Articles are listed in descending order by year (most recent first), and then by first author's last name.
Bernstein, B. O., Lubinksi, D., & Benbow, C. P. (2021). Academic acceleration in gifted youth and fruitless concerns regarding psychological well-being: A 35-year longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 113(4), 830–845.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/edu0000500
Academic acceleration of intellectually precocious youth is believed to harm overall psychological well-being even though short-term studies do not support this belief. Here we examine the long-term effects. Study 1 involves three cohorts identified before age 13, then longitudinally tracked for over 35 years: Cohort 1 gifted (top 1% in ability, identified 1972–1974, N = 1,020), Cohort 2 highly gifted (top 0.5% in ability, identified 1976 –1979, N = 396), and Cohort 3 profoundly gifted (top 0.01% in ability, identified 1980 –1983, N = 220). Two forms of educational acceleration were examined: (a) age at high school graduation and (b) quantity of advanced learning opportunities pursued prior to high school graduation. Participants were evaluated at age 50 on several well-known indicators of psychological well-being. Amount of acceleration did not covary with psychological well-being. Study 2, a constructive replication of Study 1, used a different high-potential sample—elite science, technology, engineering, and mathematics graduate students (N = 478) identified in 1992. Their educational histories were assessed at age 25 and they were followed up at age 50 using the same psychological assessments. Again, the amount of educational acceleration did not covary with psychological well-being. Further, the psychological well-being of participants in both studies was above the average of national probability samples. Concerns about long-term social/emotional effects of acceleration for high-potential students appear to be unwarranted, as has been demonstrated for short-term effects.
Mammadov, S., Hertzog, N. B., & Munm R. U. (2018). An examination of self-determination within alumni of an early college entrance program. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 41(3), 273–291.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0162353118781745
This article describes outcomes from a subpopulation of a larger study (The Alumni Study) of early college entrance alumni through the lens of self-determination theory. The Alumni Study used mixed methods, was implemented in two sequential phases, and included alumni from two different early college entrance programs (Early Entrance Program and UW Academy). The focus of this article is on the qualitative interviews of 26 UW Academy early entrants who fully matriculated into college as Honors Students after 10th grade. Results indicated that early college entrance (a) provided a more challenging and autonomous environment than high school, (b) provided higher personal control over academic and social choices, and (c) met students’ strong need for relatedness as well as for autonomy and competence. The early entrance to college program gave students a cohort where they could interact with same-age peers who had demonstrated similar academic competence and interests to achieve. However, some participants reported that being younger than their college peers may have inhibited the development of relationships with older college students.
McClarty, K. L. (2015). Life in the fast lane: Effects of early grade acceleration on high school and college outcomes. Gifted Child Quarterly, 59(1), 3–13.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0016986214559595
Research has repeatedly demonstrated the positive effects of acceleration for gifted and talented students. This study expands the literature by not only evaluating the impact of early grade skipping on high school and college outcomes but also examining the role of postacceleration opportunities on subsequent performance. Using a representative national sample, accelerated students were compared with older grade-level peers who had similar academic and demographic backgrounds. Results suggest that, on average, accelerated students consistently and significantly outperformed their nonaccelerated peers, both in high school and in college. Furthermore, postacceleration educational opportunities provided additional benefit; students who skipped a grade and also participated in challenging academic programs (e.g., Advanced Placement, high-ability instructional groups) demonstrated particularly high achievement. Results suggest that gifted learners profit most when acceleration is coupled with additional opportunities for advanced study.
Perrone, K. M., Wright, S. L., Ksiazak, T. M., Crane, A. L., & Vannatter, A. (2010). Looking back on lessons learned: Gifted adults reflect on their experiences in advanced classes. Roeper Review, 32(2), 127-139.
The purpose of this study was to learn about gifted adults' experiences in advanced classes and attitudes about advanced classes or gifted programs for their children. Participants were 88 adults (33 men and 55 women) who have been participating in a longitudinal study of academically talented individuals since their high school graduation in 1988. Participants responded to open-ended questions via mailed surveys. Eighty-five percent of participants described their academic experiences in advanced classes as positive, whereas slightly fewer participants (59%) described their interpersonal experiences in advanced classes as positive. 75% or participants with children described signs of giftedness in their children, and 88% of participants indicated that they would support advanced placements for their children if it were recommended by the school. Implications of the findings were discussed and directions for future research were provided.
Wells, R., Lohman, D., & Marron, M. (2009). What factors are associated with grade acceleration?: An analysis and comparison of two U.S. databases. Journal of Advanced Academics, 20(2), 248-273.
Which children are grade accelerated in K–7 education? Have factors associated with grade acceleration changed over time? We examined personal, family, and school factors associated with three forms of grade acceleration (early entrance to kindergarten, early entrance to first grade, and grade skipping) using the NELS and ELS datasets. Other things being equal, females, Asian Americans, and students living on the U.S. east or west coast were more likely to be grade accelerated. When accelerated students were compared to older classmates of similar achievement who were not accelerated, accelerated students showed greater gains in achievement than nonaccelerated classmates during high school. You can read the full article here.
Hany, E., & Grosch, C. (2007). Long-term effects of enrichment summer courses on the academic performance of gifted adolescents. Educational Research and Evaluation, 13(6), 521-537.
