![]() ![]() They launched into a 10-school pilot program led by University of Wisconsin-Whitewater professor Scott Peters, creating new ways to identify potential GT students. Their goal was to mirror the representation of each demographic group in the GT program with their population in the student body. Asian students made up 9 percent of those in the program, and only 5 percent of the student body.Īurora Public Schools set out to change this disparity after evaluating the results of the 2015-16 audit. That’s compared to white students, who amounted to 37 percent of GT students, but only 15 percent of the district’s student body. ![]() They represent 19 percent of the district population. Black students comprised just 13 percent of GT students. They represent 54 percent of the district population. Before a 2018 pilot program started, Hispanic students comprised 35 percent of all APS GT students. “It is inherent that your biases will come out,” he said of the process.ĪPS recognizes it has a history of chronically under-identify black and Hispanic students for the GT program. Lindstrom said bias coupled with standardized testing that favors white, well-off students probably hurts a black or Hispanic student’s ability to be recognized as an advanced learner. So they are less likely to recommend them for testing.īryan Lindstrom, a Hinkley High School social studies teacher and candidate for the Aurora City Council, said non-white students are disadvantaged by these subconscious biases. Research shows that teachers often have a tendency to think black and Hispanic students are less intelligent than their white and Asian counterparts. Black and Hispanic students often face racial bias from teachers, experts say. The national exam relies heavily on vocabulary skills, which are harder for students whose families haven’t fully learned English, don’t use complex sentences, or use a different vernacular. Acceptance into GT programs relies on student scores on the Cognitive Abilities Test. Now, the programs are often criticized as being more about economic privilege and racial prejudice than intelligence.īlack, Hispanic, low-income students and English-language learners face unique barriers to GT programs that other students do not. In Aurora and across the nation, the GT classes were predominantly white and Asian. These same programs, however, began fostering racial separation inside schools, according to researchers. Programs for gifted students attracted many of these families back to urban schools and provided a way to counteract the deep segregation and maintain diversity. White, middle-class families were fleeing to the suburbs as schools became integrated. These programs have been the target of criticism since the 1970s, when the concept gained momentum as demographics changes were altering urban school districts, according to a variety of studies of GT education. ![]() There are special schools, student groups, targeted classes and more, but they all focus on accelerated learning, specialized curricula and grouping students with similar learning styles. The programs themselves are as varied as the students. Students referred for consideration often sail through tasks or lessons while their peers can get frustrated. Teachers say that good candidates for GT programs often lead games on the playground. They also often look for less quantifiable behaviors. Teachers normally recommend students for consideration for the programs based on test scores or exceptional work and grades. Gifted and talented programs aim to identify students who learn differently than their peers or show a discernible aptitude in abilities, talents or potential for accomplishment. Those students were about half as likely to get GT education as whites, the study revealed.Įducation researchers refer to this disparity as “racialized tracking.” Students of color are often passed over for educational opportunities and the long-term economic benefits white GT students often get. The odds for Hispanic students were only slightly better. Reacting to the disparity, APS has changed the way it recognizes exceptional students, and now more non-Asian minorities are being tracked toward gifted and talented programs.Ī national 2016 study found that black students are three times less likely to get into a GT program than white students. It’s a problem affecting not just Aurora, but the entire nation, experts say. ![]()
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