A Needs Assessment of Gifted Students at Superior High School

Transcription

1 Western Michigan University ScholarWorks at WMU Master's Theses Graduate College A Needs Assessment of Gifted Students at Superior High School Marilou Parker Follow this and additional works at: Recommended Citation Parker, Marilou, "A Needs Assessment of Gifted Students at Superior High School" (1985). Master's Theses This Masters Thesis-Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate College at ScholarWorks at WMU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Master's Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks at WMU. For more information, please contact maira.bundza@wmich.edu.

2 A NEEDS ASSESSMENT OF GIFTED STUDENTS AT SUPERIOR HIGH SCHOOL by M arllou P arker A P ro je c t Report Subm itted to th e F acu lty of The G raduate College in p a r ti a l fu lf illm e n t of th e requirem ents fo r the Degree of S p e c ia lis t in Education Department of E d u catio n al Leadership W estern M ichigan U n iv ersity Kalamazoo, M ichigan August 1985

3 A NEEDS ASSESSMENT OF GIFTED STUDENTS AT SUPERIOR HIGH SCHOOL M arllou P arker, Ed.S. W estern Michigan U n iv ersity, 1985 The o b j e c t i v e s o f t h i s s tu d y w ere to i d e n t i f y th e n eed s of 98 i n t e l le c t u a l l y g if te d s tu d e n ts, grades 9-12; to assess those needs; and b ase d on th e a s s e s s m e n t, to recommend a c t i o n to f u l f i l l th o s e n e e d s. An o p in io n s u rv e y, b a se d on the N o rth C e n tra l A s s o c i a ti o n 's "Secondary Student Q u estio n n aire," was ad m in istered. Approxim ately a th ir d of th e stu d en ts responded th a t the fa c u lty s e t o n ly m ed io cre s ta n d a r d s and h e ld only average ex p e ctatio n s fo r stu d e n t perform ance. The r e s u l t s o f t h i s s tu d y im p lie d a need f o r th e f a c u l t y to e v a lu a te th e cu rricu lu m co n sid erin g the needs of g ifte d stu d en ts and to co n sid er changes in teac h in g methods based on c u rren t re searc h to meet those needs.

4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I g r a te f u lly acknowledge the a s s is ta n c e o f Dr. Carol S h effer, degree a d v is e r. M arllou P arker 11

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7 Parker, Mariiou A NEEDS ASSESSMENT OF GIFTED STUDENTS AT SUPERIOR HIGH SCHOOL Western Michigan University Ed.S University Microfilms International 300 N. Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106

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9 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS i i LIST OF TABLES v i CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION The Problem... 2 I I. THE METHOD The S u b jects The In stru m en ts The Procedure I I I. ANALYSIS OF RESULTS How Do the G ifted S tudents a t Superior High School P erceiv e Themselves Academ ically, P e rso n a lly, and S o cially? Academic P erso n al and S o cial How Do These S tudents P erceiv e T heir Rapport With P e e rs, T eachers, L ib ra ria n s, C ounselors, and A d m in istrato rs? P eers 12 T eachers L ib ra ria n s and the L ib rary C ounselors A d m in istrato rs How Do These S tudents P erceiv e the O verall Academic Program? E n g lish i i i

10 Table of Contents Continued CHAPTER S o cial S t u d i e s M athematics Science « Foreign Languages Pace In C lasses Thinking S k ills How Do These S tudents P erceive th e P sy ch o lo g ical Clim ate of the School? Student Government and A c t i v i t i e s. 27 Student R e sp o n s ib ility School Clim ate What Are th e F uture Plans and Goals o f These Students? S eniors U ndergraduates IV. RECOMMENDATIONS Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation Recommendation * 36 Recommendation Recommendation Concluding Remarks iv

11 Table of C ontents Continued APPENDIX.... i i «i «* 40 BIBLIOGRAPHY 60 v

12 LIST OF TABLES 1. E ffo rt in School Work Versus S a tis fa c tio n of Achievement Teaching Methods Mean Responses of Homework Load fo r A ll C lasses Mean Responses fo r O verall Experiences in E nglish Mean Responses f o r O v erall E xperiences in S o cial S tu d ies Mean Responses f o r O v erall.e x p erien ces in M athematics Mean Responses fo r O verall E xperiences in Science Mean Responses fo r O v erall Experiences in F oreign Languages Emphasis in th e School Mean Responses in Terms of Im portance fo r Future Work W illin g n ess to Take C lasses O utside th e School Day vi

13 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION T h is p r o j e c t r e p o r t i s in p a r t i a l f u l f i l l m e n t o f th e r e q u ir e ments fo r th e Degree o f S p e c ia lis t in Education in th e Department of E d u c a tio n a l L e a d e rs h ip a t W e ste rn M ich ig an U n iv ersity, Kalamazoo, M ichigan. The re s e a rc h e r, employed in a so u th w estern M ichigan school d is t r i c t, i s th e p a r t - t i m e c o o r d in a to r of g i f t e d and t a l e n t e d h ig h school stu d en ts. The high school p rin c ip a l and th e re s e a rc h e r d e te r mined th a t a needs assessm ent of th e g if te d high school stu d en ts was n e c e s s a r y f o r f u t u r e p ro g ram m in g. The re se a rc h e r and h er graduate a d v is e r at W estern M ichigan U n iv e rsity agreed th a t th is assessm ent would be an a p p ro p ria te area of study, f u l f i l l i n g the p ro je c t re p o rt requirem ent. Throughout th is paper, th e school d i s t r i c t w ill be re fe rre d to as th e S uperior School D is tr ic t and th e high school as the Superior High School to p ro te c t the c o n f id e n tia lity and the r ig h t to privacy o f the school system, i t s fa c u lty, and stu d en ts. The S u p e rio r S ch o o l D i s t r i c t w ith a f a c u l t y o f 230 i n served 4,300 p u p ils in grades K-12. The high school p u p il enrollm ent in grades 9-12 was 1,350.