This study explored the long-term effects of a summer enrichment course on 794 students’ (401 female, 393 male; 546 participants, 248 nonparticipants) educational achievement, research productivity, and life achievement. The summer course was offered through the German School Student Academy, a 16-day course for which students must be nominated. The non-participant group was comprised of those who had been recommended for the summer program, but had been rejected due to overbooking and other reasons.To explore the differences between participants and non-participants, researchers administered a survey online, including questions on grade point average, whether they had started an advanced study program at university, whether they had published their research, and how satisfied they were with their occupational status.The results did not support the hypothesis that there would be long-term differences between students who had attended the summer enrichment program and those who had not. Specifically, the researchers found that there was not a significant long-term effect of enrichment on students’ education, research productivity, and life achievement. This finding contradicts anecdotal information on the impact of enrichment programs, as well as data from other areas showing that short-term interventions can have long-term effects on development.The authors suggest that their contradictory findings may be a result of methodological constraints, including a biased response rate, the extremely large number of out-of-enrichment opportunities that impacted participants’ development, and the possibility that some of these intellectually gifted individuals may have already been provided with enriched environments that could not have been further improved.
Gross, M. U. M. (2006). Exceptionally gifted children: Long-term outcomes of academic acceleration and nonacceleration. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 29(4), 404–429.
A 20-year longitudinal study has traced the academic, social, and emotional development of 60 young Australians with iQs of 160 and above. Significant differences have been noted in the young people’s educational status and direction, life satisfaction, social relationships, and self-esteem as a function of the degree of academic acceleration their schools permitted them in childhood and adolescence. the considerable majority of young people who have been radically accelerated, or who accelerated by 2 years, report high degrees of life satisfaction, have taken research degrees at leading universities, have professional careers, and report facilitative social and love relationships. Young people of equal abilities who accelerated by only 1 year or who have not been permitted acceleration have tended to enter less academically rigorous college courses, report lower levels of life satisfaction, and in many cases, experience significant difficulties with socialization. Several did not graduate from college or high school. Without exception, these young people possess multiple talents; however, for some, the extent and direction of talent development has been dictated by their schools’ academic priorities or their teachers’ willingness or unwillingness to assist in the development of particular talent areas.
Adelman, C. (2006). The toolbox revisited: Paths to degree completion from high school through college. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Education, Office of Vocational and Adult Education.
This report, published by the U.S. Department of Education, is a follow up to the original Toolbox report, published in 1988. Adelman uses results from a national longitudinal study of a grade-cohort of students conducted by the National Center for Education Statistics. This study followed a national sample of 8th graders who were scheduled to graduate from high school in 1992. The subjects of the study were followed through 2000.
The report details factors that predict whether high school graduates will attend and graduate from a college, university, or community college. Among the report’s findings are that completion of Algebra 2 increases the likelihood of earning a bachelor’s degree, particularly among minority students. The types of classes students took in high school better predicted whether students completed a four-year degree than did GPA or class rank.
Two tables included in this report describe the methodology used in the experiment (Table 1) and the demographic variables of the subjects in the study (Table 2).
Gross, M. U. M. (2006). Exceptionally gifted children: Long-term outcomes of academic acceleration and nonacceleration. Journal for the Education of the Gifted. 29(4), 404-429.
In this article, Miraca Gross discusses the long-term outcomes of grade acceleration versus nonacceleration. The current 20-year longitudinal study considers 60 young Australians with IQs of 160+, the majority of whom spent their entire school career in the general education classroom.
Hertberg-Davis, H. L., & Brighton, C. M. (2006). Support and sabotage: Principals' influence on middle school teachers' responses to differentiation. The Journal of Secondary Gifted Education, 17(2), 90-102.
This study sought to understand the relationship between principals’ attitudes toward differentiation and middle school teachers’ willingness and ability to differentiate. Differentiation allows teachers to systematically address the needs of all learners, including gifted students, in diverse classrooms. The principals and faculty at three schools were interviewed and observed over the course of three years (1997-2000) as a subset of a larger study. Since the primary interests of this study were teacher-principal interactions, the meanings each group assigned to the process of adapting differentiated strategies, and teacher and principal perceptions of their own roles in the change process, the study was based on theories of interpretive sociology and incorporated several different qualitative data collection methods. A principal’s attitude toward differentiation, level of support for the teachers, belief in and desire for change, and amount of focus on differentiation in particular played key roles in teachers’ willingness and ability to differentiate curriculum, instruction, and assessment in this study. The results suggest that successful implementation of differentiation is more likely when principals understand the importance of differentiation and provide the resources and emotional support faculty need to successfully integrate differentiation into their classrooms.In the course of reviewing the literature relevant to this study, the authors note that the typical public school classroom contains 27 children whose academic performance levels typically span more than five grade levels. Despite recommendations for differentiated instruction, the most common techniques in middle school classrooms are still traditional lecture, drill-and-practice, heterogeneous cooperative learning groups, and direct instruction. As a result, understanding the factors behind implementing differentiation in classrooms is more important than ever. The authors make suggestions for a successful transition to differentiation strategies, as well as ideas for further research, including the impact of No Child Left Behind on attempts to implement differentiation.Readers should note that although the authors took measures to increase the reliability of their data, only three schools were studied, each of which differed greatly from the others (teacher-principal relationships, socioeconomic status, geography, etc.), so more studies are needed to fully understand the effect of teacher-principal relationships on the effectiveness of implementation of differentiation in classrooms.
