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Diversity and Gifted Education: four Brazilian examples

Dr. Christina Cupertino Universidade Paulista, Brazil Dr. Zenita Guenther

CEDET, Brazil Dr. Cristina Delou

Universidade Federal Fluminense, Brazil Susana Pérez

AGAAHSD, Brazil

Introduction

Educators experience impasses when trying to transfer researches’ results into practice, since researchers often exclude the contexts due to the procedures considered scientifically reliable. This leads educators to a ‘logic of experimentation, disappointment and abdication’ because practice is much more complex than any theory (Hédoux, 1994).

Educational Studies based on qualitative methods are still submitted to criticism, because they are thought to be oriented to ‘particular experiences’, lacking objective validation. This divide between scientific and technologic development and those intended for education, severely affect general and special education programs (Ribeiro, 2003).

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However, the field of Gifted Education has gradually shown agreement that systematic intervention is necessary to encourage the development of ability in all children by individualizing the curriculum, (SEESP-MEC, 1994). Such concerns are reflected in educational legislation, but prejudices remain concerning the abilities of the disadvantaged majority of the population. Also, in Brazil, the need to reconstruct the meaning of ‘citizenship’ and ‘equal opportunities’ has been the priority concern after many years of dictatorship. However, the educational model adopted by the official institutions still alienates educators from any discussion or decision-making process.

Considering the above, we have decided to present some positive examples of gifted programmes in Brazil, rather than neutral reports distant from daily reality, hopefully offering readers the opportunity to find resonance with their practice.

Center for Potential and Talent Development - CEDET

CEDET’s conception and organization are derived from Humanistic Education principles, committed to the development of highly able/gifted children. The project is not centered on specific talents but on the growth of personality, by strengthening the self, cultivating good relationships with others and building acceptable relationships with the world. Considering the self, besides studies focusing on motivation and task commitment, we focus on developing ‘expertise in self-understanding, decision-making and self-regulation’ (Moon, 2003, p. 11), and on moral values, ethics and character building (Tirri, 2003). Harmonious living with each other, leadership and social competence are dimensions that should be included in

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Gifted Education, (Pyryt, 2003). The third basis for CEDET’s plan derives from working with scientific knowledge within the various fields of study.

CEDET’s pedagogical organization encompasses three broad enrichment areas:

• Communication, Social Organization and Humanities: where

children can find enrichment through activities related to social life and human relationships, including groups and associations, languages, media communication, and ways of dealing with sharing, interacting and living together.

• Research, science and technology: which opens doors to the world

of scientific knowledge, building relationships between people, and understanding the world around us.

• Creativity, personal expressions and skills: which explores the self,

and personal feelings, cultivating one’s own body and fostering the pursuit of common goals, such as in sports, recreation or performing arts.

CEDET provides educational support for talented children from elementary to high school level, working in cooperation with schools and the community, in a network formed by parent and friends affiliated to the Association for Supporting Talent (ASPAT). Both public and private schools support the Center by providing teachers and accommodation. Community involvement and participation is called upon according to the individual plans worked out with the children.

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This complex network is regulated under ASPAT supervision. Once a child or a group shows a specific interest, we find someone suitable in the community to work with them. Each semester, about 60-70 volunteer instructors develop activities for 450-500 enrolled students. The children go to school for part of the day and attend CEDET at other times. The children’s work is negotiated through an individual plan requiring about 10 hours a week.

The identification process (Guenther, Barroso, Bezerra & Veiga, 1998) relies on direct observation conducted in the following stages:

• At the end of the school year, classroom teachers from

Kindergarten to the 4th grade fill up a 26-item data sheet on the child’s intelligence, creativity, and other areas of potential. The purpose of this is to place each child with classmates of similar ability.

• During the school year, the Center personnel develop continuous

observation allowing a closer comparison of the child’s ability within more demanding settings.

• An annual data collection by the classroom teachers is carried out,

usually with a different teacher and a new comparison group of students.

When data from two of the three set of observers agree that the child shows signs of high ability, he/she is enrolled at CEDET. From 5th grade on, when there is more that one teacher, the School Teacher Council appoints the child to be observed. Once identified and enrolled, the student stays in CEDET through high school.