14 2 The Problem G ifted and ta le n te d youth a re a unique p o p u latio n, d i f f e r in g m ark e d ly from t h e i r age p e e rs in a b i l i t i e s, t a l e n t s, i n t e r e s t s, and p sy ch o lo g ical m atu rity. They a re the most v e r s a t i l e an d com plex o f a l l human g ro u p s, p o s s i b ly th e most n eg lec ted of a l l groups w ith s p e c ia l education needs. (C le n d e n in g & D a v ie s, 1980, p. 6) The S uperior G ifted and T alented Advisory Committee was formed in A f te r 2 y e a r s o f s tu d y, i t d ev e lo p e d a r e p o r t w hich in cluded th e d e f in itio n o f g if te d and ta le n te d c h ild re n and th e methods o f s tu d e n t i d e n t i f i c a t i o n. One of th e reco m m en d atio n s from t h i s re p o rt was "th a t a p p ro p ria te curriculum e f f o r ts explore th e needs o f g i f t e d." T h is s tu d y was i n i t i a t e d a s p a r t of a b ro a d e r e v a lu a t io n o f n eed s a s s e s s m e n t f o r th e g i f t e d and t a l e n t e d s tu d e n ts a t S u p e rio r High School. S p e c ific a lly, t h i s study i s concerned w ith th e needs of th e g i f t e d s t u d e n t s a t S u p e rio r High S chool a s p e r c e iv e d by th o s e g i f t e d stu d en ts. The S u p erio r G ifted and T alented Advisory Committee adopted th e fo llo w in g d e f in itio n o f a g if te d ch ild from the p o licy of the s ta te o f M ichigan: The " g ifte d an d /o r acad em ically tale n te d " means elem entary an d /o r secondary school stu d en ts who may be considered to be (1) i n t e l l e c t u a l l y g i f t e d, (2) o u ts ta n d in g in sc h o o l achievem ent, an d /o r (3) th o se who have o u tstan d in g a b i l i t i e s in p a r tic u la r a re a s of human endeavor, in clu d in g th e a r t s and h u m an ities. For t h i s stu d y, only th e i n t e l le c t u a l l y g ifte d c h ild as defined by th e S uperior G ifte d and T alented Advisory Committee was id e n tifie d : "[One of] the c a te g o rie s of g ifte d n e ss i s g en eral i n t e l le c t u a l

15 a b i l i t y [w hich c o n s is ts of] broad academ ic s u p e r io r ity, c o n siste n tly su p e rio r sco res on a p p ro p ria te stan d ard ized t e s t s, dem onstration of advanced s k i l l s, im ag in ativ e In s ig h t, and i n t e r e s t and involvement." The answ er to the fo llo w in g q u estio n was sought: What are the needs o f th e i d e n t i f i e d g i f t e d s tu d e n ts a t S u p e rio r H igh S chool as p erceiv ed by th ese g ifte d stu d en ts? To d eterm ine the needs, a s tu dent q u e s tio n n a ire was c o n stru c te d to a sse ss the follow ing: 1. How do th e s e s t u d e n t s p e r c e iv e th e m s e lv e s a c a d e m ic a lly, p e rs o n a lly, and s o c ia lly? 2. How do th e s e s t u d e n t s p e r c e iv e t h e i r r a p p o r t w ith p e e rs, te a c h e rs, lib r a r i a n s, co u n selo rs, and a d m in is tra to rs? 3. How do th ese stu d e n ts p erceiv e th e o v e ra ll school academic program? 4. How do th ese stu d e n ts p erceiv e the psy ch o lo g ical clim ate of th e school? 5. What are the fu tu re plans and g o als of th ese stu d en ts? The o b j e c t i v e s o f t h i s stu d y w ere to i d e n t i f y th e n eed s o f the i n t e l l e c t u a l l y g ifte d stu d e n ts; to asse ss those needs; and based on th e assessm en t, to recommend a c tio n to f u l f i l l th o se needs.

16 CHAPTER II THE METHOD The S ubjects The S u p erio r High School in had a t o t a l stu d en t e n ro llm ent o f 1,3 6 2, com posed o f 399 n in th g r a d e r s, 302 te n th g r a d e r s, e le v e n th g r a d e r s, and t w e l f t h g r a d e r s. The s tu d e n ts, s e l e c t e d fro m t h i s e n r o llm e n t f o r th e s tu d y, a c c o rd in g to t h e i r e ig h th grade Comprehensive T ests of Basic S k il l s, scored 120 or above in th e cum ulated score of in te llig e n c e or scored 90% or above on th e 11th grade P re lim in a ry S c h o la stic A ptitude T est. Achievement scores and grade p o in t averages were n o t considered. A t o t a l of 112 s tu d e n ts was id e n tifie d : 37 freshmen (c la s s of 1987), 35 sophomores (c la s s of 1986), 17 ju n io rs (c la s s of 1985), and 24 se n io rs (c la s s of 1984). The q u estio n n aire was not issued to nine of th e id e n tif ie d 112 t o t a l because of th e re se a rc h e r s i n a b ility to c o n ta c t th ese stu d en ts. Of the 103 stu d en ts who received copies of th e q u e s t i o n n a i r e, 5 d id n o t r e t u r n them. The f i n a l r e s u l t was a t o t a l o f 98 c o m p le te d q u e s t i o n n a i r e s (87.5% o f th e t o t a l 112 poss i b l e, and 95% of th e t o t a l is s u e d ). Of th e 98, th e r e w ere 43 f e m a le s and 55 m alesj t h e r e w ere 35 fre s h m e n, 29 sophom ores, 14 ju n io rs, and 20 sen io rs.

17 5 The Instrum ents The N orth C en tral A sso c ia tio n 's (1976) "Secondary School Student Q u e s t i o n n a i r e (p. 100) was u sed as a b a s e f o r th e su rv e y. (See Appendix f o r the com plete survey w ith r e s u lts.) However, not a l l of th e it e m s w ere u sed, and th o s e w hich w e re u sed w ere re a rra n g e d to b e t t e r m eet th e o b j e c t i v e s o f t h i s s tu d y. The Ite m s 24 and 25 w ere ta k e n fro m th e ESEA T i t l e IX, A p p l i c a t i o n f o r G ifte d and T a le n te d P ro g ra m, P r o j e c t E m erge, o f th e L iv o n ia P u b lic S ch o o ls, F arm ington, M ichigan. The item s in S ection I, Number 8 were based on a s i m il a r e v a lu a tio n from the Coronado U nified School D is tr ic t S ta te P ro g ram f o r M e n ta lly G if te d M inors (R e n z u lli, 1975, p. 161). Additio n a l item s were co n stru c te d to meet the o b je c tiv e s. The M ich ig an S ta t e D e p artm en t of E d u c a tio n c o o r d in a to r f o r g if t e d / t a l e n t e d program s, the county c o o rd in a to r fo r g ifte d /ta le n te d program s, and th e S u p erio r High School p r in c ip a l were consulted fo r in p u t. The Procedure The re se a rc h e r made arrangem ents w ith the teac h ers of the ident i f i e d s t u d e n t s, f o r th e s t u d e n t s to m eet in th e l i b r a r y. Not a l l s tu d e n ts came th e same day or the same hour. The tim e depended upon th e c o n v e n ie n c e of th e te a c h e r. W hile s e a te d in th e l i b r a r y, th e m a jo rity of th e stu d en ts com pleted th e q u e stio n n a ire in approxim ately 30 m in u tes. Eleven stu d en ts w ith inco m p atib le schedules were conta c te d in d iv id u a lly and were given the q u e stio n n a ire to be completed

