Hispanic+Students

**Hispanic Students**   In the 1992 OCR report, schools reported that 25,077,421 students were enrolled in the nation's public schools, 13.7% of which were Hispanic American. 1,412,011 students were identified as gifted (5.7%) at the time of the 1992 OCR report. Of those students identified as gifted 7.9% were Hispanic American. Which means that Hispanic American students were underrepresented in the gifted programs by 42%. Another more recent study in 2004 (see table below) also shows a lack of identification in Hispanic and African American students. Why?  One of the main determining factors in deciding whether a student is gifted is standardized testing. Standardized tests are often biased towards minority students. Also, the tests tend to be in English, which gives Hispanic students a disadvantage if English is not their first language.

Teachers are another factor in Hispanic under representation. Unfortunately, many teachers are not well versed in how to identify gifted students. If a student does not fall into the "cookie cutter" idea of a gifted student, teachers often overlook them. Students who speak English as a second language are often those that are overlooked by educators. To help combat this, teachers should be educated in cultural sensitivity, as well as given an understanding on what gifted and talented students look like from different cultures. In Hispanic culture, it is unusual for a student to draw attention to oneself. The norm is that one is expected to be humble and not show off their competencies. Therefore gifted Hispanic students would not typically display their gifted talents in discussions and class activities. A teacher would have to recognize their abilities in different ways and nominate them accordingly.

Unfortunately, another reason for the lack of Hispanic students in gifted programs is due to prejudice shown by teachers and administrators. For example, questioning authority, which can be seen as a gifted trait, may be tolerated and encouraged in white boys, but seen as “defiant” or “aggressive” in boys of color. Many teachers don't often realize what they are doing. If teachers are made more aware of these kinds of mistakes in the classroom, they can adjust their thinking and start recognizing gifted traits in all students.

Another reason Hispanic students often aren't identified as gifted is because the parents of these students do not nominate their child to be placed in the gifted program. Middle and upper class parents readily push their children to succeed and want their children placed in gifted programs. A low SES, ethnic minority parent probably would not recommend their child for gifted programming because they do not have an understanding of the program or the opportunity to nominate their children. Therefore, even if the parents recognized their children's talents at home, they may not know what gifted programs are, or how to get their child into the program.

What Can We Do? There are several options that educators and administrators have to combat this lack of representation. First off, acceptance into gifted programs should be based on a number of factors, not simply standardized test scores. Teachers should compile portfolios of each of their students' work. These files would show the strengths of the students without compromising their culture's humble attitudes. The Hispanic students would be able to fully demonstrate their strengths in their work and by creating a portfolio, the teacher can access their assignments, as well as show them to other teachers and administrators in the recommendation process. Identification of gifted students should be based on multiple criteria. Placing a student into a gifted program should be based on potential, rather than performance. Using several different methods, including intelligence tests, creativity tests, achievement tests, teacher recommendations, peer and self recommendations, portfolios, and more, casts a wider net and can identify more gifted students, particularly minority students. Georgia updated their identification tools to include several different methods of identify gifted students in 1997. As a result of increasing their methods, many more minority students were placed into their gifted programs. From 2002-2006, Hispanic participation in AP courses increased 180%. In 1996 there were only 432 Hispanic students participating in gifted programs. In 2005, that number jumped to 2895, a 570% increase. **References ** RAMOS, E. (2010). LET US IN: LATINO UNDERREPRESENTATION IN GIFTED AND TALENTED PROGRAMS. Journal Of Cultural Diversity, 17(4), 151-153

The Georgia Story: One State's Approach to the Underrepresentation Issue. Retrieved on April 20, 2012 from http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/sem/The_Georgia_Story.html

<span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Ford, D. (1998). The underrepresentation of minority students in gifted education: Problems and promises in.. Journal Of Special Education, 32(1), 4. <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif;">Valdes, Alisa. (2011) Is Your Child Gifted? Latino Kids Less Likely to Be Properly Diagnosed. Retrieved on April 20, 2012 from http://www.mamiverse.com/is-your-child-gifted-latino-kids-less-likely-to-be-properly-diagnosed-3526/