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Educational provision may include acceleration, and individual enrichment planning for each child according to specific need and learning style, and we encourage the children to choose their own activity to encourage internal locus of control. Interest Groups are formed when 5 or more students show a common interest. Smaller groups develop a Project, but each student is required to be sufficiently mature to work alone. General Encounters for up to 100 children are organized around multidimensional topics which aim to stimulate and provide new opportunities for making choices. The interaction network coordinated by facilitators, teachers and volunteer instructors is integrated to ensure that children meet a variety of mentors.

This type of community participation interwoven into our own methodology is certainly CEDET’s most powerful feature since it assures diversity and variety activities, together a high level of quality.

Objetivo Program for Fostering Talent1 – POIT: A private initiative POIT is a cooperative program between Objetivo School and Paulista University (UNIP), in São Paulo, a city of 10 million inhabitants. Both these institutions form an educational conglomerate with 345,000 enrolled students, ranging from infant to postgraduate education (Cupertino, 2000b). POIT is the only Brazilian initiative developed within a private institution with autonomy to state its own agenda. Students come from middle-class and low middle-class families, and they expect an education oriented to university admittance examinations, so the school mainly offers standard

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curricula. Nevertheless, the school has created some space for the development of diversified talents. A large range of extra-curricular activities is offered especially for nurturing talent, such as advanced programs in topics the students are interested in and the Art and Culture Festival that encourages artistic talent. POIT cares for the affective development of highly able students, as well as fostering creativity and leadership, by providing a challenging environment while respecting youngsters’ own rhythms (Landau, 1987, 2002).

Services offered to Objetivo School

• Identification of talented students is based upon quantitative data

obtained from tests, and qualitative data derived from direct observation of students. Creativity, motivation, and/or high academic performance and artistic talent are considered (Cupertino & Sabatella, 1998).

• The POIT extra-curricular program is different from typical gifted

education programs, since it focuses on students’ affective needs and relationships. Freeman (1992, 1995) states that the program design should depend closely on talent and high performance, and POIT’s intention is to foster development of current specific abilities without pre-judging eventual achievement. This means that the program has to closely follow the students so that they establish their own development level according to their own criteria. Psychological and educational work are integrated, and the activities are planned across a

1Programa Objetivo de Incentivo ao Talento – POIT. http://www.objetivo.br

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variety of themes that require the use of advanced technological tools, creativity development techniques, and ongoing emotional support.

• Counseling to school, families and staff, are included in the

extracurricular program. Workshops are also offered, where parents and children work together in shared activities.

POIT emphasizes respect for differences and individuality, together with the capacity to relate with each other in a complex reality (Lévy, 1995; Attali, 1996); hence the activities encourage interpersonal exchange and collaborative work, aiming to avoid possible problems of isolation experienced by highly able/gifted children (Hickson, 1992). The POIT program attempts to balance what students know with what they like and need to know, trying to avoid the pressure to maintain a constantly superior performance (Hannel, 1991). The students are encouraged to make choices, identifying areas of preference, devoting energy to them, but also spending time in leisure and entertainment.

Services at UNIP Applied Psychology Centers

The Applied Psychology Centres of UNIP offer diagnostic counselling to individuals families and schools (Ancona-Lopez, 1995). The POIT services are increasingly being offered to at-risk children and adolescents living in the underprivileged communities of the city (Cupertino, 2000a, 2001). Training of specialized professionals and resources are generated and shared between universities and schools to ensure coherence, reliability and sustainability.

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Gifted educational services have recently increased in Rio Grande do Sul state. FADERS2, maintains a small department3 solely responsible for gifted

screening and counseling, human resources training and research; the Education Center of the Federal University of Santa Maria promotes discussion on Giftedness and enrichment classes; and the Military school of Porto Alegre offers tutored projects to eighth-graders and secondary students.

AGAAHSD4, is a statewide non-profit NGO supporting and advocating for

gifted people, and is a co-founder of the Brazilian Council for the Gifted. AGAAHSD, run by gifted people and parents, has adopted Renzulli’s Three-Ring conception of giftedness (1986), and believes that education is a social concern, with enrichment opportunities offered to all children within an inclusive approach. The core activities focus on:

• Counseling and advising with regard to giftedness generally.

