Addressing Inequities in Gifted Education

Addressing Inequities in Gifted Education

The Pennsylvania Department of Education (PDE) announced last September that a $3.5 million federal grant from the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Program will help expand access to gifted education programming in schools and serve more students through the Pennsylvania Gifted Equity Initiative. Research shows a growing gap at the top of the achievement scale between white students and students of color and between students from low-income backgrounds and those from more advantaged circumstances, according to the National Association for Gifted Children.

The AIU will work in partnership with PDE and the Montgomery County IU to lead the initiative, providing school districts with tools, training and resources to close the achievement gap currently found in Pennsylvania school districts through improved identification of gifted students among those who are not traditionally identified. Amy Davis McShane, AIU coordinator of Career Education and Academic Events, serves as the project co-coordinator statewide lead. ““There are many masking factors that cause us to miss students that may need gifted services,” she said. “This grant will allow us to take a look at the gifted regulations in the state and how we can better identify our students who need specially designed instruction.”