WATG 2024 Annual Conference

Increasing diversity and equity is a longstanding goal of gifted education. The fact remains that Brown and Black students and those living in poverty are glaringly missing, partly because most ability tests demand fluency in English and advanced academic knowledge. Learn an innovative method for identifying gifted students more equitably using tests that include verbal, quantitative and nonverbal measures with test items that can be solved in any language and require minimal academic knowledge.

So many Federal Javits grants do excellent work, but then disappear when the funding ends. As part of a 2020 Javits grant, a team of researchers worked to train staff from ten districts around the country on best practices in student identification. Lessons learned were used to develop an online system of training modules, through which educators from 20 additional districts worked in 2023 – 2024. Now, those modules are free and available for anyone to use! This session will provide an overview of what they cover, why the content can help improve identification practices, and how they can be accessed and used by anyone.

Many schools say they cluster group for gifted services, but few say they do it successfully. Dr. Brulles will address the inherent challenges and suggest ways schools can overcome common obstacles when cluster grouping. Participants will learn how to create a fair and equitable system for serving gifted students by incorporating cluster grouping into school and district initiatives. She will discuss methods for making student placements, supporting cluster teachers, monitoring success, and building community support.

Teacher rating scales or behavior checklists are a common data point in making gifted identification decisions. But some of what these scales measure stems from the person doing the rating as opposed to the student being rated. This session will share new research from >50,000 students who were all rated with one of five different rating scales. We will share what we found and recommendations for how to decrease rater effect and increase the validity of the data derived from these instruments.

Join us for a fun, interactive session jam-packed with engaging, challenging puzzles you can take home and use right away with your gifted students of almost any age. These complex puzzles, combined with proven strategies for developing students’ metacognitive skills, will fully engage your students, getting them to think in new ways. Plus, you'll learn why puzzles are so unique and effective at building both academic and social/emotional skills in gifted students.