ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses strategies for evaluating both the processes of implementation of curricular and instructional models and the outcomes of implementing these models in gifted and talented programs. Essentially, program developers need to specify what gifted individuals, small groups, large groups, or classes should achieve as a result of special programs and services. To achieve concordance between and among all program components, the choice of which curricular and instructional model is to be implemented in a school district should be clearly connected to why students were identified and which definition of giftedness has been adopted. The main objective of adopting research-based models in gifted education is to guide development of defensible curricular and instructional strategies and practices that will promote designated outcomes. Five of the most useful data collection methods are: interviews and focus groups; observations; pre- and post-assessments of learning; surveys; and ratings of products and performances.
