This article explores educator perceptions of gifted and talented (GT) English language learning (ELL) students. Nine educators from two schools within a school district with high population of ELL students were interviewed in this qualitative study. Discussion focused on understanding teachers’ ideas regarding ELL gifted students. Three main themes emerged from interviews: educator perceptions, identification, and professional development. Implications from the study include the need for specific professional development to restructure thinking regarding ELL students and to inform educators on the myriad of ways giftedness may manifest itself.

A persistent problem in education is underrepresentation of certain cultural and linguistic groups such as American Indian, African American, and Hispanic, in special programs for exceptionally talented students, especially in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The spatial analytical task, a performance-based assessment with demonstrated reliability and validity as an instrument to identify exceptionally talented students, was included with new instruments created in the Cultivating Diverse Talent in STEM (CDTIS) project. A continuum of problems, including closed, semi-open, and open-ended, was an important component of the measures, enabling the assessment of creative problem solving as well as assessment of skills such as seeing how things fit together visually and in space; through mental images, on paper, and in physical objects or forms. The spatial analytical assessment was implemented as part of a battery of instruments to identify students to participate in a special internship program. Ratings of students on the spatial analytical assessment who were identified for the internship program using the new assessments were higher than ratings for students identified using conventional methods, which demonstrates that the assessment will be a useful tool for selecting students from diverse cultural groups. The assessment has multiple purposes in addition to its use as an identification tool: evaluation of special programs, planning differentiated instruction, and as a pre- and post-measure of student gains. The test–retest reliability, and construct, concurrent, and predictive validity for secondary students need continued investigation in future studies.

The present study expanded our current understanding of leadership among academically gifted seventh-grade students by examining peer-identified leaders of naturally occurring social groups in a mixed ability setting. Three consecutive cohorts of seventh-grade students ( N = 474; 57% female; 43% European American) attending a public magnet secondary school participated. Results indicated that gifted students were more apt to be identified as leaders than nongifted youth and both conventional and unconventional styles of leadership related similarly to higher social standing and influence in the peer network. Nongifted leaders displayed a mixed profile of prosocial and more risky deviant behavior, whereas gifted leaders displayed a primarily prosocial leadership style. However, gifted leaders perceived themselves to be more influential and intimidating than other students and also endorsed sensation seeking tendencies more than other students. Findings underscore the heterogeneity of leadership during young adolescence and the distinct profile of gifted leaders compared with other leaders and gifted peers.

This study examined the relationship between attending one of the nine New York City (NYC) selective specialized public high schools and graduating from an honors college with a science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) degree, compared with honors college graduates who attended any other high school. A causal-comparative study design was applied. The participants consisted of 1,647 graduates from seven honors colleges, from 2011 to 2015, in the northeastern United States. Of the 1,647 graduates, 482 students graduated from NYC selective specialized public high schools and 1,165 students graduated from other high schools. The study found a significant difference ( p < .05) between the two groups. A larger percentage of NYC selective specialized public high schools graduated with a STEM degree from an honors college than students from other high schools. These results support the positive relationship between attending a NYC selective specialized public high school and graduating with a STEM degree from an honors college. Results and implications are discussed.

Current literature has identified a growing achievement gap experienced by students raised in poverty. However, some students from poverty can defeat the odds and succeed academically with advanced degrees. Nine graduate students self-identified as being raised in poverty participated in this study. The home-related experiences that led to their academic success were explored. Basic qualitative inquiry and constructivist narrative analysis were used as a framework for this study. Data collection methods included face-to-face and telephone interviews. Data transcriptions were coded and analyzed using the constant comparative method. Findings suggest that graduate students raised in poverty need a broad support system inside and outside the home. They also indicated that activities and routines were critical to their continued academic success and how academic work often became an escape from the chaos around them. This study calls attention to the academic importance of a broader support network for students raised in poverty.

The purpose of this study was to describe the current state of psychological wellbeing in gifted and nongifted undergraduate student sample populations and identify undergraduate populations experiencing heightened levels of distress within a large Midwestern public university. Study participants included 641 honors and 386 nonhonors undergraduate students. Each participant completed an electronic survey including a series of 10 measures of psychological adjustment to assess student psychological wellbeing. Significant differences between honors and nonhonors student sample populations were identified. Findings also suggest sophomore students share unique characteristics that may be responsible for lower levels of psychological wellbeing. Potential services that may improve the university undergraduate experience are discussed.

The purpose of this study was to explore the differential effects of access to gifted education on the mathematics and science achievement of fourth-grade Black girls. This study utilized mean difference effect sizes to examine the magnitude of differences between groups. By convention, White girls were included as a comparison group. Girls receiving gifted instruction and girls not receiving gifted instruction were the populations of interest ( N = 13,868). The mathematics results suggest that Black girls participating in gifted education statistically significantly outperform Black girls in the comparison group. The mean difference effect sizes for within-group differences were almost twice as large for Black girls compared with White girls. The science results indicate that Black girls receiving gifted instruction outperformed Black girls in the comparison group. White girls, regardless of access to gifted instruction, statistically significantly outperformed Black girls in science. These results inform the recommendations provided.

The place-based investment model (PBIM) of talent development is a programming model for developing talents of high-potential youth in ways that could serve as an investment in the community. In this article, we discuss the PBIM within rural contexts. The model is grounded in three theories—Moon’s personal talent development theory, Sternberg’s theory of successful intelligence, and social cognitive career theory—and specifies five pathways for developing talent: (a) enrichment, (b) advanced learning, (c) human connections, (d) entrepreneurial thinking, and (e) specialized guidance. Through this proposal, we intend to focus place-based talent development efforts in rural areas on giving high-potential young people the knowledge, skills, and tools for understanding themselves, for developing their strengths and passions, and for recognizing localized opportunities for achieving self-fulfillment in adulthood.