Gifted English Language Learners

[Timothy Gangwer]

Author - Timothy Gangwer, M.A.

CEO & Professional Development Specialist,

Visual Teaching Alliance

April 14, 2016

Gifted English Language Learners

Who are English Language Learners and are we fulfilling their educational needs?

There is often a stereotypical definition of gifted students, but does this view

include gifted learners at risk; gifted students of poverty; bilingual and immigrant

gifted learners? It is critical to the success of these students that we can properly

identify them and meet their needs without the bias of culture, limited English

proficiency and socioeconomic background.

Who is an English Language Learner? The short answer, according to the U.S.

Department of Education, is that any student whose home language is not English

and whose English language proficiency is considered limited. The Bilingual

Education Act defines an English Language Learner or Limited English Proficient

student as fitting any of the following criteria: Not born in the United States and

whose heritage language is not English; of American Indian or Alaskan heritage

and who comes from an environment where the dominant language is not English;

a migratory person whose heritage language is not English; or a person who has

difficulty speaking, reading, writing, or understanding English, which denies him/

her the opportunity to learn effectively in classes where instruction is in English.

Gifted Students At Risk

Every year, over 1.2 million students drop out of high school in the United States alone.

That’s a student every 26 seconds – or 7,000 a day (Miller, Tony, 2015).

About 25% of high school freshmen fail to graduate from high school on time. (Silver,

David, Marisa Saunders, and Estela Zarate, 2015.)

Almost 2,000 high schools across the U.S. graduate less than 60% of their students

(Balfanz, Robert, and Nettie Legters, 2004).

In the U.S., high school dropouts commit about 75% of crimes (Smiley, Travis, 2013).

E. Robertson's 1991 article in Equity and Excellence on "Neglected Dropouts: The Gifted

and Talented" said 18-25% of GT students drop out. This number is questionable at best,

yet it is not surprising that gifted students are indeed a part of the dropout rate in the

United States. Why? Studies have shown evidence of recurring frustration, irritability,

anxiety, tedium and social isolation, particularly with students whose IQ’s are greater

than 160. They have difficulty making friends, experience de-motivation, low

self-esteem, and an emotional awareness beyond their ability to control. This may lead to

loneliness, phobias, interpersonal problems, and the fear of failure and perfectionism.

This can ultimately lead to our educator’s fear of gifted students’ intentional

underachievement for social acceptance. Gifted English language learners have joined the

procession of the population of students dropping out of school.

I was riding in a cab in Dallas when the driver asked me my profession. After further

conversation, he informed me that he was considered gifted in his homeland

of Mexico. He and his family relocated in Texas when he was in middle school. By the

time he reached high school, he was frustrated by his lack of progress and lack

of placement into an appropriate program. He felt he would be better off by joining the

informal learning strategies of society and became a part of our dropout statistics.

Granted, there are many missing variables and unanswered questions in his story. Still, as

I watched him drive away I wondered what could have made the difference in his

academia. I knew there was no “one” specific answer, but I felt that with enough poking

and prodding I might be able to uncover enough information to challenge my fellow

educators and myself to continue the important ongoing quest for change.

Insights Into Gifted and Talented English Language Learners

Many schools lack the ability to identify gifted English language learners

adequately. Instruments tend to follow a middle-class mainstream basis of

measurement leading to systematic-bias. Our teachers and appraisers may lack

cultural awareness due to inadequate training, and in many cases, rely on the

administration of a single test. We find our minority language learners left out of

the identification process.

An initial screening of a standardized measure may not reflect the cultural and

linguistic characteristics of diverse populations. Self-assessment can be biased by

what students’ peers, teachers and parents think of them.

Strategies of an Identification Process

Nationally, 32 states, including Arizona, mandate gifted education, according to

the National Association For Gifted Children. Only four fully fund gifted

programs, (2014-15 State of the States in Gifted Education, Policy and Practice

Data). Few, if any, require that English language learners be tested. The

identification process varies nationally because policies and procedures emerge

from state and local levels. The common thread remains in the standardized tests.

There is a variety of nonverbal tests available, including: Naglieri Nonverbal

Abilities Test (NNAT); Comprehensive Test of Nonverbal Intelligence (CTONI);

Universal Nonverbal Intelligence Test (UNIT); Test of Nonverbal Intelligence,

Third Edition (TONI-3); Leiter R (Roid & Miller, 1997) and; The nonverbal

subtest of the CogAT.

Authentic assessment information is critical to identification. These may include:

collecting background data and work samples; portfolio evaluations; determining

the language proficiency; documenting the cultural and socioeconomic

background; home environment and parents’ educational level; parent school

involvement; work samples from home and school to assess creativity;

observation of the student’s language and social behaviors; use of the gifted and

talented English language behavioral profile; examination of cultural and

linguistic behaviors; the prevalence of cultural canons and; looking for

inconsistencies among the standardized testing instruments.

Information gleaned through school, culture and language-based domains is a

highly recommended addition to the information needed for identification.

Consider the answers to the following questions: Does the student...

• have the ability to read in his/her native language two grade levels above their

current grade level?

• show high proficiency in mathematics?

• demonstrate advance levels of creativity in the areas of originality, fluency,

flexibility and elaboration?

• show leadership in diverse settings, such as school, home, clubs and

community?

• balance behavior anticipated in both heritage and new culture?

• demonstrate a respect for cultural differences and have a sense of a global

community?

• show willingness to share his/her heritage culture?

• take honor in his/her culture and ethnicity?

