Fast forward 10 years. It’s 2019. How are our gifted and
talented learners faring in the United States? Well, if our federal and state
governments, boards of education and communities continue along current
pathways, we might as well start mourning now. Our gifted and talented students
will not only be left behind, but we – as citizens of the United States and
world – will also have to face the harsh realities and opportunity costs of
losing our most precious natural resources. Say good-bye to innovation and hope
– and global prowess.
For it appears that the untapped talents and visionary
strengths of gifted learners will wind up buried, along with the critical
talents of gifted educators, who actually know how to serve this population with
zeal and courage.
By 2019, it’s likely that a U.S. Secretary of Education will
finally admit the ludicrous fallacy of NCLB and how it did not ensure a better
education for all students. He or she will confess that a mere $7.8-million-dollar
outlay for Javits was an embarrassingly small investment. State governments,
who threw millions upon millions of dollars at low-level assessments, will also
feel shame about ignoring our gifted children (and undermining teaching for all
children in general). Even now, bright minds in California and Illinois – and
across the country – are being left behind, as they sit bored in classrooms –
wondering what life is all about and why they should even care.
I’m typically not a pessimist, but I’m charged up right now.
Earlier this week, I attended the Colorado Association for Gifted and Talented (CAGT)
Conference. I had the distinct honor of hearing from our country’s leaders in
gifted education, including Dr. Richard “Rick” Olenchak who spoke eloquently
and passionately about the billions being spent on mandatory testing
(not to mention its incessant influence on curriculum and scripting).
I, like Dr. Olenchak, am all for assessing students, but the
pendulum has swung ridiculously far and the negative impacts of mandatory
testing in the United States now seriously outweigh its originally intended benefits.
Moreover, one of the most
profound missing links in our education system today, as it relates to both
gifted learners and all students, is the absence of affective curriculum. Dr.
Olenchak agrees. The lack of affective curriculum designed to prepare our
students for the real world is perhaps one of the greatest educational tragedies
of the past several decades.
We’re pumping out students who can cognitively complete
a state test, but who have no understanding of decision-making, communication,
discernment, global viewpoints, creative thought and/or hope. What will we do
as we move from an Information Age to the Conceptional Age/Nanotech Era? Wing
it? Well, rote learning and dormant thinking will certainly not cut it.
Meeting the academic and socio-emotional needs of our high-potential learners
is not a luxury, it’s a necessity. As such, I can’t sit by stagnantly, just
hoping for the best. I’m committed to helping chart a different course and
strongly believe communications is the answer!
The only way we are going to
save gifted education in this country (and throughout the world) is through
action – and collaboration.
In the United States, state associations are going
to have to step up to the plate and take their place in the fight. They will
need to double – even triple – their memberships (particularly among parents)
and initiate high-powered, effective campaigns. Working hand in hand with the
National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) and other national gifted organizations will be vital.
Moreover, state
associations will need an even bigger place at their own legislative tables.
Cuts are coming, and the only way gifted education will survive will be through
communication with parents, teachers, leaders, board members, business executives and
community influencers and representatives. Public relations and lobbying
efforts must take place and people must wake up to the fact that all children,
including gifted learners from all socio-economic and racial backgrounds, deserve an appropriate public education.
Myths about
gifted learners must be debunked and exposed though appropriate education and
trust-building. Just as you would not deny a handicapped student a ramp, you
cannot deny our gifted students the chance to actually learn something during a
school year.Dare I say this is a civil
rights issue?
I applaud the leaders of CAGT
and the governor of our state for recognizing the importance of gifted
education (but even our gifted children remain vulnerable). If you are a
teacher, parent, state association board member and/or student, I invite you to
act! Numbers count; you count.
Send me an email at innovate@deborahmersino.com with the subject line of “Gifted Rights” and I’ll
keep you apprised of the fight for our gifted learners’ futures. Also feel free to
follow me on Twitter; I’m @DeborahMersino and post gifted education news from
around the world every week.
Finally, I invite you to take two actions this week:
1.Become a member
of the National Association for Gifted Children (if you haven’t already). Visit
www.nagc.org for more information. This year's annual meeting is being offered virtually; as such, it's an ideal time to join!
2.Become a member
of your state gifted association.
Thank you for the privilege
of communicating with you. Together, we can envision 2019 in a new light!
Welcome! If
this is your first visit to the Ingeniosus blog, it’s a privilege to have you
here. For those of you who have boldly launched into the Twitosphere and are
still learning, this post should add new fuel to your mission. If you’re a
veteran, please read along and see if you have any other tips to add. I’ve
learned from many of you and welcome your insights. Add a comment below and/or
tweet me your feedback (I’m @DeborahMersino). Together, we can create the
future and “Tweet for Gifted Education.” Here we go! Just scroll down.
Today’s
post will focus on some of the trickier aspects of Twitter. If we can all learn
to navigate this new medium without frustration or confusion, we’ll be able to
maximize its potential and enjoy advocacy and global learning at its best – in
real time!
Also, if
you haven’t readPart I or Part II yet, click on the live links to your right. You’ll find it easier to understand these
“Intro to Twitter” posts if you read them in order. And PLEASE be patient with
yourself. It takes a while, but it is worth the effort!
Remember, if
we can get thousands of gifted education advocates from across the world on board,
we can:
Share gifted education
resources and news in real time
Promote advocacy and action on
behalf of high-potential learners, and
Learn from one another
It's all about sharing knowledge!
The five
main subjects we will be covering today are:
How to Set Up Your Twitter Profile
Page (bio, picture)
Who to Follow
Who to Block
How to Save Subject Searches,
and
How to Shorten URLs
There are
countless other topics I would like to incorporate (#followfridays, “Find
People” searches, “RT/Retweet” considerations, Twitter backgrounds, TweetDeck),
but they will have to wait. If you have suggestions for future posts and/or
comments on this one, please feel free to send me an email at innovate@deborahmersino.com. I’ll
do my best to answer your questions in future posts!
How to Set Up Your Profile Page
Once you
have created your @username (such as @DeborahMersino), you should promptly set
up your Profile Page, so that others know a bit about you (i.e. who you are,
your interests). You’ll have the option to include a picture and a bio, which
will show up on your Profile Page. This is what other people on Twitter will
see when they click on your @username to visit your Profile Page. So, how do
you do this?
On the
upper right-hand corner of your Home Page, click on the “Settings” link. Under
the Account Tab (which should automatically come up), you’ll see a form to fill
out information. You’ll also see the “One Line Bio” section like this. It’s part-way
down the page:
One Line Bio:
About yourself in fewer than 160 chars.
You’ve got
160 characters to tell the world a bit about yourself. Here is mine:
Bio Marketing communications strategist
specializing in gifted and talented education/support; wife; mother of two
girls; lover of social responsibility
Remember, you can always change it later, so don’t worry about making it
perfect.
Filling out this brief section, though, will help people identify you and
your interests. It will also help ensure that others don’t inadvertently
confuse you with a spammer (these folks often leave off bios altogether and/or
post nonsensical information).
If you happen to be a gifted education advocate, teacher and/or gifted organization,
please include this, so others will know!
