Title: Ethical Considerations for Gifted Assessment and Identification of Children who are Culturally and Linguistically Diverse
1Ethical Considerations for Gifted Assessment
and Identification of Children who are Culturally
and Linguistically Diverse
2Essential Questions
- What is the problem?
- What are the ethical considerations?
- What factors comprise the problem?
- What are the solutions?
- What is the role of school psychologists?
3What is the Problem?
4The Problem
- The percentage of students of diversity in gifted
programs is not proportional to their percentage
of representation in the school.
Consequently-under-representation in gifted
programs. - Ethical violations in daily practice of educators
that has perpetuated this problem.
5The Problem Show me the numbers (Ford Whiting,
2007) (Pierce et al, 2007)
6The Problem Show me the numbers (US Dept of
Educ, 2004)
7The Problem Show me the numbers (US Dept of
Educ, 2004)
8The Problem Show me the numbers (US Dept of
Educ, 2004)
9The Problem Show me the numbers (Rose, 2001)
10What are the ethical considerations?
11What does Ethics have to do with it? (NASP Code
of Ethics) (Jacob-Trimm Harshorne, 1994)
- Formal principals that guide conduct of a
professional school psychologist. - Mandates school psychologists to protect the
rights and welfare of the student while promoting
improvement in the quality of their lives.
12What does Ethics have to do with it cont (NASP
Code of Ethics) (Jacob-Trimm Harshorne, 1994)
- Based on assumptions that we will act as
advocates for our students/client and at the
least, do no harm. - Welfare of psychological patrons and maintaining
public trust
13Ethical Considerations (NASP Code of Ethics)
(Jacob-Trimm Harshorne, 1994)
- Professionals Competence
- Professional Relationships and Responsibilities
to client - Client Advocacy
- Responsibilities in assessment/intervention
- School based research/evaluation
14Professional Competence (Jacob-Trimm Harshorne,
1994)
- Being acquainted with ones own limitations and
strengths in training and experience and engaging
in activities consistent with ones competencies. - Upon recognition of limitations, one should seek
out continuing professional development and
remain progressive in research, training,
professional practice.
15Professional Relationships and Responsibilities
to client (Jacob-Trimm Harshorne, 1994)
- Practice to encourage improvement in the quality
of life for client while maintaining sensitivity
to mental, emotional, political, economic,
social, racial, ethnic, etc characteristics. - Resolve conflicting interests in a method that
protects rights of all individuals involved.
16Client Advocacy (Jacob-Trimm Harshorne, 1994)
- Concerns for protecting the rights and welfare of
students is communicated to school administration
and staff and is the top priority in determining
services. - When acting as advocates school psychologists
must take into account rights of each individual
involved and the duties of the school personnel.
17Responsibilities in assessment/intervention
(Jacob-Trimm et al, 1994)
- Obligation to understand the nuances of
assessment/intervention and maintain
dignity/integrity of clients while acting as
advocates for their welfare. - Must be conversant in various variables involved
in place of employment and establish clear roles - Promote change in work place/society that will
benefit client/community
18School based research/evaluation (Jacob-Trimm
et al, 1994)
- Take responsibility for all facets of their
research from topic to reporting. - Communicate findings in a manner that is easily
understood by audience.
19What factors comprise the problem?
20Factors to ponder
- Definitional disagreements of intelligence
- Statistical disparities in school population
(staff vs. students). - Conflicts of cultural values/behaviors
- Break between Research and Practice
21Definitional disagreements of intelligence
(Plucker, 2001) NAGC, 2007 p. 2)
- Spearman-Two factor theory and g
- Thurstone-7 Primary Mental abilities
- Cattell-Fluid vs. Crystallized
- Guildford-Divergent thinking and Structure of the
Intellect Model - Gardner-Multiple Intelligence
- Sternberg-Triarchic Theory
22Definitional disagreements of giftedness(NAGC,
2007 p. 2)
- Gagne-uses untrained/spontaneous natural ability
in at least one domain thats in top 10 for
his/her age. - Renzulli-interaction among AA general and/or
specific abilities, high levels of task
commitment and high levels of creativity. - Sternberg Wagner- mental management of life in
a constructive, purposeful way using adaptation
to ones environment, selection of new environment
and shaping of an environment
23Definitional disagreements of giftedness by
state/political
- PA-A child with an outstanding intellectual or
creative ability that requires specially designed
programs and/or support services not ordinarily
provided in the regular education program (22 Pa.
Code16.1) - MA-no gifted definition(NAGC, 2007 p. 2)
24Definitional disagreements of giftedness by
state/political cont..
