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Showing posts with label testing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label testing. Show all posts

From the Publishers of 2e Newsletter

HAPPY NEW YEAR! Presenting our first blog items of 2012...
ACCOMMODATIONS ON HIGH-STAKES TESTS. Many twice-exceptional students would benefit from accommodations on tests such as the SAT, whether the accommodation be extra time or help in receiving or expressing test-related content. USA Today says that the U.S. Justice Department isn't enforcing laws that allow these accommodations. Read more.
SUPPLY AND DEMAND. When your child's AD/HD demands medication to help blunt its effects, will you be able to get a proper supply of that med? Increasingly, the answer is "maybe," as a result of actions by the Drug Enforcement Administration trying to cut down on pill abuse and, possibly, by drug manufacturers trying to increase profits. If your gifted child has AD/HD, find out more about pricing and availability of AD/HD meds.
DYSLEXIA AND AUDITORY PROCESSING. French researchers have found abnormalities in the left auditory cortex in people with dyslexia which might interfere with verbal memory and speech. The cortex processed higher-frequency phonemes less efficiently. Read more.
HYPERSENSITIVITY AND OCD? A new study suggests that children who are hypersensitive may be more prone to develop OCD. The link? The development of "ritualistic behaviors to better cope with their environment," according to researchers. Find out more.
ALLERGY TESTING may not be completely accurate, contend two allergists published in the journal Pediatrics. Blood and skin tests may lead to over-diagnosis, according to the article, and may not be definitive in determining whether an allergy actually exists. Read more.
EDUCATOR'S RESOURCES. Edutopia has compiled its "Best of 2011: Our Favorite Educational Resources." The resources apply to areas such as differentiated instruction, engaging under-performing students, and project-based learning. Find the resources. 
RICHARD CASH is presenting a SENG webinar titled "Self-Regulation: Essential Skills for Adolescent Gifted Students" during the evening of January 19th. From the webinar announcement: "This session will offer suggestions as to how to develop self-regulated learners and ideas of how to encourage autonomous learning." Find out more.

HAPPY SUMMER to those of you in the Northern hemisphere. Happy winter to our friends in Australia and New Zealand.

THE GIFTED RESOURCES NEWSLETTER, from Jo Freitag, has appeared in its June incarnation. On pages 9-11 of the newsletter Jo lists "Some Interesting Websites," as she usually does, and this eclectic list includes a pointers to a 10-page article by Jim Delisle titled "Understand What Giftedness Is... And What It Is Not"; to an AEGUS list of suggested reading; and to an article on highly sensitive persons. If you feel like exploring, check out Jo's list.

TIMED TESTS. Twice-exceptional students often process more slowly than their gifted counterparts, which can hurt their scores on timed tests, especially highly important tests such as the ACT and SAT. In a column called "The Answer Sheet," a Washington Post education writer lays out the arguments for not timing the ACT and SAT. If you've tried to get exceptions to the requirement, or anticipate having to do so, read the column.

IS YOUR CHILD 2e? Brainworks, in Carrollton, Texas, has an online screening tool to help you decide whether your child might be twice-exceptional. Find the tool.

GROWTH ON AD/HD MEDS. A study suggests that stimulant meds for AD/HD do not have a long-term effect on height and weight of the children taking them. Find out more.

AUTISTIC ACHIEVER. A young man whose parents were told that he would likely wind up in an institution gave the commencement speech at his high school in Smithfield, Rhode Island. He was salutatorian of his class and will go on to Rhode Island College in the fall. Find out more.

CELEBRITY STATUS. 2e Newsletter publishers Linda Neumann and Mark Bade were interviewed for the current issue of NAGC's publication Parenting for High Potential. You can read the interview if you're a member of NAGC or know someone who will loan you the issue. The issue also contains an article titled "The Case Law on Dually Exceptional Children," which sounds good but which we haven't read yet because we wanted to see our interview first.

From the Week of August 9th

CALIFORNIA SCHOOL FOR KIDS WITH LDs. An article in the San Diego Union-Tribune featured Winston School, a small (100-student) private school in Del Mar. According to the article, students at the school have LDs that include AD/HD, dyslexia, and Asperger's. All of the students graduating from Winston this year have evidently been accepted at two- and four-year colleges. Read the article.

LD AT U OF T. The University of Texas' Daily Texan says that 1262 students at the school are registered with the office that provides services for students with LDs. The article quotes the director of that office as saying, "Many of them, although they may have areas of relative weakness, are incredibly bright and gifted in the areas that they do excel at." The school provides resources and one-on-one assistance from instructors. Find out more.

SMART INFANT, SMART ADULT. From the news center at Case Western Reserve: "Infants who excel at processing new information at 6- and 12-months-old typically excel in intelligence and academic achievements as young adults in their 20's, according to a study directed by Case Western Reserve University Psychologist Joseph Fagan." The results stem from a longitudinal study of infants tested in their first year of life. Find the news item.

GET INVOLVED WITH THAT GIFTED KID, DAD. It's not just a mom's job. A University of Illinois expert in early childhood education claims that mothers and fathers play different roles and make different contributions to a child’s upbringing, but a father’s influence upon a child’s academic success later in life is felt the most when he’s involved from the very beginning. Brent McBride also says that fathers and father figures can have at least as much of a unique impact on a child as mothers do, and therefore should be seen as co-equal partners in parenting. Find the UI news release.

ANOTHER WEBINAR FROM OGTOC. Sally_L has scheduled another webinar, this one on September 14th and titled The Art of Gifted Advocacy. It features Barbara Gilman of the Gifted Development Center in Denver. Gilman is author of Academic Advocacy for Gifted Children. Find out more.

GRADE SKIPPING FOR THE GIFTED. In Education Week, Laura Vanderkam and Richard Whitmire revisit acceleration for gifted children as an "obvious, easy, inexpensive solution" to nurturing gifted students. Read the article.

ADVOCACY SUMMER SCHOOL, PART 3. Are you participating in the Wrightslaw Summer School for Advocates? If so, this week's lesson covers how to use information from tests to track your child's progress. Go to school.

AN INTERESTING LD RESOURCE came across our desk a short while ago. NCLD has issued "The State of Learning Disabilities (2009)." Here's what NCLD has to say about their effort: "NCLD offers this publication to policy makers, education professionals, media, parents and others to ensure that there is access to key LD data to and expand awareness about what LD is and whom the condition impacts." For that one "e" in your child's 2e equation, this report might offer perspective and statistics. Find the PDF.

TEXAS AND GIFTED. An article in the Dallas Morning News described the plight of gifted education in Texas -- no requirements of teachers to take graduate education programs in gifted education, few districts that pay teachers to take such programs, and no higher pay for teachers who do. Read about the state of gifted education in Texas here.

MORE ITEMS as the week goes on...