To upload your picture, simply click on the “Picture” link in the
“Settings” section and choose a file. It may take you a couple of times
(sometimes files are too big). Keep trying. It’s much more enjoyable to Tweet
with someone whom you can see. If you’re representing an organization, feel
free to use your logo or a picture of yourself.
As you will see, there is also a spot to input your name, location and/or
your Web site or blog (if you have one). Any information you choose to add here
will show up on your Profile Page. I personally like when people include their name
and location. For instance, I find it fascinating that I have conversations
with gifted education advocates in Vancouver. Hi @bfwriter!
How do you find people to follow?
Who to Follow
I’ve made
some initial recommendations in previous posts and on Twitter, but we have some
exciting new additions! High Intelligence Specialist and Author Dr. Deborah
Ruf, @deborahruf, is now on board.
I’m
particularly grateful to @deepwaterscoach (Lisa Lauffer), @Doublelattemama (P.J. Kaiser) and @JeanneBernish (Jeanne Bernish) for helping me get started on
Twitter. These gifted advocates may not realize it, but they’ve paved the way
for many of us; I’m grateful to keep learning from them.
There are
many other fine gifted tweeps, including @GiftedTeechur (Candace Townsley) and
@atxteacher (Lynette
Breedlove). It’s also gratifying to welcome new tweeps, like
@ByrdseedGifted (Ian A. Byrd) and @SJHartford (Susan Peck Hartford).
Remember, you
get to decide who YOU want to follow. That’s the beauty of Twitter! In order to
follow someone, simply click on the “Follow” button on that person’s Profile
Page (under his or her picture). That person will receive a notification via
email that you are now following them. Some will send you a DM (Direct Message)
thanking you for the follow.
Some people
argue that proper Twitter etiquette requires you to automatically follow anyone
who follows you; however, it’s important to choose wisely – particularly right
now (because of spammers). This brings us to our next topic…
Who to block
Unfortunately,
anyone who has been on Twitter this past month has likely encountered spammers.
These are individuals who begin following you, who are in the porn, get-rich-quick,
and/or get-more-followers-fast regimes. Some are easy to spot (when you click
on their Profile Page, you’ll see language that tips you off); other spammers are
harder to discern. I recently clicked on a Web link for a woman who had pretty
run-of-the-mill tweeps and claimed to be a soccer mom. I thought she might be a
parent of a gifted student, but quickly found out that she had much different
interests, if you know what I mean.
In a
moment, I’ll explain how to block someone, but here are a couple of clues:
If a person is following loads of people (1,340), but only a small fraction are
following them (82), be wary. Now, if you’re @AnnCurry, a celebrity or a big
organization, you’re forgiven (b/c it’s normal). However, if you come across a
person who seems suspicious (no name, no bio, odd picture or some combo of
this), this test might help you weed out interlopers.
Not
all spammers will have unbalanced numbers though. There are thousands upon
thousands of Social Networking Gurus promising to get you thousands of
followers by tomorrow morning. Remember, you don’t need 1,000 followers you
don’t know. Don’t be fooled. The goal is to create a community of people who
share your interests.
Lastly,
if someone has loads of followers, but has never posted an update, I recommend
blocking them. If someone is new to Twitter, it’s fine (that’s a different
story). No worries! But it’s just not normal to have two updates and 598
followers, or better yet, 3,458 followers!
To block
someone, click on your “followers” button underneath your own name and bio. A
list of your followers will pop up. You’ll be able to see each person’s most
recent updates and whether or not you are following them. You’ll also find a
box on the right-hand side of the column. If you click on that box, you’ll see
an option to block that person (it’s the last option). A small window will pop
up informing you that this person will no longer be able to follow you and see
your updates. Click “okay.”
There is yet
another way to block a person. If you are on a person’s Profile Page, you can
click on the “block” link under “Actions.” Another window will come up asking
you whether you’re sure. You must click on “Yes, I still want to block this
person” for it to work.
I worry
sometimes that I might have blocked a legitimate gifted education advocate. I
certainly hope not. If any of you reading this blog have been blocked by me,
send me an email and please accept my sincerest apologies. Regarding spammers, Twitter seems to be
working hard to rectify the issues (http://bit.ly/28Axel).
Enough of
the negative, let’s move on to something more upbeat. Remember, we’re here for
a purpose!
How to Save Subject Searches
As
mentioned in my previous posts, the key to satisfaction on Twitter is being
able to stumble upon interesting posts, links and/or comments on subjects of
interest to you (like gifted education).
In a
previous post, I recommended that people try to include #hastags in their
updates when appropriate. For instance, I try to utilize the #gifted hashtag
whenever I post news, RTs (“Retweets”) and/or updates relating to gifted
issues.
During the recent
Javits funding push, @giftedfunding created a new hashtag - #fundgifteded,
which made it easy for people to see updates on this particular issue.
FYI,
hashtags belong to everybody. They allow people to do # searches to view the
most recent tweets on a particular subject. If you want to regularly check
what’s new in the gifted world, put in #gifted in the Search box or create one
of your own and share it!
You’re
automatically allowed to “Save” up to 10 subject searches.
If you want
to regularly check what’s going on with #gifted, click on the “Save this
search” link (located under your update box). Feel free to save any other subjects
of interest to you (i.e. edreform, parenting, swimming). You design your own
experience.
After you
save a search, your subject will be listed for easy access under your search
box. You’re limited to ten, but can always choose to delete a search and
replace it with something new.
Moreover, if
you have favorite people you like to follow, you can also save a search on
them. If I save @HoagiesGifted for instance, I can then pull up all references
to that person simply by clicking on my saved search link.
Please
don’t forget to regularly search for your @username. People may have directed a
response to you (and you might have missed it).
How to Shorten URLs
We’re
almost there! Have you ever wondered how people create those tiny URLs to Web
page links? There are several providers, but I happen to be a www.bit.ly fan. There is no cost to utilize the
site and it provides an excellent tracking option (which lets you see how many
people clicked on your links). You will need to create an account first at www.bit.ly. Click on “Setup a Twitter Account” and
enter your Twitter @username and password.
Then, whenever
you come across an interesting link (news article, blog, Web resource), you can
do the following:
Highlight the URL in your
browser and copy it (hold down “Ctrl” and the letter C)
Paste your long link into www.bit.ly and click “Shorten”
Then, type your post with the
embedded link (it will tell you if you go over 140 characters)
Click on the “Post” button
under the box
Your update
(with link) will automatically post to your Twitter profile and show up in the
timeline of your followers. Why do this (instead of use the longer link)? It’s
all about shortening your character count. By shortening your URL, you’ll have
more space to comment on your link, add a #hashtag, etc.
I’m hoping
this post has proved helpful to you! My intent is to make it easy for people to
enjoy advocacy and learning via Twitter. I appreciate your time and good
wishes. I'm also working on a blog redesign, so you won't have these narrow columns to navigate!
If you want
to learn more about Ingeniosus and my background, feel free to visit my profile on LinkedIn(click on “View Full Profile” at the very bottom) and/or
send me an email at innovate@deborahmersino.com. I hope to connect with you soon.
