This second edition merges new ideas in character education research with best practices in schools and districts. The book provides the most up-to-date and comprehensive framework for K-12 administrators, educators, and concerned citizens. It offers easy access to practical and proven methods supported by in-depth rationale. The book highlights…

This book provides information on 80 international, national, and regional academic competitions available to gifted students. An overview of characteristics of good competitions and ways to evaluate them is given. Competition and its impact on gifted and talented students are evaluated, and criteria are given for selecting and implementing…

This article describes several books published by Free Spirit Publishing which help gifted students to understand their giftedness. The books deal with such issues as parental pressure, teasing of peers, perfectionism, stress, underachievement, personal autonomy, self-esteem, lying, and strategies for success in school. (JDD)

To help reverse the underachievement pattern in gifted students, educators should seek out less-evident indicators of strengths and abilities, incorporate those abilities into the classroom curriculum, recognize evidence of a sustained will to learn, and be realistic and optimistic about signs of improvement. (PB)

In this interview, concern is expressed regarding the low number of students being served in gifted programs. Giftedness is defined in terms of above average ability, creativity, and task commitment. The parents' role in stimulating their children's creativity and intelligence is discussed, as are ability grouping versus tracking, and curriculum…

This monograph is divided into three main sections: theoretical grounding, student identity, and implications. The first section, theoretical grounding of parental involvement, looks at the reasons parents today are more likely to be involved in their students' lives and then reviews the literature of K-12 education and compares that information…

A school psychologist briefly describes the use of academic coaching with gifted students who are underperforming possibly because of a disability such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Coaches are urged to first, review the student's assessment data; second, determine the student's ability to benefit from coaching; third, determine…

Guidelines are presented to assist in establishing programs to meet the needs of students who are both gifted and learning disabled. The guidelines suggest focusing attention on development of the giftedness, offering a nurturing environment that values individual differences, teaching compensation strategies, and developing awareness of…

Interviews with 169 children labeled 10 years earlier as gifted, nonlabeled but equally able, or having average ability revealed significant intergroup differences in work patterns and emotional outcome. Intense academic study possibly inhibited creative development; parents and teachers should be aware of the possible loss of creative potential…

Two brief papers provide reasons to support self-determination for students with disabilities, with one paper written from the perspective of educators and one written from the parents' perspective. Each paper discusses 11 benefits of self-determination, including: (1) personal control, (2) motivation, (3) prosocial behaviors, (4) self-awareness,…

This first part of a two-part paper discusses how the conception of giftedness has been changing, the influences of home and school, characteristics of very able learners, and the understanding and support needed from parents and teachers. (DB)

In a question-and-answer format, this pamphlet offers a rationale for having students with dyslexia attend a junior boarding school. The information focuses on: criteria for determining appropriateness of a specialized boarding program; most appropriate age for referral; helping parents deal with their anxiety; benefits of a boarding school over…

A survey of 73 parents, most having gifted children, examined perceptions of the development of leadership abilities. Parents identified: leader characteristics; their children's strongest and weakest areas of leadership skills; methods for encouraging leadership development; school opportunities for leadership experiences; the role of teachers,…

Ideas for schools to support tolerance and celebrate student diversity are presented in this volume of reprinted articles. Titles include: (1) "One of Us, One of Them: Lessons in Diversity for a School Psychologist" (M. M. Chittooran); (2) "The Tolerance-in-Action Campaign" (H. M. Knoff); (3) "Immigrant Parents and the…

A mother reviews the radical acceleration of her high school daughter who will enter college at the age of 14. She recounts both positive and negative experiences during elementary and middle school, the encouragement of individual educators, flexible scheduling to allow taking advanced courses at other institutions, and barriers of school system…