Course Syllabus AEDU N651 University of South Carolina- Aiken GENERAL COURSE INFORMATION Please print a copy of this syllabus for handy reference. Whenever there is a question about what assignments are due, please remember this syllabus is considered to be the ruling document. COURSE NUMBER: AEDU N651 COURSE TITLE: Nature and Needs of Gifted and Talented Students Fall 2011 1 st class will be optional face-to-face class & 12 On-line classes COURSE START DATE: Oct. 10, 2011 COURSE END DATE: Dec. 19, 2011 REQUIRED READING: A. Required: Davis, Gay A. & Rimm, Siliva B. ( 2004) Education of Gifted and Talented 4 th edition Boston; Alley & Bacon B. Optional Texts: The South Carolina Best Practices Manual Expert Approaches to Support Gifted Learners, Edited by Margaret Wayne Gosfield Facilitator Information Arlene S.Puryear ScEd D apuryear@ pascon.biz 803.730.7050 (cell) 803-532-3706 (home)
Descriptive Information A. AEDU N650 Nature and Needs of Gifted and Talented Students B. Course Description: This is the basic survey course in the education of gifted and talented students. It provides an overview of the historical and philosophical background of gifted education, as well as a rational for it. This course focuses on the characteristics, needs, problems, and developmental patterns of gifted and talented students, including special populations of gifted and talented students and methods of talent development. The following topics will be discussed briefly: 1. Identification based on the regulations governing gifted and talented programs in South Carolina, 2. Curriculum and instruction 3. Program models. Current technology will be employed in researching and presenting a plan for addressing the needs of a specific target group. The South Carolina Best Practices Manuel will provide the foundation for the course. C. Intended Audience. This course is intended for certified teachers interested in obtaining gifted education endorsement. Course Objectives The course will require participants to demonstrate competence in the following: 1. Knowledge of the characteristics, needs and developmental patterns of the gifted and talented. 2. Articulating a rational for gifted and talented education. 3. Using a broad selection of data to identify talents and unique needs of gifted and talented students within a diverse population of learners across a broad range of talent domains. 4. Knowledge of the ability to utilize and explain the South Carolina identification system for academically gifted and talented students. 5. Understanding of the methods of talent development, especially the creative and divergent processes of fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration as well as the cognitive processes of higher level thinking skills, especially analysis, synthesis and evaluation. 6. Understanding of differentiated curriculum and student assessment for gifted and talented students. 7. Understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of various program models for gifted and talented students.
Class Schedule: On-line The Online Weekly Schedule Electronic weeks begin on Tuesday and end on Monday. Day 1 Tuesday Day 2 Wednesday Day 3 Thursday Day 4 Friday Day 5 Saturday Day 6 Sunday Day 7 Monday Where to Go to Class: Your Course Forums Main: This is the main forum for the class and is where discussion is conducted. It has read-and-write access for everyone. Chat-Room: This is a read-and-write access forum. It is designed as a place to discuss issues not related to the course content. This is the forum to which we will send our bios. Course-Materials: This is a read-only forum, which means you can read messages here but cannot send any. This is where I will post the course syllabus and materials. Learning--A, B, C, D and E: These five Learning forums will be used as workrooms for the learning teams. You will be assigned to one of these learning teams. CLASS POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Participation Participation is very important. During own online weeks, you will be expected to participate 4 days a week in several different discussions and to contribute at least three substantive discussion messages over the 3 days. This is a required part of your grade. Participation consists of notes you send above and beyond graded assignments and discussion question post. This generally means the messages you send as replies to messages from your classmates and me in the main forum. Please note that both quantity and quality are important considerations when it comes to participation. For example, a message which says simply, "I agree," does not constitute participation, because it does not add anything of substance to the discussion.
