Early Entrance Research Articles

A Sample of Gifted and Talented Educators’ Attitudes About Academic Acceleration

Despite extensive research supporting its use, including the 2004 publication of A Nation Deceived, acceleration is an underutilized strategy for meeting the academic needs of gifted and talented students. Parents’ and educators’ attitudes and beliefs about acceleration influence the extent to which it is implemented in schools. This study investigated gifted and talented educators’ attitudes toward acceleration using a 7-point rating scale measuring concerns about acceleration, beliefs about acceleration, and support for specific acceleration strategies. Data indicated there were no differences in attitudes among teachers from rural, suburban, or urban school districts. Overall, the least popular acceleration strategies were also the easiest to implement, but caused the greatest change in students’ environments (i.e., grade-skipping and early entrance to kindergarten). As expected, the educators were most troubled by social issues and least concerned about academic issues related to acceleration.

Influence of oxygen on NADH recycling and oxidative stress resistance systems in Lactobacillus panis PM1

Lactobacillus panis strain PM1 is an obligatory heterofermentative and aerotolerant microorganism that also produces 1,3-propanediol from glycerol. This study investigated the metabolic responses of L. panis PM1 to oxidative stress under aerobic conditions. Growth under aerobic culture triggered an early entrance of L. panis PM1 into the stationary phase along with marked changes in end-product profiles. A ten-fold higher concentration of hydrogen peroxide was accumulated during aerobic culture compared to microaerobic culture. This H2O2 level was sufficient for the complete inhibition of L. panis PM1 cell growth, along with a significant reduction in end-products typically found during anaerobic growth. In silico analysis revealed that L. panis possessed two genes for NADH oxidase and NADH peroxidase, but their expression levels were not significantly affected by the presence of oxygen. Specific activities for these two enzymes were observed in crude extracts from L. panis PM1. Enzyme assays demonstrated that the majority of the H2O2 in the culture media was the product of NADH: H2O2 oxidase which was constitutively-active under both aerobic and microaerobic conditions; whereas, NADH peroxidase was positively-activated by the presence of oxygen and had a long induction time in contrast to NADH oxidase. These observations indicated that a coupled NADH oxidase - NADH peroxidase system was the main oxidative stress resistance mechanism in L. panis PM1, and was regulated by oxygen availability. Under aerobic conditions, NADH is mainly reoxidized by the NADH oxidase - peroxidase system rather than through the production of ethanol (or 1,3-propanediol or succinic acid production if glycerol or citric acid is available). This system helped L. panis PM1 directly use oxygen in its energy metabolism by producing extra ATP in contrast to homofermentative lactobacilli.

Teen Motherhood and Pregnancy Prototypes: The Role of Social Context in Changing Young African American Mothers’ Risk Images and Contraceptive Expectations

Despite the declining rate of teen pregnancies in the United States, academic and public health experts have expressed concern over the still relatively high rate of rapid repeat pregnancies among adolescents, particularly among minority youth. Using a sample of over 300 African American female adolescents, the current study used insights from the prototype/willingness model of adolescent risk behavior to explore this risk. More specifically, it assessed the relationship between entry into unwed motherhood during mid-to-late adolescence and changes in prototypes of unmarried pregnant teens. Further, it explored the extent to which these changing prototypes accounted for young mothers' later contraceptive expectations. We tested the possibility that social images were affected not only by personal experience (the birth of a child) but also by the family and community context in which this experience took place. The findings show that the early entrance into teen motherhood was associated with a shift toward more favorable prototypes of unwed pregnant teens, but that this was only the case for young mothers in disadvantaged contexts. Given this, prototype changes helped to explain the link between teen motherhood and contraceptive expectations only for those in disadvantaged contexts. We discuss these findings in terms of their practical and theoretical implications.

Facilitating Grade Acceleration: Revisiting the Wisdom of John Feldhusen

This article revisits the 1986 Feldhusen, Proctor, and Black recommendations on grade skipping. These recommendations originally appeared as 12 guidelines. In this article, the guidelines are grouped into three general categories: how to screen accelerant candidates, how to engage with the adults in the acceleration process (e.g., teachers, parents), and how to support the accelerated students. The authors then reviews the literature since the publication of Feldhusen et al.'s original article. This body of research includes grade skipping, early entrance to college, and early entrance to school and supports the three general categories. However, some findings provide nuanced changes to the guidelines. The past 25 years of research also presents some additional considerations about acceleration not considered by Feldhusen et al. These topics include gender issues, resistance to acceleration, and methodological concerns.