It’s happening! The National Association for Gifted Children (@NAGCGIFTED) and Hoagies (HoagiesGifted) are now on Twitter. I couldn’t be more pleased. Social networking can propel advocacy and learning. Now, we just need to keep spreading the word. Scroll down to learn more about how we can all "Tweet for Gifted Education!"
Most of you are likely familiar with the National Association for Gifted Children and Hoagies, but be sure to visit them online regularly. The National Association for Gifted Children can be found at www.nagc.org. Hoagies can be found at www.hoagiesgifted.org. Both are phenomenal resources for supporting the needs of our high-potential learners. And now you can start following them on Twitter!
As promised, today’s Ingeniosus post will focus on Twitter basics, including:
Updating in 140 characters or less
Replying to tweets
Learning about the all-powerful RT (“Retweet”)
Sending DMs (Direct Messages)
Knowing when to include a hashtag (#)
Doing subject searches and saving subject searches
I’ll let you know in advance this is quite a lengthy post, but I hope you’ll stay with me. We need you! Also, if you have been tweeting for months and/or a year (and already understand/practice Twitter etiquette) or perhaps have additional suggestions or opinions, feel free to share your wisdom, fill in the gaps and add your comments.
If the only thing you have done at this point is create an account, pat yourself on the back! I’ll do my best to keep this post simple, yet informative for you. Be patient with yourself too. If you have specific questions, feel free to email me at innovate@deborahmersino.com.
Ingeniosus hopes that you will continue to explore Twitter and contribute, so we can “Tweet for Gifted Education” and:
Share gifted education resources and news in real time
Promote advocacy and action on behalf of high-potential learners
Learn from one another
Whether you are a student, parent, teacher, gifted and talented (GT) coordinator for a public school district, gifted association representative, university professor, private gifted school administrator, marketing director, psychologist, author, superintendent and/or a politician passionate about gifted issues, we can all benefit from your participation.
Now, let’s talk Twitter!
What are you doing?
140
Updating in 140 Characters or Less: What should you tweet?
If you’re wondering what to put in the ominous box, here are some suggestions for you to consider. I have lumped updating into five primary categories:
Personal updates
Professional updates
Resource updates
News updates
Reply updates
Throughout the rest of this post, I have highlighted "tweets" so that you can find them easily. Typically, tweets aren't highlighted in grey; I simply wanted to offer some quick-to-locate examples.
The personal update can be anything:
”Feeling grateful that my husband cooks dinner every night; how did I get so lucky?”
“Wondering if anyone else has children addicted to Toontown?”
“After visiting Breckenridge, I’m feeling even more proud to be a Coloradoan.”
The tweets above are ones I could post. And while I have not tended to post lots of personal updates, I will probably start doing it a bit more, but not too much. It’s completely up to you.
Regarding the character count, Twitter will alert you if your update is too long. I highly recommend you avoid lots of abbreviations; it’s just kinder and more thoughtful to be succinct with your words.
The professional update can be anything related to your work:
Tell us what you’re working on, ask a question and/or share what conferences you’re planning to attend. Write an update about what you’re learning, what’s new in your world and/or who has influenced you recently. Is your state or school district losing gifted education funding? Did a student say something inspiring that you want to share? Are you studying Web 2.0 and/or excited about it? Are you launching a new STEM program, writing a book, searching for instructors for a new gifted camp or perhaps launching a new Web site for gifted girls or boys or orchestrating a seminar for parents of twice-exceptional students?
Your professional updates will give your followers a glimpse into your world. Everyone can learn from each other’s experiences, even if your happenings seem minor to you.
One word of caution, though. Please refrain from posting overtly critical or negative updates. While our gifted community is undoubtedly a passionate one, it’s simply in good taste to focus on solutions. You’ll enjoy Twitter and learn a lot more if you avoid making critical assumptions, harsh generalizations and/or attacks on another person. If you disagree with someone, it is certainly fine to acknowledge it, but please be respectful. Treat others as you would like to be treated, and remember, we all make mistakes.
Resource updates
Resource updates are powerful. They allow all of us to discover new information, which can help us grow and/or aid others’ growth (i.e. students, associations, businesses, conferences, gifted programs). Some of the best tweeters scour the Web daily, weekly or monthly to find the most outstanding and relevant links and then share them with their fellow tweeps. Others share new resources.
Joel McIntosh (@joelmcintosh), the publisher of Prufrock Press and a well-versed tweeter, recently posted this:
If you click on the live http link, you’ll find a well-researched article about the “Top 10 Myths of Gifted Students.” This is exactly the type of critical information that needs to be disseminated far and wide.
Recently, I “retweeted” (more on this term later) this resource update from Ginger Lewman (@GingerTPLC), director of Turning Point Learning Center:
RT @GingerTPLCIf you're in AR, AZ, CO, DE, GA, IL, LA, NV, NM, NY, NC, or WA, check out this Science/STEM/Service grant: http://bit.ly/loFjT
Knowing about upcoming grant opportunities and deadlines is yet another noble reason to “Tweet for Gifted Education.”
If you are a gifted association, a resource update might include links to your newsletter, an online Web page and/or a conference overview. You could even tweet your “Call for Proposals.”
I'll get more into posting links and shortening URLs in my next post, but in the meantime, feel free to explore http://bit.ly/.
If you are a GT summer camp coordinator, you could tweet your summer schedule and sign-ups in advance. Authors can share blogs. Educators can tweet about their courses, recent findings, favorite white papers and/or Web sites.
Here is a recent resource update from Duke University’s Talent Identification Program (@duketip) that I “retweeted” (“RT”):
RT @duketip#Gifted parents and educators, we recommend reading: "Knowns and Unknowns about the New SAT", from Duke Gifted Letter. http://bit.ly/le3IZ
This is also where advocacy comes into play. Last week, I was honored to retweet this resource update from @NAGCGIFTED:
Think of the difference we can make working together!
News updates
News updates are my personal passion. I tweet gifted education news from around the globe nearly every day. If you follow me (@DeborahMersino), you’ll see the stream. I try to use the publication’s headline when possible, but sometimes copy editors don’t do the subject justice, and I rearrange the words a bit. Here’s a recent news update:
Washington Post | Shortchanging High Achievers | Summer programs for #gifted students are on the chopping block | http://bit.ly/oi2KZ
If you come across news that interests you, please share it! I’ll do my best to retweet your news update.
News updates are not limited to media. Does your business, association, organization, therapy practice, district GT program and/or summer program have news to share? Post a news update. You’ll have the best luck if you’re relevant and straightforward; a hard sell can work against you.
Reply Updates
Reply updates rule Twitter. They serve as the backbone of this social community. The stirring interaction, learning and sharing that takes place primarily happens through reply updates. So how do you reply to someone?
If you are following someone and want to reply to an update they’ve posted, you have options. Let’s say Lisa Lauffer (@deepwaterscoach), a life coach who specializes in working with parents of gifted children, posts something I find inspiring. I can:
·Write an update that starts off with her name, so that she knows I’m directing my update to her, like this, “@deepwaterscoach– Isn’t that great? Thank you for sharing.”