In order to earn full participation points, you must add something of substance to the discussion 3 out of 7 days per week this would consist of new ideas, your perspectives, pointed follow-up questions (at the end of narrative discussion not questions alone), etc. You will find it is much easier to keep up with the On-line component of the class when you are logging in and participating regularly. Only posts in the Main classroom forum will count towards your class participation score. Participation and Discussion Question Grading Discussion question responses will not count towards the class participation requirement and will be evaluated separately. Participation can be defined as active and positive contributions to the learning process and is different from attendance in the online classroom. To meet participation requirements, students are expected to contribute substantively to the class discussion three out of seven days per week in addition to posting graded assignments. Participation means posting notes in the Main Forum, which everyone has access to. Study group postings, Chat Forum postings, and notes to your instructor's personal mailbox are not considered part of your overall class participation. Participation is very important online. You will be expected to participate three days a week in several different discussions and contribute at least two discussion messages during the course of the week and three responses to your classmates. In order to earn full participation points, you must add something of substance to the discussion three out of seven days per week this would consist of new ideas, your perspectives, pointed follow-up questions (following narrative discussions not questions standing alone), etc. You'll find it's much easier to keep up with an Online class component, if you are logging in and participating regularly. You will be expected to contribute to the class discussion in a substantive way at least three out of seven days each week. I define a substantive message as follows: A substantive message must add, or lead to, either additional information or a different perspective. It is also a good idea to copy the portion of the original email to which you are responding directly (usually in a different color font) prior to the substantive response. Please note that your DQ s and assignments, when posted to the Main Forum, will not count as substantive posts (they are graded separately). In addition, you can post in the forum 3 of 7 days and not receive full credit if the postings do not meet the definition of substantive. This is a required part of your grade. Participation consists of notes you send above and beyond graded assignments. This generally means the messages you send as replies to messages from your classmates and me. Please note that both quantity and quality are important considerations when it comes to participation. A message which says simply, "I agree with a few words/sentences added, for example, may not constitute participation if it does not add anything of substance to the discussion. Substantive posts should reflect depth of
knowledge and/or professional experience application (ensuring that confidentiality is met at all times). Article Summaries Choose five articles from professional magazines published within the last 5 years. Read the articles and provide a written response with the following components: Article title, author and reference information, brief summary personal reflection. All article reviews are due on week 10 of the class schedule. Final Week Requirements Discussion question responses will not be required during the final week of the course. The final week will be dedicated to completing the final assignments listed below. Expectations for Discussion Question Responses Discussion question responses should be at least 200-300 words. For discussion question responses in the Main forum, please post responses to the threads provided. To respond, highlight the appropriate thread, click on Reply, type your response, and send. Please do not start a new thread for the weekly discussion questions in the Main forum. Unlike your formal written assignments, I do not require that your discussion question responses adhere to specific formatting requirements. However, please make sure to proofread carefully. Grammar and spelling errors may impact the grading. I expect your discussion question responses to reflect critical thought. Whenever possible, please try to relate the course content to real-world applications from your work experience and literature and reading assignments from the class. Attachments Please do not use attachments in the Main forum when at all possible. Post DQ responses and weekly summaries (if required) in the body of OLS messages. Please post formal assignments in the identified forum as attachments Microsoft Word documents or PowerPoint slides.
Learning s Students are expected to work effectively in diverse groups and teams to achieve tasks. They must collaborate and function well in team settings as both leaders and followers. They should respect human diversity and behave in a tolerant manner toward colleagues and peers. Several of the assignments in this class will be completed in Learning s of three to five students. I will set up these teams midway through Week 1. If you have any requests for teammates, please let me know by Thursday of the first week via your Forum. I do consider requests but also reserve the right to form teams balancing out variables (grade levels and teaching location) If you experience difficulties working with your team, you are expected to resolve them within the team if possible. However, please feel free to contact me for guidance if you have concerns in this area. In order to create structure for your Learning, you will complete a Learning Charter during Week 1. At the end of the course, you will be asked to complete a Peer Evaluation to assess the contributions of each member of your Learning (including yourself). I will take these Peer Evaluations into account when assessing individual contributions to the Learning projects. If you need to contact me prior to the end of the class with Learning team problems, please feel free to do so through email in a private setting. Because Learning projects are outcome-based, all members of your Learning will generally earn the same grade for Learning projects. However, I reserve the right to report different grades for different Learning members if I see a substantial imbalance in individual contribution. Confidentiality and Proprietary Information One of the cornerstones of online learning is the practical application of theoretical concepts. You are encouraged to share your personal and professional experiences as a means to integrate knowledge by reflecting on its application. However, it is important to note that we all are bound by confidentiality in this class. To assure that we can have a free and open discussion in which you may elect to discuss your school and its policies and procedures as they apply to the course material, I expect each person to respect the confidentiality of what your classmates are willing to share with us. At the same time, I ask that each of you exercise good judgment in what you choose to share and avoid disclosing non-public or sensitive information.