The Effect of the Early Entrance to Job Market on the Health Status of Brazilians in 2008: A Robustness Econometric Test

The early entrance to the job market has, among other consequences, a negative effect on the health status of the individual. In 2008, nearly a sixth of the Brazilian population claimed to have started working before the age of 10 and over a third reported to have started working between 10 and 15 years old. This paper aims to investigate the effect of early entrance to the job market on the current health status of the individual. The database provided by the National Survey by Household Sampling (PNAD) for 2008 was used to reach the objective of this paper. The analysis was conducted at national extent using Ordered Logit method and IV Probit. It was evident that delaying entrance to the job market impacts positively on the current state of health. Moreover, it was found that the educational level and personal income increase the likelihood of the individual presenting a better state of health.

Obesity and physical fitness in California school children

Obesity rates have reached epidemic proportions in the United States and California. Thus, the California Department of Education began a series of steps to address the increase in obesity and decline in fitness in the 6.3 million public school children in California. We evaluated serial changes in obesity and fitness in California school children following implementation of prevention steps in all California public schools. The California Department of Education implemented changes in school nutrition and exercise programs aimed at reducing obesity and improving fitness. Outcome results were monitored by performing Physical Fitness Testing on 8.4 million students (5th, 7th, and 9th grade) for body composition, aerobic capacity, flexibility, and upper body, abdominal, and truncal strength using the Cochran-Armitage trend test and multivariable logistic regression models. Overall fitness improved from 2003 to 2008. Serial changes in body composition, aerobic capacity, flexibility, and upper body, abdominal, and truncal strength improved or remained stable within school as students progressed from 5th to 7th to 9th grade. However, students entering 5th grade were more obese every year, and this early obesity was not reversible within the school programs. Following prevention measures within California public schools, obesity and fitness levels have stabilized. However, continued increases in early entrance (5th grade) obesity will require additional efforts directed at preschool and elementary students to completely stop and reverse this obesity epidemic.

Elevated Growing Degree Days Influence Transition Stage Timing During Cotton Fiber Development Resulting in Increased Fiber‐Bundle Strength

ABSTRACTGrowing degree days required for cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) growth and development were recorded for four growing seasons and compared with fiber‐quality measurements and gene expression data indicative of different stages of fiber development. Fiber‐bundle strength differences between the Upland cotton near‐isogenic lines MD 52ne and MD 90ne were observed using immature and mature fibers collected at different time points of development stages. Previously characterized fiber‐bundle‐strength differences between the near‐isogenic lines, known as a result of early entrance into the transition stage of fiber development, were present as early as 20 d postanthesis and persisted to boll opening and fiber maturity. The onset of transition stage was correlated with the accumulated degree day heat units from the day of anthesis in both cotton lines in all seasons. Fiber‐quality measurements obtained over multiple growing seasons indicated that an earlier entrance into the transition stage of fiber development resulted in increased fiber‐bundle strength. These data suggest that the identification of genes associated with early entrance into the transition stage can be used to temporally manipulate fiber development and improve fiber quality.

The Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science: A 20-Year Perspective

The Texas Academy of Mathematics and Science (TAMS) is a publicly financed, residential early college entrance institute at the University of North Texas at Denton. Created in 1987, TAMS enables high-achieving students planning STEM careers to complete their last 2 years of high school simultaneously with their first 2 years of college. Admission is selective, and students pay no tuition or book costs. Students must complete a rigorous curriculum of biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics, and humanities. The academy offers intramural athletics, a variety of clubs and organizations, and mentor-guided research opportunities that can lead to prestigious awards and scholarships. Graduates earn a high school diploma and at least 57 transferable college credits—enough to enter many universities 2 years advanced. Now in its third decade, the academy continues to help expand the supply of skilled domestic mathematicians, engineers, and scientists.

