tag:theconversation.com,2011:/id/topics/child-prodigy-20048/articlesChild prodigy – The Conversation2021-02-16T13:27:35Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1543302021-02-16T13:27:35Z2021-02-16T13:27:35Z9-year-old Black prodigy has already begun college – but schools often fail to recognize highly talented Black students<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/382330/original/file-20210203-13-1ntqyja.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4687%2C3723&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Black students are underrepresented in gifted education programs. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/photo/portrait-of-boy-holding-chalk-while-standing-in-royalty-free-image/56957273?adppopup=true&uiloc=thumbnail_same_series_adp">ER Productions Limited via DigitalVision/Getty Images Plus</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>Editor’s note: Amid <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/30/arts/why-are-black-students-lagging.html">numerous reports</a> about how Black students <a href="https://www.chronicle.com/article/nearly-half-of-undergraduates-are-students-of-color-but-black-students-lag-behind/?cid2=gen_login_refresh&cid=gen_sign_in">lag behind others</a> in educational achievement, occasionally you may hear about a young Black “<a href="https://www.newsbreak.com/news/2071591338699/young-black-kings-this-12-year-old-prodigy-is-an-aerospace-engineering-major-in-college">prodigy</a>” who <a href="http://babyandblog.com/2014/07/8-black-kids-who-completed-high-school-and-entered-college-at-an-early-age/">got accepted into college at an early age</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>The latest example is David Balogun, a 9-year-old Pennsylvania boy who recently became <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11718919/Pennsylvania-boy-9-one-youngest-graduate-high-school.html">the second-youngest person to graduate from high school</a>, which he did after <a href="https://fox28savannah.com/news/nation-world/9-year-old-boy-graduates-from-high-school-david-ronya-balogun-cody-derr-college-education-remote-accomplish-learning-astrophysicist-cincinnati-ohio-02-05-2023">taking classes remotely</a>. David, whose parents <a href="https://newswirengr.com/2023/02/06/meet-david-balogun-nine-years-high-school-diploma-graduate/">own and run a psychiatric clinic</a>, has also already begun <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/feb/05/nine-year-old-boy-graduates-high-school-david-balogun">taking courses at a community college</a>.</em></p>
<p><em>According to Donna Y. Ford, a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=fiFE0qkAAAAJ&hl=en">an expert on gifted education</a> and an education professor at The Ohio State University, there could be far more Black prodigies. But it would take the right support from families, who may not be familiar with some of the characteristics of gifted students and the existence of gifted programs, and from educators, who often overlook the talents of Black students. Indeed, while Black students represent <a href="https://nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/pdf/coe_cge.pdf">about 15%</a> of the student population in the U.S., they make up only <a href="https://ocrdata.ed.gov/estimations/2013-2014">9.9%</a> of all students in gifted and talented programs.</em></p>
<p><em>In the following Q&A with The Conversation’s education editor, Jamaal Abdul-Alim, Professor Ford – who has been a consultant for Black families thinking about sending their gifted children to college early – argues that public schools are holding back Black talent rather than cultivating it. The Q&A has been edited for clarity and brevity.</em></p>
<p><strong>Jamaal Abdul-Alim:</strong> Why do public schools so often fail to identify gifted Black students?</p>
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<img alt="A photo of an African American woman." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381416/original/file-20210129-20450-1cdywv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/381416/original/file-20210129-20450-1cdywv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381416/original/file-20210129-20450-1cdywv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381416/original/file-20210129-20450-1cdywv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381416/original/file-20210129-20450-1cdywv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381416/original/file-20210129-20450-1cdywv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/381416/original/file-20210129-20450-1cdywv3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Donna Y. Ford is a distinguished professor in the College of Education and Human Ecology at The Ohio State University.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://ehe.osu.edu/directory/?id=ford.255">The Ohio State University</a></span>
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<p><strong>Donna Ford:</strong> The No. 1 reason for the underrepresentation of Black students in gifted education is the lack of referrals from teachers, even when Black students are highly gifted. I definitely think stereotypes and biases hinder educators from seeing Black students’ gifts and talents. In most schools in the U.S., if you are not referred by an educator, you will not move through the identification pipeline for gifted education programs and services, as well as Advanced Placement. It starts and stops with teachers.</p>
<p>This is why Black families have reached out to me. They’re saying, “This <a href="https://www.edweek.org/leadership/still-mostly-white-and-female-new-federal-data-on-the-teaching-profession/2020/04">predominantly white-female discipline</a>” – meaning teachers – “is doing my child an injustice.”</p>
<p>They’re also saying, “I’m frustrated, I don’t know what to do other than pull my child out and home-school.” You <a href="https://responsiblehomeschooling.org/research/summaries/homeschool-demographics/">don’t see a lot of Black home-schooling</a>. If the parents are able to do it, they have the means.</p>
<p><strong>Abdul-Alim:</strong> Are these children really prodigies or do they have parents who are just really actively involved and concerned about their children’s education, and recognize the public schools are doing them a disservice?</p>
<p><strong>Ford:</strong> There’s a lot of <a href="https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED525588">controversy in the field</a> about how children become gifted, much less a prodigy. To me, it’s not just nature or nurture. It’s both. So nature is, they have the capacity, the potential. And then nurture is, they have the experience, the exposure, the opportunity and the access. That includes the families who have the means and wherewithal to advocate for their children or to nurture whatever potential is there.</p>
<p>But personally and professionally, I believe that the most important factor – for students being very gifted and prodigies – is the environment. That means their families, and their cultural, social and economic capital.</p>
