This book discusses the disproportionate representation of students from minority backgrounds in special education and gifted classes, and presents strategies that practitioners can use to better address the educational needs of all students. Chapter 1, "Disproportionate Representation: A Contentious and Unresolved Predicament" (Alfredo J. Artiles and Grace Zamora-Duran), provides an outline of the problem of student placement, disproportionate representation, and misclassification. Chapter 2, "Changing the Context of Assessment: The Move to Portfolios and Authentic Assessment" (Robert Rueda), criticizes traditional standardized assessment approaches that disregard students' prior knowledge and cultural differences and proposes the use of performance assessment approaches. In chapter 3, "When Behavior Differences Are Not Disorders" (Sharon R. Ishii-Jordan), the cultural influences on student behavior are discussed as well as the need for educators to be aware of the role of cultural meaning underlying human behavior. Chapter 4, "From Tests To Talking in the Classroom: Assessing Communicative Competence" (Grace Zamora-Duran and Elba I. Reyes), presents guidelines for educators to use to assess students' language proficiency in order to decide whether a more comprehensive assessment or a prereferral intervention is needed; (5) "Disproportionate Representation in Gifted Programs: Best Practices for Meeting This Challenge" (James M. Patton), discusses the under representation of children from minority backgrounds in gifted education and presents alternative assessment procedures. The final chapter, "Disproportionate Representation: Current Issues and Future Directions" (Grace Zamora-Duran and Alfredo J. Artiles), provides a summary of recommended practices to address the problem of disproportionate representation. (Each chapter includes references.) (CR)

Special education and gifted and talented programs were designed for children whose educational needs are not well met in regular classrooms. From their inceptions, these programs have had disproportionate representation of racial and ethnic minority students. What causes this disproportion? Is it a problem? Minority Students in Special and Gifted Education considers possible contributors to that disparity, including early biological and environmental influences and inequities in opportunities for preschool and K-12 education, as well as the possibilities of bias in the referral and assessment system that leads to placement in special programs. It examines the data on early childhood experience, on differences in educational opportunity, and on referral and placement. The book also considers whether disproportionate representation should be considered a problem. Do special education programs provide valuable educational services, or do they set students off on a path of lower educational expectations? Would students not now placed in gifted and talented programs benefit from raised expectations, more rigorous classes, and the gifted label, or would they suffer failure in classes for which they are unprepared? By examining this important problem in U.S. education and making recommendations for early intervention and general education, as well as for changes in referral and assessment processes, Minority Students in Special and Gifted Education will be an indispensable resource to educators throughout the nation, as well as to policy makers at all levels, from schools and school districts to the state and federal governments.

Demonstrates how the fields of special education and inclusive education have evolved philosophically and technically over the past 30 years.

Standards have benefits particular to the field of gifted education. In order to ensure equity and systematic talent search and programming, it is essential that current and future teachers are educated in the relevant theory, research, pedagogy, and management techniques important for developing and sustaining classroom-based opportunities specifically designed for gifted learners. By incorporating the 2013 NAGC/CEC Teacher Preparation Standards in Gifted and Talented Education, this guidebook helps university faculty at the undergraduate and graduate levels design or revise gifted education programs and partner with other educators in developing gifted education teachers.

When the numbers don’t lie, this is your guide to doing what’s right If your school is faced with a disproportionate rate of suspensions, gifted program enrollment, or special education referrals for students of color, this book shows how you can uncover the root causes and rally your staff to face the challenge head on. You will: Understand how bias creates barriers to the success of students of color Know what questions to ask and what data to analyze Create your own road map for becoming an equity-driven school, with staff activities, data collection forms, checklists, and progress monitoring tools

At its core, culturally responsive pedagogy represents a professional philosophy that is based on teachers' fundamental commitment to students' success. Authors Taylor and Sobel believe that teachers want to approach their teaching from the pivotal point that each of their students' lives matter. Working from a broad perspective of culture, the authors view culturally responsive teaching as a contextual and situational process for both teachers and students—all students—including those who are from a diversity of languages, cultures, racial/ethnic backgrounds, religions, economic resources, interests, abilities, and life experiences as well as students who are members of the society's 'mainstream' cultural, linguistic, and socio-economic background. Recognizing that teachers are conduits of culture regardless of what content they teach, the authors assert that when culture is coupled with pedagogy the result involves a complex and comprehensive mix of knowledge and skills for teachers to use to engage a diverse student population This book is intended as a guide and practical discussion for K-12 teachers who are committed to culturally responsive pedagogy and recognize the structural inequalities in society that are reflected in its schools. Such teachers acknowledge that schools have a history of failing to serve students who are outside of the 'mainstream' culture. For those teachers who recognize the sociopolitical nature of education and the role their own cultural background and privilege play in their work as a professional educator, they will find meaningful applications of research-based exemplars used to create and manage rigorous learning environments that maximize students' opportunities to learn.

Korn and Bursztyn and their contributors examine the cultural transitions that children make as they move between the cultures of home and school. To better understand these transitions, they explore how educators understand their students' shifting experiences and examine how educators also negotiate transitions as they too move from home to school each day. The narratives or case studies reflect this shifting gaze: from child, to teacher, to parents, and take up the various relational configurations that these can form, amongst and between each other. They turn a critical eye toward instances of classroom practice and school life, connecting personal knowledge with school change. In some cases, the authors draw directly on autobiographical material, linking these to a reflective approach to teaching. Avoiding the celebratory tone that often attends discussions of multiculturalism, the authors address how diverstiy engages us in continual renegotiation of the personal and social. The perspectives of educators and of teacher candidates are presented, and the construction of cultural identity and its impact on schools, explored. In illuminating the complicated nature of cultural transitions and the obligation of schools to create places in which children and families of diverse backgrounds can thrive, they highlight how multiculturalism can play a transformative role in the lives of children and schools. A must reading for educators and graduate students in education, school psychology, guidance and counseling.