• Public advocacy and promotion of gifted people’s rights in

governmental and community committees. During 2001, AGAAHSD demanded that the State Education Department sponsor a high abilities course for representatives from the 30 educational districts. In 2005, 30 resource rooms will be established within the state.

• Encouragement of research. Using a wider concept of giftedness

based on the work of Renzulli and Gardner, a recent survey (AGAAHSD, 2001) suggests that approximately 272,300 students,

2 Fundação de Articulação e Desenvolvimento de Políticas Públicas para Pessoas Portadoras de Deficiência e de Altas Habilidades no Estado do Rio Grande do Sul.

3Centro de Desenvolvimento, Estudos e Pesquisas sobre Altas Habilidades/Superdotação - CEDEPAH. 4 Associação Gaúcha de Apoio às Altas Habilidades/Superdotação. http://www.agaahsd.pop.com.br

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and almost 800,000 people in Rio Grande do Sul, have giftedness indicators, thus deserving gifted education.

• Awareness promotion and information. Public lectures reaching

thousands of people have provided increasing awareness on giftedness. AGAAHSD maintains one of the few libraries in the country, and published a Manual for Parents and Teachers in 2000 (AGAAHSD, 2000). Since 1997, hundreds of children have attended the free scientific, artistic and leisure workshops offered by association. AGAAHSD also organizes free registrations at professional lectures for low income attendees, and scholarships to universities.

Therefore, although only a few gifted students are catered for, these collective efforts are allowing significant progress.

The Project to serve highly able children5 in Rio de Janeiro -

PAAAHSD

Delou’s Doctoral Dissertation (2001) shows that in Rio de Janeiro, those public school gifted students who attended specialized resource rooms, still ended up conforming to the minimum standards necessary to pass to the next grade, believing that the difficulties they encountered in school were a result of their own lack of intelligence. As a result of this, since 2002, the Education School of the Universidade Federal Fluminense has developed a project whose main objective is to develop pedagogy that will nurture gifted

5Projeto de Atendimento a Alunos com Altas Habilidades/Superdotação – PAAAHSD.

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students in creative thinking. The pedagogy is based on the work of Vygotsky who said that ‘if inheritance makes genius possible, only the social environment realizes this potential, and creates the genius’ (in Delou & Bueno, 2001. See also Alencar, 2001; Novaes, 1999; Sternberg & Lubart, 1999; Sternberg, 2000; Sternberg & Grigorenko, 2003)

Gifted students of 10 to 20 years old were selected on free diagnostic assessment using House-Tree-Person Projective Technique (HTP), ideative production (My hands), and Intelligence (Raven’s progressive Matrices and Kohs Block Design). In addition students submitted a descriptive life-story about their interests and achievements. All students were then interviewed. At 2 hour weekly meetings, the students experienced activities to encourage creative thinking and computing (Virgolim, Fleith & Neves-Pereira, 1999; Sternberg 2000; Sternberg & Grigorenko, 2003). Project evaluation considered: regularity of attendance, quality of student participation, and analysis of the pre-existing competences with follow-up of the acquirement and sustainment of new competencies in collective work. The final results showed many students achieving highly across a range of creative projects. In addition, many students showed significant growth in social communication.

Final thoughts

The initiatives briefly presented above suggest that, to build a bridge between cumulative knowledge and practice, it is necessary to analyze, deconstruct and adapt the frameworks supporting the actions. The scientific community is no longer solely committed to the classic scientific model, grounded in rational logic and the search for a single truth. On the contrary,

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there is increasing awareness of, and involvement in, the trend towards global realisation of ethical respect for individuality and cultural diversity. To link traditional scientific discourse to practice, it is important to build contextualized understanding of human groups, and to the social and physical contexts. The purpose is to build up knowledge of a world, not with a single meaning for everyone, but with many meanings (Vattimo, 1991), that can be understood from the standpoint of a micropolitical approach (Guattari, 1989; 1992). Practice then becomes the locus for research and a source of contextualized knowledge, leading to creative discovery rather than replication of research routines.

Special programs for talented people in Brazil have proved inestimably valuable in increasing society’s awareness of the need to accept and nurture difference. As an inclusive education is established, the pilot programmes demonstrate alternatives to the traditional education.

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