Brewer, E. W., & Landers, J. M. (2005). A longitudinal study of the Talent Search Program. Journal of Career Development, 31(3), 195-208.
This longitudinal study examined the impact of participation in the federally funded Talent Search program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. The Talent Search program provides career exploration and counseling services to low-income students with the potential to be first-generation college graduates. The results have implications for career development services provided to low-income, potential first-generation college graduates.
Brody, L. E. (2005). The study of exceptional talent. High Ability Studies, 16(1), 87-96.
The Study of Exceptional Talent (SET) identifies students who exhibit extremely advanced mathematical and/or verbal reasoning abilities and helps them find the challenging educational programs they need to achieve their full potential. Specifically, students who score 700-800 on the mathematical or verbal portion of SAT I before the age of 13 are invited to take advantage of SET's counseling and mentoring opportunities. An ongoing longitudinal study tracks the progress of these students, and their achievements to date have been exceptional. SET students, as a group, participate in a variety of accelerated programs, attend highly selective colleges and universities and earn advanced degrees in large numbers. Those who have embarked on their careers appear to be excelling in their chosen fields as well.
Wai, J., Lubinski, D., & Benbow, C. P. (2005). Creativity and occupational accomplishments among intellectually precocious youth: An age 13 to age 33 longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 97(3), 484-492.
This study tracks intellectually precocious youths (top 1%) over 20 years. Phase 1 (N 1,243 boys, 732 girls) examines the significance of age 13 ability differences within the top 1% for predicting doctorates, income, patents, and tenure at U.S. universities ranked within the top 50. Phase 2 (N 323 men, 188 women) evaluates the robustness of discriminant functions developed earlier, based on age-13 ability and preference assessments and calibrated with age-23 educational criteria but extended here to predict occupational group membership at age 33. Positive findings on above-level assessment with the Scholastic Aptitude Test and conventional preference inventories in educational settings generalize to occupational settings. Precocious manifestations of abilities foreshadow the emergence of exceptional achievement and creativity in the world of work; when paired with preferences, they also predict the qualitative nature of these accomplishments.
Bleske-Rechek, A., Lubinski, D., & Benbow, C. P. (2004). Meeting the educational needs of special populations: Advanced Placement's role in developing exceptional human capital. Psychological Science, 15(4), 217-224.
An evaluation of the Advanced Placement (AP) program from the point of view of intellectually precocious youth and their subsequent educational-vocational outcomes, analyzing normative and idiographic longitudinal data collected over the past three decades from 3,700 participants. Most took AP courses in high school, and those who did frequently nominated an AP course as their favorite. Students who took AP courses, compared to their intellectual peers who did not, appeared more satisfied with the intellectual caliber of their high school experience and, ultimately, achieved more. Overall, this special population placed a premium on intellectual challenge in high school, and found the lack of such challenge distressing. These findings can inform contemporary educational policy debates regarding the AP program; they also have general implications for designing and evaluating educational interventions for students.
Cross, T .L., Adams, C., Dixon, F., & Holland, J. (2004). Psychological characteristics of academically gifted adolescents attending a residential academy: A longitudinal study. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 28(2), 159-181.
Students attending a state-supported residential academy for academically gifted adolescents (N=139) completed the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory for Adolescents (MMPI-A) upon entrance to document their psychological characteristics. The same students completed a postadministration of the MMPI-A at the end of their second year at the school. Results indicated that the gifted students were quite similar to the normative group of adolescents on the MMPI-A. While several statistically significant changes were observed over time, the effect-size calculations accounted for only a modest percentage of the variance in all cases. Scores on the 2nd administration of the MMPI-A declined among the majority of students who manifested elevated scores on the initial administration.
Swiatek, M. A. (2002). A decade of longitudinal research on academic acceleration through the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth. Roeper Review, 24(3), 141-144.
This paper describes longitudinal studies on three cohorts of students accelerated academically as part of the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth. Results do not support critics' contentions that acceleration produces academic gaps and early "burn out" but instead show positive psychosocial outcomes and high levels of participant satisfaction.
Horn, L., & Kojaku, L. K. (2001). High school academic curriculum and the persistence path through college.Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED456694)
The report considers the relationship between courses students take in high school and their persistence path through college. Data was collected from the 1995-1996 Beginning Postsecondary Students Survey, and considered students’ paths three years after enrolling in the postsecondary institution. Based on student self-report and admissions information, students’ course work in high school was divided into three levels: core curriculum or below, mid-level, and rigorous. This report used the level of high school course work as an indicator of persistence in college.The level of students’ high school coursework was strongly related to their persistence in postsecondary education. Students who participated in mid-level or core curriculum high school coursework transferred at the same rate from their first post-secondary institution (about 23%). However, students enrolling in core coursework left the institution without returning at a rate of 15.4%. Students’ mid-level and rigorous level counterparts left at rates of 9.1% and 3.1%, respectively. Similarly, at the end of three years 54.6%, 61.8%, and 78.1% of core, mid-level, and rigorous students had been continuously enrolled in their first post-secondary institution; and 0.7%, 0.2%, and 1.2% of students in the same categories had earned a bachelor’s degree.
