Educational reform and the focus on gifted African‐American students

Abstract

As early as the last century, incipient education reform reports attacked the inadequacies of American education and called for a restructuring of schools. Much more recently, America 2000 called for a renaissance in education. Such reports, although well‐intentioned, have yet to address directly the needs of gifted students; they give gifted education little attention and allow it little influence in the education reform reports and movements. Nevertheless, these education reform movements carry important implications for improving the educational well‐being of gifted students in general, and gifted African‐American students in particular. This article describes these promising practices and includes recommendations for increased attention to the needs of gifted African‐American students in the education reform movement.