• demonstrate proficiency levels higher than non-gifted students who are also

English language learners?

• utilize code switching?

• want to teach classmates words from his/her heritage culture?

• demonstrate a willingness to translate for others?

• learn several languages at an advanced rate?

• have an understanding of humor related to cultural differences?

In many cases English language learners are now in an environment dissimilar to

most of their experiences. There remains a disconnection between their home and

their newfound life outside the home. The school curriculum is seemingly

irrelevant to their lifestyle, leading to a sense of alienation. They often feel inept

due to the language barrier. What can your district/school do?

Primarily, be united in your commitment to an ongoing revamping of gifted

education that includes and embraces the needs of English language learners.

Establish a strong collaborative effort across programs that invite and support

different points of view. Broaden your view of giftedness and focus on an

identification process that includes, but is not limited to, standardized and

authentic assessment, teacher recommendations, and the consideration of

socioeconomic background, language and culture. Put together an action plan

with flexibility and realistic timelines that includes a clear and logical plan of

inclusive gifted education. Maintain a strong parent program with consistent

involvement and understand that your gifted English language learners may come

from poverty backgrounds. Be willing to build a carefully manicured program

with strength, positive results, and longevity.

Strategies for Teaching English Language Learners

Provide students with an array of visual, auditory and tactile learning. This will

assist them to become empowered in the learning process. Materials can be

designed to meet the students’ learning styles, while complementing their cultural

experiences. The content should be rich and engaging, and relevant to their life

experiences.

“Most people, approximately 65 percent, are visual learners who have something

like a little camera that captures information and shines it up on a mental

screen” (Kranzler, 1999). “90% of information transmitted to the brain is

visual” (Gubern (2010). Many gifted English language learners are strong visual

spatial learners. They have hypersensitive nervous systems that absorb a an

abundance of sensory stimulation. “To varying degrees these children experience

extreme sensitivity to physical stimuli, particularly sound, light and touch

(Blackburn & Erickson, 1986). “Our eyes can register 36,000 visual messages per

hour” (Jensen, 1996). Emphasizing visual literacy (the ability to encode, or create

a visual language, and the ability to decode, or understand the visual language)

can be done using graphic organizers, charts, graphs and figures. When using

DVD/video, be sure closed captioning is on and that the student has the remote,

enabling them to pause and discuss. With group projects and cooperative learning,

consider partnering English learners with strong English speakers. Encourage

participation and use the Think/Pair/Share method. As the student develops the

language, use language-based games, such as Bingo and Pictionary. Picture

glossaries can translate into a word wall, such as posting new vocabulary words

on a wall organized in a group fashion.

Dual Language Programs

Dual language programs, which provide instruction in both English and a second

language, are beneficial for both English language learners and those fluent in

English. In 2000, United States Secretary of Education Richard Riley, called on

our nation to recognize the need for dual language programs, “In an international

economy, knowledge, and knowledge of language, is power.”

In 2007, English was not the first language for more than 731,000 children

attending Texas public schools (Scharrer, 2007). The Texas Education Agency

states that about a sixth of the almost 5 million students in public and charter

schools are classified as “limited English learners” (Solis, 2012). Of course these

programs can only be as effective as the number of educators available to teach

them. The common thread weaving through our English language learners, Gifted

English language learners and the dual language programs is its primary goal of

high academic achievement.

Conclusion

Although the years have provided us with leaps and bounds, we remain deep in

the exploratory process of identifying and meeting the needs of gifted English

languages learners. The one issue we can all agree on is that there is no cookiecutter

process. As new research becomes available, we root our strategies in place

often finding they must be altered the following year. Administrators, teachers,

parents and advocacy groups are all a vital component of forward momentum.

There are over 7,000 languages spoken in the world today. According to the

Global Languages Initiative at Northwestern University research on who is

proficient in at least two languages - 56% of Europeans, 35% of Canadians, 66%

of the world’s population, and only 17% of Americans. Multilingualism should

never be an obstacle in education. It is an asset to learning that opens many doors

in the lifelong learning process. I conclude with the words of Psycholinguist

Frank Smith, “One language sets you in a corridor for life, two languages open

every door along the way.”

REFERENCES

Balfanz, R. & Legters, N., (2004). Locating the Dropout Crisis. Center for Social

Organization of Schools at Johns Hopkins University's School of Education.

Baltimore, MD.

Blackburn, A. C. & Erickson, D. B. (1986). Predictable Crises of the Gifted Student.

Journal of Counseling and Development, V9, pp552-5

Gubern, R. (2010). Metamorfosis de la lectura. Published by Editorial Anagrama.

Jensen, E., (1996). Brain-Based Learning. Turning Point Publishing, Del Mar,

CA.

Kranzler, J., (1999). Interview by M. Snell. http://www.readingrevolution.com/

Miller, T., (2015). Partnering for Education Reform. U.S. Department of Education.

Washington, DC.

Scharrer, G., (2007). Dual-language classes in Texas stir debate. Houston

Chronicle, Houston, TX.

Silver, D., Saunders, M., and Zarate, E. (2015). What Factors Predict High School

Graduation in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Attendance Counts. Los Angeles,

CA.

Smiley, T., (2013). Fact Sheet: Is the Dropout Problem Real? Tavis Smiley Reports, The

Smiley Group, Inc., PBS, Los Angeles, CA.

Solis, D., (2012). Dual Language Programs Growing in Dallas-area Schools, Across

State. The Dallas Morning News, Dallas, TX.