Thomas P. Hébert

Understanding resilience in diverse, talented students in an urban high school

This article summarizes findings from a 3‐year study of 35 economically disadvantaged, ethnically diverse, academically talented high school students who either achieved or underachieved in their urban high school. In particular, the resilience of these two groups of high ability students is explored. Comparative case study and ethnographic methods were used to examine the ways in which some academically talented students develop and/or employ strategies associated with resilience to achieve at high levels. Both risk factors and protective factors are examined to explore participants’ pathways toward either positive or negative outcomes. The results of this study suggest that some protective factors helped some academically talented students to achieve at high levels. The protective factors include supportive adults; friendships with other achieving students; opportunity to take honors and advanced classes; participation in multiple extracurricular activities both after school and during the summer; the development of a strong belief in self; and ways to cope with the negative aspects of their school and urban environment; and in some cases, their family lives. Other protective factors include students’ relationships with supportive adults and their previous participation in a gifted and talented program. Students who underachieved had specific risk factors, such as having older siblings who dropped out of school or became involved in drugs and/or alcohol. They also appeared to have developed fewer protective factors. The combination of the presence of risk factors and the absence of protective factors may ha ve impeded the ability of some underachieving students to achieve at higher levels.

Jermaine: A Critical Case Study of a Gifted Black Child Living in Rural Poverty.

Gifted students exist in the culture of rural poverty; however, these children often are not identified, and schools fail to provide appropriate educational programs, preventing young people from realizing their potential. In this account of a gifted Black child living in an impoverished rural environment, a university researcher and a classroom teacher collaborated in order to describe a young mans creativity, his resilience, his struggle to find a place for himself in his community, and the significant factors that influenced the early formation of a strong self-identity. The findings of the study offer educators helpful suggestions for identifying and addressing the educational needs of gifted Black children living in rural poverty.

Nurturing Social and Emotional Development in Gifted Teenagers through Young Adult Literature.

This article examines how developmental bibliotherapy featuring young adult literature serves as an effective strategy to address emotional issues in the lives of gifted teenagers. Following a discussion of bibliotherapy and a rationale for its use with gifted students, a description of a young adult novel entitled The Mosquito Test is presented. The authors then describe how a group of intelligent teenagers in a high school English classroom responded to the novel in a bibliotherapeutic fashion. Also provided is an annotated bibliography of current young adult literature, appropriate for use with bibliotherapy in secondary classrooms.

The Impact of an Undergraduate Honors Program on Gifted University Students

Through a qualitative research design, this study examined the experiences of seven gifted university students in an undergraduate honors program. The findings indicated the students as adolescents experienced a sense of isolation resulting from the differences between their abilities, interests, life goals, religious value systems, and the communities in which they lived. At the university, the participants discovered within the honors program an intellectual and social network with other gifted individuals like them. Together they recognized their strong desire for self-actualization. In advanced-level courses, they found intellectual stimulation and academic challenge. Through several components of the honors program they developed significant psychosocial growth. Throughout their experiences, the honors program director became a mentor and played an important role in facilitating experiences designed to address the diverse needs of these gifted young adults. Implications of the findings are presented along with suggestions for designing appropriate honors program experiences for gifted university students.

“If I Had a New Notebook, I Know Things Would Change”: Bright Underachieving Young Men in Urban Classrooms:

Despite a preponderance of research on students who fail academically in urban schools, few studies have examined the academic experience of high-ability students in urban schools, particularly those who do not reach their potential. The study described in this article examined what happens to intelligent urban teenagers when they achieve academically. Through a qualitative research design that integrated case study and ethnographic research, the investigation examined the lives of 6 high-ability males in an inner-city high school to understand how their urban life experiences influenced their underachievement. The 6 cases reported in this study are a subset of 12 cases (Hébert, 1993) that contributed to a larger study (Reis, Hérbert, Diaz, Maxfield, & Ratley, 1995) of talented students in an urban high school. Major findings uncovered in chronicling the lives of 6 underachievers included: inappropriate curricular and counseling experiences, problematic family issues, a negative peer group and environmental influences, and discipline problems. Implications of these findings are presented, as are suggestions for meeting the educational needs of high-ability underachieving young men in urban secondary schools.

Gifted Black Males in an Urban High School: Factors That Influence Achievement and Underachievement:

Many gifted African American males educated in large, urban high schools do not achieve at a level commensurate with their ability. The case studies reported in this article describe the experiences of two gifted African American males in an urban high school. Through a qualitative approach, the stories of Wallace, an achiever, and John, an under achiever, are told; and the factors that distinguished the school-life experiences of the two gifted Black young men are identified. The implications for fostering academic achievement in urban high schools are discussed, and recommendations are offered for educators and parents to encourage success in the lives of gifted African American young men.

Fostering the Social and Emotional Development of Gifted Children through Guided Viewing of Film.

Teachers of gifted elementary school students seek strategies appropriate for fostering healthy social and emotional development in children. The authors propose guided viewing of film as a strategy through which teachers and counselors may assist young gifted students in gaining helpful insights to deal with problems they face. This article presents a theoretical foundation for this approach, a variety of strategies for implementation, and a collection of films appropriate for use with gifted students.

Using Biography to Counsel Gifted Young Women

Gifted young women face a variety of important social and emotional issues throughout adolescence and passage into adulthood. This article presents a number of issues through four themes: gender role expectations, relationship-oriented problems, achievement and underachievement concerns, and the need for resilience in womens lives. The authors propose guided reading of biographies as a counseling strategy through which middle and high school educators may assist gifted females in gaining helpful insights to deal with the problems they face. The article also provides available biographies of gifted females, as well as various ways secondary teachers and counselors might use such an approach to counsel gifted young women.

Underachievement versus Selective Achievement: Delving Deeper and Discovering the Difference

Through a qualitative research design, this study examined the differences between underachievement and selective achievement in a gifted university student. The findings indicated that, while the participant demonstrated behaviors typically associated with underachievement, his self-regulation and metacognitive abilities suggested a different image. These findings highlight a need to consider the attitudes and motivations behind the students behavior when considering how to approach incidences of fluctuating academic performance of high-ability students.

Gifted University Males in a Greek Fraternity: Creating a Culture of Achievement

The gifted education community has called for more research examining gifted students during their collegiate experience. The study described in this article examined gifted university males involved in a Greek fraternity. Through a qualitative case study research design, the investigation examined the collegiate careers of 5 gifted, high-achieving university males to understand how their fraternity experience influenced their achievement. Major findings uncovered in chronicling the university careers of the 5 gifted males included the following: focusing on athletics rather than academics during high school, recruitment to the fraternity as high potential contributors, the fraternity as a bridge to student leadership on campus, and the benefits of a culture of well-rounded achievers striving for self-improvement. Implications of the findings are presented, as are suggestions for meeting the educational needs of gifted males in university settings.