No Child Left Unchallenged
Engaging the gifted child
By Lisa Lambert, M.A. '05
Thanks to a precocious 11-year-old, Dr. James Delisle, at the time a newly minted teacher, experienced an epiphany.
He had struggled for months to get Matt, a special-education student, to complete worksheets, pay attention and show some respect. It wasn’t long before Delisle threw up his hands, allowing the boy to sleep in class or pass the hours reading magazines. After all, Delisle had other students to teach.
Enlightenment came on a cold spring day, when Matt sauntered into the school, reeking of skunk. He explained he’d been sprayed by the animal while tending to his maple syrup business — an entrepreneurial enterprise of his own design.
From advertising and contracting with neighbors (he’d tap their trees and allot them a percentage of his sales) to applying for a license from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to sell his product at local grocery stores, Matt had it covered.
It was then Delisle realized he would have to design lessons that resonated with Matt on a personal level in order to engage the boy in the classroom. Matt’s budding business provided the perfect avenue.
'Selective consumers’
The experience with Matt revealed a truth for Delisle that none of his college education courses adequately addressed: for “selective consumers” –– a term Delisle prefers to use to describe smart, low-performing children –– the one-size-fits-all school curriculum simply doesn’t fit.
The current climate within America’s education system, where standardized testing has risen to paramount importance thanks to government mandates such as No Child Left Behind, exacerbates the dilemma.
“In today’s politically charged schools, maximum achievement is less of a focus than minimum competency,” says Delisle, who is now a Kent State professor of education. “It’s an atmosphere in which neither selective consumers nor the identified gifted are given the tools to thrive.”
Delisle does not seek to trivialize the importance of developing competency in all students, but he does believe that federal and state mandates bypass the needs of gifted children, whose abilities and gifts fall along a wide spectrum.
“Being gifted is so much more than being smart,” Delisle says.
Leta S. Hollingworth, an early 20th century pioneer in gifted education, defines giftedness as a greater awareness, a greater sensitivity and a greater ability to understand and transform perceptions into intellectual and emotional experiences.
Gifted children often are described as highly curious, intelligent, creative and focused — all of which can seem more like a curse than a blessing, depending upon the child’s school and home environment. Throughout his 30-plus years in the field, Delisle has explored the role of parents in the development of gifted children, helping parents to better understand their kids.
Gifted parenting
Above all, Delisle explains, parents shouldn’t alter their expectations when their child is identified as gifted. “Parents have to remember, it’s still the same child,” he says. “These are kids first –– they just happen to be thinking at a higher level.”
When children are identified as gifted, Delisle says, parents sometimes begin pushing the child toward a particular career path or become less forgiving of behaviors typical of children, such as immaturity or selfishness.
In addition, gifted children often feel compelled to hide their talents in order to fit in socially with their peers. Parents can inadvertently encourage this behavior by not discussing giftedness or by telling their child to avoid mention of it around others.
“You’re sending a confusing, mixed message — be proud of your abilities, but don’t let anyone know you have them,” Delisle says.
In addition to his post at Kent State, where he teaches undergraduates, Delisle teaches gifted students at Chamberlin Middle School in Twinsburg, Ohio. As an educator and the father of a gifted child, he says, “I’d rather ask my son or my students, ‘What are you interested in and how can I help you get there?’”
By following the child’s lead, Delisle insists, parents can learn to help their children celebrate their unique qualities.
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