18 on t h e i r own tim e. The re se a rc h e r had to prod most of th ese stu d en ts to g e t the q u estio n n aire s retu rn ed. Each tim e th e q u e s t i o n n a i r e s w ere i s s u e d, th e r e s e a r c h e r exp la in e d th e fo llo w in g : T his was an o p p o rtu n ity fo r the stu d en ts to h av e in p u t i n t o t h e i r s c h o o l p ro g ram. They sh o u ld n o t s ig n th e q u e s tio n n a ire s. They could fr e e ly add comments i f th e choices of th e p ro v id e d re s p o n s e s d id n o t m eet t h e i r n e e d s. They w ould n o t be tim ed. They were not to d isc u ss q u estio n s among them selves, but th e re s e a rc h e r would answer t h e i r q u estio n s. As th e s tu d e n ts r e tu r n e d th e q u e s t i o n n a i r e s, t h e i r names w ere checked on a ro s te r so th a t th e re se a rc h e r would know which stu d en ts s t i l l needed to be co n tacted.

19 CHAPTER III ANALYSIS OF RESULTS The a n a l y s i s o f th e r e s u l t s o f th e q u e s t i o n n a i r e w ere d iv id e d in to th e fiv e areas of c o n sid e ra tio n determ ined by th e statem en t o f the problem. How Do the G ifted S tudents a t S u p erio r High School P erceive Themselves A cadem ically, P e rso n a lly, and S o cially? Academic The grade p o in t average fo r th e t o t a l responses of 95 was The fem ales' mean of 3.7 was h ig h er than th e m ales' mean of 3.6. The lo w e s t r e p o r te d g ra d e p o in t a v e ra g e of one s tu d e n t was 2.7 and th e h i g h e s t, o f w hich th e r e w ere 20, w as 4.0. S e v e n ty -o n e o f th e s t u d e n ts re s p o n d in g to t h i s ite m had a g ra d e p o in t a v e ra g e of 3.5 o r b e tte r. T w enty-three of the respondents had a grade po in t average in th e ra n g e of 3.0 to 3.4. A lth o u g h n o t s e l e c t e d f o r t h i s s tu d y f o r t h e i r achievem ent reco rd s, th e r e s u l t s I n d i c a t e d t h a t th e s e g i f t e d stu d e n ts were achieving a t accep tab le le v e ls. On th e item d ealin g w ith grade a c c e le ra tio n, 100% in d icated th a t they had never skipped a grade. In a s s e s s i n g t h e i r e f f o r t s i n sc h o o l w ork f o r th e y e a r (Ite m 17), 66% re sp o n d ed t h a t th e y w ere w o rk in g f a i r l y h a rd o r v ery h a rd, w h ile 22% resp o n d ed t h a t th e y w ere ta k in g i t e a s y, and 3% th a t th e y were " ju s t lo afin g." A g r e a te r percentage of th e fem ales than of th e 7

20 m ales responded th a t they were working " f a ir ly hard" or "very hard," 73% fem ales to 60% m ales. Twenty-nine p ercen t of the m ales and 14% of th e fe m a le s re sp o n d e d t h a t th e y w ere " ta k in g I t e a sy." T hree m ales and no fem ales responded " ju s t lo afin g." To Ite m 18 d e a lin g w ith th e B tu d e n t's s a t i s f a c t i o n re g a r d in g h is /h e r academ ic achievem ent, 62% responded th a t they were s a t i s f i e d o r th o ro u g h ly s a t i s f i e d, w h ile 37% re sp o n d ed t h a t th e y w ere t h o r o u g h ly d i s s a tis f ie d. The com bination chosen by each respondent to Item s 17 and 18 was i n te r e s tin g. The t o t a l number of stu d en ts responding to both quest i o n s was 88. T ab le 1 shows s e v e r a l c o m b in a tio n s bro k en down by m ales and fem ales as w e ll as by c la ss. F ifty -tw o p ercen t o f the 88 stu d en ts were working "very hard" o r " f a i r l y hard" and were thoroughly s a tis f ie d o r s a t i s f i e d w ith th e ir a c h ie v e m e n t. Of c o n c e rn w ere th e 15% who w ere " ta k in g i t easy " o r " lo a fin g and were somewhat d is s a tis f ie d o r thoroughly d is s a tis f ie d w ith t h e i r a c h ie v e m e n t. Of g r e a t e r c o n c e rn w ere th e 12% who w ere s a t i s f i e d or thoroughly s a t i s f i e d w ith th e ir low e f f o r ts. In conjunction w ith th ese r e s u lts, the responses to Item 42 were i n d i c a t i v e o f th e im p o rta n c e th e s tu d e n ts p la c e d on a c h ie v e m e n t. When ask e d f o r w hat one p a r t i c u l a r ac c o m p lish m e n t a t sc h o o l th e y w ished to be remembered, 53 stu d en ts responded w ith an outstanding academ ic record. Of th e 98 s t u d e n t s, 95 r a te d le a r n in g a s " u s u a lly " or "alw ay s" being im p o rtan t to them. Three stu d en ts ra te d i t as "im portant about h a lf the tim e" (S ection I, Item 8).

21 Table 1 E ff o rt in School Work Versus S a tis fa c tio n o f Achievement ( in percentages) E f f o r t /s a t is f a c t i o n Males Females 9 th 10th 11th 12th Working f a i r l y hard; s a t i s f i e d Working f a i r l y hard; somewhat d i s s a t i s f i e d Working v ery hard; thoroughly s a t i s f i e d Taking i t easy; somewhat d i s s a t i s f i e d Taking i t easy; s a t i s f i e d Working very hard; s a t i s f i e d o Working f a i r l y hard; thoroughly s a t i s f i e d Taking i t easy; thoroughly s a t i s f i e d J u s t lo a fin g ; somewhat d is s a t i s f i e d Working very hard; somewhat d is s a t i s f i e d o 1 Working f a i r l y hard; thoroughly d i s s a t i s f i e d J u s t lo a fin g ; thoroughly d i s s a t i s f i e d o 1 0