If you have any questions about any of the information contained in this syllabus, or about any other aspect of this class, please do not hesitate to ask! GRADING Grading Formula Points 93-100 A 90-92 B+ 87-89 B 82-86 C+ 78-81 C 74-77 D+ 73-70 D < 70 F Grade Point Values for Course Assignments ASSIGNMENTS Points On line black board discussion questions 1 per week for 13 weeks =13 6 On line class participation 1post X 3 days for 13weeks = 39 13 Free choice article review( < 5 year publish date) 5 Personal Educational Philosophy Statement 4 Gifted and talented characteristic Checklist 2.5 Dear School People, What are you doing for our Bright Child? 2.5
Learning Theories and the Curriculum Presentation 5 Hidden Curriculum Paper 5 Webquest Reflection 2 Learning Learning Charter 2 Educational Philosophy review 2 Best Practice chapter overview 2 Gifted and Talented Handbook for your school or program 5 Special Needs Plan- 8 Curriculum Trends Presentation 10 philosophy review 2 Student Profile comparison ( high achiever vs- gifted) 7 WebQuest Project and Presentation 10 Hidden Curriculum team share and reflection 2 Total 100 ASSIGNMENTS Week 1 Characteristics of the Gifted and Talented Required Reading: Chapter 2 of required text Assignments: Prepare a Personal Educational Philosophy Statement. Teachers are asked many times throughout their teaching careers to prepare an educational philosophy statement. In most instances, they need to prepare this statement for a job interview, application, or perhaps to explain their philosophy to a parent. Reflect on your educational philosophy and the impact it has on your instructional practices. Reflect on your beliefs about teaching and learning and how they relate to curriculum development and strategies for gifted learners. Write a 500-1000-word informal (first person) paper on your personal educational philosophy using the following specifications:
Describe how your personal educational philosophy affects your instructional practices and your choices of classroom curriculum. Does your philosophy reflect your choices of classroom strategies and management? Find research or data to support your philosophy and management choices. Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Assignments Learning As a learning team, you will be designing a WebQuest, an inquiry-oriented activity, in which most or all the information used by students is online. By providing links necessary to complete the quest, one is able to focus on the material rather than spend time looking for it. In education, a WebQuest is a research activity in which students collect information, where most of the information comes from the World Wide Web. The six-part WebQuest (introduction, task, resources, process, evaluation, and conclusion) promotes critical thinking levels of analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. As a group you will need to select a subject for your WebQuest. Prepare a proposal for faculty approval of your WebQuest for submission in Week 5. The final WebQuest Project and Presentation assignment is due in Week 13 Your final WebQuest product can either be created using a webquest template at www.webquest.org, PowerPoint, Word document, or as an XML file posted to the Web. WebQuest guides can be found at the following Web sites: http://www.uhv.edu/webct/students/orientation/tutorials/webquest_edit.htm http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/webquesttemplate/webquesttemp.htm 1. Learning s will be assigned on the first week of class with consideration being given to student requests. Brief Summary of Week 1 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Participation Main 4 of 7 days Due Personal Educational Philosophy Black board forum Monday ( day 7) Week 2 Assignments
Week 2 Learning topic: Identifying Gifted and Talented. Required Reading: Chapter 4 of required text Assignments: : Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Learning Theories and the Curriculum Presentation. Prepare and submit a 10-15 slide Power Point Presentation describing how selected learning theories impacts curriculum design and gifted learning. Use at least three references that may include journal articles, trade/text books, and electronic sources. Reference material, if possible, should be no older than five years. Include the following in the presentation: an overview of each learning theory, a description of how it impacts curriculum design, and your thoughts on the use of the theory in the 21 st century school and gifted and talented classrooms. To ensure diversity in presentations, theories will be assigned by week 5. You may make requests to instructor on a first come first serve basis. Theorists will be assigned no later than week 5. Selected theories include: a) Constructivist (J. Bruner) b) Social Development (L. Vygotsky) c) Social Learning (A. Bandura) d) Cognitivist (J. Piaget) e) Humanistic (A. Combs and D. Snygg) f) Lateral Thinking (DeBono) g) Experiential Learning (C. Rogers) h) Conditions of Learning (R. Gagne) i) Triarchic Theory (R. Sternberg) j) Multiple Intelligence (H. Gardner) k) Paidea Proposal (M. Adler) l) Taba s Theory (H. Taba) m) Multisensory Learning (E. Eisner) n) Discover Model (C. J. Maker) If you would like to make a request, please post to your individual forum. I will assign on a first come, first serve basis Learning : Each team member will post their Personal educational philosophy in the team thread. The team members will compare and comment on each others philosophy and reflection. The team will compose a team reflection paper that
identifies your similarities and differences and what the impact will be on the gifted population that walks into your classroom. Brief Summary of Week 2 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday, Day 3; philosophy review Learning Forum and Main Learning Charter Learning Forum and Main Saturday, Day 5 Sunday, Day 6 Week 3 Assignments Week 3 Learning Topic: Identification of Gifted and Talented learners Cont. Required Reading: Best Practices Manual http://ed.sc.gov/agency/standards-and-learning/academic-standards/old/cso/gifted_talented/gt.htm
Assignments: : Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Gifted/Talented Checklist. Design a checklist with characteristics to be used in identifying gifted students in the classroom setting. This checklist should be grade and/or subject specific. Brief Summary of Week 3 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday day 3 Gifted and talented checklist Forum and Main Saturday, Day 5 Week 4 Assignments Week 4 Learning Topic: Matching the Instruction with student need Required Reading: Chapter 1 of required text Assignments: Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread.
