I-School Guide – Hanna Sanchez
“A group of researchers released an updated version of a study from the Center for Gifted Education at the University of Iowa Belin-Blank on gifted children and the risk they may face in school. The updated study revealed gifted students are also at risk of getting left behind in school, addressing the myth that acceleration is detrimental to a student. The original report, “A Nation Empowered: Evidence Trumps the Excuses Holding Back America’s Brightest Students,” focused on the belief that skipping grade levels can negatively impact a child’s schooling. According to Kristin Decarr of Education News, many continue to believe that placing a younger student in the same class as the older ones is harmful. After examining about 5 million gifted students in the United States, the updated report used a decade of study to determine the positive aspects of acceleration. Authors of the updated study said the data presented in the 2004 report revealed educators opposing the idea of acceleration admitted doing so because of personal bias and not based on evidence.”(more)