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Summary: Genius Denied: our national educational policy
Review: Genius Denied: How to stop wasting our brightest young minds, what you and your school can do for your gifted child. The title is long, and speaks volumes. Why are we, as a country, denying our gifted children an appropriate education? What can we, as parents and as educators, do for these unique children? What is gifted education? Genius Denied differentiates between the elitist enrichment programs billed as gifted education by school districts across the country, and real gifted education, appropriate level curriculum in major subject areas. And it asks important questions, like why is gifted education tied to the student's age, rather than to his or her educational needs? The gifted children hurt by our national policy of egalitarianism aren't the rich kids, the Davidsons points out. Wealthy parents can afford the private schools, tutors, and specialized programs that gifted children need to survive and grow; they can afford to move to other school districts or states when such programs are unavailable. It's the socio-economically disadvantaged, the immigrant, even the middle-income child who's family cannot afford such privileges; these are the children who are denied an appropriate education. Genius Denied is not just a story of educational failures; it details education successes, and how we can duplicate them for other gifted children. And it's not only the gifted children, but our society as a whole that will benefit. While not every gifted child is a future inventor or political leader or composer or scientific discoverer, every gifted child IS important to the future of our nation and our world, and none should experience the educational misfortune that has been experienced by child after child detailed in the book. Genius Denied is a book that should be read, and taken to heart, by every school administrator and policy maker, and by every parent of a gifted child. And maybe, with the help of this book, Genius Denied will become just a book title, instead of our national education policy.
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Summary: Genius Denied
Review: Great resource for parents and teachers alike. Gives examples of what the typical school experience is like for really smart kids. Reading this book should be a wake-up call for everyone who cares about learning. If we can't keep the passion of learning alive for the brightest among us, everyone suffers. If I could afford it, I would give this book to every teacher and make it required reading.
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Summary: How ironic!
Review: How ironic! Just as I was finishing Genius Denied, I picked up the daily paper to see that the program for the "gifted children" has just been cut at the local school. As the Davidsons correctly emphasize in their book, there are priorities for all tastes and interests except the most talented students in our schools. Somehow they are supposed to adapt to the avalanche of mediocrity that surrounds them and conceal their precociousness. Sadly, and again this is a well developed theme of the book, not only are programs for gifted children underfunded, but various districts intentionally place obstacles in their path.
It is truly an interesting commentary on the state of education that 7th and 8th graders can compete with seniors in athletics, but God forbid they should skip a grade if they are superior students. They can get their skulls fractured in a sporting event, but not have knowledge put into those very same skulls.
The authors have done a masterful job of identifying and refuting many of the foolish doctrines and philosophies that have contaminated education, both public and private, for the better part of three decades: heterogeneous grouping, inclusion, mainstreaming, self-esteem prattle; all are targeted and appropriatedly consigned to the dust bin.
Genius Denied belongs on the reading docket with Diane Ravitch's - THE LANGUAGE POLICE, and Charles Syke's - DUMBING DOWN OUR KIDS. It is a desperate call for action and reform before America squanders its most precious resource - its talented youth.
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Summary: No genius here
Review: I must say I am sorely disappointed. Although I agree that highly gifted children are poorly served by American schools, this book does them few favors. It is poorly written and marginally edited. Many of the arguments presented by the Davidsons and their writer fall flat or wander aimlessly. There are lessons to be gleaned from this book, but none worth the effort it takes to find them. Also, although the Davidsons would like to ignore it, the most literate society in the world, Denmark, offers no special offerings to its gifted students.
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Summary: The Most Ignored Educational Failing
Review: I read and review a lot of books on education. Jan and Bob Davidson's Genius Denied fills a crucial gap in the literature. While almost every other failing of our educational system has been written about at great length, this book addresses a problem that receives very little ink -- the way that it lets gifted children down. That we do in fact treat the educational needs of very bright children with neglect can hardly be doubted after reading the many case histories that the Davidsons have assembled. Gifted kids -- who, the authors note come from all races and all levels of family income -- are regularly told just to keep quiet and go along with the slow-paced lesson plans that are usually geared to the least able students in class. The result is utter boredom and a waste of human potential. It's like insisting that a race car built to go 200 mph should have to putter along at 25 mph. While many school districts purport to have "gifted programs," the Davidsons observe that they are usually just for show and actually accomplish very little. "Pull out" programs that provide gifted children with an hour or so of time out of the regular classroom so they can read, draw, or do other activities are woefully inadequate for the needs of these children, but usually that is all they get. The Davidsons are equally effective in identifying the root of the problem. We have an educational culture that is dominated by egalitarians who think it is a bad thing for some children to race on past the others. Never mind that the result is misery for the brilliant youngsters and a squandering of great human potential. The educational egalitarians are hostile to special treatment for the gifted and can be counted on to raise one excuse after another to justify their refusal to even try giving the gifted children what they need. Genius Denied offers concerned parents and policy makers a lot of advice on how they can go about rectifying this tragic educational neglect. This is a deeply felt book that deserves a wide reading.
