July 2010

In this issue:

• From the President’s Desk
• Last Chance for SIG 2010 – Apply Now
• Early College Option at Brenau University
• Thank You for Supporting NSGT!
• Puzzle Corner
• Ask the Expert
• Game Changers Kids Competition 2010
• SAT Test Prep
• Upcoming Conferences & Events
• Host an AYA High School Exchange Student
• Spread the News
• SIG Quick Links

A letter from Barbara Swicord, President of SIG:

It’s finally officially summer in the Northern Hemisphere, but in the world of SIG, we are always in summer mode, which is a great way to be. Summer is often associated with fun activities, new adventures, and creative opportunities as our normal routines and schedules change for a period of time. Having a summer state of mind is a great way to spend the whole year, especially if you want to enhance your personal creativity. One thing we know about the creative process is that creative people are able to think about disparate ideas at the same time. They are able to avoid the obvious solution or resolution to a problem by seeing many options. The ability to critique the viability of those many options allows them to be able to create unique and unusual solutions that can lead to better outcomes than the obvious solution. Being in a summer state of mind is a playful state where we can entertain new thoughts, see humor, and not be rushed into immediate conclusions that may be less advantageous than more thoughtful ones. This is the state of mind that we seek to create in our students during SIG programs, and we hope that this summer mindset carries over into the rest of the year for them. It is also our hope that everyone can find that summer state of mind where creativity can thrive. There is certainly an abundance of situations, problems, and crises happening all year long requiring all the creativity we can muster!

In this edition of our newsletter, we offer some thoughts on ways we can look at the testing of bilingual gifted students in our Ask the Expert column. This is one area of identification that can benefit from creative approaches.

We also share a creative solution for gifted high school students who want to go to college early. Acceleration through early admissions into college is a terrific option for many students, and there are many wonderful programs across the country for these students. One such program exists at Brenau Academy in Gainesville,Georgia, and is highlighted this month by its Headmaster, Tim Daniel.

There is tremendous opportunity for creative thinking in the Game Changers Kids Competition 2010. Check it out!

There's a lot more to think about in the puzzle and all the activities going on in the summer calendar… so have a great July and we’ll see you again in August!

Barbara Swicord
President, Summer Institute for the Gifted

A very limited number of spaces are available on SIG programs that run later in the summer. Applications will be accepted on a space available basis. Don't miss out on an amazing summer with SIG – Apply today!

Apply now: www.giftedstudy.org/admissions.asp

The following SIG programs are accepting applications:

Residential Programs

• Amherst College (Amherst, MA), July 18 - August 7
• UCLA (Los Angeles, CA), July 25 - August 14
• Dartmouth College (Hanover, NH), August 1 - 21

Day Programs

• Fairfield University (Fairfield, CT), July 19 - August 6
• Stuart Country Day School (Princeton, NJ), July 19 - August 6

By Tim Daniel, Headmaster & Dean, Brenau Academy

Founded in 1928, and located on the campus of Brenau University, in Gainesville, GA, Brenau Academy is one of only a small handful of college preparatory schools in the United States directly associated with a college. As such, the Academy has long utilized its unique environment to enhance the traditional college prep boarding school experience not only for the young women who attend the school from August through May, but also for students seeking an enriching co-ed summer experience.

For decades, Brenau Academy students have had the opportunity to take college classes and earn college credits while pursuing their high school diplomas. More recently, Brenau refined its mission by instituting an “early college” option for qualified students, offering them an opportunity to earn simultaneously an Associates degree in Liberal Studies.

Having just completed its first year of formal operation (2009-10), Brenau’s Early College program is helping its students participate in what is believed to be an intensive and personal college preparatory experience. Whereas a typical prep school will offer Advanced Placement courses in a “simulated” setting while preparing for an AP test, a Brenau Academy student attends an authentic college class in an authentic college setting. With the Early College option, any student who enrolls by her sophomore year in high school has the potential to earn a two-year college degree when she graduates from the Academy.

