- Wednesday, June 6, 19902

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PAGE 37

orth Shore News

Parents push for gifted kids program

WHILE NORTH Van-
couver School District 44
remains the only district in
the Lower Mainland without
a specific program for gifted
children, a parents group is
pushing to change that situ-
ation.

By MAUREEN CURTIS

Contributing Wruer

Responding to a brief presented
by the local chapter of the Gifted
Children’s Association, Assistant
Sci:iool Superintendent Chris Kelly
recently stated that the needs of
North Vancouver's gifted students
can be met through the district's
new Five Year Plan, ‘if done pro-
perly.””

“We don't want to isolate
giftedness. We want to provide for
exceptional ability wherever we can
find it,’? Kelly said at a recent
school board meeting.

lt has taken time for people to
recognize that gifted children have
certain problems and may respond
to boredom or lack of challenge by
daydreaming or acting out.

“People just assume that a
gifted child will just do fine...but
10 to 20 per cent of school
dropouts are gifted,’’ Lorraine
Bennett of the local chapter told
the News.

In its brief, her group recom-
mended actions that might be
taken by the school board to better
understand and serve the nature
and needs of gifted children.

The chapter agreed to par-
ticipate in the school district’s pro-
ject to develop an overall five-year
plan with its theme, ‘‘Every

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LOCAL GIFTED children recently got some help thanks to Wang Computers. Pictured are computer course
instructors Patricia and Nunz Fortugno and students (counterclockwise from righ) Adam Stuckert, Mark
Suwekert, Robin Bennett and Rebecca Bennett.

Learner a Promise.”"

The project’s aim is to develop
the most comprehensive plan
possible for all learners in the
district.

The chapter stresses the need for
an appropriate curriculum for
gifted students. It cites studies that
indicate frustration, depression,

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discouragement and
underachievement that can result
from an inadequate or inappropri-
ate curriculum.

Gifted learners possess abilities
beyond those anticipated within
the regular program.

The abilities may be intellectual,
creative and academic or they may

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relate to leadership and the visu-
al/performing arts.

**Among all learners and within
the many varied contexts of learn-
ing it must be anticipated that ex-
traordinary abilities will be dem-

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onstraied,”” suid Kelly.

Within the capacity of the regu-
lar program, there must be the
means and readiness to identify
and serve extraordinary abilities on
the part of all individual learners,
he said.

This can be done by enriching
the student's experiences through
field trips and guest speakers,
through training in research skills,
computer skills or creative prob-
fem-solving and by allowing in-
depth, independent study using
alternative materials.

North Vancouver already has a
reputation for providing varied,
enriched learning opportunities fur
all students, according to Kelly.

“That these efforts must con-
tinue and must expand to fully ad-
dress learner interests and abilities
in all contexts is understood,’’ he
said.

Bennett’ said her group was
pleased with the district's positive
response to their brief.

**But we were somewhat disap-
pointed that a definite step was not
taken to appoint a full-time trained
coordinator or gifted/talented
helping teacher and to form a
gifted and talented advisory com-
mittee to explore future
directions,"’ said Bennett.

According to Kelly, “that might
be more down the road than im-
mediate.”’

In the meantime, the local gifted
children’s group, which consists of
about 30 families, tries to fill a
perceived lack in their children’s
education.

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