing causal attributions, academic expectancies, and self-evaluation of smartness varied as a function of whether the questionnaire was administered individually or in a group. Children expressed lower and less accurate predictions in the individual condition than in the group condition.…

Four studies involving 172 Australian children (133 males and 39 females) were conducted to investigate the usefulness of the British Ability Scales (BAS) as an alternative to the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R). The BAS was found to be a suitable alternative to the WISC-R. (SLD)

The results of four early intervention studies are analyzed and found to make a strong case for expecting educable-level achievements from children with Down syndrome. The importance of functional indicators of educability that can complement intelligence test results in determining an appropriate educational placement is stressed. (Author/JDD)

Argues that the power arrangements existing in schools before integration were the same as those existing after integration, with only the pathways of articulation different. One modality supporting segregation was replaced with another; both were supported by the discursive practice of grouping students by native intelligence. (SLD)

Average performance on subtests of the Iowa Tests of Educational Development was compared for 177 high school students taking the test under silent reading (standardized) conditions and time limits and students listening to audiotapes of test material as they read the test. Poor readers were helped by the tapes. (SLD)

Production of the meta-data supporting the Informedia Digital Video Library interface is automated using techniques derived from artificial intelligence research. Speech recognition and natural-language processing, information retrieval, and image analysis are applied to produce an interface that helps users locate information and navigate more…

Evaluated the longitudinal implications of age-18 dysphoric mood in 23-year olds using a multidata, multi informant design. Findings indicated that adolescent dysphoric mood was an important predictor of psychological distress in young adults, especially in young adult women, for whom the prospective correlations of adolescent dysphoria were more…

Explored whether there were differences in IQ and achievement (at grades two, five, and seven) between students who delayed school entry and those who were retained in later elementary grades, as well as any interactions with gender. Concluded that instructional reform may be more effective for improving student success. (JBJ)

A total of over 400 parents, teachers, therapists, and child development specialists in early intervention and preschool programs evaluated the ABILITIES Index, which describes the functional abilities and limitations of children across 9 domains. Satisfaction ratings across five dimensions were generally positive, with parents consistently rating…

This article describes critical events that have shaped gifted education, including: closing of one-room schoolhouses, the industrial revolution, the space race, the civil right movement, legislation for special education, growth in technology and information services, educational research, and advocacy. Missed opportunities and future…

This article describes critical events that have shaped gifted education, including: Renzulli's definition of giftedness, Sputnik, the Marland Report of 1971, and the development of the National Association for Gifted Children, the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented, and the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children. (CR)