Early Entrance Programme — A New Agent in the Israeli Higher Education Field

Since 2000, the number of Israeli high school students participating in early entrance programmes has increased dramatically from just a few to thousands, and they have become noteworthy agents in the Israel higher education field. By employing Bourdieu's field theory, several processes have been found to support the emergence of this new agent. At the inter-field level, it was found that forces from external fields adjust to the higher educational field's logic and set the stage for the new agent; at the intra-field level the involved actors were found to influence the indecisive ones; and at the habitus level, those with the right habitus and suitable capitals were found to establish the new agent, even against the will of more dominant ones. Further theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Mitochondrial respiration and succinate dehydrogenase are suppressed early during entrance into a hibernation bout, but membrane remodeling is only transient

We examined respiration and lipid composition of liver mitochondria purified from a hibernator (Ictidomys tridecemlineatus) in different stages of a torpor bout. Between interbout euthermia (body temperature, T (b), 37°C) and early entrance (T (b) 30°C), state 3 and state 4 respirations, fueled by 6mM succinate, fell by over 50%. Mitochondrial respiration did not decline any further in the late entrance and torpor stages (T (b) 15 and 5°C, respectively). Succinate dehydrogenase (SDH) activity declined in a similar pattern as mitochondrial respiration, and there was a significant positive correlation between state 3 respiration and SDH activity. However, unlike during arousal from torpor, oxaloacetate was not a major factor in inhibition of SDH. Analysis of mitochondrial lipids showed little change in neutral lipids or phospholipid classes, except for a transient decrease in phosphatidylethanolamine content in early entrance. In the transition from interbout euthermia to early entrance, we found transient increases in some saturated phospholipid fatty acids (16:0, 18:0) and decreases in some unsaturates (18:2, 20:4). These changes resulted in transient increases in total saturates and the ratio of saturates to unsaturates, and transient decreases in total unsaturates, total polyunsaturates, total n-6, the ratio of monounsaturates to polyunsaturates, and unsaturation index. None of these changes persisted into late entrance or torpor, nor did they correlate with mitochondrial respiration. We conclude that mitochondrial metabolic suppression during entrance into a torpor bout occurs very early and is likely related to acute regulation of electron transport chain enzymes rather than changes in membrane phospholipid composition.

The Importance of Global Awareness in an Early Entrance to University Program

The pace, scope and significance of changes experienced in recent years have focused awareness on the interdependence of all nations with respect to issues of economic stability and environmental stewardship. Experts from all over the world are discussing ways in which global crises have arisen and how they will need to be addressed. Global attention is turning to investments that must be made with respect to trans-national health care, education and poverty. Education, according to Microsoft's Bill Gates, is the most critical investment for the future of all citizens and all nations. Enhancing education opportunities and the quality of education for students within and across all nations awakens us to the new era of social responsibility calling for preparation of youth to participate in global citizenship and global leadership. We are facing problems that we cannot solve as individual nations. We are facing solutions that impinge on individual nations' autonomy. We are challenging ourselves to learn how to negotiate and compromise in order to align our future-focused goals of mutual survival. “Why don't you ask the real questions, like what is it like to be a gifted kid?” University Transition Program Graduate, 1998 “The most surprising thing to me is the transformation that all of us have experienced in just two years of rigorous radical academic acceleration and intensive preparation for early entrance to university.“ Christine Wei, University Transition Program Graduate, 2009

The “Stepping Stone Phenomenon”: Exploring the Role of Positive Attrition at an Early College Entrance Program

This study explored the differences between students who remained at one early college acceleration program and those who left. Students who left appeared to seek what they perceived as a greater academic challenge or more specialized academic majors than were provided by the host college, a phenomenon that lends credence to the notion of positive attrition. Programs and their host institutions need to acknowledge and consider whether positive attrition is acceptable and then structure their screening policies accordingly. Programs would also do well to ensure that screening takes into account students' talents and interests, for by ensuring an appropriate match, or “fit,” between the candidate, the program, and the host college or university, administrators and staff may help to improve retention and the overall quality of the experience for the early college accelerant. Appropriate screening is the key to improving academic fit, and the first step in improving screening may be for an institution to determine whether positive attrition is desirable or not. It is important during the screening process to match students' interests and talents with academic courses and opportunities offered by the college or university. Level of challenge is also a consideration, and part of the screening process should consider whether courses offered at the college are sufficiently challenging for the candidate. Administrators of these programs may wish to consider expanding current course offerings to include more majors and courses or recruiting the strongest students into the most challenging courses and majors that they currently offer. Participants enter early entrance programs at a very young age and may not be academically ready to select a major or a career in their teens, so more career counseling may be required than is normally provided at many colleges.