·I could send her a DM (“Direct Message”), which only she would see. You can do this if – and only if – the other person is following you. Just click on “Direct Messages” in the column on your right and you’ll see this:
140
It will show you the people to whom you can send a direct message. Type away (in 140 characters or less) and then click on send. That person will receive your message via their email.
Lastly, if I really like what Lisa Lauffer wrote, I might also “Retweet” (RT) her update. To do this, I would simply type in my update box:
Just be sure to RT exactly what the person originally tweeted, so that you represent them properly/fairly.
We’re nearly done, so hang in there!
What are Hashtags? When and Why to Use Them?
I want to explain what a hashtag (#) is and how it is used. If we’re going to “Tweet for Gifted Education,” then we need to know how to search for gifted information and updates. When I post anything relating to gifted learners, I add #gifted at the end of my update. If the word “gifted” is already in my update, I can simply add a hashtag (#) before the word gifted, like this:
Irvine- UC Irvine Extension Offers #Gifted & Talented Education Seminars at No Cost | Available Globally Online | http://bit.ly/lykGO
Now, if you want to search for #gifted posts, simply type in “gifted” in the subject search box:
You’ll then see a stream of the most recent updates relating to that subject.
Feel free to create your own hashtags. I envision a day when we will have #COgifted for educators, parents and gifted organizations wanting to follow gifted updates specific to Colorado, #NZgifted for those interested in New Zealand’s gifted issues, #giftedcamps for camp options for high-potential learners, etc. We will have to see what we create together!
Once you search for a subject, you’ll have the option to “Save this search.” I recommend this. For now, feel free to simply use #gifted for any general updates of interest to the gifted community.
As your followers grow, it’s also a good idea to search for yourself (I search for @DeborahMersino) to see if anyone has directed a reply to you (that you may have missed). I also search for #education, #edreform, etc. And if you like jazz, search for #jazz. Enjoy the exploration! The possibilities are endless.
Speaking of endless, I’ve got to end this post now! I’ll plan to cover the subjects of “Shortening URLs” and “Who to Follow”, as well as much, much more in my next Ingeniosus post.
Please know that I have been inspired by your courage, particularly those of you who are treading into new territory and into the future – the world of social media. You are to be commended! If you happen to know others who might benefit from this post, please pass it along. In the meantime, have fun on www.twitter.com.
If you’re a proponent of gifted and talented (GT) education, a parent interested in gifted issues, a teacher who believes in visionary methods, a charter school enthusiast, education reformist, private gifted school administrator, GT association board member and/or a university professor offering a summer program for gifted students, please accept my warm welcome! You are about to enter a post on the twitosphere.
For those of you who tweet (post Twitter updates) regularly, I applaud you. Feel free to read along and add your own savvy recommendations and comments. Today, I will offer some basic tips – an “Intro to Tweeting” of sorts – for those who are mystified, intimidated and/or perhaps uncertain about how Twitter might fit into their already busy lives.
Before getting into specifics, though, I would like to offer three reasons to “Tweet for Gifted Education”:
Connections
Learning
Advocacy
The opportunity for impact is significant. Twitter’s traffic continues to grow at an incredible rate. Recent numbers show this microblogging service now attracts nearly 14 million visitors in the U.S. alone (Nielsen Online, March ’08) (taken from Mashable blog). That number is growing daily.
The beauty of Twitter is its customization features. You can choose to follow celebrities, foodies, politicians, sports fans, news organizations and/or friends. And (drum roll please), you also can choose to follow individuals and organizations passionate about gifted education.
Being able to tailor your interface and experience makes Twitter both efficient and worthwhile. If you’re willing to get up to speed, you’ll not only make powerful connections, you’ll have the chance to share information, soak up learning and participate in real-time advocacy.
I’d like to see Ingeniosus help ignite a movement among GT advocates and connect tens of thousands of people who understand and appreciate the vital need for gifted education.
So, how does someone get started on Twitter? The sign-up process is somewhat self-explanatory, but here is a quick primer with some tips:
Go to www.twitter.com and click on the green “Get Started – Join” button.
2. Fill in the simple blanks (Full name, Username, Password and Email address).
Tip:When creating a Username, you can choose your name (I’m @DeborahMersino) or use a moniker. Duke University’s Talent Identification Program is @DukeTIP. If you have a long name, you might want to consider going with just your first initial and last name or something shorter. Every character counts and the shorter your name, the more apt others will be to retweet your posts (more on this later). Feel free to get creative, but remember, you won’t be able to change your Username later. Choose wisely.
3. After you click on “Create a new account”, you’ll be taken to a page that allows you to find friends. Feel free to click on “Skip this step.”
4. You’ll come to a page that says, “Look who else is here. Start following them.” Twitter automatically selects popular Twitter users for your perusal. Feel free to uncheck the “Select All” button, click on “Skip this Step” or look through the list. You might have fun following a few. I do chuckle at tweets from @jimgaffigan. Be careful though. You don’t want your entire page filled with celebrity tweets each day. You want to be selective in who you follow.
5. You’ll then be taken to a plain-looking page asking “What are you doing?” And so it begins!
Tip: Remember, you are limited to 140 characters (and always will be); however, please don’t abbreviate words. Simply be selective. Start with “Joining Twitter” or something simple. While it’s okay to share personal tidbits on occasion, real catalysts share information. I happen to track and post all accessible (non-subscription) mass media news on gifted and talented education from across the world. Some of its well-written/researched; other reporters need more education on gifted education! However, I hope to share what’s being published, so that we can all act and react. Some teachers share posts relating to Web 2.0; others track and post information on upcoming education conferences and events. Be a voyeur for a while. You’ll discover what interests you and how and why tweets work. My next blog entry will address “updates” in more detail (how to shorten URLs, be relevant, ask questions, retweet, search subjects, participate in events, send direct messages, respond to a tweet, follow Twitter etiquette, etc.). I learned all of this through trial and error; hopefully, you can have a shorter runway and tweet well from the get-go.
6. If you click on “Settings”, you’ll see a page where you can customize your “Profile” page. Your “Profile” page is what people will see if they click on your name. It will contain your tweets only. You can upload a picture of yourself, change the background and/or decide whether you want to protect your updates or not. It’s up to you, but as long as you’re not tweeting about something inappropriate and/or confidential, it’s fine to make your tweets public.
7. If you click on “Find People”, you’ll have a chance to enter in names. When you find someone and click on “Follow”, you’ll start seeing that person’s updates (unless they have made their updates private).
Tip:I’ll save you some time and share some of my favorite gifted education tweeps: @deepwaterscoach, @JeanneBernish, @davincimom, @MomSource, @uberbabyboomer, @doublelattemama, @klgifted, @KimMoldofsky, @laughingatchaos,@marlenearmstron, @wendybalman, @joelmcintosh, @sassyred, @DanFearnley, @2FlippingKids, @descobar91, @kmholland, @MyGiftedLife, @teachagiftedkid, @mayafrost, @robgold626, @bfwriter, @GingerTPLC and @DukeTIP.