22 S in c e 97 s t u d e n t s p la n n e d to c o n tin u e t h e i r e d u c a tio n and th e 9 8 th s tu d e n t was u n d e c id e d upon f u r t h e r e d u c a tio n (Ite m 5 5 ), th e stu d e n ts were c le a rly acad em ically o rien te d. P erso n al and S o cial O ver 50% (52 o f th e 98 t o t a l ) of th e s e i n t e l l e c t u a l l y g i f t e d s tu d en ts d id not begin t h e i r education in th e S u p erio r Schools. Of th ese 52 stu d e n ts, 16 en tered during the K-3 y ears; 18 entered during the 4 th -5 th grades; 16 d uring the middle school y ears; and 2 in high sch o o l. Of th e 98 s t u d e n t s, 53 had jo b s. T w elve (34%) o f th e 35 n in th g r a d e r s had jo b s ; 17 (59%) of th e 29 t e n t h g r a d e r s ; 10 (71%) o f th e 14 e l e v e n t h g r a d e r s ; and 14 (70%) of th e 20 t w e l f t h g r a d e r s. They worked from 4 to 49 hours a week, w ith th e g re a te s t percentage (49%) working from hours. W hich comes f i r s t, th e c a r o r th e jo b? F if t y - s e v e n o f th e 98 stu d e n ts had a car o r had fre e access to a car, w h ile 41 stu d en ts did not. Seventy p ercen t of th e 41 were freshm en, most of whom were only 15 y e a rs o ld and could n o t g et a licen se. These i n t e l l e c t u a l l y g ifte d stu d en ts g e n e ra lly perceived thems e lv e s fa v o rab ly re g ard in g personal c h a r a c te r is tic s (S ection I, Item 8). A ll 98 of th e s t u d e n t s f e l t th a t th e y " u s u a lly " o r "alw ay s" g o t a lo n g w e ll w ith o t h e r s t u d e n t s. T h is was an im p o r ta n t fin d in g because one of th e concerns of people working w ith g if te d i s th a t these stu d e n ts w i l l fe e l too d if f e r e n t or a lie n a te d from t h e i r grade peers.

23 They saw them selves as c re a tiv e th in k e rs. N inety-one were "usua l l y or "always" ab le to co n sid er more than one s o lu tio n to a problem. Although 8 s tu d e n ts responded th a t they were cu rio u s only "h a lf the tim e" or "seldom ly," 90 stu d en ts responded th a t they were "usua lly " or "always" cu rio u s. as having o rig in a l id e a s: However, not as many perceived them selves 75, "usually" or "always"; 19, "about h a lf the tim e"; and 4 "seldom ly." The r e s u l t s I n d i c a t e d t h a t th e g r e a t e r p e r c e n ta g e o f s tu d e n ts p e r c e iv e d th e m s e lv e s a s " le a d e r s " a b o u t h a l f th e tim e o r m ore, b u t th a t more m ales than fem ales seldom ly or never perceived them selves as " le a d e r s." F i f t y - f o u r o f th e 98 s tu d e n ts resp o n d ed t h a t th e y " u s u a lly " o r "alw ay s" have le a d e r s h ip q u a l i t i e s ; 34 resp o n d ed t h a t th e y do ab o u t h a l f th e tim e ; 9, s e ld o m ly ; and 1 s tu d e n t, n e v e r. T h ere was no n o ta b le d i f f e r e n c e b etw een m ales and fe m a le s in th e t o t a l s of the f i r s t two c a te g o rie s of "always" and "usually" (fem ales 56%; m a le s 54%); a 7% d i f f e r e n c e in th e c a te g o ry "alw ays" w ith fe m a le s a t 19% and m a le s a t 12%; a 5% d i f f e r e n c e in th e c a te g o ry " u s u a lly " w ith fe m a le s a t 37% and m ales a t 42%. H ow ever, in th e th ir d category of "about h a lf the tim e," th e re was a n o tab le d if f e r ence of 13% (fem ales 42% and males 29%). And, 15% of the males to 2% of th e fem ales responded th a t they were seldom "leaders." These stu d en ts responded th a t they could accep t re s p o n s ib ility, 95 "u su ally " or "alw ays" and 3 "about h a lf th e tim e." Two weaker are a s of p ersonal grow th v/ere "tim e management" and " s e lf - a w a r e n e s s." A lth o u g h 77 o f th e s t u d e n t s b e lie v e d th ey w ere a b le to study w e ll alone and budget tim e, 21 were "good" a t th is only

24 h a l f th e tim e or " se ld o m ly." W hile 73 c o u ld e s t i m a t e t h e i r own s t r e n g t h s and w e a k n e s s e s, 15 co u ld e s t i m a t e o n ly a b o u t " h a lf th e tim e" or "seldom ly. W h ile 7 of th e 98 s tu d e n ts v iew ed m ore th a n 15 h o u rs o f t e l e v i s i o n e a ch w eek, 91 s tu d e n ts view ed 14 h o u rs o r l e s s (S e c tio n I, Ite m 6). They d id te n d to be m o v ie g o e rs, w ith 83 s t u d e n t s o f th e 98 s e e in g one o r m ore m o v ies a m onth. H ow ever, none w ent more o f te n than once a week; and 13 never atten d ed. (This fin d in g may in crease in succeeding y ears because of the recen t opening of a Quad th e a te r in th e a r e a.) How Do These S tudents P erceiv e T heir R apport With P eers, T eachers, L ib ra ria n s, C ounselors, and A dm inistrators? P eers As s t a t e d ab o v e, 98 or a l l o f th e s tu d e n ts p e rc e iv e d t h a t th ey " u s u a lly " o r " alw ay s" g e t a lo n g w e ll w ith th e o th e r s tu d e n ts. No n o tab le d iffe re n c e e x is te d between the fem ales' and th e m ales' perc e p tio n s of t h e i r s o c ia l a b i l i t i e s. S eventy-nine p ercen t of th e n in th grade fem ales responded th a t th e o t h e r s t u d e n t s in th e sc h o o l w ere m a in ly f r i e n d l y and h e lp f u l (Item 31). The 12th grade males follow ed w ith 70% of them agreeing w ith th e statem en t. The 10th grade m ales responded th e le a s t favorab ly to th is statem en t w ith only 56% of them agreeing. O v erall, the fem ales responded s l i g h tl y more favorably than th e m ales, 70% to 64%.

