By the Numbers | Students Performing Above Grade Level

Having served as a talent development organization working with gifted and high ability students for nearly 35 years, Center for Talent Development (CTD) knows many students walk into their classrooms each year knowing a majority of the content waiting for them. Until now, there hasn’t been a lot of data presented to pinpoint the number of students affected nationwide or to operationalize what this means for students, educators, parents, and administrators.

A policy brief published by researchers from Johns Hopkins University, Duke University, University of North Carolina-Charlotte, University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, and West Virginia University, presents the data gathered from a variety of benchmark assessments and begins to make a strong case for change. The findings point to a staggering number, suggesting that between 15 and 45 percent of students are in fact currently performing above grade level. A recent piece from The Fordham Institute has taken the brief further, presenting ideas about how and why we need to adopt a different educational approach for children performing above-grade-level.

In addition to what can be learned from the data collected from grade-level assessments, CTD, through its Northwestern University’s Midwest Academic Talent Search (NUMATS), has collected data for over 30 years from above-grade-level assessments (middle school students taking the college-level ACT and SAT). The data collected through NUMATS and other talent search organizations, including Duke University’s Talent Identification Program, Center for Talented Youth at Johns Hopkins, and Center for Bright Kids in Colorado, demonstrates exactly how much more students know beyond their grade level curriculum and what students need to fully develop their talents and abilities.

For example, the 2016 NUMATS Statistical Summary shows NUMATS participants, grades 6 through 9, achieved an average composite score of 21.75 on the ACT, while high school seniors taking this same test achieved an average composite score of 21.0. Similarly, NUMATS participants, grades 3 through 6, achieved an averge composite score of 16.4 on the EXPLORE test, compared to those taking the same test at grade level (grade 8) who achieved an average composite score of 15.5.

The information collected over 30 years has served to create recommendations parents and schools can use for:

1)   Planning course sequences for middle and high school

2)   Making decisions about enrichment and acceleration

3)   Providing supplemental programs and services, which can meet advanced student needs.

All students need to be provided appropriate challenges and encouraged to reach full potential. Information like what is available through NUMATS and within grade-level assessments make it possible to serve high-achieving students if we make the effort to utilize this data to implement changes to our instruction and curriculum design.