Lubinski, D., Perrson, C. P., Shea, D. L., Eftenkhari-Sanjani, H., & Halvorson, M. B. J. (2001). Men and women at promise for scientific excellence: Similarity not dissimilarity. Psychological Science, 12(4), 309-317.
U.S. math-science graduate students possessing world-class talent (368 males, 346 females) were assessed on psychological attributes and personal experiences to examine how their talents emerged and developed. Comparisons were made with mathematically talented students (528 males, 228 females) identified around age 13 and tracked into adulthood by the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY). Well before college, both samples were academically distinguished; however the graduate students could be identified during adolescence as a subset of mathematically talented youths based on their nonintellectual attributes. Their profiles corresponded to what earlier psychological studies found to characterize distinguished (and exclusively male) scientists: exceptional quantitative reasoning abilities, relatively stronger quantitative than verbal reasoning ability, salient scientific interests and values, and persistence in seeking out opportunities to study scientific topics and develop scientific skills. On these attributes, sex differences were minimal for the graduate students (but not for the SMPY comparison groups). Developing exceptional scientific expertise apparently requires special educational experiences, but these necessary experiences are similar for the two sexes.
Lubinski, D., Webb, R. M., Morelock, M. J., & Benbow, C. P. (2001). Top 1 in 10,000: A 10-year follow-up of the profoundly gifted. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(4), 718-729.
Adolescents identified before the age of 13 (N = 320) as having exceptional mathematical or verbal reasoning abilities (top 1 in 10,000) were tracked over 10 years. They pursued doctoral degrees at rates over 50 times base-rate expectations, with several participants having created noteworthy literary, scientific, or technical products by their early 20s. Early observed distinctions in intellectual strength (viz., quantitative reasoning ability over verbal reasoning ability, and vice versa) predicted sharp differences in their developmental trajectories and occupational pursuits. This special population strongly preferred educational opportunities tailored to their precocious rate of learning (i.e., appropriate developmental placement), with 95% using some form of acceleration to individualize their education.
Shea, D. L., Lubinski, D., & Benbow, C. P. (2001). Importance of assessing spatial ability in intellectually talented young adolescents: A 20-year longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Psychology, 93(3), 604-614.
At age 13, 393 boys and 170 girls scoring at the top 0.5% in general intelligence completed the Scholastic Assessment Test Mathematics (SAT-M) and Verbal (SAT-V) subtests and the Differential Aptitude Test (DAT) Space Relations (SR) and Mechanical Reasoning (MR) subtests. Longitudinal data were collected through follow up questionnaires completed at ages 18, 23, and 33. Multivariate statistical methods were employed using the SAT-M, SAT-V, and a DAT (SR+MR) composite to predict a series of developmentally sequenced educational-volitional outcomes: (a) favorite and least favorite high school class, (b) undergraduate degree field, (c) graduate degree field, and (d) occupation at age 33. Spatial ability added incremental validity to SAT-M and SAT-V assessments in predicting educational-volitional outcomes over these successive time frames. It appears that spatial ability assessments can complement contemporary talent search procedures. The amount of lost potential for artistic, scientific, and technical disciplines that results from neglecting this critical dimension of nonverbal ideation is discussed.
Benbow, C. P., Lubinski, D., Shea, D. L., & Eftekhari-Sanjani, H. (2000). Sex differences in mathematical reasoning ability at age 13: Their status 20 years later. Psychological Science, 11(6), 474-480.
Reported is the 20-year follow-up of 1,975 mathematically gifted adolescents whose assessments at age 12-14 yrs revealed robust gender differences in mathematical reasoning ability. Both sexes became exceptional achievers and perceived themselves as such; they reported uniformly high levels of degree attainment and satisfaction with both their career direction and their overall success. The earlier sex differences in mathematical reasoning ability did predict differential educational and occupational outcomes. The observed differences also appeared to be a function of sex differences in preferences for a) inorganic versus organic disciplines and b) a career-focused versus more-balanced life. Because profile differences in abilities and preferences are longitudinally stable, males probably will remain more represented in some disciplines, whereas females are likely to remain more represented in others. These data have policy implications for higher education and the world of work.
Noble, K. D., Subotnik, R. F., & Arnold, K. D. (1999). To thine own self be true: A new model of female talent development. Gifted Child Quarterly, 43(3), 140-149.
The article describes an innovative model of female talent development based upon the life experiences of gifted women from a wide variety of backgrounds and talent domains. Key issues addressed by the model are the personal, professional, and cultural challenges common to gifted females and strategies for coping with them.
Gilbert, L. H. (1998). An investigation of the relationships between high school experiences and educational attainment for high achieving students. Dissertation Abstracts International, 58(7-A). U.S.: University Microfilms International.