This is just a beginning. There are many more! You may want to follow educators not specific to the gifted and talented field. @russeltarr is an amazing educator from the U.K.; I find his updates intriguing. I also follow marketing communications pros because that’s my other passion area. Find what you like and enjoy.
Together, we can grow our networks and share news and information. Ideally, we can incite action benefiting gifted and talented students. If you’re a gifted organization and want to learn more about sharing news via social media, feel free to contact me directly at innovate@deborahmersino.com. If you’re in a parent support group, invite your friends to come aboard. The more people we have learning and advocating, the better.
I welcome your feedback on the Ingeniosus blog and look forward to sharing more. Stay tuned for Gifted Education and Twitter: How Social Networking Can Propel Advocacy and Learning – Part II.
Most parents of gifted and talented (GT) students care deeply about the education of their sons and daughters. They also want to be a part of the conversation. Parents want to feel informed about their student’s progress, Advanced Learning Plans, socio-emotional development and challenges.
If you’re a parent of a GT student, you may feel elated and/or frustrated when dealing with your child’s classroom teacher or GT coordinator. And though you’re apt to be proud of your son’s or daughter’s giftedness, you may also feel nervous about his or her future. Whether you have a profoundly gifted student, a visual-spatial learner, a creative wonder or a twice-exceptional student, you may be fed up with GT communication logjams or utterly impressed. Regardless, you want the very best for your child. This post is for you!
Take a moment and pat yourself on the back for being a proactive parent. If you’ve found the Ingeniosus blog, you’re someone who seeks out, absorbs and likely applies relevant information on gifted issues. Being an informed advocate is simply one of the greatest gifts you can offer your son or daughter. How you communicate your passion, though, can – and will – impact your child’s overall experience.
And while there’s obviously no one-size-fits-all communication strategy for parents (who experience vast differences in GT programming across the country), I’ve assembled a few timely and exemplary tips for consideration. Thank you to the many gifted and talented teachers who volunteered their thoughts on this subject!
Bret Loucks, a teacher at Scottsdale Unified School District in Phoenix, shares this sage advice:
Most of what we learn, we learn by making some mistakes. This is how we develop tenacity and resiliency. GT kids are not made of glass. Don’t be afraid to let them fall and fail a bit.
Let kids manage some of their “free” time. Filling up their evenings and weekends with obligations prevents them from being introspective.
Your child may have some extreme sensitivities. These “quirks” can be managed if we listen to their needs, and help them learn strategies to compensate.
They may be smart, but they are still kids. They need to know they are loved and safe. For this, they need their parents to set limits, rules and principles to live by.
Parenting GT children is more challenging. Look to others for support and information. Help is available through associations, teachers, books and other parents.
Carol Fertig, author of Raising a Gifted Child: A Parenting Success Handbook (Prufrock Press: http://www.prufrock.com), offers these recommendations:
Assume that you will create a very good educational environment for your child. Know that there are many options. Consider your child’s school your ally, not your enemy. If you are not able to work with teachers at your child’s school, you have the choice to find alternatives.
Teachers are most receptive if parents approach them with consideration and respect. If you come in with anger, emotional curtains may immediately fall, as the teacher feels attacked.
Be willing to really listen to teacher’s observations about your child and about the class in general. You may gain insight into a different side of the situation.
Ask, “In what ways might we…” This will demonstrate a willingness to work together, rather than expecting the teacher to do it all.
As noted before, personalities play a bit part in building bridges or detonating bombs, which can both have long-term impact. Give your teachers the benefit of the doubt and listen longer and more actively than expected. If you find yourself getting defensive, bite your tongue and take a deep breath. Don’t assume your view is the only correct view. And certainly don’t rush to the principal without trying to share your concerns with your child’s teacher first.
Diane Moline, a gifted and talented teacher in Bellevue, Washington, shares the following with regard to parent/teacher communication challenges:
I want parents to e-mail me with a question or concern. I can usually tell from the tone how to handle it: phone them, email them, or write them a note. I figure as often as not they blind copy my principal if they really want to complain or express frustration…If I hear third-hand from another parent or the principal that a parent is unhappy about something, it just makes me mad, especially if s/he remains "anonymous." Parents of gifted children are, as we all know, much more involved with their child's education, than others - mostly a good thing, sometimes not. I've taught gifted kids many years, get few complaints, and pride myself on being able to handle the occasional complaint. But I am left "defenseless" against those who would criticize and not put me in the conversation.
I agree with Diane. As I’ve said before, parents often forget that teachers can’t read their minds! They’re also human beings who have feelings and distinct personalities. So, extend a hand and an olive branch. We need parents and gifted educators working ardently together if we are to help launch our gifted and talented students toward meaningful futures.
Even if you arm yourself with books and information online, be sure to seek out input and advice from educators regularly. These individuals went to graduate school for a reason, and they’re eager to serve this population. They want nothing more than to make an impact. Remember, these men and women are often stretched for time and resources, but they do have insights and strengths worth tapping, admiring and applauding.
Lastly, be willing to give. Ask your child’s GT teacher about volunteer opportunities. Perhaps your biggest frustration is with your son’s or daughter’s regular classroom teacher. If that’s the case, your GT educator may be able to set up a meeting to talk cooperatively and find ways for you to better support that teacher and your student. Your instincts may be right, but be open to joining forces and serving.
The education of gifted and talented children is our collective responsibility. It’s not your GT coordinators’ job to ensure your child becomes valedictorian or gets into Harvard, MIT or Stanford. It’s their job to support your son’s or daughter’s strengths. Pressures and expectations on these students and teachers are great. Finding ways to support them both will serve you and your child in powerful ways.
If you would like to receive post updates for the Ingeniosus blog, feel free to send me an email at innovate@deborahmersino.com with “Subscribe” in the subject line. As always, I welcome your feedback and look forward to hearing your comments. If you tweet, I’m @DeborahMersino. I’m also on LinkedIn; feel free to connect with me directly or via the “Gifted Talented Network” group.
Welcome! My next post will center on GT educator/parent communications; however, I’d like to take a moment to explain why I made the decision last October to leave a lucrative job in Chicago to launch a new marketing communications agency in Colorado called Ingeniosus.
After spending nearly 20 years in journalism and communications and becoming a partner at a well-respected Chicago-based national marketing firm, I felt a tug in my heart. I knew I was either having a mid-life crisis and/or a prompting that would lead me to something powerfully rewarding. While I enjoyed rebranding publicly traded companies, working closely with CEOs, and bringing digital and print communication advancements to nonprofits, the time had come for me to leap. And leap I did.
I left behind my swanky Chicago River office, a cherished mentor (Connie Dickinson), an ingenious partner (Colleen Scrivner), and wickedly smart clients and colleagues at DickinsonGroup. I packed up my family and belongings and moved to my home state of Colorado, where I launched Ingeniosus, the first and only marketing communications firm in the country solely dedicated to gifted and talented education and support.
I took the leap because I firmly believe that advanced communications in this realm can create new and needed leverage, lasting partnerships and vital progress throughout the United States to ultimately increase support for our country’s highest potential learners.