25 H ow ever, 33% o f th e 96 m ales and fe m a le s re sp o n d ed t h a t th e y were e i t h e r "u n certain " or "disagreed" th a t the o th er stu d en ts were m ainly frie n d ly and h e lp fu l. These stu d e n ts m ight have experienced some antagonism from o th e r stu d en ts. T eachers (S ectio n I I. Items 1, 2, 9, and 16) Although 64 stu d en ts agreed th a t most of th e teac h ers cared fo r s tu d e n ts as in d iv id u a ls, 17 were u n c e rta in and 14 disagreed. I t is cu rio u s th a t 17 stu d en ts d id n o t know i f t h e i r teac h ers took a pers o n a l i n t e r e s t i n them. I f th e te a c h e r s d id ta k e a p e r s o n a l i n t e r e s t, i t would seem th a t th e stu d en ts would know i t. The response of th ese s tu d e n ts, plus th e 14 stu d en ts who responded th a t th e teach ers d id n o t ta k e a p e r s o n a l i n t e r e s t in th em, may i n d i c a t e t h a t 31 s t u d ents were fe e lin g somewhat a lie n a te d from the teac h ers. T his re a c tio n seems to be co rro b o rated by the re a c tio n of the 39 stu d e n ts who were e ith e r "uncertain" about t h e ir freedom to express them selves in c la s s e s (23 stu d e n ts), or who were "afraid " to express w hat th e y th o u g h t (16 s tu d e n t s ). Along th e same l i n e, t h e r e was an u n c e rta in ty on th e p a r t of 42 stu d e n ts as to w hether teach ers encouraged s tu d e n ts to d iscu ss an is s u e fu r th e r a f te r an i n i t i a l explanatio n. Nine stu d en ts d isag reed th a t te a c h e rs sought more d iscu ssio n. These two areas a re of concern p a r tic u la r ly fo r the g ifte d c h ild who may see another s o lu tio n o r a more c re a tiv e s o lu tio n to a d iscu s s io n p ro b lem. A g i f t e d c h ild n eed s th e freed o m to e x p lo re a n on- t r a d i t i o n a l view and to express h is /h e r view s in an accep tin g atmosp h e re. Som etim es th e g i f t e d c h i l d may need th e en co u rag em en t of a

26 te a c h e r to p u rsu e i s s u e s beyond th e t r a d i t i o n a l v iew o f m ost o th e r s t u d e n t s ( T u t t l e & B e c k e r, 1983, p. 19). A lso to be c o n s id e r e d i s t h a t 21 s tu d e n ts resp o n d ed t h a t th ey "n ev er" o r "o n ly o c c a s io n a lly " co u ld g e t i n d i v id u a l h e lp from th e te a c h e rs o u tsid e t h e i r re g u la rly scheduled c la s s perio d s. Librarians and the Library S in c e 93 s t u d e n t s resp o n d ed t h a t th e y co u ld g e t h e lp from th e li b r a r i a n s u su a lly or whenever they need i t, no s t a f f problem seems to e x i s t t h e r e. The l i b r a r i a n s seemed to be d o in g a good jo b, to o, of s e le c tin g m a te ria ls fo r th o se who read: 42 stu d en ts could u su ally fin d an in te r e s tin g book and 16 stu d en ts believed a wide v a rie ty of books met th e ir needs. The stu d en ts a ls o responded fav o rab ly to the lib r a r ia n s ' selectio n o f m a te ria ls fo r m eeting t h e i r learn in g i n t e r e s t s and needs: 84 stu d e n ts could u s u a lly lo c a te th e needed m a te ria ls or b eliev ed th a t much m a te ria l was a v a ila b le. Of concern though were the 13 stu d en ts who fre q u e n tly found th a t needed m a te ria ls were u n av ailab le. R elevant to th e s e le c tio n process fo r p leasu re reading were the 56 s t u d e n t s who re a d more th a n f i v e books a y e a r, w ith 37 s tu d e n ts read in g more than 10. Of g re a t concern, however, were th e 31 of the 98 stu d e n ts who did not look f o r books; the 6 stu d en ts who look, but seldom fin d an in te r e s tin g book; and the 6 stu d en ts who never read a book f o r t h e i r own p le a s u r e d u rin g th e y e a r. A lth o u g h 33 s tu d e n ts were re q u ired by te a c h e rs to use th e lib r a r y fo r supplem entary study and work, 61 stu d e n ts were seldom req u ired.

27 C ounselors (Item s 28 and 29) S ix ty -o n e percen t of th e stu d en ts responded to Item 28 s ta tin g th a t someone was "u su ally " or "always" a v a ila b le when they needed to d is c u s s s e le c tin g co u rses, g e ttin g a job, choosing a c o lle g e, and so on. However, 34% wanted to ta lk to counselors more o fte n than they were a v a ila b le. Of th e 98 s tu d e n ts re s p o n d in g to Ite m 29, 69% f e l t t h a t th e co unseling and guidance th ey had receiv ed were e ith e r somewhat helpf u l (56%) o r very h e lp fu l (13%). Of the 19 stu d en ts who had receiv ed no co u n selin g and guidance, 8 were freshm en, 10 were sophomores, and 1 was a se n io r. One stu d e n t commented th a t she used th e counseling s e rv ic e s more as she g o t o ld er. Perhaps more upperclassm en seek out th e co u n selin g se rv ic e. However, freshm an and sophomore g ifte d s tu d en ts a ls o need in d iv id u a l counseling fo r guidance in course se le c tio n and p re p arin g 4 -y e a r plans. A d m in istrato rs (Item s 43, 44, 45, and 46) Although 97 of the 98 students knew the name of the high school principal, 40% did not know the correct spelling. One junior thought the p r i ncipal w a s one of the assistant principals. Nine students k n e w the n a m e of only one of the t w o assistant principals. The 20 seniors knew the names of all three administrators. Perhaps th e 36% who were u n ce rtain i f th e a d m in is tra to rs were a p p r o a c h a b le and h e l p f u l, and th e 28% who w ere u n c e r t a i n i f th e a d m i n i s t r a t o r s w ere i n t e r e s t e d i n p r o v i d i n g a good l e a r n i n g