Early Entrance to College and Self-Concept: Comparisons Across the First Semester of Enrollment

This study compared self-report ratings of self-concept before and after the first semester of college among a group of 21 early entrance college students. The measures included a general demographic questionnaire and the Piers-Harris Self-Concept Scale, 2nd edition (PH-2). Results indicated that students maintained their overall level of self-concept following their first semester of college. Mild increases in self-concept were noted in the domains of Physical Appearance and Attributes, as well as Happiness and Satisfaction. Overall, mean group scores on the PH-2 total and subtest self-esteem measures were in the average range, both before and after the participants’ first semester of college. This is a positive finding that points to this group of students’ generally positive impressions of their behavior, intelligence, physical appearance, popularity, feelings of anxiety, and overall happiness. These findings offer additional support that academic acceleration among gifted students is not related to decreases in self-concept.

Profiles of State-Supported Residential Math and Science Schools

Unless we sharply increase the training of homegrown math and science talents, we may suffer negative economic and technological consequences. One means of addressing this challenge has been through specialty schools devoted to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) training. In 1980, the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics pioneered a successful program for high-achieving youth: the state-supported residential math and science school. Almost 30 years later, 15 similar schools have been created, including residential schools in Maine, Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, and Arkansas; and early college entrance academies in Texas, Missouri, and Georgia. Students are appropriately supervised and actively participate in athletics and a wide range of clubs and organizations. Admission is necessarily selective as students negotiate a challenging curriculum of advanced biology, chemistry, physics, and mathematics, as well as humanities and electives. Laboratory mentors guide students in research, results of which may be published or presented at colloquia. A select few projects are entered into the Intel Science Talent Search, Siemens-Westinghouse Science and Technology competitions, or other competitive programs. Performances are encouraging. Students pursue learning at an accelerated pace, saving considerable time and expenses. Graduates enroll in college, many at selective institutions, ensuring a boost in the number and quality of domestic mathematicians, scientists, and engineers.

A Place to Be Celebrated and Understood

This study surveyed 181 parents of students enrolled in one of two early entrance programs at the University of Washington: the Early Entrance Program for students who entered before age 15 and the University of Washington Academy for Young Scholars for students who matriculated after Grade 10. The purpose was to understand parents' perspectives on the early entrance experience, including reasons for choosing early entrance, satisfaction with their children's program, perceived advantages and disadvantages of early entrance, and the effect of early entrance on family relationships. Ninety-five parents participated, with the majority reporting great satisfaction with multiple aspects of their and their children's experience. Early Entrance Program parents expressed a slightly higher degree of satisfaction than did Academy parents. This study suggests that early university entrance is an attractive option for parents willing to follow the lead of their talented and ambitious adolescents. Putting the Research to Use: Early entrance programs are attractive options for parents of academically advanced students who have outpaced available secondary programs. These programs are not inevitably initially successful; however, as our study demonstrates, they benefit greatly from ongoing program evaluation and analysis. Key components of effective early entrance programs include intensive advising, community building, thoughtful selection of students, active engagement by students and faculty, and a welcoming college or university environment. Careful attention to the informational needs of parents is also important, particularly about the social and emotional transitions that they and their children are likely to experience. The University of Washington has demonstrated with two programs that early university entrance is prized by students, parents, university officials, and state education agencies. These and similar programs might well be replicated in other areas around the country given active partnerships among all concerned parties.

Paradoxical Roles of Foxp3 + T Cells during Infection: From Regulators to Regulators

T cells expressing the transcription factor Foxp3 have been shown to limit immune responses against microbes. In a recent issue of Science, Lund et al. support the idea that these cells can also coordinate the early entrance of innate cells at the effector site and therefore positively contribute to protective immunity.

