The 58th annual convention of the National Association for Gifted Children was held in New Orleans this past weekend. The purpose of the NAGC is to coordinate the efforts of educators, parents, and counselors to address the unique needs of gifted and talented youth.
While some of the conventioneers began arriving Wednesday, the convention kicked off in earnest on Thursday with an opening general session featuring an address by Bill Nye, best known to television viewers as “The Science Guy.” He spoke about his own upbringing, the importance of creativity, and teacher involvement in the lives of the gifted. At the end of his address, he received a standing ovation from the crowd, which prompted him to pull out his camera and take a picture.
Thursday evening brought the Celebration of Excellence, an awards ceremony to recognize the contributions of some noted NAGC members, including the University of Connecticut’s Del Siegle (who received the NAGC Distinguished Service Award), Baylor University’s Susan K. Johnsen (who received the President’s Award), and the recipient of this year’s Ann Isaacs Founder’s Memorial Award, Donald Treffinger, who is currently the president of the Center for Creative Learning in Sarasota, Florida. The program began with an address from NAGC president Paula Olszewski-Kubilus, who spoke about her desire to see the focus of the association move toward “talent development.”
The highlight of the Celebration of Excellence were performances from local student groups, including a drama group performing a mash-up of rapid-fire Shakespeare vignettes and an a cappella group singing a variety of pop favorites.
Friday morning began early with sessions at 7:30 a.m. One of the first was a presentation by Dr. Michael Sayler, senior associate dean of the College of Education at the University of North Texas, whose presentation concerned the “Roles and Functions of Friendships Among the Gifted and Talented”. Dr. Sayler discussed the difficulties of the gifted and talented in finding meaningful relationships and the emotional and psychological impact that can result. He touched on elements of positive psychology and discussed the importance of the gifted and talented being provided with the means and tools to “flourish”.
Miraca Gross, a professor of gifted education at the University of New South Wales and one of the leading authorities on gifted and talented children, gave a wonderful presentation about the importance of a variety of factors to the well being of gifted and talented people. The best parts of her presentation were descriptions of her own case studies of absolutely remarkable people and their struggles to relate to the regular world. Toward the end of the session, one of the attendees introduced her self as the mother of a gifted child who began reading at 18 months old and now, as an early adolescent, is doing advanced research projects on synesthesia.
On the technological front, University of North Texas doctoral student Sita Periathiruvadi gave a very interesting presentation on best practices for integrating technology into gifted education programs. Her presentation touched upon technological options for instruction, assessment, and social media.
For doctoral and master’s students, the evening was capped off with a “Research Crackerbarrel”, an opportunity for graduate students and beginning researchers to talk to established researchers and obtain much-needed advice and professional wisdom.
Highlights of Saturdays presentations included Dr. Melinda Meszaros, a neuroscientist who offered fascinating insights into some of the neurological issues within the gifted and talented group – particularly the creatively gifted. She talked about the “default mode network” of the brain that is essentially the brain functioning at rest. The latest research indicates that the brain is not resting nearly as much as we thought, and, in the case of the gifted and talented, may have trouble resting at all. Another interesting aspect of Dr. Meszaros’ talk concerned the practice of daydreaming; she said that it is normal for the gifted and an indicator of a creative mind.
Dr. Ellen Fiedler of Northeastern Illinois University and Dr. Jim Webb, owner of Great Potential Press, gave one of the best-attended presentations of the entire convention. Speaking to a packed crowd, they took on the subject of gifted adults, those who have been officially identified as gifted as well as those who remain unrecognized. An engaging presentation that highlighted the personalities of the presenters, Dr. Fiedler and Dr. Webb discussed the characteristics of gifted adults and the challenges they face as they move through the adult life stages.
For more information on the National Association for Gifted Children, please visit their website at www.nagc.org.
That was a neat account capturing the highlights of NAGC 😉 Enjoyed the video as well!
The NAGC trip was awesome– So glad you were able to attend!