ABSTRACT
One of the biggest challenges facing the field of gifted education is the underrepresentation of low-income and minority students participating in special programs and services. This chapter argues that follows examine both the reasons for underrepresentation and one approach that has made a significant difference in the lives of high-potential, low-income students from a major urban area. Research on the role of student engagement is clear and unequivocal. In a longitudinal study comparing time-spent versus time-engaged on the achievement of at-risk students, conventional-instructional practices were found to be responsible for the students’ increased risk of academic delay. The teachers assumed the roles of mentor and confidant to the students and, as such, discovered much about the personal lives, frustrations, interests, and dreams of their young students. Many of our teachers are being deskilled, and outside of essential math, science, and reading courses, there is an erosion of creative curricula that include art, music, and drama.