Outside of my own family, it’s my strongest passion. I can’t imagine a more fulfilling way to direct my energies and invoke hope. The more access parents, educators and students have to vital information, the better.
Identifying, developing and improving Web sites, newsletters, events, social networking, and public relations opportunities for gifted communities motivates me greatly. Conducting research audits, offering educator/parent workshops and helping individuals, organizations and schools thrive with ongoing communications consulting all have the potential to further bolster support for GT students and those who serve them.
By infusing the GT sector with business sensibilities, including educator profiling, advanced targeting, technological offerings (Podcasts), and collaborative networks, we can make our country’s top programs even better without expending exorbitant sums of money.
I applaud the men and women who have already dedicated their professional lives to improving support for gifted and talented students across our nation. Despite the current economic realities, the GT community in the U.S. is working harder than ever.
We’re fortunate to have the many fine leaders at the National Association for Gifted Children (www.nagc.org), SENG (http://www.sengifted.org/) and state gifted associations. We can all tip our hats to www.hoagiesgifted.org, the Davidson Institute for Talent Development (http://www.davidsongifted.org/), Prufrock Press (www.prufrock.com) and the thousands of dedicated GT educators, coordinators, consultants, businesses, psychotherapists and counselors who share their own talents every day to serve this critical population.
I am honored to join you in the pursuit of serving this community with creativity, commitment and zeal. Feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/in/deborahmersino) or on Twitter (I’m @DeborahMersino). You’ll also find me on Facebook.
As always, I welcome your comments and feedback to the Ingeniosus blog. Check back next week for “Educators Sound Off: Why Communicating with Parents of Gifted and Talented Students Isn’t a Cakewalk.”
If you think your organization could benefit from marketing communications support and/or you know someone at a GT organization, school, university program, business or association who might be interested in Ingeniosus, feel free to pass along this URL and/or have them contact me (Deborah Mersino) directly at innovate@deborahmersino.com.
Thank you for stopping by today. Until next time, may you exceed your own expectations!
Welcome! I’ve been stunned and inspired by the amount of impassioned responses I’m receiving to the Ingeniosus blog and appreciate all of the thoughtful feedback and comments. Thank you to Carol Fertig, who writes the nation’s most popular blog on parenting gifted children, for her recent mention (scroll to the second post - Marketing Gifted Education). Be sure to subscribe to Carol’s blog on Prufrock Press’ Web site; it’s golden.
I also want to give a special nod to Northwestern University alumni, who have come out in droves and offered personal commentary on their experiences with gifted and talented (GT) professionals serving their sons and daughters. From Boston to L.A., it’s clear that communications in this realm is a touchy, delicate and crazy-making topic that deserves our attention.
Today, we will dive further into the subject of “Bringing Business Sensibilities to GT Communities.”In my last post, I extolled the benefits of profiling GT pros and educating them on their communication styles and triggers to help improve strained relations with parents of gifted and talented students.
In this post, we’ll cover steps 2-4 for overworked GT educators hoping to maintain some semblance of sanity into today’s fast-forward world. Here they are:
Conduct a communications audit
Identify touchstones
Create and implement communication strategies
Even if you’re not a gifted and talented instructor, you may find these steps helpful in advocating for improved communications within your school, district, GT summer program and/or organization.
Step 2 - Conduct a communications audit
Numerous public and private schools undertake formal and informal program reviews. These are essential and often times required. GT leaders can gauge what’s working and how a certain district or school is performing comparatively and evaluate everything from program design, administration and student identification to curriculum, instruction and socio-emotional guidance and counseling. Looking at professional development and overall program evaluation makes these reviews powerfully insightful and helpful.
However, often times, these reviews don’t include a communications component and/or a full-blown communications audit, which is perhaps one of the most efficient and effective ways to garner poignant truths on how to maximize strengths and shore up communication weaknesses within GT programs. See previous posts for more on this subject.
An objective third-party consultant can help you uncover simple, yet innate trends and address concerns with creativity. Look for someone who will offer recommendations with a balanced and pragmatic view of budgets, time constraints, scheduling issues and administrative challenges.
As mentioned before, you’ll be doing your internal staff, parents and students a huge favor by taking this one step. The results will provide you with the insights needed to make bold changes that will infuse your gifted and talented community with better understanding, collaboration and empathy.
Step 3 – Identify touchstones
GT leaders are cognizant of the critical touchstones taking place within their programming; however, their dedication and thinking behind these milestones isn’t always communicated with regularity to parents. From identification and placement to Advanced Learning Plans (ALPs) and reviews, GT instructors would benefit from placing greater emphasis on touchstones.
Let’s use the example of identification. Whether your school begins this process in pre-K, kindergarten, first- or second-grade, GT leaders are well-versed on how this identification takes place. They may work hand-in-hand with classroom teachers to collect a full body of evidence, administer testing and review CogAT, WISC-III, OLSAT, SIGS and/or other identification instruments, and discuss temperaments, typing and development. They work tirelessly year-in and year-out doing this. So what’s the problem?
Parents often have no clue what’s taking place. They may be unaware what their role needs to be, how and when they can learn more about the district’s identification policies and/or whether they can set up a meeting to discuss findings. They may wonder whether their input will be welcomed or seem off-putting. Moreover, some parents don’t even know the identification process is taking place and may not even realize their son or daughter is gifted.
Typically, a lack of resources – both time and money – exacerbates this issue. Nonetheless, this is a pristine example of how “Bringing Business Sensibilities to GT Communities” can have exponential benefits. How can a school properly relay what’s happening without creating a truckload of paperwork and spending countless hours debating with parents about whether their son or daughter meets the identification criteria?
While numerous communication scenarios exist, here’s a minimalist approach to consider. Think of your students – and their parents – as your clients. In the corporate world, leaders are required to:
·Keep their clients informed
·Set expectations
·Garner feedback
·Communicate regularly
·Deliver
·Create win-win situations/solutions
And while teachers do this valiantly for their students, parents frequently and inadvertently get left in the dark. In the gifted and talented world, we can’t afford to have this happen. There’s too much at stake! Here’s an older example that illustrates one such touchstone breakdown at its worst:
This may an extreme example, but even so, we need to evaluate how we approach communications. Rather than blame teachers, who are talented and already running at full speed, let us rethink how to serve these devoted men and women serving our sons and daughters with pragmatic and convenient solutions.
If you’re a coordinator and don’t have the bandwidth to tackle communication tactics, invite outside counsel. I’ll go into more detail about communicating touchstones to parents in the months ahead, but know that the sooner you invite parents into the conversation, the better off you and your students will be!
4. Create and implement communication strategies.
The opportunity for increased impact exists. We’ve covered step 4 in previous posts; so, if you haven’t yet seen these guidelines, take a look (simply scroll down). Embracing technology, thinking strategically and getting wildly creative will enable us to build supportive partnerships with parents -- and ultimately serve GT students better.
I’m cooking up some intriguing topics for the Ingeniosus blog for May and June, including how businesses supporting GT communities can reach their target audiences more effectively and “What GT Pros Wish Parents Knew!” If you’re enjoying these posts, please pass along this URL.
