Gifted: Klein ISD Service Design
Counselors Online PD-Summer 2020
SERVICE DESIGN
A flexible system of viable service options provides a research-based learning continuum that isdeveloped and consistently implemented throughout the district to meet the needs and reinforce the strengths and interests of gifted/talented students.
ACCOUNTABILITY STANDARD: 3.11
Develop and implement services to address the social and emotional needs of
gifted/talented students and their impact on student learning.
AFFECTIVE CURRICULUM FOR GIFTED LEARNERS
Dr. David Cavilla
In the United States, the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) has shed significant light on the power of affective development for school-aged children, indicating that, without it, students are limited in their ability to reach their full potential. The proposed Taxonomy of Affective Curriculum for Gifted Learners is intended to provide a framework to reduce the disparity in focus between cognitive and social-emotional development for a population that requires affective support in response to the effects of asynchronous development as well as an inherent proclivity for heightened capacity for emotional intelligence and moral development.
In short, its purpose is to give the gifted student the highest levels of both cognitive and emotional intelligence. To date, there has been a lack of support for affective growth, and this, Cavilla observed, can often lead to poor impulse control and a tendency to lose emotional control as a result of the lowered self-esteem that comes with underachievement.
Cavilla, Derek, "Taxonomy of Affective Curriculum for Gifted Learners" (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 4943. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/4943
Break it Down: Grades K-1
Learning respect for the school environment and for those providing learning can help students to see themselves as important participants in the setting and to behave appropriately towards others in it. In addition to cooperation, respect, and responsibility, self-image is an important construct for gifted learners who should accept that their giftedness is a positive. If viewed in this light, it will help the gifted learner to feel valued and included, enabling them to develop the intellectual and affective skills to become a well-rounded individual capable of reaching his or her full potential.
In the CASEL framework, each of the four skills at level 1 (cooperation, respect, responsibility and self-image) are linked to one or more of five pillars: self-awareness, social awareness, responsible decision making, self-management and relationship management. The application of this in a learning environment helps students understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. For gifted students, the development of these competencies can help them see themselves as a successful participant within the developmental process.
"As a result, gifted students who exit first grade with a solid foundation of interpersonal skills, a positive self-concept that accepts and upholds their unique abilities, and an internal acceptance of the roles and responsibilities of a superior student will be fully prepared not only to face the advanced levels of cognitive development in the intermediate grades, but also the next set of affective skills required to form a continually developing foundation for healthy and elevated social-emotional learning." (p. 60-61)
Cavilla, Derek, "Taxonomy of Affective Curriculum for Gifted Learners" (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 4943. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/4943
Break it Down: Grades 2-4
"While level two of the proposed taxonomy continues to be proactive and preventive
in developing gifted students affective skills, it adds the complexity of hypersensitivity,
overexcitabilities, supernormal behaviors, and altruism. After the transition from primary grades, gifted students may begin to exhibit hyperfocus in areas of extreme interest or display heightened excitement in various areas such as the psychomotor, intellectual, or sensual domain (Piechowski, 2006). Moreover, empathy may not to be so much developed as it is managed for some gifted students who display extreme levels of sensitivity to justice and ethics (Silverman, 1997) — areas that can be supported through channeling student feelings into acts of altruism in projects or curriculum. As previously discussed, these hypersensitive and supernormal behaviors may sometimes be interpreted as disabilities or behavioral concerns rather than as assets that can be channeled into powerful capabilities both intellectually and social-emotionally. Therefore, by ensuring empathy is a dual channel, meaning that the teacher of the gifted also empathizes with the gifted student’s asynchronous development, infusing the affective skills of self-regulation, empathy, and specific self-esteem can not only help to manage these intense behaviors or reactions, but actually help students manage them in ways that positively influence their lives and the experiences of their peers and classroom community as well." (p.64)
Cavilla, Derek, "Taxonomy of Affective Curriculum for Gifted Learners" (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 4943. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/4943
Break it Down: Grades 5-8
"As gifted students prepare to enter the secondary grades, the affective focus shifts from
external to internal, with the CASEL standards of self-awareness and self-management taking
center stage. Of utmost importance to the strengthening of self-regulation is grit. As academic and social-emotional tasks continue to intensify and gain complexity, the ability to persevere and commit the requisite time needed to solve complex problems is vital. At this level of gifted education, the onus of learning is often placed more directly on the student with the teacher acting as a coach rather than a delivery agent of information. As such, the gifted student at this stage must develop grit in order to defeat the obstacles, confusion, and frustration that may arise from periods of independent research, completion of projects that require synthesis from multiple subject areas, and exposure to advanced curricular content and leadership opportunities that are designed to take the gifted learner out of his or her independent learning zone and into his or her actual level of learning ability. Of course, being able to determine areas that require extra exertion of effort and adherence to time management also require gifted students’ ability to be able to effectively judge his or her ability to complete a task, which is the core definition of self-efficacy." (p. 66)
Cavilla, Derek, "Taxonomy of Affective Curriculum for Gifted Learners" (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 4943. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/4943
Break it Down: Grades 9-12
"From divergent thinking fueled by empathy to the continued growth of intrinsic motivation, the construct of harmonious passion takes root and has the potential to guide gifted students toward career choices and talents that have the potential to enhance society through innovative and novel thinking. Moreover, the ability to apply grit in the face of obstacles or challenges grows into a willingness to accept and embrace failure as the ultimate learning opportunity — cementing the growth mindset that is so critical at the highest levels of cognitive performance as well as so valued in the professional arena. Additionally at this phase, curiosity and divergent thinking provide a foundation for the acceptance of ambiguity, thus allowing gifted learners to use the combination of their intellectual and affective ability to confront problems and situations with either no clear solution or multiple solutions that must be analyzed and synthesized in order to produce the most ideal result. Lastly, the skill of self-efficacy, in combination with strengthened self-regulation, facilitates young gifted adults’ ability to set and attain purposeful and meaningful goals in order to move toward optimal development and personal fulfillment across the educational, career, and social spectrums." (p. 68)