The purpose of this study was to determine the relative influence of each of seven variables in predicting educational attainment, and by inference, adult economic success for high achieving, academically gifted students. A secondary analysis was performed using longitudinal data from the base year and a third from follow-up reports of the 1980 High School and Beyond senior cohort survey. A total of 1,227 subjects were selected for the secondary analysis who met the following criteria: graduation from a public high school, self-reported grades indicating high achievement,self-reported participation in an academic or college preparatory program. Educational attainment, a reliable predictor of adult economic success, served as the dependent variable. A backwards stepwise logistic regression was conducted. Independent variables included academic acceleration, extracurricular participation, personological factors (self-concept, locus of control, educational attainment one thinks one will achieve, educational attainment with which one will be satisfied), and parental expectations. These variables were previously identified as individually related to educational attainment. Three control variables were included throughout the regression: socioeconomic status, sex, and academic achievement as a composite measurement of four tests. Three of the seven independent variables remained in the final logistic regression model. These were, in order of significance, educational attainment one thinks one will achieve, parental expectations,and educational attainment with which one will be satisfied. Within this model, socioeconomic status and sex had no effect in predicting Bachelor's degree attainment, although academic achievement test score did. Within this sample and model, the odds of Bachelor's degree attainment for a subject who thought he/she would obtain a Bachelor's degree were 5.38 times the odds for subjects who did not foresee Bachelor's degree attainment. The odds of Bachelor's degree attainment for a subject whose parents indicated the subject should go to college were 2.84 times the odds of attainment for subjects whose parents did not indicate college. The odds of Bachelor's degree attainment for a subject who believed he/she would not be satisfied with less than a Bachelor's degree were 1.81 times the odds of attainment for subjects who indicated they would be satisfied with less than a Bachelor's degree.
Hendricks, M. (1997). Yesterday's whiz kids: Where are they today? Johns Hopkins Magazine, 49, 30-36.
At the time of publication, Julian C. Stanley's "grand experiment" of identifying and educating young math and science prodigies had been operational for nearly 3 decades. This article follows up with several participants to see where they are now.
McCluskey, K. W., Baker, P. A., & Massey, K. J. (1996). A twenty-four year longitudinal look at early entrance to kindergarten. Gifted and Talented International, 11(2), 72–75.
https://doi.org/10.1080/15332276.1996.11672848
For twenty-four years, the Lord Selkirk School Divison (Selkirk, Manitoba, Canada) has had a policy whereby some students are accepted for early entrance into kindergarten. A longitudinal study was undertaken to evaluate the performance of these early entrance students over the years. Educators’ratings indicated that 41% fared exceptionally well in school, 39% performed solidly, and 20% did poorly.
Cronbach, L. J. (1996). Acceleration among the Terman males: Correlates in midlife and after. In C. P. Benbow & D. J. Lubinski (Eds.), Intellectual talent: Psychometric and social issues (pp. 179-191). Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
What can be said about those who were markedly accelerated in schools when we can look at nearly their whole lives? Terman began before 1920 to collect records on able young people and in 1922 began a large-scale search. The present analysis covers male responses from 1950 to 1977. This reanalysis of the Terman files, which followed subjects from about 1922 to 1977 and have compared those who finished high school at about age 15 or 16 with those who graduated near age 18. In many aspects of their adult lives those who were accelerated did not differ as a group from the roughly equated controls. Every non-trivial difference that did appear on a value-laden variable showed those who had been accelerated at an advantage. Variation within groups far exceeded variation between groups. It appears that their personal qualities or the encouragement and tangible boost given by acceleration, or both, produced a lasting increment of momentum.
Sayler, M. F. (1996). Differences in the psychological adjustment of accelerated 8th grade students. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the American Educational Research Association, New York, NY.
The academic, social, and emotional benefits of acceleration are widely known, yet criticism and reluctance to use this educational intervention persist. Some school personnel and families fear that children who accelerate through grades will experience serious social or emotional adjustment problems. This research project compared a nationally representative sample of well-adjusted and poorly adjusted accelerants so as to examine the differences in adjustment among individual accelerants. The sample was drawn from the National Education Longitudinal Study: 88 database. Surprisingly, results showed that the best-adjusted and least adjusted accelerants were similar in many ways. There were no significant differences for gender, race, family size, birth order, family composition, income, educational level of parents, kind of school, percentage of minority students in their school, serious behavior difficulties, certain out-of-school activities, community type, or community location. However, parental involvement in a child's school and education, and access to accelerated, advanced, enriched, or gifted classes were more often associated with healthy adjustment. Therefore, the differences in well-adjusted and poorly adjusted accelerants appear to be related to the ways that parents and schools interact with their students.
Stanley, J. C., Plotinak, A., & Cargain, M. J. (1996). Educational trajectories: Radical accelerates provide insight. Gifted Child Today, 19(2), 18-21, 38-39.
This article describes common student traits found from analysis of self-reported experiences of 6 radically accelerated youths. It concludes that intellectual ability far above the average and student eagerness to accelerate are prerequisites for successful radical acceleration. Descriptions by two students of their accelerated programs are included.
Ingersoll, K. S., & Cornell, D. G. (1995). Social adjustment of female early college entrants in a residential program. Journal for the Education of the Gifted, 19(1), 45-62.
This study assessed the social adjustment of female early college entrants using standard measures of adjustment and two comparison groups (traditional college students and boarding school students). Early entrants evidenced higher social conformity and solitary activity than boarding students. They evidenced social adjustment similar to college students but reported a high level of dissatisfaction with their social lives.