If you’re having trouble accessing the RSS feed for the Ingeniosus blog, feel free to send me an email at innovate@deborahmersino.com and include your name and email address. I’ll ensure that you are notified when new posts are available.
As always, I welcome feedback, comments and suggestions. As Moliere said, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.”
What happens when you combine impassioned teachers, gifted and talented students, and concerned parents? Do you imagine gleeful, self-motivated learners thriving and living up to their fullest potential? Do you envision parents and GT teachers listening intently to one another and thanking each other regularly? If only it were that easy!
While lack of funding and resources can be a huge stressor on even the most impressive GT programs, personalities also play a big role.
While gifted and talented communities have placed a rightful focus on identification processes and typing students and supporting them with vigor, many GT professionals wind up frustrated and overwhelmed by the amount of negative feedback from parents and the lack of cohesiveness within their internal GT staff.
GT leaders would be wise to take some cues from the corporate world (think Gates as opposed to Madoff), where compatibilities and teamwork fuse with innovation to create inspiring outcomes.
Internal and external communication logjams abound in the GT world, just as they do in the corporate world. Business sensibilities must be brought into the educational realm. It’s time to give serious support to the men and women nurturing our highest potential students and future leaders!
Recent Ingeniosus research reveals widening disconnects between creative and dedicated GT pros and parents. Here are some of the recent comments we have received that highlight the need for advanced communications between these two well-intentioned camps:
It depends on the professional, but I've found many of them (GT professionals) are dismissive of parents and their input. This is particularly true in the schools where the prevailing attitude is "I'm the professional. I know what your child needs better than you do." Considering that most parents of GT kids are GT themselves, they're not likely to respond to such a high-handed approach (not that anyone does).
We struggled looking for resources because “oh, he'll be fine” was always the response because he was bright. We didn’t find that GT professionals in the public schools were open to our expertise and to partnering with parents. The resources we discovered (including a great book called Upside Down Brilliance about visual spatial learners by Dr. Linda Silverman) were found on our own; my husband and I had to become our son's greatest advocate.
I am a parent of a gifted child (he's 9). I would say my son's school district is in the middle as far as their communications. Better than some I've dealt with, but probably not as good as it could be. My son's gifted teacher is very open to communications (if I call her, she will call me back as soon as she can to discuss any issues I have). However, without my initiative, there is not much contact with her. She called prior to my son being placed in the program to discuss what to expect, and we received one letter prior to one project starting. Other than that, I hear about classes and activities from my son. Since he is in third grade, he is currently only pulled out for math, so it is very narrow at this point. The program, so I'm told, expands more next year, so perhaps the communications will also increase. My son's principal is also good about answering questions I may have, but again, it must be initiated by me. A newsletter or email update now and again would be fantastic. Although my son does talk about the class, I'm never quite sure what is going on.
The teacher is overworked. Therefore, communication is nominal. Unless requested, we have had essentially one conference a year. Do we normally know what he's working on? No, unless we ask him. Paperwork to us is minimal. Emails would be nice.
We've had very little communication with the GT program -- mostly it was in the form of form letters from them and/or me ambushing the GT specialist in the hallway. If I made an appointment, I found the specialist had already rehearsed the party line by the time I arrived and was even less open to questions or suggestions.
How can GT leaders tap parents’ insights and keep them informed without working around the clock and losing their minds? Here are four ways GT professionals can bring business sensibilities to their GT communities and maintain their sanity:
Undertake GT staff profiling
Conduct a communications audit
Identify touchstones
Create and implement communication strategies
In the upcoming weeks, I will go into more detail about each of these four strategies. In this post, I’ll be focusing on the first step, which involves looking more intently at the personalities of the GT professionals themselves.
GT coordinators and teachers often get a hard rap; however, some of this stems from the inherent challenges bought on by personality clashes. Any time you bring together strong-minded, impassioned individuals, the opportunity for conflict exists. When you combine that with parents’ concerns over the asynchronous development challenges of their GT students and their high expectations, you might as well have a boiling cauldron.
Personality profiling, which is used regularly in the business community, is an easy, yet extremely effective way to lend support to GT leaders. There are no “right” or “wrong” personality types for GT pros; however, GT teachers who deal with parents need to learn more about their own communication styles, preferences and triggers. Such advanced communication techniques will equip these hard-working pros with pragmatic opportunities to improve their overall impact.
Districts and private schools will also benefit from understanding the personality make-up of their staffs, which will help reduce internal roadblocks and challenges. If you have GT teachers who rally against “seemingly impossible” parents, policies or requirements, you’ll be helping both them and yourself by undertaking this first step with outside professional help.
Profiling need not require loads of time or money, but outside counsel needs to have intimate knowledge of GT sensitivities and not simply apply a cookie-cutter (i.e. Myers-Briggs) approach. Just as critical as knowing the identifying characteristics of gifted and talented students, GT professionals will find inspiration and relief from the right type of customized support. After all, they deserve it and our society definitively needs it.
Thank you for joining me today. I hope you’ll stay tuned in the upcoming weeks for future posts on steps 2-4! Do you have a comment for me on this subject? Feel free to send me an email directly at innovate@deborahmersino.com. I welcome your input and look forward to communicating with parents and GT pros alike.
Are you a parent who identifies with these issues? I will be happy to contact your district anonymously (or not -- depending on your preference) regarding the opportunity to improve GT communications. Contact me via email.
Lastly, if you’re having trouble accessing the RSS feed for the Ingeniosus blog, feel free to send me an email at innovate@deborahmersino.com and include your name and email address. I’ll ensure that you are notified when new posts are available.
Thank you for joining this community. Together, we can make an impact!
Welcome! In our inaugural blog post, I addressed the mounting tensions between parents and gifted and talented (GT) professionals. I recommended empathetic listening as a first step toward healing the inherent friction. In this entry, I'll cover three more steps.
As mentioned, these first two Ingeniosus blog posts are primarily directed at GT professionals working in public or private schools; however, directors of summer programs and/or other GT practioners may discern benefits as well. Let's take a closer look at steps two through four.
2. Be open and available.
Parents leave districts and/or summer programs primarily because of ineffective communications or concerns that go unaddressed because of a lack of communication.
GT professionals, who may know how to create the ultimate dinosaur curriculum for gifted first graders, differentiated curriculum for a 5th grade math prodigy or a mentorship program for high school students, often don’t have the time, bandwidth, inclination, resources or training to know how to keep parents “in the know” and involved. They also can’t read parents’ minds; something they – and parents – often forget!
So how does an overworked and underappreciated GT teacher foster ongoing dialogue with the overworked and underappreciated parents of GT students? They do it by:
·Creating a communications plan
·Sharing that plan with parents
·Sticking to it
·Reviewing the communications plan often
It’s astounding how often a quarterly meeting and/or a simple report card is equated to advanced communications. Given that we’re talking about the future scientists, researchers, artists, business leaders, authors, politicians, teachers and change agents of this nation and world, it’s in our best interest to keep our gifted and talented students inspired and engaged. That will only happen if they receive collaborative support from both their teachers and parents.
