When I was young, I was lucky enough to have a mom that recognized my talent for getting straight A’s and a need to learn more. I was 9 years old. Although she made a modest income as a nurse’s assistant, she enrolled me in a private academy for gifted children. Although I didn’t want to leave my public school, and at first felt out of place at the Academy, I quickly enjoyed the academic challenges and rigor. I look back on those days with fondness, and had the opportunity to teach there briefly.
This mother’s day I’d like to dedicated this post to my mother, who, despite a small income and a skeptical husband, understood my need for real educational opportunities. If not, I would’ve quickly gotten bored with the remedial lessons and found other things to occupy my time…and they may not have been educational.
Gifted children are the last “frontier”; the last aspect of public education to get adequate recognition and support. Misconceptions about what “gifted” really means, and what their needs are sometimes get in the way of real support. It’s awful to imagine that maybe a huge percentage of children who act out and drop out of school are simply frustrated with the lack of real academic rigor and substantive information in class. The fact is, gifted children are different. They see, hear, interpret and speak differently. For the gifted child, learning, relating and reacting appropriately can be a difficult and painful process. They are perfectionists, needful of precision and logic, specific information, and they are acutely self-aware. If the last few decades have been about raising awareness and support for special education–children with real learning disabilities–then the next few should be focused on not just ignoring our bright star students, but nourishing their academic curiosity and helping them reach their potential. Who knows? They are our next generations’ leaders and innovators.
Tags: Feminism, gifted education, girls in education, mothers day
The Chatter