Charlton, J. C., Marolf, D. M., & Stanley, J. C. (1994). Follow-up insights on rapid educational acceleration. Roeper Review, 17(2), 123-129.
This article provides information about educational and career outcomes of 12 youths, identified in the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth and Center for Talented Youth, who received rapid educational acceleration. Also, three young adults who were accelerated share their experiences, concluding that such advancement was optimal for them but may not be the ideal path for others.
Subotnik, R. F., & Arnold, K. D. (Eds.) (1994). Beyond Terman: Contemporary longitudinal studies of giftedness and talent. Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Company.
Lewis Terman heralded the field of gifted education in the United States by tracing the development of high-IQ children from their childhood in the 1920s to midlife and beyond. The contemporary firld of gifted education, building on the work of Terman and others, presumes that gifted children become exceptional adults. Longitudinal research offers the opportunity for critical examination of the way gifted children and adolescents are identified and illuminates the characteristics and experiences that affect sustained achievement. The studies in this book demonstrate the fit between longitudinal methodology and the central issues of gifted education.
Barnett, L. B., & Durden, W. G. (1993). Education patterns of academically talented youth. Gifted Child Quarterly, 37(4), 161-168.
Students who participated in the Johns Hopkins University Center for Talented Youth (CTY) Academic Programs were compared, over five years, with nonparticipating eligible students. Both groups exhibited high academic achievement, but the CTY youth took more advanced courses at an earlier age and enrolled in more college courses while in high school.
Noble, K. D., Robinson, N. M., & Gunderson, S. A. (1993). All rivers lead to the sea: A follow-up study of young adults. Roeper Review, 15, 124-129.
This follow-up study of gifted students who had either entered the University of Washington before age 15 (n=61), qualified for early entrance but chose the normal high school path (n=36), or were nonaccelerated National Merit Scholarship finalists (n=27) found that early entrants entered graduate school in greater numbers than did the other groups.
Pyryt, M. C. (1993). The fulfillment of promise revisited: A discriminate analysis of factors predicting success in the Terman study. Roeper Review, 15(3), 178-179.
The author reexamined M. Oden's (1968) comparison of the 100 most and 100 least successful men in the Genetic Studies of Genius of L. M. Terman et al. (1925-1959), using three predictor variables: IQ, amount of acceleration (AOA), and educational attainment (EA). Results indicate that each of the three variables contributed to the discrimination between the two groups of subjects. EA was the major discriminator, with AOA and IQ making small contributions to group discrimination. Results reaffirm the importance of EA as a strong correlate of vocational achievement.
Swiatek, M. A. (1993). A decade of longitudinal research on academic acceleration through the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth. Roeper Review, 15(3), 120-124.
Over the past decade, several longitudinal studies pertaining to the education of intellectually gifted students were produced through the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY). One area that was emphasized, in keeping with SMPY's history, is academic acceleration. SMPY's studies, which consider various groups of students, methods of acceleration, and types of outcomes, support acceleration as an educational method. Their results are in keeping with the work of other authors in this area. In this article, the subjects, methods, and outcomes of SMPY's studies are described and plans for future research are outlined.
Thomas, T. A. (1993). The achievement and social adjustment of accelerated students: The impact of academic talent search after seven years. Sacramento: California State University, Academic Talent Search Project.
Academic Talent Search (ATS) provided advanced instruction in a 6-week summer school for talented middle school students on the campus of California State University, Sacramento. A survey was conducted to examine the long-term impact of the ATS
program on students over a period of 7 years. Data were collected pertaining to high school and college achievement, career aspirations, personal values, self awareness, and personality self-descriptions, from students who participated in accelerated classes in mathematics, writing, and foreign languages in 1983, 1984, or 1985. Results indicated that these students continued to excel academically during the 7-year period after ATS participation. Students reported high academic achievement, high aspirations for advanced degrees, and impressive carer objectives. Their responses reflected healthy self concepts, strong personal values, and inner-directed locus of control. They described themselves as independent, practical, and stable. There was no indication of any systematic negative impact from academic acceleration or from participation in the ATS summer school. Students reported fond memories of and satisfaction with their experiences in the program.
Thomas, T. A. (1993). The achievement and social adjustment of accelerated students: The impact of academic talent search after seven years. Sacramento, CA: California State University. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED368146). EDR
Academic Talent Search (ATS) provided advanced instruction in a 6-week summer school for talented middle school students on the campus of California State University, Sacramento. A survey was conducted to examine the long-term impact of the ATS program on students over a period of 7 years. Data were collected pertaining to high school and college achievement, career aspirations, personal values, self-awareness, and personality self-descriptions, from students who participated in accelerated classes in mathematics, writing, and foreign languages in 1983, 1984, or 1985. Results indicated that these students continued to excel academically during the 7-year period after ATS participation. Students reported high academic achievement, high aspirations for advanced degrees, and impressive career objectives. Their responses reflected healthy self-concepts, strong personal values, and inner-directed locus of control. They described themselves as independent, practical, and stable. There was no indication of any systematic negative impact from academic acceleration or from participation in the ATS summer school. Students reported fond memories of and satisfaction with their experiences in the program.
