Underachievement Among Gifted Minority Students (continued)

Just as important, school-related interventions must focus on curricular and instructional modifications so that optimal learning and engagement are possible.

To prevent or reverse underachievement, schools will need to provide supportive strategies, intrinsic strategies, and remedial strategies. The strategies include accommodations to students' learning styles, focusing on students' interests, and affirming students as individuals with special needs and concerns. Suggested strategies appear in Table 2.

Summary

One of the biggest problems facing educators is that of student underachievement. Teachers and parents feel confusion, frustration, and disappointment when students fail to work to their potential. Gifted underachieving minority students perform poorly in school for many of the reasons that any student might. Yet, as described earlier, minority students may face additional barriers.

In short, underachievement is not only a problem, but a symptom of problems. To address this, educators must explore factors contributing to underachievement; these factors can be categorized as sociopsychological, family-related, peer-related, and school-related. One or all of these factors can hinder student achievement. Teachers, counselors, and families must join in partnerships to best identify and serve gifted underachieving minority students.

References

Clark, R. (1983). Family Life and School Achievement: Why Poor Black Children Succeed and Fail. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

Coleman, M. R., Gallagher, J. J., & Foster, A. (1994). Updated Report on State Polices Related to the Identification of Gifted Students. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Gifted Education Policy Studies Program.

Ford, D. Y. (1993). Black students' achievement orientation as a function of perceived family achievement orientation and demographic variables. Journal of Negro Education, 62(1), 47-66.

Ford, D. Y. (1995). A Study of Achievement and Underachievement Among Gifted, Potentially Gifted, and Regular Education Black Students. Storrs, CT: The University of Connecticut, National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented.

Ford, D. Y. (1996). Reversing Underachievement among Gifted Black Students: Promising Practices and Programs. New York: Teachers College Press.

Ford, D. Y., Harris III, J. J., & Schuerger, J. M. (1993). Racial identity development among gifted Black students: Counseling issues and concerns. Journal of Counseling and Development, 71(4), 409-417.

Fordham, S. (1988). Racelessness as a strategy in Black students' school success: Pragmatic strategy or pyrrhic victory? Harvard Educational Review, 58(1), 54-84.

Good, T. L. (1981). Teacher expectations and student perceptions: A decade of research. Educational Leadership, 38(5), 415-421.

Hale-Benson, J. (1986). Black Children: Their Roots, Culture, and Learning Styles (2nd ed.). Baltimore, MD: Johns Hopkins University Press.

Lindstrom, R. R., & Van Sant, S. (1986). Special issues in working with gifted minority Adolescents. Journal of Counseling and Development, 64(9), 583-586.

Prom-Jackson, S., Johnson, S. T., & Wallace, M. B. (1987). Home environment, talented minority youth, and school Achievement. Journal of Negro Education, 56(1), 111-121.

Ross, P. et al. (1993). National Excellence: a Case for Developing America's Talent. Washington, DC: Office of Educational Research and Improvement (ED), Programs for the Improvement of Practice.

Shade, B. J. (1994). Understanding the African American learner. In E. R. Hollins, J. E. King, & W. C. Hayman (Eds.), Teaching Diverse Populations: Formulating a Knowledge Base (pp. 175-189). New York: State University of New York Press.

U. S. Commission on Excellence in Education (1983). A Nation at Risk. Washington, DC: author.

VanTassel-Baska, J. (1989). The role of the family in the success of disadvantaged gifted learners. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 13(1), 22-36.

Whitmore, J. R. (1980). Giftedness, Conflict, and Underachievement. Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon.

Donna Y. Ford, Ph.D., is Associate Professor, Curry School of Education, The University of Virginia. Antoinette Thomas, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor, Curry School of Education, The University of Virginia.
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TABLE 1. CHECKLIST FOR IDENTIFYING INDICES OF UNDERACHIEVEMENT AMONG GIFTED BLACK STUDENTS

Social Factors____ Student's primary social group is outside of the school or gifted program
____ Student participates in little or no extracurricular activities
____ Student socializes with delinquents and/or students who have a poor achievement orientation
____ Student's need for peer acceptance and relations outweighs his or her academic concerns about school and achievement
____ Student lives in one or more risk factors (e.g., poverty, single-parent family, poorly educated parent(s), etc.)

Family Factors
____ Student's home life is stressful
____ Low parental educational level
____ Student has one parent in the home
____ Student has relatives who have dropped out of school
____ Student has little parental/family supervision; poor family relations
____ Parental expectations for student are too low or unrealistic
____ Low socioeconomic status
____ Communication between home and school is poor

School Culture/Climate Factors
____ Teachers and school personnel hold low expectations of minority students
____ Morale among teachers, school personnel, and/or students is low
____ Classroom environment is unfriendly or hostile
____ Student feels alienated and isolated from teacher(s)
____ Student feels alienated and isolated from classmates
____ Gifted program lacks cultural and racial diversity relative to students
____ Teaching, administrative staff, and other school personnel lack racial and cultural diversity
____ Little attention is given to multicultural education
____ Teachers and other school personnel lack substantive training in gifted education
____ Teachers and other school personnel lack substantive training in multicultural and urban education
____ Minority students are underrepresented in the gifted program and services