- Identified by professionally qualified persons
who by virtue of outstanding abilities are
capable of high performance (Former U.S.
commissioner of Education Sidney Marland) (NAGC,
2007 p. 2) - Outstanding talent perform/shows potential for
performing at remarkably high levels when
compared to same age, experience, envirexhibit
high performance in intellect, creative,
artistic.. Gubbins, 2005)
25Definitional disagreements of giftedness by
culture (Sternberg, 2007)
- Taiwanese Chinese-add inter/intra personal
skills. - Africa-emphasize on skills that maintain harmony
of intergroup relations - Chewa in Zamiba-emphasize social
responsibilities, cooperativeness and obedience - Zimbabwe-word intelligence means prudent/cautious
26Statistical disparities in school population
(National Center for Education and Statistics,
2004)
27Statistical disparities in school population
(National Center for Education and Statistics,
2004)
28Statistical disparities in school population
(Lopez)
29Implications of this population disparity
- Most districts rely on educator referrals before
formally assessing for gifted program (McBee,
2006) - Educators who make referrals find it difficult to
determine minority students potential since they
are of a different ethnic group. (Matthews
Matthews, 2006) - Deficit Thinking-having negative and stereotypic
views about students who are culturally
diverse(Ford et al, 2003)
30Implications of this population disparity cont
- In fact, a study concluded that teacher referral
was a poor manner for gifted screening. (Matthews
Matthews, 2006) - A study found that teacher judgment was only 27
efficient in identifying gifted students. (McBee,
2006) - A study found that teachers rated Hispanic
students lower. (McBee, 2006)
31Implications of this population disparity cont
- A study found that 2nd grade teachers were still
hesitant, in some cases, to refer even after they
had all answer correct on a CBM. (Pierce et al,,
2006) - A study found that teachers in Alaska thought
Eskimo children to not be as bright(Sternberg,
2007) - Few teachers exposed to a multicultural
curriculum or have experience with students of
diversity in their training so they are ignorant
of cultural nuances regarding learning styles,
communication patterns, behavioral approaches,
etc Sternberg, 2007)
32Conflicts of cultural values/behaviors
- The body is the hardware and culture is the
software. (Ford et al, 2005) - Manifestations of giftedness reflect the
interaction of culture, language, world-view,
conceptual style, values, personality (Harris et
al, 1991)
33Conflicts of cultural values/behaviors(Knutson et
al, 2005)
- Native Americans
- Interdependence
- Community
- Slower/delayed responses
- Nonverbal communication/direct verbal comm.
- Present orientation
- Participate after observation
- European Americans
- Independence
- Competition
- Faster/immediate responses
- Verbal Communication/indirect verbal comm
- Future orientation
- Initiative
34Conflicts of cultural values/behaviors(Knutson et
al, 2005)
- Keresan Pueblo
- Giftedness-global quality that shows by
contributing to society - Inter-relationships
- cooperation
- European Americans
- Giftedness-Superior abilities
- Competition
- Self-promotion
35Conflicts of cultural values/behaviors(Cohen,
p2)(Sue Sue, 2003)
- Hispanic Americans
- Work together with family to solve problem
- Speak after spoken to
- Collateral (extended family)
- Obedience to authority
- Harmony with nature
- Direct verbal comm.
- European Americans
- Competition, self-direction,
- Initiative in speaking first
- Individual (nuclear family-bio necessity)
- Independence and questions
- Subjection of Nature
- Indirect verbal comm.
36Conflicts of cultural values/behaviors(Sue Sue,
2003)
- African Americans
- Present orientation
- Collateral (extended family)
- Collective orientation
- Harmony with nature
- European Americans
- Future orientation
- Individual (nuclear family-bio necessity)
- Individualistic orientation
- Master of nature
37Other Conflicts Involved (Morris, 2002)
- Some schools African Americans experience
second-generation discrimination - In order to succeed may African Americans feel
pressure to acculturate into European culture
instead maintaining both. - Self sabotage success b/c friends not in gifted
program. - Language minority students are disadvantaged b/c
of background.
38Break between Research and Practice (Cohen p2)
- Divergence in intellectual assessment
practices(Cohen p2) - Practice often reflects misconceptions, budget,
habit, etc instead of research based theories. - Cognitive expression often tempered by context
(Sternberg, 2007). - Minorities do better on performance based
assessments (Ascher, 1990)
39Break between Research and Practice cont
- Identification process varies even within the
same district. - Identification often consists of only a
standardized test or weights it heavily. - Context and SES affect expression of
intelligence. (Sternberg, 2007)
40What are the solutions?
41Solutions to Consider
- Adopting a pluralistic perspective (Harris et al,
1991) - Educating all staff members and seeking
professional development on diversity issues
related to gifted identification(Romero, 1994) - Using a multiple-criteria method
42Adopting a pluralistic perspective (Harris et al,
1991)
- Means assimilating the definitional disagreements
into one cohesive perspective that uses a
multimodal/multidimensional view that accounts
for the variability in gifted expression. - This allows for definition based on strengths and
research instead of relative to European American
middle class students. - Allows for more flexibility
- This perspective forces us to see both the
individual and environmental factors of each
student.