Swiatek, M. A., & Benbow, C. P. (1992). Nonintellectual correlates of satisfaction with acceleration: A longitudinal study. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 21(6), 699-723.
Survey results from cohorts of 511 and 222 gifted and accelerated students surveyed at ages 13, 18, and 23 years and a subset of 73 students indicate that students generally express positive feelings about acceleration. Nonintellectual personal attributes commonly used to select students for acceleration may be inappropriately used.
Swiatek, M. A., & Benbow, C. P. (1991). Ten-year longitudinal follow-up of ability-matched accelerated and unaccelerated gifted students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 83(4), 528-538.
Identified by a study of mathematically precocious youth, 107 academically accelerated gifted students were compared with 107 nonacademically accelerated gifted students. At age 23-25 years, the two subject groups exhibited few significant differences, and no evidence of harmful effects of academic acceleration were found.
Richardson, T. M., & Benbow, C. P. (1990). Long-term effects of acceleration on the social-emotional adjustment of mathematically precocious youths. Journal of Educational Psychology, 82(3), 464-470.
The Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) identified over 2,000 12-14 year-olds who scored as well as a random sample of high school females on the SAT. SMPY encouraged these students to accelerate their education, and over 50% did. Their social development at age 18 and age 23 was then assessed. We investigated the effects of amount and type of educational acceleration (grade skipping and subject matter) on psychosocial indices. No gender differences were significant. Accelerants as well as nonaccelerants reported high self-esteem and internal locus of control. Acceleration did not affect social interactions or self-acceptance/identity and it also did not relate to social and emotional difficulties.
Janos, P. M., Robinson, N. M., & Lunneborg, C. E. (1989). Academic performance and adjustment status of early college entrants, non-accelerated peers, and college classmates. Journal of Higher Education, 60, 495-518.
Certain highly able and motivated young adolescents can successfully pursue full-time college-level studies without unreasonable compromises to psychological and social adjustment. Ways in which an adequate program facilitating early college entrance might be structured are suggested.
Stanley, J. C. (1989). A look back at educational non-acceleration: An international tragedy. Gifted Child Today, 12(4), 60-61.
This article reviews events subsequent to a 1977 Julian Stanley speech on the topic of educational non-acceleration. It describes the evolution of the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth, focusing on program development,student identification through talent searches, criteria for student selection, and the need for additional funding.
Thomas, T. A. (1989). Acceleration for the academically talented: A follow-up of the Academic Talent Search class of 1984. (ERIC Documents Reproduction Service No. ED307303).
The purpose was to investigate the long-term impact of the California State University, Sacramento Academic Talent Search Summer School (ATSSS) by means of a longitudinal follow-up of students at an interval of 4 years. A group of 100 academically talented middle school students (grades 7 through 9) were selected from the 350 participants in the ATSSS at California State University in 1984. Qualifications for the program were based on scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test or equivalent test scores. During the summer, students studied fast-paced mathematics, writing, and/or Latin. Four years later, in 1988, a questionnaire was mailed to the selected students to determine their high school experiences. A response rate of 80% of the 100 locatable students gave a sample that compared favorably with the 1984 summer school group. Responses were analyzed descriptively using frequency distribution and cross-tabulation tables. Results indicate that: (1) program participants viewed the experience as highly positive; (2) academic acceleration through the program was associated with positive changes in school grades as indicated by grade point averages, interest in school and learning, and in students' abilities to get along with intellectual peers, age peers, and adults; (3) the program contributed to self-esteem and feelings of self-control; and (4) participants performed well in sports as well as academics. No pattern of social maladjustments or harmful results from the acceleration was found.
Janos, P. M. (1987). A fifty-year follow-up of Terman's youngest college students and IQ-matched agemates. Gifted Child Quarterly, 31(2), 55-58.
When high ability students (N=19) who had entered college before 15 years of age were compared, 50 years later, with equally intelligent students who entered college between 16 to 20 years of age, results found both groups equal in psychosocial adjustment and long term achievement though younger college students were more often rated as high achievers in early adulthood.
Brody, L. E., & Benbow, C. P. (1987). Accelerative strategies: How effective are they for the gifted? Gifted Child Quarterly, 31(3), 105-110.
The long-term effects of various accelerative options were evaluated using a group of 510 students identified as highly gifted in junior high. Their academic achievements, extracurricular activities, goals and aspirations, and social and emotional adjustment were assessed after completing high school. No discernible negative effects of accelerative strategies were found.
Proctor, T. B., Black, K. N., & Feldhusen, J. F. (1986). Early admission of selected children to elementary school: A review of the research literature. The Journal of Educational Research, 80(2), 70–76.
https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.1986.10885726
Twenty-one studies reporting on early admission of selected children to elementary school are reviewed and discussed in terms of methodological design and findings. Two major kinds of designs were found. Comparisons of early entrants with their unselected classmates found, in general, no negative effects. Comparisons of early entrants with matched samples suggested that early admission may be preferable. Additional research is needed to formulate an ideal policy concerning early admission.
Robinson, N. M., & Janos, P. M. (1986). Psychological adjustment in a college-level program of marked academic acceleration. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 15(1), 51-60.