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Summary: A "must read" for parents of gifted children!
Review: I strongly recommend reading this book if you are the parent/educator of a gifted child. This book is a real eye opener into school life of American gifted children - even those that seem to be doing just fine. My son is highly gifted and absolutely loves school. He had a wonderful teacher in third grade and likes his 4th grade teacher even better. He scores 100 on most tests and generally seems happy. So - what's the problem? He's not learning anything! Until I read this book, it never even occurred to me to ask my son if he has learned anything new this year. He does homework daily, has tests and quizzes in all subjects - of course he's learning - right? When I asked him yesterday if he thought he was actually learning - he said no - nothing new. On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 10 being new work that is challenging) he rated last year and this year a 4 (I think he would have rated it lower, but he could tell I was heading for a slight freak-out).
Genius Denied points out that many bright children are just coasting in our school system. They already know the work and "learning" the material comes effortlessly. Even if they aren't having emotional difficulty with being forced to repeatedly learn things they already know, it can become a serious problem later on when they actually come across material they don't know. Many won't even know how to study.
I think the book gives great information about the different types of "gifted" classes offered by schools, especially in the elementary grades. My son was in a math pullout last year and will probably be in it again this year. The author questions how a 1-hour a week enrichment class is supposed to provide the learning enrichment these children need. Heck - I never even questioned that as I thought it was so awesome our school even offered enrichment programs.
I am not criticizing the American school system - I am sure the teachers and administration want the best for all the kids in the US and the system is working hard to make sure every child learns the basics. However, this book clearly shows how the school system fails gifted children. Incredible quantities of money are spent on special education programs, IEPs, etc., to help children with learning problems reach their maximum potential. But few states have any sort of funding or mandated programs to help bright children reach theirs. This is a huge loss to our country at a time we really need all the knowledge and talent our youth can muster to keep up with our increasingly technological world.
The book also provides loads of suggestions on how to work with your child's school, participate in outside classes and alternative learning environments, etc. After you read it, make sure to pass it on to your child's teacher and then the principal. Something needs to be done soon!
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Summary: Remarkably disappointing
Review: I'm a bit flabbergasted that this book received such good reviews. I purchased it on the assumption that it would offer some suggestions for helping my child navigate through the public school system. It offered almost nothing in this regard, despite the claim on the cover that the book contains "What you can do for your gifted child."
So it offers little concrete information. What does it offer? In my opinion, it offers a single argument: A mind is a terrible thing to waste. If you aren't already convinced that this is a true statement, go ahead and buy this book and read it over and over and over in dozens of little anecdotes about gifted children who are "denied."
I was surprized at how little this book had to offer.
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Summary: Genius Denied a must read for parents, educators!
Review: Jan and Bob Davidson and writer Laura Vanderkam have presented a case for gifted education that is both logical and heartfelt. Genius Denied identifies the flaw in the current trend toward egalitarianism and addresses how to best meet the needs of children with superior intellectual abilities. The importance of mentors is stressed and vignettes present gifted children in all sorts of educational situations. Clearly, the children who thrive are those who are encouraged by one or more caring adults.
My family participates in the Davidson Young Scholar program and we will be eternally grateful for the experience. We are one of the families mentioned who have chosen to homeschool rather than subject our children to the lock-step lowest common denominator methods practiced by our local public schools. Homeschooling is wonderful, yet my career is on hold and we are forced to economize in order to survive as a one income family in a two income society.
Genius Denied should be required reading for educators. It's a powerful book and I plan to present a copy to a school principal I know. Perhaps you might also do this!
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Summary: An essential gifted resource!!
Review: The Davidsons explain the gruesome truth of the unfortunate situation of our schools' gifted programs, or lack of. Not only does the book explain this national tragedy, advice is also given on how to help these children who are slipping through the cracks. I highly recommend that this book be required reading to every person working directly with or on behalf of gifted students and those determined to make a difference in the lives of gifted young people.
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Summary: Genius Denied
Review: The Davidsons have documented a national tragedy. They provide facts and case studies to document how our schools have become bastions of politically correct anti-intellectualism. The educational establishment devotes itself to trying to educate students who can't or won't learn, while holding back those students who can and want to learn.
Our family has been involved with the Davidson foundation for three years, and it has made an enormous difference in our lives. We have discovered that there are other children and parents who think that academic ability and achievement are not something to be ashamed of, that the educational system seems to be designed to frustrate highly gifted children, but that it can adapt itself to helping them instead.
Every parent and educator involved with gifted education should read this book. I would recommend it to gifted children also, but I expect that they will find it and read it on their own.
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