28 environm ent, in d icated a lack of in te ra c tio n w ith the a d m in is tra to rs. A g r e a t e r p e r c e n ta g e o f th e fe m a le s (67%) th a n th e m ales (51%) p erceiv ed the a d m in is tra to rs as being approachable and h e lp fu l. Howe v e r, t h e 9 th g ra d e f e m a le s ' and m a le s' p e r c e p tio n s w ere th e sam e (57%). While 78% of th e fem ale sen io rs agreed th a t th e a d m in istra t o r s w e re a p p ro a c h a b le and h e l p f u l, o n ly 30% o f th e m ale s e n io r s ag reed. E ig h t y - e i g h t p e r c e n t o f th e fresh m en and sophomores perceived th e a d m in is tra to rs as being in te re s te d in providing a good le arn in g e n v iro n m e n t; w h ile o n ly 44% o f th e j u n i o r s and s e n i o r s re sp o n d ed fav o rab ly to th is item. This may in d ic a te th a t th e co lleg e p rep arato ry cu rricu lu m fo r th e freshm en and the sophomores was more s tru c tu r e d and o b v io u s th a n f o r th e u p p e rc la s s m e n. Or, i t may i n d i c a t e t h a t th e u n d e rc la s s m e n w ere n o t as s o p h i s t i c a t e d in ju d g in g th e le a rn in g environm ent and th e a d m in is tra to r's ro le in providing i t. How Do These Students P erceiv e the O v e rall Academic Program? The s tu d e n ts re g a rd e d th e c o n te n t o f m ost c l a s s e s in m e e tin g t h e i r p re se n t and fu tu re needs as " f a ir ly im portant" to "im portant" (Ite m 3 ). The mean r e s p o n s e was 2.5 w ith 3.0 th e v a lu e o f "im p o r ta n t," 2.0 the value o f " f a i r l y im p o rtan t," and 1.0 the value of "not im p o r ta n t." The s e n i o r mean re s p o n s e was th e lo w e s t, 2.35; and th e fre s h m a n mean re s p o n s e was th e h i g h e s t, 2.9. The mean re s p o n s e o f th e m ales and fem ales was th e same.

29 They perceived most c la s s e s as being "somewhat In te re s tin g " w ith a mean re s p o n s e o f 2.97 w ith 4.0 th e v a lu e o f "v ery I n t e r e s t i n g to 1.0 th e v a lu e o f " d u ll" (Ite m 4). The mean re s p o n s e o f each g ra d e le v e l d ec lin e d s l i g h tl y w ith each grade advance: 9 th g rad ers, 3.2; 1 0 th g r a d e r s, 2.9; 1 1 th g r a d e r s, 2.8; and 1 2 th g r a d e r s, Although 67 of th e 98 stu d en ts responded th a t most teach ers used a " t e a c h e r - l e c t u r e " m ethod o f te a c h in g (Ite m 7 ), o n ly 20 s tu d e n ts p re fe rre d i t. While 13 stu d en ts responded th a t most teac h ers used a c la s s d isc u ssio n approach, 43 stu d en ts responded th a t they p re fe rre d t h i s method of in s tru c tio n. The stu d en ts checking the "other" c a te gory, d escrib ed com binations of the te a c h e r-le c tu re and group d iscu s sio n m ethods, or o th e r com binations. The responses to Item s 7 and 8 were f a i r l y c o n s is te n t in a l l the grade le v e ls as in d ic a te d in Table 2. A lth o u g h th e s t u d e n t s p r e f e r r e d one m ethod f o r l e a r n i n g, th e y were c o n s is te n tly g e ttin g another. P e rh a p s th e m ethod of te a c h in g e x p la in s why th e s tu d e n ts r e sponding to Item 10 e i t h e r b eliev ed th a t the te a c h e rs were not making a s tr o n g e f f o r t to g e t s t u d e n t s to th in k th ro u g h and d efen d t h e i r o p in io n s (32%), o r w ere u n c e r t a i n i f th e y w ere (29%). W ith l i m i t e d group d isc u ssio n th e s tu d e n ts may not have had many o p p o rtu n itie s to ex p ress o p in io n s. The s t u d e n t s ' mean re s p o n s e o f 2.6 to Ite m 15 was t h a t th e t e a c h e r s ' e x p e c t a t i o n s w ere b etw een "som ew hat e a sy " and "ab o u t r i g h t. " (The v a lu e s ra n g ed from 5.0, "much to o d i f f i c u l t, " to 1.0, "much too easy.") The responses were c o n s is te n t a t each grade le v e l

30 18 Table 2 Teaching Methods ( in percentages) Grade Method most used Method p re ferred T e a ch er-lectu re T ea ch er-lectu re C lass d iscu ssio n C lass d iscu ssio n o betw een m ales and fem ales except fo r s e n io rs. The se n io r m ales' mean r e s p o n s e was 2.9: th e t e a c h e r s ' e x p e c ta tio n s w ere "ab o u t r i g h t." H ow ever, th e s e n io r f e m a le s ' mean re s p o n s e was 2.1: th e t e a c h e r s ' e x p e c ta tio n s were "somewhat easy." The freshm en's mean response of 2.79 w as th e h i g h e s t ; th e j u n i o r s ' mean re s p o n s e o f 2.14 was th e lo w est. Somewhat in c o n ju n c tio n w ith Ite m 15 i s Ite m 26: "... w hich b e s t d e s c r i b e s how you f e e l a b o u t th e t o t a l am ount o f work you a r e expected to do o u tsid e of c la s s fo r a l l your c la s s e s th is year." The p o in t v alu es fo r th is item a re :

31 1 * le s s th an I f e e l I could do. 2 = about what 1 f e e l I can com fortably do. 3 = am ount o f w ork h a s been e x c e s s iv e, b u t I have com pleted I t w ith o u t any g re a t problem. 4 = am ount o f w ork h a s been e x c e s s iv e, b u t I have com pleted I t w ith g re a t d if f ic u lty. 5 «= am ount o f w ork has been so g r e a t t h a t I have been unable to com plete i t. The s tu d e n ts mean response was 2.26, s l i g h tl y over the com fortab le w o rk -lev el. The mean re sp o n se s d e f i n i t e l y v a r ie d b etw een th e m ales and fe m a le s f o r each g ra d e l e v e l (e x c e p t sophom ores) a s desc rib e d in Table 3. Table 3 Mean Responses o f Homework Load fo r A ll C lasses Grade Males Females T o tal ? T o tal Item 24 asked th e stu d en ts to rank t h e i r o v e ra ll experience fo r the y e a r in the academ ic courses of E nglish, s o c ia l s tu d ie s, m athem a tic s, scien c e, and fo re ig n languages.