Feedback from students, parents, and faculty alike all point to the belief that a Brenau Academy graduate will feel more comfortable when she moves on to a “full-time college program,” often enrolling as a sophomore or a junior who has already fulfilled many of that college’s basic requirements. As a result, the “early college” program does indeed advance the Academy’s aim to prepare girls for higher education.

Brenau’s mission of providing young people outstanding college preparation is not restricted to girls enrolling for the academic year. Students of both genders, ranging from the ages of 13 to 18, may come to campus for the two-week Firespark summer program. Firespark students receive a full, simulated college experience as they reside on campus, select a “major” from one of several choices for intensive study, and enjoy entertaining activities both on and off campus. Areas of study at Firespark include: Art and Design, Dance, Media and Communications, Music, Theatre, and a “Medical Scholars” program.

Learn more about Brenau Academy: www.brenauacademy.org

In just a short period of time, the National Society for the Gifted and Talented has raised almost $200 to date from GiveBackAmerica.org! Thank you to all of our shoppers who have been using NSGT's online shopping mall.

Let’s keep the momentum going! Everyone time you shop online, see if your vendor Gives Back to NSGT! Visit www.givebackamerica.com/charity.php?b=824 to find a list of participating stores.

July Puzzle

In my library is a three-volume encyclopedia. Taking it from the shelf one day, I was annoyed to see that a bookworm had eaten its way in a straight line from the first page of volume 1 to the last page of volume 3. I measured the thickness of the books and found that each was 2 ¼ inches across, the pages being 2 inches thick and the covers 1/8 inch each. How far had the bookworm travelled?

(From Mensa Brain Bafflers by P.J. Carter & K.A. Russell.)

Submit your answer online at www.giftedstudy.org/newsletter/puzzlecorner.asp. The first student who submits the correct answer will receive recognition in the next issue of The Gifted Student!

Last Month's Puzzle

A slug is at the bottom of a well and decides to make his way to the top. He climbs up 3 feet each day, but then slips back 2 feet during his night-time slumber. The well is 20 feet deep. How long does it take the slug to get to the top? (Source: Mensa Brain Bafflers by P.J. Carter & K.A. Russell)

A: 18 days

Congratulations to Yael from Coral Springs, FL, for being the first to respond with the correct answer to last month's puzzle!

Parent: What special considerations should be taken when testing/identifying bilingual students for gifted programs?

SIG: You ask a very good question that is not easily answered, as every situation and every child is different. One thing we do know for sure is that bilingual students are underrepresented in gifted programs in this country. Because the testing of these students raises multiple and complex concerns, many gifted education professionals recommend the use of multiple assessment measures to give students several opportunities to demonstrate their skills and performance potential in a wide range of areas.

The American Educational Research Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National Council on Measurement in Education have proposed guidelines for testing linguistic minorities. Their Standards for Educational and Psychological Testing includes warnings that the reliability and validity of tests may be undermined by language differences, that administering an English language test to non-English proficient students will assess only English language proficiency, that translating tests into a student's native language may corrupt the tests' reliability and validity, and that English language proficiency should be determined by more than multiple-choice paper-and-pencil tests, as suggested above.

At any given time, bilingual persons will have a temporarily stronger language and may switch back and forth between languages as they are speaking and thinking. Differences among bilinguals hail from many things—their age when arriving in the United States, what language is spoken at home and in the community, how much TV is watched, and the language emphasized in the school. We do not yet know how to measure these various influences on a student’s test-taking competence.

There are five options commonly used in testing Limited English Speakers: nonverbal tests, translated tests, interpreters, tests that are norm-referenced in the primary language, and assessments by bilingual psychologists. Four have serious limitations.

1. Nonverbal tests, used commonly, predict less reliably than verbal measures, and may even be overly sensitive to one’s language background.
   
   
2. Translated tests are always different, unknown, and unfair tests. It is easy to translate a test; it is extremely difficult to translate psychometric properties from one language to another. A word in English is simply not the same word in terms of difficulty in any other language.
   
   
3. For Hispanic children, many educational tests are available in Spanish, but these tests are for Spanish-only speaking students, with little or no exposure to English. When used with students immersed in a predominantly English culture and educational system, their error rates are unacceptably high.
   
