Throughout the course, we’ve seen where specialized services and arrangements will meet the needs of certain populations of gifted and talented, but may not be needed by others, and may be detrimental to still others. Grade skipping isn’t appropriate for many gifted and talented students, but it’s a must for some if they are to continue to progress at their assessed levels. Acceleration of content may be very appropriate for some academically and intellectually gifted students in some areas, but not necessarily all areas. Remediation may be necessary for some twice exceptional students, but not at the exclusion of enrichment and challenging content.
The term “inclusion” grew out of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) as a quick reference to explain the philosophical move from segregated classrooms to the least restrictive environment (LRE). Simply put, for some students, the least restrictive environment would be to include them in the general education classroom with their age-mate peers. For other students, the milieu of the general education classroom and the level of the curriculum might be more restrictive than being in a segregated or special class. It is both a philosophical approach and an instructional method. When used to refer to classrooms, it typically means all students are learning in the same classroom setting—that is, heterogeneous grouping. Many people use the term to imply that all students will learn best in the same general education classroom, and teachers will be able to make learning equally meaningful for all students. However, research does not support this notion.
Rather, studies indicate that the needs of some students who are gifted can be met in the inclusive classroom under certain prerequisite conditions; for example, (1) the students are appropriately grouped in clusters or other homogeneous arrangement (There are studies that suggest that more than a two grade level achievement difference in a heterogeneously grouped class of like age students will not be beneficial to the lowest or the highest achieving students in that class); (2) teachers match their instructional strategies to the specific learning needs of the students; and (3) the students receive an appropriately differentiated curriculum or have access to the full range of curriculum. Access to the full range of curriculum may be achieved in many ways; for example, through distance education programs, acceleration, or specially designed programs.
In an inclusive classroom, additional strategies for providing effective differentiated instruction might include the following:
- Always provide choices
- Let the students establish their learning goals and self-assessment strategies
- Deviate from the same old, same old (seek out non-traditional methods)
- Always find out what these students already know
- If the student already understands the concept, move on
- Remember that gifted students often grasp concepts more quickly
- Always build upon students’ interests
- Peer support is critical (provide opportunity for gifted students to work with their intellectual peers)
- Avoid drill and practice and note taking activities
- Give project based learning opportunities as much as possible