Creating a communications plan need not be equated to writing a thesis. It may be as simple as creating a monthly printed newsletter or bi-monthly eblasts to parents, regularly updating a special section of your Web site and/or creating a series of focus groups and parent meetings. From the onset, though, parents need to know how communications will be handled, including how often they will hear from you and through what channels. They need to know how to reach you with concerns, how you prefer to be contacted and what type of turnarounds they can expect.
Given the asynchronous development and inherent challenges our GT students face, it’s vital to build in more time for discussing pivotal issues.
Those districts and/or private schools able to invest in a Communications Audit will quickly learn more about their programming than they ever thought possible. Parents want – and need – to be heard and GT leaders want – and need – to create better partnerships with parents and keep their target audiences inspired.
With today’s technological advances, a Communications Audit can be done on a reasonable budget. Even if you’re not in a position to hire a marketing communications consultant to audit your program, consider giving more attention to this area.
Create a newsletter or provide more regular updates to GT parents in your district or community. Ensure your database is updated regularly and don’t forget to ask for feedback. You’ll be surprised at how much you learn!
3. Be wildly creative.
When resources and time are in limited supply, communications become even more strained. Even though your district or private school is filled with GT teachers exuding passion, talent and commitment, parents primarily care about one thing – their own son or daughter. These mothers and fathers bring their own set of biases to the table, which includes innate knowledge of their son’s or daughter’s story.
If you’re experiencing tension with parents, consider getting wildly creative. A savvy consultant can guide you and/or help your school or district find new ways to build bridges, whether through traditional means like newsletters and focus groups or through Facebook, LinkedIn and/or other social media sites.
The options for advanced communications continue to grow. And while creating a group on one of the social media sites may be more appropriate for a private versus a public school, it pays to think strategically in terms of reaching parents though convenient channels. Host a series of international potluck forums, create a GT Think Tank for parents and/or develop a blog highlighting individual student achievements and/or have GT teachers send a brief personal update once a month.
Yes, these all take time; however, the benefits of advanced communications strategies are tenfold. Not only will parents feel a greater sense of community, they will quickly be educated on all of the many ways your district or program is benefitting their child. They’ll be less apt to complain and more likely to take your lead and become true partners. They may even raise money for you! They just need to know what’s going on and that their opinions matter.
If you’re not equipped to set up online newsletters, create new events and/or have time to find out why certain students didn’t return to your summer program, consider outside support.
Recently, while talking with a parent, I learned she wouldn’t be sending her daughter back to a GT summer camp in the West because she’s heard about too many security breaches, such as young students walking across campus unsupervised.More than likely, she’s not the only parent that has this concern.
An hour of phone calls and/or a survey to previous attendees can bring to light such issues and/or new considerations for improved programming.
4. Be consistent.
The weeks fly by, as do the months. It’s vital that someone at the top of your organization is monitoring communication roadblocks, improvements and ultimately successes on a regular schedule. It’s easy to let administrative duties take precedent, but communications consistency is as critical as curriculum differentiation. You need advocates; you’ll gain them through dialogue.
It’s worth the time and effort to stimulate open communications with parents and benchmark your program’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis). Consistency will ensure that everyone working diligently on behalf of your program or school has the best chance for ultimate success.
Remember, if you’re able to invest in improved communications, you’ll find parents becoming champions of your hard work and efforts. These mothers and fathers will volunteer, spread the word, rally around your cause and become partners in support. As communications are tailored to the idiosyncrasies of parents, you’ll witness exponential benefits!
I hope you're feeling inspired! Please send me an email at innovate@deborahmersino.com if you want to connect and/or have additional comments. I'd love to hear from you!
Let’s face it. Parents can be a great support or a nemesis. They’re either whiny, belligerent victims or impassioned advocates of the services you’re offering. On rare occasions, you’ll find parents who are not only open to learning, but also who are empathetic and pragmatic with their feedback.
These parents support their gifted and talented sons and/or daughters fiercely; however, they have a balanced assessment of their children’s strengths and weaknesses. They’re involved and willing to engage with you about their perspectives and show respect for your professionalism, knowledge and insight. These parents are partners in the best sense of the word. How can you grow this group of satisfied parents in your community without spending every waking minute and/or last dollar tending to their needs? The answer lies in strategic communications.
In this inaugural blog entry, I hope to offer you the first of four simple steps to fostering better relations with parents in your gifted and talented community. Although these tactics are most applicable for gifted and talented (GT) teachers and coordinators working in public or private school settings, those overseeing summer programming or private consulting practices may also discern benefits.
How can you partner with parents and be more effective with your communications?
Be empathetic.
Be open and available.
Be wildly creative.
Be consistent.
1. Be empathetic.
Remember, in most instances, you are dealing with gifted adults who are avid learners. These parents can’t get enough information about their gifted and talented child. They’ll voraciously eat up any nuggets you offer, but abhor silence and perceived indifference.
Recently, I participated in a Saturday seminar for parents of gifted and talented students. More than 100 parents came armed with energy and a fair share of coffee. They were ready to learn and share – and share they did. The majority of attending parents claimed they felt out of the loop and out of sync with their child’s primary GT teacher. Seven out of the eight parents at my table alone complained about their child’s Advanced Learning Plan or felt their GT coordinator didn’t really “know” their son or daughter.
Before launching into defensiveness, lack of funding, limited resources and a discussion of how parents overestimate their child’s gifts, GT professionals would be wise to start by listening with empathy. The parents may, in fact, be overzealous and unrealistic; however, most of them are smart cookies with good intentions. Both sides of the aisle need to listen more carefully to one another if we are to overcome the exorbitant chasm that currently exists between GT professionals and parents.
Ironically, I happen to know that the district in question this auspicious Saturday cared – and cares – deeply about its GT students. Its leaders continue to actively pursue improved programming, be responsive to the individual needs of learners, be accountable for their data and provide continued professional development for their instructors.
On this occasion, the district’s primary GT coordinator did a consummate job with active listening; it was inspiring to watch! Most of the disgruntled parents felt heard and walked away with a new appreciation for the district’s commitment to their sons and daughters. While it certainly didn’t solve all of the communication challenges, it served as a meaningful launching pad.
Empathic communications has the potential to be one of the strongest catalysts for positive change in GT communities across the nation. So, the next time that you feel inclined to interrupt a parent and/or defend your position, don’t. Instead, lead by listening, nodding and then listening some more.
I hope you have enjoyed my first “Gifted Perspective” post. Throughout the next week, I’ll be highlighting how GT organizations can be more open and available, be wildly creative and be more consistent with parental communications. I'll focus on examples, trends and tactics to help schools, universities, nonprofits and businesses serving gifted and talented communities throughout the United States bolster their impact.
If you know someone else in the GT community who could benefit from the Ingeniosus blog, please pass along the URL and/or have them contact me, Deborah Mersino, principal of Ingeniosus, at innovate@deborahmersino.com.
I’m also currently researching the economy’s impact on gifted and talented summer programming. If you would like like to participate in the short survey, send me an email. I'll look forward to relaying these results soon and sharing more posts!
#Gifted 
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