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First school for gifted children opens
Massachusetts opens the first special school for the gifted. This marks the beginning of an acknowledgement of gifted children in the school setting and a separate program for these students. -
Lewis Terman publishes the Stanford-Binet test
Lewis Terman, the so called "father" of the gifted education movement, published the Stanford-Binet test. It introduced the idea of the intelligence quotient, which was calculated by dividing mental age by chronological age and multiplying it by 100. This changed the face of American education and how students' intelligence would be assessed going forward. -
Terman begins study of gifted children
Lewis Terman: Genetic Study of GeniusThis study remains the longest running longitudinal study of gifted children. Terman began searching for boys and girls with IQs between 135 and 140, which initiated the reasearch toward the gifted mind and education. -
NAGC is founded
The National Association of Gifted Children is founded and will provide an association that will support and develop policies and practices that help meet the diverse needs of gifted and talented children. This group will also be important in future research support, advocacy for the gifted community, communication, and collaboration with other organizations. -
Sputnik is launched causing America to reflect on it's educational system
The Soviet Union launched Sputnik, which prompted the United States to review the quality of American education, specifically in math and science. In turn, large amounts of money were issued to help identify the most intelligent and talented students. -
The National Defense Education Act passes
The National Defense Education Act is passed and is one of the first large-scale efforts by the national government to aid in gifted education.This act provided funding to educational institutions at all levels and was yet another reaction to the "space race", Sputnik, and a fear of falling behind our international counterparts. -
Marland Report published
The Marland Report, the first national report on gifted education, issued the first formal definition of giftedness. This is important because it encouraged schools to define giftedness broadly, and include skills/abilities beyond purely academic and intellectual, including creativity, artistic, and leadership. -
A Nation at Risk and National Excellence Reports are published
A Nation at Risk (1983) and National Excellence: A Case For Developing America's Talent (1993) reports, issued by the federal government, were published and in turn, prompted additional research and programming in the field of gifted education. These reports compared the U.S. to other educationally advanced nations and helped raise academic standards and promote appropriate curriculum for gifted learners. -
NAGC publishes Gifted Program Standards
Gifted StandardsNAGC published Pre-K-Grade 12 Gifted Program Standards in seven key areas. These standards are essential in that they provide important direction and focus to programming options for gifted students. -
NACG publishes gifted standards
Teacher Preparation Standards in GiftedNAGC published national gifted education standards for teacher preparation programs and knowledge and skill standards in gifted education for all teachers. Preparing and educating our teachers and setting a consistent set of standards will play a large role in successfully carrying out gifted education programs.
