Equitably Identifying Gifted Students from Low-income and/or Multicultural Backgrounds: Investigation of the Hope Teacher Rating Scale

Hyeseong Lee, Purdue University

Abstract

The achievement gap in education is defined as the difference between and among the test scores for various student groups (Byers, 2018; Webb & Thomas, 2015). Despite decades of efforts to close it, the academic achievement gap among and between different ethnic and income groups persists worldwide (Mortenson, 2018). According to a Social Equity Theory (SET; McKown, 2013), two classes of social processes, “direct” and “signal,” affect the achievement gap by functioning in combination with each other. “Direct” influences promote academic achievement equally for all students across diverse backgrounds. When “direct” influences are distributed differently, the achievement gap occurs. Conversely, “signal” influences are the signs that society has negative expectations and stereotypes of marginalized groups. If the students detect such signals, erosion occurs in terms of their achievement, and both components contribute to the achievement gap (Frederickson, 1990; McKown, 2013). Hence, it is important to continuously provide equal and sufficient support to students from diverse backgrounds. Fair and nonjudgmental decisions by educators including school teachers, researchers, and policymakers in education are necessary.Closing the achievement gap in public education has been a goal of United States educators highlighted by the No Child Left Behind Act (Henfield et al., 2017). The field of gifted education was not an exception and problematized its lack of equity for underidentifying and serving underrepresented students in gifted programs. Plucker et al. (2010; 2013) highlighted achievement gaps among the highest achieving groups as “excellence gaps,” stating that “Low-income and minority students were much less likely to reach advanced levels of proficiency on state or national assessments, and the gaps between the top-performing disadvantaged students and White and more affluent peers were significant” (Plucker et al., 2013, p.1). They also added that the inequities among high-ability students do not decrease and may even grow over time, despite the emphasis on high achievement for all (Plucker et al., 2013).Although it is evident that an achievement gap has existed and endured for decades, researchers have had difficulties determining the factors that cause the differences among and between various groups of students (Ford & Moore, 2013; Robinson, 2014). Particularly, Ford and Moore (2013) argued there is no evidence showing students from any racial background or socioeconomic status are hereditarily or culturally advanced compared to other groups. The claim suggests there should not be a significant achievement gap between groups if the students from marginalized groups have equitable access to a quality education. If their hypothesis is true, then external factors contribute to academic achievement gaps and include constructs such as discrimination, bias, racism, and poverty which prevent equitable access to the education system. Furthermore, family expenditures on out-of-school enrichment activities (Duncan & Murnane, 2011), a lack of support and counseling to take advanced courses, and the accumulated differences caused by widely variable levels of access to educational opportunities have led to the existing gap (Olszewski-Kubilius & Corwith, 2018). Thus, it is critical to direct attention to the aspects of teaching and learning that educators can reform and control. For example, teachers can play significant roles affecting students’ outcomes and help lead their students to fulfill their potential (Boyd, 2015; Byers, 2018).

Degree

Ph.D.

Advisors

Gentry, Purdue University.

Subject Area

Gifted Education|Economics|Education|Ethnic studies|Multicultural Education|Sociology

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