Gifted Girls

This post was written by Catherine Riordan. It appears on another website, incorrectly attributed to a different author.



The topic for a recent Twitter chat was “Gifted Girls”.

The transcript is no longer available but below is a summary of the chat and a collection of the links that informed it. It is a topic about which much research has been done and I hope you find the information useful and interesting.

Bonus feature if you make it to the end!

• It seems that parents, teachers, society in general, all treat girls differently, even inadvertently. Girls internalise it.
• Teachers are more likely to attribute achievement in boys to ability but to hard work in girls.
• Gifted girls hide intellectual ability in order to conform to their peer group norms.
• Research suggests that girls try to avoid competition in order to preserve relationships.
• Take a look at their moms. Some model this - "I have their dad help with their math homework."
• By early teens, girls learn that to fit in, they can't be too smart, so they dumb down. Then they lose confidence in their ability as they get older.
• Reis also mentions girls thinking they need high grades to succeed, boys don't.
• Certainly they (feel) they have to work harder than men to be seen as 'worth the job'
• The fall off happens in middle school, apparently. When fitting in with their peer group becomes their driving need.
• How much is the fall off the result of media and advertising portrayal of women? Ads tend to be gender stereotype ads.
• It seems to be the result of messages from parents, teachers, peers and, no doubt, the media.
• Society doesn't always help: we had a stupid "I'm too pretty to do math" t-shirt debacle last summer over here.
• How can parents affirm their girls’ intelligence? Can they do it without making them 'tomboy-ish'? - though aware of the values there!
• Girls are taught to be pleasant and polite. Boys can be leaders, but girls get labelled bossy!
• It’s important for mothers to model being smart and for fathers to respect smart women.
• Interesting; I see girls "hide" their intelligence in middle school and I can see why research indicated this
• The top three legal positions in Ireland are now held by women for the first time.
• Standardized tests with short fill-in or multiple choice type answers reward bold, quick answers and willingness to take risks, characteristics more typical of boys than girls
• My best support was my parents. They challenged me not to fit in. To stand out. What I encourage in girls.
• An ad released by EU to encourage women to get into science - see what you think http://t.co/wSeOT8m3
• Good grief!
• What messages do we need to say to gifted girls to get them to accept their ability?
• Mentors are invaluable for girls and women. Make more of a difference than for men.
• We need to start very early by being aware of the subtle messages we give them, even without meaning to.
• In all things, the clothes they wear, programmes on TV they watch etc
• Very much agreed: older mentors would be very helpful (either gender)--share successes, pitfalls, etc!
• There are some great role models out there now, such as @aoifemcl and @aoibhinn_ni_s (Aoife McLysaght and Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin)
• I think men/fathers have an important role there too. I wonder should ante-natal classes include a bit on gender stereotypes?

Social and Emotional Issues Faced by Gifted Girls in Elementary and Secondary School by Dr. Sally Reis. This is well worth a read as it covers just about everything.

Many Gifted Girls, Few Eminent Women: Why? by Anita Gurian, PhD Focuses on possible reasons why giftedness in many girls fades as they grow older. Another great read.

Gifted Girls by Joan Franklin Smutny Particularly useful for teachers wishing to identify gifted girls in the classroom and to bring out their talent.

Why Smart Girls Abandon Their Dreams and How to Stop It by Dr Barbara Kerr.
"If we want smart girls to become not just experts but innovators, we need to encourage their taking on challenges, letting go of perfectionism and bouncing back from mistakes. We need to promote time alone and de-emphasize the need to be liked. We need to help them learn that their bodies are not their identities."

Smart Girls: A New Psychology of Girls, Women, and Giftedness by Dr Barbara Kerr.

Gifted Girls’ Passion for Fiction: The Quest for Meaning, Growth, and Self-Actualization by Susan Lee Stutler
"Time spent in solitude reading fiction helped the girls overcome adversity, allowed them to resist enculturation, and caused them to question the split between the way things are and they way things should be. The girls used fiction to self-educate as they began to realize their lives’ purpose."

Helping Gifted Girls Reach Their Potential by Dr Linda Kreger Silverman

Do Gifted Girls & Boys Interpret Difficulty Differently?
"Bright girls were much quicker to doubt their ability, to lose confidence, and to become less effective learners as a result." Carol Dweck.

Hoagies list of books for/about gifted girls

"You Could Be Doing Brain Surgery”: Gifted Girls Becoming Teachers by Colleen Willard-Holt.
"There is little question that our society desperately needs teachers who are gifted. Yet gifted students who express an interest in a teaching career are often discouraged by family members, friends, teachers, and counselors."

Parenting Gifted Girls: Focus on Math, Science and Technology by Ann Lupkowski-Shoplik, Ph.D., and Pamela J. Piskurich, M.S.

Perfectionism: The Crucible of Giftedness by Dr Linda Kreger Silverman

2 extras:
Career Counselling: Special Problems of Gifted Girls by Dr Linda Kreger Silverman

Gifted Girls to Gifted Women presentation by Lori Comallie-Caplan There is a huge amount of information in here.

