One
Size May Fit Most, But Certainly Not The Gifted & Talented
Circulated by Dr Susan Nikakis, VAGTC
M. Rene Islas The National Bureau of Economic
Research (NBER) recently published a working paper by researchers Thomas S. Dee
and Hans Henrik Sieversten titled The Gift of Time? School Starting Age and
Mental Health (10/5/15). The well-developed research study quantifies the
effects of delaying enrollment into formal schooling on the mental health of
students. However, parents, educators, and policy makers must be careful not to
over apply these findings for children with extraordinary gifts and talents.
Dee and Sieversten use robust data and a sound statistical methodology to
generalize that delaying entry into kindergarten results in better mental
health among students in later years, particularly when it comes to
self-regulation. The researchers note that improved self-regulation may serve
as a leading indicator for future academic success. While this is a potentially
valuable finding, we must take heed of the numerous caveats and limitations of
the study. It is particularly important to be cautious when making real
decisions for individual children. The foundation of the study is data from the
Danish National Birth Cohort (DNBC). As a result, the study is based on a
Danish population of students in Danish social and educational environments.
While the DNBC provides a robust trove of data, the special characteristics of
the Danish social and educational environment may not translate to the
experiences of children and family in the United States. As noted by the
researchers, Danish children have universal pre-kindergarten by well-trained
early childhood educators. This is not necessarily the case for the majority of
children in the United States. The researchers also report that respondents to
the follow-up DNBC tend to be more affluent families. In the United States,
over 50 percent of school-aged children live in poverty or economically at-risk
families. Finally, the report does not take into account children with
extraordinary gifts and talents. Decades of research show that gifted and
talented children often have asynchronous intellectual, social, and emotional
development. It is important to recognize the research limitations of the Dee
and Sieversten study to protect from over applying the findings and adopting
recommendations in U.S. schools. Policy makers are quick to act on this type of
research, which seems to offer quick solutions like delaying entry into
kindergarten by a year. Additionally, the research seems to propel the unfounded
mythology among parents, educators, and the general public that delaying entry
into kindergarten will make children stronger, smarter, and more successful in
later years. Dee and Sievertsen acknowledge the “academic red-shirting” fad and
warn that the broader educational research fails to substantiate this wishful
thinking. However, our nation’s leaders are prone to knee jerk reactions,
especially when they have the potential of reducing the cost of education.
Perpetuating the belief that delaying is always better is problematic for
children with extraordinary gifts and talents and children from economically
disadvantaged backgrounds. For the gifted, a multitude of research shows the
promise of academic acceleration strategies like early entry into kindergarten.
Federally funded research studies reveal that gifted children know 35 to 40
percent of the kindergarten curriculum on the very first day of entry. Imagine
the potential negative academic and mental health effects of delaying
kindergarten another year for these children. For the gifted, delaying entrance
to kindergarten may force them to repeat nearly two years of school. Imagine
the potential frustration for the gifted children, their parents, and the
educators who have to manage a class with such a wide spectrum of knowledge,
skills, and abilities among students. As parents and educators know well, one
size fits all policies and practices often fail segments of the school-age
population. While we should not dismiss the importance of Dee and Sievertsen’s
findings, we must trust parents and educators to make decisions about
educational placements. Parents and teachers should base these decisions on the
readiness of the individual student. This is especially true of students with
extraordinary gifts and talents who can benefit cognitively, socially, and
emotionally from educational acceleration strategies such as early entry into
kindergarten, curriculum compacting, and grade skipping. - See more at:
http://www.nagc.org/blog/one-size-may-fit-most-certainly-not-gifted-talented#sthash.KuodXLJL.dpuf
