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William Harris, Superintendent of public schools for St. Louis, institutes the earliest systematic efforts in public schools to educate gifted students (National Association for Gifted Children).
This was significant because it shows an early interest in gifted education. It also illustrates the realization that the existing model of education could not adequately meet the needs of all children. Harris’s efforts to educate the gifted students shows a primitive attempt identifying these students and providing special services. -
Alfred Binet and Theodore Simon develop the first true intelligence test.
The test was used to identify children with superior intelligence for placement in special classrooms. This event was significant because it provided the first standardized means of quantitatively measuring intelligence. Their notion of mental age revolutionized the science of psychological testing by capturing intelligence in a single numerical outcome (National Association for Gifted Children). -
Lewis Terman began the gifted child movement.
Called the “father” of the gifted movement, Terman revised the Binet-Simon assessment tool, improved it, and adapted it for testing children (Stanley, 6). The new assessment, the Stanford-Binet, changed intelligence testing. In addition, his search for children with an IQ of 135 or higher is still considered the greatest achievements in the field of gifted education (Stanley, 6). -
Leta Hollingworth began pioneering gifted education.
Hollingworth found very bright children and focused on furthering their education (Stanley, 7). Her work later produced the first textbook for educating gifted students. This is significant because it began providing guidance for educators and administrators in how to better meet the needs of these students. -
The first formal definition of giftedness is issued.
The Marland Report provided the first formal definition of giftedness. This definition included those students who demonstrated (a) general intellectual ability, (b) specific academic aptitude, (c) creative or product thinking skills, (d) leadership ability or potential, or (e) ability or potential in the arts (Schroth & Helfer, 388). This was significant because the definition of giftedness was expanding and becoming more inclusive. -
“A Nation at Risk” is published.
“A Nation at Risk” reported the scores of America’s brightest students and their failure to compete with international counterparts (National Association for Gifted Children). This was significant because it drew attention to the need for better policies and programs to meet the needs of these students. -
“National Excellence: A Case for Developing America’s Talent” is published.
Ten years after “A Nation at Risk” is published, this report also highlighted the missed opportunities to identify and serve America’s gifted students (National Association for Gifted Children). As a result of these two reports, a call was made for additional research and programming in the field of gifted education. This was significant because these reports eventually led to the issuance of national standards by the National Association for Gifted Children and provided programming criteria. -
Pre-K-Grade 12 Gifted Program Standards are published.
The National Association for Gifted Children published standards to provide guidance in seven key areas for programs servicing gifted students. This was significant because the standards provided important direction and focus in program development. -
The Pre-K-Grade 12 Gifted Education Programming Standards are revised.
The original standards developed in 1998 are revised to include increased focus on diversity and collaboration. In addition the new standards use student outcomes for goals, rather than teacher practices (National Association for Gifted Children). Currently, these are the standards used in schools and reflect today’s best practices.
