November Post

I had the pleasure of attending the NAGC Annual Conference in St. Louis this month and realized how ignored our gifted and talented students are. We are so focused on moving the “u” students to “pp” and the “pp” students to “p” that we forget to make sure our advanced students are growing. We need to make a more conscience effort to differentiate in our classrooms not only for our low performing students, but also for our gifted students. The district coordinator purchased materials from the conference, and I will be posting some of the strategies as we progress through the year.

During the conference I also listened to Howard Gardner speak, which is a moment I will not soon forget since he is one of my intellectual heroes. After his presentation, I met with a few students who attend one of the nation's few Multiple Intelligences schools. I have never met a more well-rounded, self-sufficient group of students. It was clear they felt valued in their school, understood how they learned, and understood the differences people have when learning. These students had all attended a traditional school before attending the MI school, and expressed how they felt they were being crammed into a box in the traditional school. In the MI school, they are able to express their individuality and not be forced to learn in a way that is uncomfortable to them. What a concept!

As I was sitting and listening to these students and teachers speak, the inevitable question about testing was asked, "Are the students in your school held accountable for state testing." The answer is yes, and their test scores are some of the highest in the state. This MI school does not force students to learn in any certain style and does not force students to take benchmark tests throughout the year, yet their test scores are some of the highest in the state. It made me question what we are doing with our students, not just in Adams 14, but across America. Why don't we allow students to learn they way they feel comfortable learning? Why don't we value every type of intelligence and not just linguistic and mathematical intelligences? Why do we test our poverty-stricken students and ELL students more frequently than students who perform well on tests when those testing days could be spent in the classroom? Is it not abuse to continuously not value our students' individual needs?

*sigh*