Skin dose from neutron-activated soil for early entrants following the A-bomb detonation in Hiroshima: contribution from β and γ rays

Epilation was reported among atomic bomb survivors in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, including "early entrance survivors" who entered the cities after the bombings. The absorbed dose to the skin by neutron-activated soil via beta and gamma rays has been estimated in a preliminary fashion, for these survivors in Hiroshima. Estimation was done for external exposures from activated soil on the ground as well as skin and hair contamination from activated soil particles, using the Monte Carlo radiation transport code MCNP-4C. Assuming 26 mum thickness of activated soil on the skin as an example, the skin dose was estimated to be about 0.8 Gy, for an exposure scenario that includes the first 7 days after the bombing at 1 m above the ground at the hypocenter. In this case, 99% of the total skin dose came from activated radionuclides in the soil, i.e., 0.19 and 0.63 Gy due to beta and gamma rays, respectively. In contrast, contribution to skin dose due to skin contamination with soil particles was found to be about 1%. To make it comparable to the exposure by neutron-activated soil on the ground, a soil thickness on the skin of about 1 mm would be required, which seems to be difficult to keep for a long time. Fifty-five percent of the 7-day skin dose was delivered during the first hour after the bombing. Our estimates of the skin dose are lower than the conventionally reported threshold of 2 Gy for epilation. It should be noted, however, that the possibility of more extreme exposure scenarios for example for entrants who received much heavier soil contamination on their skin cannot be excluded.

Laboratory simulated slipstream testing of novel sulfur removal processes for gasification application

The Wabash River Integrated Methanol and Power Production from Clean Coal Technologies (IMPPCCT) project is investigating an Early Entrance Coproduction Plant (EECP) concept to evaluate integrated electrical power generation and methanol production from coal and other carbonaceous feedstocks. Research, development and testing (RD&T) that is currently being conducted under the project is evaluating cost effective process systems for removing contaminants, particularly sulfur species, from the generated gas which contains mainly synthesis gas (syngas), CO 2 and steam at concentrations acceptable for the methanol synthesis catalyst. The RD&T includes laboratory testing followed by bench-scale and field testing at the SG Solutions Gasification Plant located in West Terre Haute, Indiana. Actual synthesis gas produced by the plant was utilized at system pressure and temperature for bench-scale field testing. ConocoPhillips Company (COP) developed a sulfur removal technology based on a novel, regenerable sorbent – S Zorb™ – to remove sulfur contaminants from gasoline at high temperatures. The sorbent was evaluated for its sulfur removal performance from the generated syngas especially in the presence of other components such as water and CO 2 which often cause sorbent performance to decline over time. This publication also evaluates the performance of a regenerable activated carbon system developed by Nucon International, Inc. in polishing industrial gas stream by removing sulfur species to parts-per-billion (ppb) levels.

A Passion for Learning: The Theory and Practice of Optima Match at the University of Washington

Early entrance from secondary school to university, based on the principle of optimal match, is a rare but highly effective educational strategy for many gifted students. The University of Washington offers two early entrance options for gifted adolescents: the Early Entrance Program for students prior to age 15, and the UW Academy for Young Scholars for students after Grade 10. This study assessed the elements of optimal match that are best suited to different age groups. Four cohorts of Early Entrance Program and UW Academy students were surveyed on various themes, including their assessment of the transition and support services available to them, their satisfaction with the degree to which they had accelerated their education, their experience with family and friends, and their assessment of their own talents and abilities. Results suggested that similarities and differences in accelerative components exist for students of different ages. All early entrants need a period of intellectual preparation in a supportive and rigorous environment; a peer group; a home-base; communication with parents; a faculty and staff who enjoy teaching, advising, and mentoring gifted young scholars; and a welcoming university or college environment. However, programs for younger students need to provide more intensive academic transitioning during the first year, and programs for older students must balance students' competing needs for independence and guidance. Adequate preparation of parents and the institutional environment also are important to the success of early entrants, regardless of age.

Love and Work

This is the second follow-up study of the Early Entrance Program at the University of Washington. Ninety-five individuals (45%) participated. Respondents overwhelmingly chose early university entrance because they were excited to learn; many also praised the peer group, intellectual stimulation, and faculty and staff support. Some reported feeling too young to make important academic, career, and social decisions, with more males regretting the lack of dating partners because of age differences. As the program has matured, so have students' positive experiences in it. Significant differences were found among three groups of students who entered at different points, reflecting this maturation. A wealth of open-ended comments indicated that the program continues to exert a profound and positive influence on graduates' lives.