And, now your reward:

Women: Know Your Limits!

Support Group Meeting

Tuesday 16th October

7.45pm

Glenview Hotel

Anyone with an interest in gifted issues is welcome to come along, but so that we have an idea of numbers, please drop us a line to gas.wicklowdublin@gmail.com

Gifted Children and Tests

This was written by Catherine Riordan. It appears without permission on another website, incorrectly attributed to another author.

Free Spirit Publishing

At #gtie last week we discussed Gifted Children and Tests. Not only did we have participants from Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow and Cork, we had our faithful supporters from the US; Toby from Oklahoma and Lisa from Pittsburgh. Amongst our number, there were parents of both primary and secondary school students, a homeschooler, teachers and an educational psychologist. So, a wide range of experience!

Here is a brief summary of what came up, with a few extra links:

The problems that gifted children may encounter in tests:

• Poor concentration, not finishing.
• Test anxiety: Gifted Children Scared of Tests
• Perfectionism: Helping Gifted Students Cope With Perfectionism
• I think there's a fear of being exposed as a fraud if they don't excel
• Big issue with current 'high stakes' tests is that they are mostly 'scribble down all the knowledge you can’ type tests rather than ‘apply the knowledge and solve problems’ type test.
• If kids find tests easy when young, they may never learn study skills. When things get harder later, self-doubt is introduced. They need challenge from the outset.

Then we moved on to the types of tests done:

• I favour the International Baccalaureate over others like the Leaving Certificate  because of the Continuous Assessment component and the real world experience.
• I wish we could base tests on real-world issues and problems. Use take-home format and give time to reflect.
• More standardised testing is a concern. Once the minimum standard reached, the box is ticked, "everyone" is happy and gifted kids left unstretched.
• Parents should watch for this in school in Ireland now - more standardised testing coming down the line. (In primary and secondary. NCCA report on standardised testing at second level)
• I hope this won't mean more teaching-to-the-test, but my hopes aren't too high!
• It will because as ever, standardised tests will be used to judge teachers, not the students sitting them- Cracked!! (Standardised Testing and Its Victims)
• Testing is black and white answers that give a final number; assessment is more subtle but has more subjectivity in it.
• Testing versus assessment

How do we help children cope with the expectation of tests?

• In my children's primary schools neither they, nor we, were told in advance when the standarised tests would be, no hype.
• True, I think they didn't want the mammies getting hyper more than the kids though!
• I think it depends on the child. DD1 needs reminding to prepare. DD2 needs to be told 'it's only a test'. (DD means dear/darling daughter)
• A shift of focus from praising children for being clever to praising their effort and hard work.
• Definitely praise is a must - self esteem can be a problem but how to stress a test is important,  to do his best, without making him feel pressured?
• Praising effort and results while not praising the individual is pretty tough but can be done with good results.
• Helping children cope with studies

Now we moved on to more philosphical matters!

• Information on Assessment for Learning (AfL) from the UK.
• Common Core Standards from the US.
• Common Core has an interesting by-line-'preparing America's STUDENTS for college and career' rather than PEOPLE for living.
• A kid is so much more than his/her exam results.
• They are important but if we make exams a zero-sum game - it just freaks kids out.
• Testing can tell a kid they have failed - not why. We need to help them understand why: Kids Fail Less When They Know Failure Is Part Of Learning, Study Finds
• All of these standardized tests reduce students (and now/in future) teachers and schools to a number. NOT humanitarian.
• Some kids have talents that aren't measured by exams but may become central to later life success. Need to see big picture.
• Exactly, who says we have to measure it all at 15 or 18 anyway? We can't possibly, nor should we want to.
• It's very wrong that we tell kids they are failures at the age of 18 just because they didn't do well in a state exam.
• Taylor's Multiple-Talent Model

Finally: Education should make a child feel competent; testing can undermine that.

CTYI Public Meetings

The Centre for Talented Youth, Ireland, (CTYI) provides enrichment courses for students with high academic ability and university-style courses for students of all ages and abilities.

This week, they will be holding two public information evenings which are open to everyone. No need to register in advance. Just turn up and find out that CTYI is all about and the programmes it has to offer.

Dublin: Thursday 11th October, at 8pm, in the Nursing Building, DCU.
Cork: Friday 12th October, at 8pm, in the River Lee Hotel.

Happy World Teachers' Day!

Today is World Teachers' Day and we would like to take the opportunity to thank all the wonderful teachers who take care of our children each day. Particularly to those who take the time to show that they understand the needs of gifted children in their classrooms. We appreciate how difficult a task it is to manage and teach a group of up to thirty children of widely ranging abilities and learning needs. Despite the myths, gifted students are not always model students or high achievers. They can be downright exasperating at times!  The teacher who shows understanding and appreciation of a student's particular strengths, weaknesses and quirks, can transform their school experience. These teachers will be long and fondly remembered by our children. Thank you so much.