The questionnaire responses of 24 markedly accelerated young students at the University of Washington were compared with those of 24 regular-aged university students, 23 National Merit Scholars, and 27 students who had qualified for acceleration but instead elected to participate in high school. Accelerants appeared as well adjusted as all comparison groups.
Stanley, J.C., & McGill, A. M. (1986). More about young entrants to college: How did they fare? Gifted Child Quarterly, 30(2), 70-73.
The study reports on a group of 25 educationally accelerated entrants to Johns Hopkins University. Findings support the ability of students who enter a highly selective college two to five years early to make good grades, win honors, and graduate promptly.
Stanley, J. C. (1985). How did six highly accelerated gifted students fare in graduate school? Gifted Child Quarterly, 29(4), 180.
This article reports follow-up information on six very young college graduates. The myth of "early ripe, early rot" is clearly refuted by the outstanding success of each of these six young accelerants.
Stanley, J. C. (1985). Young entrants to college: How did they fare? College and University, 60(3), 219-228.
A follow-up study of Johns Hopkins University students who began college two or more years ahead of their age group examined their academic progress, ages at graduation, majors, course loads, grades, program length, and the progress of a special group of subjects identified through a study of mathematically precocious youth.
Cox, J., & Daniel, N. (1984). The MacArthur Fellows look back. Gifted Child Today, 35, 18-25.
The article describes replies to a questionnaire by recipients of the MacArthur Fellows Program, an award given to individuals with uncommon abilities across a wide spectrum of creative pursuits. Replies touch on school and family backgrounds, acceleration, importance of grades, recognition of achievement, extracurricular activities, and significant teachers.
Fearn, L. (1982). Underachievement and rate of acceleration. Gifted Child Quarterly, 26(3), 121-135.
Over a 2-year period underachieving gifted students achieved at an accelerated rate when given attention to basic skills featured in the gifted education program of the San Diego Unified School District.
Mercurio, J. A. (1982). College courses in the high school: A four-year follow-up of the Syracuse University Class of 1977. College and University, 58(1), 5–18.
A study of 1,433 college seniors who had participated in a program offering high school seniors college courses taught in the high school by high school faculty suggests those who went to college had a very low attrition rate, achieved exceptionally high grades, and generally did not seek time-shortened degrees.
Stanley, J.C. (1978). Educational non-acceleration: An international tragedy. Gifted Child Today, 1(3), 2-5, 53.
The article focuses on educational acceleration as one means of providing for gifted children. The Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) is explained to allow for individual differences and to be resolutely interventional, longitudinal, and accelerative.
Montour, K. (1976). Three precocious boys: What happened to them? Gifted Child Quarterly, 20(2), 173-179.
This author sought to defend the use of acceleration through the use of historical anecdotes. She sought out individuals who entered college early to interview or correspond with regarding their career progression following the acceleration. Following three case descriptions, the author discusses the implications of assessing "success".
Solano, C. H., & George, W. C. (1975). College courses: One method of facilitating the intellectually talented. Presented at the Annual Meeting of American Educational Research Association, Washington, DC.
A follow-up study involving 2,021 students identified as academically gifted by the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) was conducted to determine the effectiveness of college courses for facilitating the education of intellectually talented junior and senior high school students. Advantages of a college course over acceleration, student requirements for participation in the college course program, and college enrollment procedures were considered when advising a student eligible for college courses. Of the 1,510 students returning the College Information Questionnaire, 83 students had taken college courses. Among findings were that students' grade-point average (GPA) for the college courses taken was 3.57 (on a four-point scale) and that SMPY students rarely encountered social difficulties in the college classroom.
Klausmeier, H. J., Goodwin, W. L., & Ronda, T. (1968). Effects of accelerating bright, older elementary pupils - A second follow-up. Journal of Educational Psychology, 59(1), 53-58.
Bright older students accelerated in lower elementary grades were compared with nonaccelerants toward the end of 9th grade. This article describes the methodology and results of the study, considering both academic and social effects of acceleration. This is a second followup to the original study conducted in 1962.
Klausmeier, H. J. (1963). Effects of accelerating bright older elementary pupils: A follow up. Journal of Educational Psychology, 54(3), 165-171.
As a follow-up study, the author evaluated one hundred students toward the end of fifth grade in an effort to determine the effects of accelerating bright older students from second to fourth grade after a five-week summer session.
The study evaluated fifty male and fifty female students who were subdivided into five equal groups. Groups of ten students of each sex had been accelerated (Acc) and were compared with groups of twenty non-accelerated fifth graders who had
- superior abilities younger than the median age (5SY)
- superior abilities older than the median age (5SO)
- average abilities younger than the median age (5AO)
- average abilities older than the median age (5AY)
Participants took standardized tests that evaluated their educational achievements, problem solving ability, creative thinking ability, psychomotor abilities, handwriting skills, peer acceptance, attitudes toward school and learning, ethical values, and intellectual and affective characteristic. The accelerated group was at or above the levels of grade and intellect peers for most of the tested areas. The accelerated students sampled toward the end of the second year after their acceleration showed no negative impacts regarding the grade skip. These students were equal or superior to non-accelerated average pupils and younger students of superior abilities in all nine measures. The accelerated students were equal to the older students of superior abilities in all areas but Word Knowledge, Language Total, and Handwriting Legibility.
