James E. Whorton

Teacher Certification and Endorsement in Gifted Education: Past, Present, and Future.

State department of education directors of gifted education were surveyed in order to determirie the current status of certification/endorsement requirements in the United States. Responses from each of the 50 slates are included in this paper. Fewer than half of the states have requirements specific to gifted education for certification/endorsement. Those criteria that do exist are reported and dispiayed graphically, and a discussion of the importance of and need for certification/endorsement and periodic review is presented.

Teacher certification and endorsement in gifted education: A critical need

Albeit research supports the effectiveness of trained teachers in gifted education in specific programs over those lacking such instruction, a recent investigation into teacher certification revealed 27 states having a standard. Twenty‐four states require certification and three provide an option. Suggestions are offered for the establishment and/or upgrading of certification/endorsement in gifted education.

Certification and specialized competencies for teachers in gifted education programs

T study of certification/ endorsement in gifted education has been a focus of professional interest for over two decades. Karnes and Collins (1977) found six states requiring from 9-18 semester hours of specialized courses at a college or university to teach the gifted (Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, and West Virginia). Four years later, Karnes and Collins (1981) reported an increase of four states (California, Kansas, New Mexico, and Tennessee). In 1983, Karnes and Parker found a total of 13 states requiring specific courses to teach the gifted in specialized programs.

Use of Nonverbal Measures of Intelligence in Identification of Culturally Diverse Gifted Students in Rural Areas

To identify culturally diverse, potentially gifted students in rural areas the Culture-Fair Intelligence Test, the Raven Standard Progressive Matrices, and the Naglieri Nonverb Abilities Test were administered to 189 students enrolled in Grades 3 through 8 at a rural elementary school. Scores from these three tests are reported, and their usefulness in the identification of gifted children is discussed.

Test-Retest Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Revised Scores for 310 Educable Mentally Retarded and Specific Learning Disabled Students

Pearson coefficients were computed between 1979–80 and 1982–83 Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children—Revised Verbal, Performance, and Full Scale scores for 310 exceptional students (89 mentally retarded and 221 learning disabled). The correlations were all significant at p = .001.

Correlations between WISC-R IQS and Wide Range Achievement Test Grade Equivalents for Intellectually Gifted Students

The significant correlations between the WISC-R and the Wide Range Achievement Test for a sample of 90 gifted youth were .19 for the Full Scale IQ and Spelling grade equivalents and .18 for the Verbal IQ and Spelling and accounted for little common variance.

Comparison of the 1979 and the 1986 Norms on the Standard Progressive Matrices for Economically Disadvantaged Students: Implications for Identification of Gifted Children

The focus of this article is on a comparison of the 1979 (British) and 1986 (United States) norms for the Standard Progressive Matrices. To screen for potentially gifted children, 307 students in Grades 3 through 8 were tested, and the scores were analyzed using both sets of norms. The 1986 norms may identify more students above criterion. Results are discussed.

Comparing Ability and Achievement in Three Academic Areas for Upper Elementary Gifted Students.

Discrepancies between ability and achievement were calculated for reading, spelling, and arithmetic for 64 intellectually gifted students in grades 4–6. Means were plotted for males and females. While no statistically significant differences were found between groups, females scored closer to their expected achievement levels than males, except at the fourth grade level in reading. The data are presented graphically and are discussed relative to classroom strategies.

Comparison of the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (Achievement Scale) and the Basic Achievement Skills Individual Screener for Learning Disabled Students

The Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children—Achievement Scale and Basic Achievement Skills Individual Screener were administered to 40 students previously identified as learning disabled. Pearson coefficients between the sets of scores on various subtests ranged from .03 to .70.

Perceptions of rural preschool special educators concerning preservice training

A survey was conducted of preschool special education classroom teachers from five predominately rural western states. The survey focused on teachers’ perceptions of preservice training and noted their perceptions of needs. In addition to demographic data, the survey included 19 Lik-ert scale items to which each teacher responded. The results of the survey and a discussion are presented.