Learning Each team member chooses a chapter from the Best Practice manual to review and present to their team for a Best Practices Manual overview. Please focus on general details that will give information for use reference knowledge. Brief Summary of Week 4 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Learning Participation Learning only 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Forum Thursday, Day 3 Best Practice Review Forum and Main Monday, Day 7 Week 5 Assignments Week 5 Learning topic: Acceleration and enrichment Required Reading: Chapter 5 & 6 of text Assignments: Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Hidden Curriculum Paper
What should be taught to the gifted learner verses what is being taught. Acceleration and enrichment are the two main strategies used when teaching the gifted learner. Are these the best or does there seem to be a hidden agenda for gifted student survival? Use data and references to compile your 500 word paper to support your opinion or ideas. Brief Summary of Week 5 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and learning team 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main only Thursday, Day 3 Learning theory topic choice forum Sunday, Day6 Hidden Curriculum paper Sunday, Day 6 Forum Week 6 Assignments Week 6 Learning Topic: Challenges for the Gifted Learner Required Reading: Chapter 12 & 13, of text Assignments:
Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Learning Post your Hidden Curriculum Paper in the thread and respond to your team members paper. The team should construct paper that compares and contrast of all of your team s curriculum choices. Brief Summary of Week 6 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday ( Day 3) Hidden Curriculum share & reflection Learning Forum and Main Sunday, Day 6 Week 7 Assignments Week 7 Learning topic: Challenges for the Gifted Learner Cont. Required Reading: Chapter 14 Assignments: Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Learning Gifted and Talented Handbook Develop a handbook to address the gifted and talented characteristics and school program to share with teachers and parents of identified gifted and talented students.
Brief Summary of Week 7 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday, Day 3 Gifted and talented Handbook for your school or program Forum and Main Saturday, Day 5 Week 8 Assignments Week 8 Learning Topic: Challenges of the Gifted Learner Cont. Required Reading: Chapter 15 of the text Assignments: : Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Learning theories and curriculum Presentation: Prepare and submit a 10-15 slide Power Point Presentation describing how selected learning theories impacts curriculum design. Use at least three references that may include journal articles, trade/text books, and electronic sources. Reference material, if possible, should be no older than five years. Include the following in the presentation: an overview of each learning theory, a description of how it impacts curriculum design, and your thoughts on the use of the theory in the 21 st century school and gift education.
Brief Summary of Week 8 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday, Day 3 Learning Theory pp presentation Forum and Main Saturday, Day 5 Week 9 Assignments November Learning Topic: Teaching the student How to Think Required Reading: Chapter 11 Assignments: Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Learning Student Profile Comparison ( High achiever vs- gifted) Develop a student profile of an identified gifted student and a student that is a high achiever but has not meet the state criteria for the gifted programs. Once the two profiles are compiled a comparison will then be done to identify similarities and differences in the two profiles. Look at gender, race, grades, social skills, sports, home life( single parent home) and any other factors that you may collect data to compare these two students.
Brief Summary of Week 9 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main Weekly 3 of 7 days Discussion Question Forum Thursday, Day 3 Student profile comparison Learning Forum and Main Forum Saturday, Day 5 Week 10 Assignments Week 10 Learning Topic: Meeting the creative needs through curriculum models Required Reading: Chapters 3,9,7 & 10 of text Assignments: Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Article Review: Choose five articles from professional magazines published within the last 5 years. Read the articles and provide a written response with the following components: Article title, author and reference information, brief summary personal reflection. All article reviews are due on week 10 of the class schedule. Dear School People, What are you doing for our Bright Child?
