High-Ability Students’ Perspectives on an Affective Curriculum in a Diverse, University-Based Summer Residential Enrichment Program

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate how high-ability students experienced their participation in an affective curriculum through small-group discussions in a diverse, university-based, summer enrichment program for talented youth. The investigation included two closely related studies. The first study included 77 high-ability students from several cultures and economic backgrounds who participated in the 2014 summer program. The second was a retrospective study with 24 Native American students from Diné, Ojibwe, and Lakota tribes who had participated in the affective curriculum in 2013 to determine if their participation had any longer term effects on this subgroup. In general, the students from all backgrounds in both studies said the small-group discussions enriched their overall program experience. Twenty-two of the 24 Native American students from the three tribes who participated in the retrospective study reported that they believed they had changed their behaviors during the past year because of their participation in the small-group discussions the previous summer. The changes mentioned most by these students were exhibiting stronger self-confidence and being more open to people. The results of this study suggests that the affective intervention was regarded positively. It provided both short- and long-term benefits to the high-ability students who participated in the program.