43Adopting a pluralistic perspective- Example
(Romero, 1994)
- Characteristics of giftedness
- Breath of information
- Strong Memory
- High Verbal Proficiency
- High Abstract thinking
- Creativity
- Diverse interests, abilities
- Cultural Expression in Keresan People
- Geographic knowledge about environment, cultural
history, storytelling - Remembering songs, speeches, traditions, legends
- Native speech, song composition, etc
44Educating all staff members and ourselves
(Romero, 1994)
- Educating staff members/yourself so they/you are
sensitive to a variety of gifted characteristics
related to culture, race, etc - School staff members should encourage attitudes,
practices and polices in school consistent with a
multicultural classroom. - All students profit from an integrated culturally
responsive setting not just diverse learners. - Attend minority events and collaborate with
diverse communities(Grantham et al--) -
45Being Supportive
- Encourage students to balance b/w both cultures
via education and sensitivity (Romero, 1994) - Acknowledge value of being competent in both
cultures (Romero, 1994) - Understand nature and needs of diverse learners
in your school (Romero, 1994) - Clarify educational goals and practices Romero,
1994) - Re-examine educational paradigms (Grantham et
al--)
46Being Supportive cont.
- Encourage diverse learners and their families to
collaborate with their school in educating staff
members about cultural considerations. (Daniels,
1998) - Encourage parents to advocate for their right and
for a multicultural curricula and policy(Daniels,
1998) - Encourage diverse learners parents to volunteer
47Being Supportive cont.
- Encourage communication b/w home and school
regarding diverse issues(Grantham et al--) - Let parents know of the gifted program
48Using a multiple-criteria method (Flanagan et
al,--)
- Student interview
- Permanent products
- GATES (Gifted and Talented Evaluation Scales)
- Sociometric questionnaire
- Parent Interview
- Teacher interview
- Observations
- Performance based assessments
49Using a multiple-criteria method (Thomas
Grimes, 2002)
- Cognitive Assessments
- CHC cross battery approach
- Dynamic assessment (pretest-intervention-posttest
for acquisition of skills) (Lidz Macrine, 2001) - DISCOVER (Discovering Intellectual Strengths and
Capabilities through Observation while allowing
for Varied Ethnic Responses) (Sarouphim, 2004) - Project CLUE (Clustering Learners Unlocks Equity)
(Pierce et al, 2007)
50Before using a cognitive assessment remember
- Administration of intelligence tests in English
are appropriate when used with students who are
English dominant (Bainter et al, 2003) - Bilingual-Assessment should measure task
performance across two languages (Ascher, 1990) - Minorities perform better on performance based
assessment than on standardized assessments.
(Sarouphim, 2004)
51Before using a cognitive assessment remember
- Scientific theory in test development is
mitigated by cultural values, societal beliefs,
sociopolitical climate (Thomas Grimes, 2002) - Lack of support for profile analysis (Thomas
Grimes, 2002) - Cognition and language are so interrelated that
it can be difficult to distinguish the two
(Thomas Grimes, 2002)
52Before using a cognitive assessment remember
- Cognition is a continuum with abilities related
to formal education and learning on one end and
less related to formal education on the other
end. (Thomas Grimes, 2002) - Decision to use an assessment should be based on
purpose, case history, psychometrics, etc.
(Thomas Grimes, 2002) - Always present test scores in ranges (Thomas
Grimes, 2002)
53Cognitive Assessments
- Kauffman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC)
Mental Processing Composite (Lidz et al, 2001) - Naglieri Nonverbal Ability Test (NNAT/DA) (Lidz
et al, 2001) - Ravens progressive Matrix (Castellano, 1998))
- System of Multicultural Pluralistic Assessment
(SOMPA) (Harris et l, 1991) - Cattell Culture-Fair Intelligence Series(Harris
et l, 1991) - Guldford Structure of Intellect Test(Harris et l,
1991)
54Cognitive Assessments (Tomas et al, 1995)
- Escla de Inteligencia Wechsler para Ninos-R
(WISC-1982) - Differential Ability Scales for Children-5th Ed.
- Test of Non-Verbal Intelligence2 (TONI)
- Language Assessment Scales-Oral-Spanish and
English.
55What is the role of school psychologists?
56What is the role of school psychologists? (Thomas
Grimes, 1995 p.1084)
- Consultation with teachers, parents,
administrations, etc to assistant with
identification and interpretation of gifted - Advocating for Best Practice using research.
- Using effective models of systematic problem
solving - Productive member of the gifted identification
team
57What is the role of school psychologists? (Thomas
Grimes, 1995 p.342)
- Help teachers and administers to reframe their
own perspectives and biases. - Understand relationships b/w culture, ethnicity,
SES and acculturation.
58References
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59References cont
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60References cont
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61References cont
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62Good Bye and Thanks for your patience.