Readings on Acceleration and Early Admission

Because so many administrators have claimed that early admission and acceleration is so bad for children, I've decided to do some research. Overall, it seems that recent studies to not support the arguments of school administrators. Here are a few articles that discuss the benefits of acceleration. (A special thanks here to Compound, the

Acceleration: Strategies and Benefits
by Michael C. Pyrt
Centre for Gifted Education, University of Calgary

"There are several benefits of providing accelerative opportunities. The most obvious benefit is the provision of appropriate curriculum challenge. Acceleration will reduce the amount of time a child is forced to study concepts that he or she already knows. Another benefit of acceleration is the opportunity for flexible curricular options. If a student could combine the content of two years into one year, there would be additional time in future schedules to pursue additional areas in the curriculum. There are also advantages in terms of reduced educational costs for both the school system and the student. If students spend less time in school, the cost of educating them will decrease. Currently in Calgary, schools are adopting year-round school scheduling tracks to accommodate more students without building additional school buildings. If acceleration were a common practice, the need for these administrative arrangements would decrease. Costs savings to the student can be quite dramatic when the accelerative approach saves the costs of university tuition. In addition to cost savings, acceleration can provide competitive advantages. As students compete for places in competitive undergraduate and graduate schools, their accelerative accomplishments will help them compile an impressive application package. Finally, there are benefits in terms of self-esteem. If an eighth grade student completes a university course with a grade of A, that accomplishment will help that student internalize an 'ability' attribution. Rather than explaining the accomplishment, in terms of luck or simply hard work, the student would likely recognize ability as an instrumental factor."

Too Young for Kindergarten!" What Does the Research Say?
by Debbie Reese
Parent News, Feb. 1977

"However, some research on the issue of entrance age for kindergarten does not support the idea that younger children are not ready for kindergarten. One study concluded that denying young children entrance to kindergarten is a misguided attempt to ensure positive social adjustment in school. In the study, researchers found that whatever social difficulties the youngest children have early in the school year dissipate as the year progresses. Further, a comparison of report cards of the youngest and oldest children in the class did not show any differences in academic, social, or physical skills (Spitzer, Cupp, & Parke, 1995)."

Acceleration: Evaluating the Controversy over Higher-Speed Education
by Lesley Mackay CTY
Publications & Resources, Center for Talented Youth, The Johns Hopkins University. Baltimore, Maryland, 1995

"According to their findings, acceleration promotes students' intellectual development. 'The analysis showed that examination performance of accelerates surpassed by nearly one grade level the performance of nonaccelerates of equivalent age and intellig ence. Examination scores of accelerates were equivalent to those of same-grade but older, talented nonaccelerates.'"

One size fits all? Age based tracking versus ability grouping in elementary school mathematics.
by Mike Robison
Michigan State University, 1998

"In fact the idea that all students of a certain age should learn the same thing at the same pace is relatively new, having been developed in the mid 19th century for administrative, not educational reasons (Bacharach, Hasslen, and Anderson; Daniel and Cox). As discussed above and in Prisoners of Time (National Education Commission on Time and Learning) these writers argue for learning environments where age doesn't limit opportunity. While Bacharach et. al. are not focused on gifted children, they make a good argument for grouping students of differing ages together. Since the literature discussed above demonstrates the value of grouping students by ability, while few if any studies support restricting grouping to common ages, it is ironic that so many schools are moving from the former to the latter."

Redshirting: One Size Doesn't Fit All
By Lorna Collier, Chicago Tribune, Jan. 2000

"Robert S. Byrd, a pediatrician at the University of California-Davis Medical Center who has studied age-for-grade issues, says being 'young for grade' does not pose as much risk for the child as being older than his peers."

Further Readings

Academic Acceleration
Hoagies' Gifted collection of links advocating academic acceleration

Acceleration
by Dr. David Elkind
President emeritus, National Association for the Education of Young Children

Acceleration: A legitimate means of meeting the needs of gifted children
by Dr Sarah Evans

Acceleration: an expanded vision
by Lynne Mackenzie-Sykes

Early School Entry Is Essential for Many Gifted Children
by Craig Howley

Early (or late) Kindergarten
Hoagies' gifted collection of links advocating early Kindergarten admission

He Has a Summer Birthday: The Kindergarten Entrance Age Dilemma
by Sandra Crosser
ERIC Digest, 1998

Horizontal "enrichment" vs. vertical "acceleration" or Why does the school want K. in 1st grade next fall when he already knows more than the 2nd graders?
by Draper Kauffman
Doctor of Education and Parent of Gifted Child

Should Gifted Students Be Grade-Advanced?
Educational Resources Information Center

A special thanks

To Laura and other posters at the Gifted School Age Child message board at Parent Soup for the information and for their support.