Acceleration

Any time a student is working ahead of grade level it is referred to as acceleration.  There are actually many kinds of acceleration and can range from grade skipping to compacting in one subject area.

Achievement Test
A test that measures what students have learned or have been taught in a specific content area relative to the expected achievement of average student; does not gauge potential.

Advanced Placement (AP)
A formalized system that allows students to enroll in intense, high-level courses in high school and possibly gain college credit simultaneously.

Assessment
The process of evaluating student learning with standardized testing and a clearly defined portfolio of individual work samples. In gifted education, teachers attempt to evaluate student products or performance to tailor education to student needs and interests.

Cluster Grouping
Assigning students of the same grade level who have been identified as gifted to a small instructional group within a class of otherwise heterogeneously grouped students.

Content Acceleration
The faster presentation of curriculum to more closely match the speed at which a gifted student learns.

Critical Thinking
Cultivated analytical skills allowing students to logically comprehend and solve complex concepts or problems.

Curriculum Compacting
Streamlining basic curriculum in order to challenge students and free their regular school day time for the pursuit of accelerated and/or enriched work.

Differentiation
Adapting the pace, level, or kind of curriculum to meet each student's individual learning needs, styles, or interests.

Enrichment
Experiences and activities scheduled that are above and beyond the basic curriculum offered in the classroom or the school. The emphasis is on breadth of knowledge as opposed to worrying about speed or level.

ESL (English as a Second Language)
Students in this group are not native English speakers but are developing English language proficiency. Communication problems often mask these students' gifts and talents, causing them to be underrepresented in gifted programming.

Mentorship
The one-on-one learning relationship between a student and an expert in a specific topic or discipline. The mentor supports and guides the student to develop in that area of interest.

Multipotentiality
Concept that gifted children have the ability to succeed in several areas of work or study, making career selection difficult.

Perfectionism
A drive for excellence, an intrinsic motivation that through striving for perfection leads to outstanding accomplishments. This is healthy perfectionism.  Perfectionism that tends to be disabling is extrinsically motivated by a belief that one is worthless in the eyes of others unless one can present oneself and one's work perfectly.

Portfolio Assessment
A collection of student products used to demonstrate and measure achievement, abilities, and talents, often toward the purpose of placing the student in a gifted program or evaluating work done in a gifted program.

Pull-Out Program
This is a part-time program where gifted children leave the regular classroom for a limited time to attend specialized classes with a resource or GT teacher.

Weighted Grades
Offering equal credit for a lower grade in a more difficult class. For example, a grade of B in Pre-AP, AP or GT English is equivalent to a grade of A in CP English.