32 E n g lish N i n e t y - s i x o f th e 98 s tu d e n ts w ere e n r o ll e d In an E n g lis h c o u rs e. The t o t a l s t u d e n t s ' mean re s p o n s e was 3.8, s l i g h t l y " le s s th a n s a t i s f i e d. " The mean re s p o n s e s by g ra d e l e v e l a r e g iv e n in T a b le 4. Table 4 Mean Responses f o r O verall E xperiences in E nglish Grade le v e l Mean response N o te. 5 = v e ry s a t i s f i e d ; 4 = s a t i s f i e d ; 3 = n e u t r a l ; 2 = d i s s a t i s fie d ; 1 = very d i s s a t i s f i e d. S o c ia l S tu d ies The 50 s t u d e n t s ' mean re sp o n se of 3.68 f o r s o c i a l s t u d i e s was b e tw e e n " n e u tr a l" and " s a t i s f i e d. " The mean re s p o n se s by g ra d e le v e ls a re given in T able 5. The low en ro llm en t in s o c ia l s tu d ie s courses was of concern to the re se a rc h e r. However, i t was hoped th a t th e re c e n tly in s titu te d c o u r s e, " R ig h ts and R e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s," open to fresh m en and sophom o res w ould i n c r e a s e th e o v e r a l l e n r o llm e n t. A lso, a r e c e n t l y

33 21 i n s t i t u t e d in c re a se in s o c ia l stu d ie s g raduation requirem ents m ight r e s u lt in an in cre ased en ro llm en t. Table 5 Mean Responses fo r O v erall Experiences in S o cial S tudies Grade le v e l Mean response N o te. 5 = v ery s a t i s f i e d ; 4 =» s a t i s f i e d ; 3 = n e u t r a l ; 2 = d i s s a t i s fie d ; 1 = very d i s s a t i s f i e d. Mathematics N in e ty - f o u r o f th e 98 s tu d e n ts w ere e n r o lle d in m a th e m a tic s c la s s e s. The mean resp o n se of the 94 stu d en ts was s l i g h tl y " b e tte r th a n s a t i s f i e d, " 4.2. The mean re s p o n se s by g ra d e l e v e l s a r e g iv e n in T a b le 6. Science The re s p o n s e s o f 95 s t u d e n t s e n r o ll e d in s c ie n c e c o u rs e s r e s u l t e d in a mean o f 4.1. The s tu d e n ts w ere s a t i s f i e d w ith t h e i r o v e r a l l e x p e rie n c e s i n th e s e c o u rs e s. The mean re s p o n s e s by g ra d e le v e l a re given in Table 7.

34 Table 6 Mean Responses fo r O v erall Experiences In M athematics Grade le v e l Mean response N ote. 5» v e ry s a t i s f i e d ; 4 fie d ; 1 = very d i s s a t i s f i e d. = s a t i s f i e d ; 3 = n e u t r a l ; 2 = d i s s a t i s - Table 7 Mean Responses fo r O v erall E xperiences in Science Grade le v e l Mean response N o te. 5» v e ry s a t i s f i e d ; 4 = s a t i s f i e d ; 3 = n e u t r a l ; 2 = d i s s a t i s fie d ; 1 *» very d is s a t i s f i e d. F o reig n Languages The e n r o llm e n t i n f o r e i g n lan g u ag e c o u rs e s was 66. The mean response of 3.7 f o r th ese 66 stu d en ts was s l i g h tl y " le ss than s a t i s fie d. The mean responses by grade le v e l are given in Table 8.

35 Table 8 Mean Responses fo r O v erall Experiences In Foreign Languages Grade le v e l Mean response N o te. 5 = v e ry s a t i s f i e d ; 4 = s a t i s f i e d ; 3 = n e u t r a l ; 2 = d i s s a t i s fie d ; 1 = very d is s a t i s f i e d. Two f a c t o r s sh o u ld be n o te d r e g a rd in g th e r e s u l t s in f o r e ig n languages: (a) the low en ro llm en t fo r th is group of g ifte d stu d en ts, and (b) th e mean resp o n ses of "n eu tral" fo r the sophomores, ju n io rs, and s e n io r s. Perhaps the s tu d e n ts la c k of s a tis f a c tio n in th e fo reig n lan guage courses re s u lte d in th e low er en ro llm en t. Since a l l of th ese stu d e n ts planned to a tte n d c o lle g e, i t seems to th is re searc h er th a t they should be tak in g fo re ig n language courses. Pace in C lasses The pace in c l a s s e s f o r th e y e a r (Ite m 25) was r a te d by th e s t u d e n t s a s s l i g h t l y l e s s th a n "about r i g h t, " 1.89 mean re s p o n se. The p o in t values fo r t h i s item are: 3.0, too f a s t; 2.0, about rig h t; and 1.0, to o slo w.

36 The mean resp o n se fo r the pace by su b ject area was as fo llo w s: E n g lis h, 1.9; s o c i a l s t u d i e s, 1.6; m a th e m a tic s, 1.9; s c ie n c e, 2.0, and fo re ig n languages, 1.8. These r e s u lts seem to In d ic a te th a t th e pace could be a c c e le ra te d In a l l su b ject areas. Thinking Skills The results of tabulating Item 3 suggest that thinking skills need to be taught. The students were to check the skills that they had been taught. The 98 students responded as follows: 53 brainstorming; 92 problem-solving; 54 critical thinking; 76 decisionmaking; and 56 creative thinking. Although 58 stu d en ts responded th a t th e school o ffe re d a l l th e s u b j e c t s th ey w an ted (Ite m 27), 33 s t u d e n t s resp o n d ed t h a t i t d id n o t. The s u g g e s tio n s f o r a d d i t i o n s In c lu d e d s p e c i a l i z e d co m p u ter courses ( d if f e r e n t ty p es of b a sic programming); a w ider s e le c tio n of h ig h l e v e l s o c i a l s t u d i e s c o u r s e s, such as 2 0 th - c e n tu r y h i s t o r y, R enaissance h is to ry, M edieval h is to ry, w orld h is to ry, w orld c u ltu re, European h is to ry, governm ent, and geography; B r itis h l i te r a t u r e, an honors American l i t e r a t u r e, Shakespeare; and philosophy. Although a t th e tim e of th is stu d y the curriculum o ffered four fo reig n languages, a d d itio n a l ones were suggested: Greek, R ussian, Dutch, and I ta lia n. (H ow ever, Ite m 24 i n d i c a t e d t h a t o n ly 66 of th e 98 s tu d e n ts w ere e n ro lle d in a fo re ig n language cla ss.) w ere m en tio n ed a s d e s i r e d c l a s s e s. Music courses and a r t h is to ry Advanced p la c e m e n t c o u r s e s in scien c e and m athem atics, honors courses in m athem atics and E nglish,