   
4. Both trained and untrained interpreters are widely used in assessment. This practice is risky because the research on interpreters is almost nonexistent.
   
   
5. True bilingual assessment involves evaluating how a student uses the two language systems to perform selected cognitive tasks. It should be sensitive to testing issues such as speed. Further, an assessment should be capable of comparing performance on tasks across two languages. No universal instruments currently exist for doing this in every domain of assessment. The school psychologist who relies heavily on existing tests in a single language ends up with many scores but no direction for interpreting or diagnosing from them. A recommended protocol would include collecting and assessing background information on the students' family, health, and school history; language development history; results of testing; and language samples taken in the classroom and in other situations.

So, in summary, there is no easy answer to this question. At NSGT, we would encourage a multiple-method approach to the identification of bilingual students, and if testing is used, that it not be used for exclusion from gifted programs, only for inclusion, as their validity can be compromised by all the issues noted above. I am glad that you are being thoughtful about this topic, as this population is deserving of better assessment techniques that highlight their significant strength areas.

Love computers? Gaming Code? Video Games? Enter the HASTAC/MacArther Foundation Digital Media and Learning Kids Competition. Winners will be determined by the online gaming community. Winners will be selected based on “Creativity” and “Playability.”

There are two competitions you may enter:

Little Big Planet: Create an inspired LittleBigPlanet™ level with a team of 2 or 3 of your friends, or on your own, for a chance to win a PSP® PlayStation Portable device and game! Learn more at www.dmlcompetition.net/kidscomp/lbp.

SPORE: Create an inspired adventure with a team of 2 or 3 of your friends, or on your own, for a chance to win a visit to Electronic Arts, home to Spore! Learn more at www.dmlcompetition.net/kidscomp/spore.

Brought to You by the Learning Edge

The Learning Edge is an SAT tutoring program designed to significantly raise students' test scores - by up to 400 points! The Learning Edge will provide tips and practice materials to help you achieve the highest SAT score possible.

SAT Practice Problem: Math Ratio Questions

In a mixture of raisins and dates, the ratio by weight of raisins to dates is 7 to 3. How many pounds of raisins will there be in 7 pounds of this mixture?

(A) 2.1
(B) 2.3
(C) 2.8
(D) 3.0
(E) 4.9

Solution/Check your answer

Institute for Teachers of Gifted Youth
Vermillion, South Dakota
July 19 – July 20
www.usd.edu/education/gifted-camp/institute-for-teachers-of-gifted-youth

Edufest
Boise, Idaho
July 25 – July 30
www.edufest.org

New Mexico Association for the Gifted
Pathways to Gifted Conference
Albuquerque, New Mexico
July 28 – July 30, 2010
http://www.nmgifted.org

SIG Sessions beginning in July:

Amherst College (Amherst, MA)
July 18 – August 7

Boston University Academy (Boston, MA)
July 12 – July 30

Fairfield University (Fairfield, CT)
July 19 – August 6

The Overlake School (Redmond, WA)
July 12 – July 30

Princeton University (Princeton, NJ)
July 25 – August 14

Stuart Country Day School (Princeton, NJ )
July 19 – August 6

UC Berkeley 2 (Berkeley, CA)
July 11 – July 31

UCLA (Los Angeles, CA)
July 25 – August 14

University of Texas - Austin (Austin, TX)
July 11 – July 31

Since its inception, SIG has been a strong supporter of cultural diversity and international exchange. Hosting a high school exchange student is another great way to learn about other cultures and promote internationalism in your community.

Academic Year in America (AYA) gives American families the unique opportunity to host exchange students from around the world for 5 or 10 months.

AYA is also looking for temporary arrival families to host for 4-6 weeks in August and September.

Learn more about AYA.

If you are excited about what you have seen in The Gifted Student newsletter, please share it with your friends. Or send us their names and e-mail addresses, and we'll put them on our e-mail list. Write to Michelle Holleran at mholleran@giftedstudy.org with “The Gifted Student” in the subject line to subscribe.

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