Releasing the Brakes: Administrator, Teacher, and Parent Attitudes and Beliefs That Block or Assist the Implementation of School Policies on Academic Acceleration

Sir John Templeton Foundation Grant, Exceptional Cognitive Talent & Genius Portfolio

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Research Area: Research and Policy on Academic Acceleration

Staff Involved: Miraca Gross, Robert Urquhart

Status: Current

Funded by a US$363K grant from the Sir John Templeton Foundation’s (USA) Exceptional Cognitive Talent & Genius Portfolio, this nationwide study explores teacher attitudes to school practices in the acceleration of gifted students. The research questions addressed in the study include:

1. To what degree do the various state gifted education policies actually endorse academic acceleration and how long have these policies been in place?
2. How do school administrators decide when and how to implement these policies?
3. What are administrators’ knowledge of and attitudes toward accelerative practices? Does the level of knowledge about research supporting acceleration affect the implementation of policy? Do administrators’ attitudes directly or indirectly affect the implementation of policy?
4. How do teachers decide when and how to accelerate a student? What formal or informal decision-making processes are employed?
5. What are teachers’ knowledge of and attitudes toward accelerative practices? Do these attitudes directly or indirectly affect the implementation of policy?
6. Do teachers who have undertaken professional development in-service or postgraduate study in gifted education display different knowledge, attitudes and practices with respect to acceleration than teachers who have not undertaken such in-service or study?
7. What are parent knowledge of and attitudes toward acceleration in schools which do or do not practice acceleration? Do parents’ attitudes directly or indirectly impact a school’s decision to accelerate a student or not to do so?
8. Is there a change over time (how long the acceleration policy has been in effect) in administrator, teacher, and parent attitudes toward various forms of acceleration? What factors contribute to a change in attitudes and practice?