37 and p e r m i t t i n g s t u d e n t s to ta k e m ore c o u rs e s a t th e l o c a l c o lle g e were recommended. The stu d e n ts ra te d the e d u c atio n al o p p o rtu n itie s o ffered by the school in regard to p re p a ra tio n fo r fu rth e r education (Item 54). The p o in t v a lu e s from w h ich th e mean re s p o n s e was c a lc u l a t e d a re 5.0, e x c e l l e n t ; 4.0, v e ry good; 3.0, good; 2.0, i n f e r i o r ; and 1.0, v ery i n f e r i o r. The mean re s p o n s e o f th e 98 s tu d e n ts was 3.5, betw een "good" and "v ery good." H o w Do These Students Perceive the Psychological Climate of the School? The students characterized the general psychological climate of the school as " s o m e w h a t friendly" w ith a mean response of 3.1 for Item 30, with the point value of 4.0 for "warm and friendly" and the point value of 1.0 for "cold, restrictive." The m a jority of the students (66%) perceived the other students as being mainly "friendly and helpful" (Item 31). Although 16 stu d en ts f e l t th a t few c liq u e s e x iste d, o th ers f e l t th a t c o n f lic tin g groups did e x i s t (Item 32). The th ree c o n flic tin g groups d esig n ated most fre q u e n tly by th e stu d en ts were s o c ia l c la ss (65%), a c ad em ic a b i l i t y (44%), and econom ic l e v e l (33%). Tw enty p erc e n t of th e stu d en ts d esig n ated race and 17% designated neighborhoods as determ ining fa c to rs fo r c o n flic tin g groups. N ineteen stu d e n ts p o in te d o u t o th e r ways t h a t g ro u p s w ere bonded, such as a t h l e t i c a b i l i t y and d ru g -tak in g.

38 The students r e s p o n d i n g to Item 33 s a w alcohol abuse as the n u m b e r one in-school p r o b l e m (66%), followed by drug abuse (49%), thievery (36%), and vandalism (32%). Smoking and cheating were both mentioned as additional problems. However, 18 of the 98 studentb did not see any of these as a major problem. The p ro b lem o f c h e a tin g had p r e v io u s ly s u rfa c e d in Ite m 14. F i f t y - t w o p e r c e n t o f th e s t u d e n t s a g re e d t h a t s tu d e n ts c h e a te d on t e s t s o r i n d a i l y w o rk, 14% d is a g r e e d, and 29% w ere u n c e r t a i n i f s tu d e n ts cheated. One of th e se n io rs s ta te d th a t ch eatin g was widespread in th e re q u ired c la s s e s, but not as p rev alen t in the c o lle g e - p re p a ra to ry c la s s e s. A pparently, the ch e a tin g was not encouraged by an overem phasis on m arks (Ite m 13). The mean re s p o n se ( w ith 4.0 a s th e p o i n t v a lu e f o r e x c e s s iv e em p h a sis on m arks and 1.0, to o l i t t l e ) was 2.3, s l i g h tl y more than "about rig h t." A stu d en t who f e l t th a t th e re was too much em phasis on grades s ta te d th a t th e re was "not enough [emphas i s ] on a c tu a lly le a rn in g and understanding." What d id th e s t u d e n t s b e lie v e was em p h asized in t h i s s c h o o l (Item s 34 and 35)? T able 9 shows the r e s u lts to th ese two item s. The results seemed to suggest that some of these students preferred the school to emphasize sports less and to increase the emphasis on cultural events and academic work. Fifty-three percent perceived the emphasis on each area as "about right, which conflicted with their response to Item 35 with 34% stating that the emphasis was about right.

39 27 Table 9 Emphasis In the School Too much emphasis Too little emphasis Sports 29 5 Social affairs Cultural events 1 34 Academic work 5 42 S tu d en t Government and A c tiv itie s T h ere was an a lm o s t even s p l i t of th e s tu d e n ts a g r e e in g w ith (53%) and d i s a g r e e i n g w ith (47%) th e s ta te m e n t t h a t th e s tu d e n t g o v ern m e n t d e a ls w ith m a t t e r s o f r e a l im p o rta n c e to th e s tu d e n ts (Item 36). F o rty -e ig h t stu d en ts were u n c e rta in which seems in d ic a t i v e o f a n e g a tiv e re s p o n s e. I f t h e s tu d e n t governm ent d e a l t w ith im p o rtan t m a tte rs, i t seems th a t th e se stu d en ts would be aware of i t. A g a in, an a lm o s t even s p l i t d ev e lo p e d b etw een th o s e a g r e e in g (54%) t h a t i t was p o s s i b l e f o r s tu d e n ts to make m e a n in g fu l changes (Item 37), and those who disagreed (42%). T w enty-five stu d en ts were u n c e rta in which, as above, seemed to be a neg ativ e response. An even more n e g a tiv e response was suggested in th e fin d in g th a t 61% perceived th a t a sm a ll group o f stu d en ts c o n tro lle d the student a c t i v i t i e s (Ite m 38). T w e n ty -th re e s tu d e n ts w ere u n c e r t a i n, fo u r upperclassm en and 19 low erclassm en.

40 The m a jo rity of th e stu d e n ts a t a l l grade le v e ls did p a r tic ip a te i n some s tu d e n t a c t i v i t y (Ite m 39): 91% of th e 9 th g r a d e r s, 96% of the 10th g ra d ers, 93% of th e 11 g rad ers, and 90% of the 12th graders. Of those p a r tic ip a tin g, 92% considered th e ir p a r tic ip a tio n in stu d en t a c t i v i t i e s to be of some v alu e or very valuable. Student Responsibility Did th ese g if te d stu d e n ts perceiv e a r e s tr ic te d school environment? Of the 94 s tu d e n ts responding to Item 12, 86% responded th a t they were e ith e r p e rm itte d some s e lf - d ir e c tio n or much s e lf - d ir e c tio n, a p a rt from classroom work. Although 7% responded th a t too much freedom e x is te d fo r stu d e n ts to accept re s p o n s ib ility fo r t h e i r own le a rn in g (Item 5), 20% responded th a t too much re g im e n ta tio n ex isted. S ix ty -e ig h t p ercen t responded th a t the rig h t amount of freedom was provided fo r e le c tio n of co u rses, s e le c tio n of teac h ers, unsupervised study, long-range assig n m en ts, and so on. However, 36% o f the 95 stu d e n ts responding to Item 6 responded th a t too l i t t l e unscheduled tim e was provided fo r such a c t i v i t i e s as using the lib r a r y, le is u r e - tim e p u rs u its, co n su ltin g w ith teac h ers, and s o c i a l i z i n g w i t h o th e r s tu d e n t s. F ifty -fo u r percent responded t h a t th e r i g h t am ount o f tim e was p ro v id e d ; 11% resp o n d ed t h a t too much unscheduled tim e was provided. Only two upperclassm en responded th a t too much unscheduled tim e was provided. The majority of the students perceived a school environment that allowed them self-direction, freedom and responsibility for their own