Respond to this question that presents itself in chapter 3 of your text. Provide a personal insight with data to support your opinion as to where our money is being spent and are we being fair to all children in public education. Brief Summary of Week 10 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday, Day 3 Five article reviews Forum and Main Dear School People paper Forum Saturday, Day 5 Sunday, Day 6 Week 11 Assignments Week 11 Learning Topic: Matching instruction with need Required Reading: Chapter 1 of required text Assignments: Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Learning Special Needs Plan: Design a plan for addressing needs of one or two special populations of gifted and talented children for your stated setting. Please take into consideration the twice identified and other factors such as gender, race and socio- economic status. State your school population and setting. Give statistics and support your decision with data. Plan will be presented via a 5-10 slide Power Point Presentation.
Brief Summary of Week 11 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday,Day3 Special Needs Plan Learning Forum and Main Sunday, Day 6 Week 12 Assignments Week 12 Learning Topic: Affective learners Required Reading: Chapter 8 of required text Assignments: Respond to the Discussion question posted in the main thread. Learning Curriculum Trends Presentation Where do you see curriculum for the gifted and talented moving? Based on the information found in your text and other resources, predict where gifted and talented education will be in 20 years. Site your references and use data to make your decisions. Create 5-10 power point slides to present your data and perspective. Brief Summary of Week 12 Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due
Participation Main and Learning 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Discussion Question Main Only Thursday, Day 3 Curriculum Trends Presentation Learning Forum and Main Sunday, Day 6 Week 13 Assignments Week 13 Learning Topic: Understanding of the methods of talent development, especially the creative and divergent processes of fluency, flexibility, originality, and elaboration as well as the cognitive processes of higher level thinking skills, especially analysis, synthesis and evaluation. Assignments: Learning As a learning team, you will be designing a WebQuest, an inquiry-oriented activity, in which most or all the information used by students is online. By providing links necessary to complete the quest, one is able to focus on the material rather than spend time looking for it. In education, a WebQuest is a research activity in which students collect information, where most of the information comes from the World Wide Web. The six-part WebQuest (introduction, task, resources, process, evaluation, and conclusion) promotes critical thinking levels of analysis, synthesis, and evaluation. As a group you will need to select a subject for your WebQuest. Prepare a proposal for faculty approval of your WebQuest for submission in Week 5. The final WebQuest Project and Presentation assignment is due in Week 13. Your final WebQuest product can either be created using a webquest template at www.webquest.org, PowerPoint, Word document, or as an XML file posted to the Web. WebQuest guides can be found at the following Web sites: http://www.uhv.edu/webct/students/orientation/tutorials/webquest_edit.htm http://www.spa3.k12.sc.us/webquesttemplate/webquesttemp.htm
Upon completion of the webquest, write a reflection that includes the advantages and disadvantages that using a webquest would have in the classroom of gifted learners. Brief Summary of Week 13Deliverables Assignment or Learning Location Due Participation Main and Learning Webquest reflection Forum 3 days/week; as needed for assignment completion Monday, Day 7 Webquest Presentation Learning Forum and Main Sunday, Day 6 LT Evaluation Learning Forum Monday, Day 7 LEARNING TEAM EVALUATION COURSE DATE USING THE SCALE BELOW, INDIVIDUALLY RATE EACH MEMBER OF YOUR LEARNING TEAM, INCLUDING YOURSELF. 1 = Strongly Disagree 2 = Disagree 3 = Agree 4 = Strongly Agree
Name of Learning Member: PREPARATION Research, reading, and assignment complete ATTENDANCE On-time and stayed for duration PARTICIPATION Contributed best academic ability INTERPERSONAL RELATIONS Positive and productive BETWEEN MEETING COMMUNICATION Initiated and responded appropriately Overall Contribution score: Questions for Reflection 1. What are the most important concepts you have learned from the Learning experience? 2. How will you use this learning to improve both personally and professionally?
Learning Charter COURSE TITLE INSTRUCTOR COURSE DATES All team members participated in the creation of this charter and agree with its contents. (Please check) TEAM MEMBERS/PERSONAL INFORMATION NAME PHONE FAX E-MAIL TEAM MEMBER SKILL INVENTORY (Areas individual members can contribute/want to develop LEARNING TEAM GOALS (May include project assignment goals, group process goals, quality level goals, etc.) What are potential barriers to the achievement of these goals? GROUND RULES CONFLICT MANAGEMENT What are potential conflicts that might arise among or between team members during this course? How will team members deal with these and other conflicts? FACUTY MEMBER FEEDBACK TO STUDENTS