<p><strong>Abdul-Alim:</strong> But doesn’t that kind of point away from the idea of these children being “prodigies”? Because if the thing they have in common is well-educated parents who have high incomes, it seems like almost any child in that situation could achieve similar educational results.</p>
<p><strong>Ford:</strong> A prodigy just means a child who is performing at the level of an adult; that’s the basic definition of a prodigy. So that has nothing to do with their income and families, education. It is about how they are performing. They’re playing the piano like an adult who has taken lessons. They picked up on these skills and skill sets very easily. Or they are inventing mathematical formulas that you would only see adults doing. They’re in middle school and can do the work of college-level students. You can have this potential, but if you don’t have these opportunities at home, at school, even in the community, then the gifts and talents that you have may not come to fruition at the highest level.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">9-year-old graduates from high school and is now attending college.</span></figcaption>
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<p><strong>Abdul-Alim:</strong> When families come to you about whether or not to enroll their young child in college, what do you generally advise them to do or to consider?</p>
<p><strong>Ford:</strong> There are a lot of variables to consider. One is the child’s emotional and social maturity. I think their size is important. Are they small for their age? That can contribute to some social and emotional issues, in particular bullying or isolation. Do they have siblings who are older who might be intimidated or negatively affected by their younger sibling’s being accelerated?</p>
<p>[<em>Insight, in your inbox each day.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=insight">You can get it with The Conversation’s email newsletter</a>.]</p>
<p><strong>Abdul-Alim:</strong> What is your advice to families who can’t afford to home-school, but who have children who could very well be higher-performing if given the opportunity? How does society provide opportunities for children who fall in that category?</p>
<p><strong>Ford:</strong> I want the families to become familiar with what the barriers are. So when Black families contact me about their child not being identified as gifted or not being challenged like their white classmates, then I point them to the <a href="https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html">Civil Rights Data Collection website</a>, which is run by the U.S. Department of Education. I have them look specifically at what the data says for representation in gifted programs and Advanced Placement classes. I ask them to look at suspension and expulsion by race and corporal punishment, if that exists in their schools, which it does in some states. And very last, take a hard and critical look at all the data. </p>
<p>You can go straight to data for your child’s <a href="https://ocrdata.ed.gov/search/school">district or school building</a>. And so, parents can come armed with these demographic data showing underrepresentation in gifted and Advanced Placement, but overrepresentation in certain categories of special education as well as discipline, such as suspension and expulsion. And when parents come informed, then sometimes – not always – the educators are put on notice and do what they’re supposed to do anyway, which is share information with families about how to gain the resources and opportunities that their children need.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of a story that ran on Feb. 16, 2021.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/154330/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Donna Ford is a private consultant for school districts and professional organizations. She has in the past received grants from the U.S. Department of Education to study special education and gifted and talented programs. A full listing of prior grants can be found at <a href="https://www.drdonnayford.com/vitae--bio">https://www.drdonnayford.com/vitae--bio</a>.</span></em></p>Anti-Black bias and lack of teacher referrals are keeping Black students out of gifted school programs, a scholar suggests.Donna Ford, Professor of Special Education, The Ohio State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1241642019-10-09T03:25:04Z2019-10-09T03:25:04ZThe Eulogy review: the life and lonely death of one of Australia’s greatest pianists<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/295554/original/file-20191004-118244-4uzxq1.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=15%2C9%2C2014%2C1453&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Geoffrey Tozer was a child prodigy who struggled as an adult after the loss of his mother Verna. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Madman</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>How could one of the best pianists Australia has ever produced die lonely, neglected and impoverished in a dilapidated house in suburban Melbourne? </p>
<p>The Eulogy, a documentary written and directed by <a href="https://www.screenaustralia.gov.au/the-screen-guide/t/the-eulogy-2018/31056">Janine Hosking</a> examines the life, career and tragic death of Australian concert pianist Geoffrey Tozer, who passed away aged 54 from liver disease. </p>
<p>The film begins with Paul Keating reading the now-infamous <a href="http://www.keating.org.au/shop/item/eulogy-for-geoffrey-tozer---1-october-2009">eulogy</a> he delivered at Tozer’s memorial almost exactly a decade ago. The speech, which starts out as a celebration of the pianist’s life and achievements, culminates in an attack on Australia’s cultural establishment. </p>
<p>Keating speaks of the arts in Australia as riven with “bitchiness and preference” and “inverted snobbery”. He accuses the Melbourne and Sydney Symphony Orchestras of treating Tozer with “indifference and contempt” and suggests the people “who had charge in the selection of artists during this period should hang their heads in shame”.</p>
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<span class="caption">Tozer has been called one of Australia’s greatest pianists.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Madman</span></span>
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<p>The late conductor and music educator <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/music/australian-conductor-richard-gill-dies-at-76-20181028-p50cg4.html">Richard Gill</a> (who never saw Tozer perform) acts as a first-person narrator for the film as he tries to make sense of Tozer’s legacy and evaluate Keating’s claims. </p>
<p>Gill’s discovery of Tozer is intercut with archival footage of performances and the film’s soundtrack makes extensive use of Tozer’s many recordings. Discussions with friends, family and colleagues together with readings of Tozer’s diary and correspondence draw a sympathetic portrait of the virtuoso musician. </p>
<p>Charming animations guide the film’s audience around the diverse locales of Tozer’s life story. These places range from pre-partition India, Tasmania, Melbourne, London, Canberra (where he first met Paul Keating) to a disastrous misadventure in Queanbeyan in NSW where Tozer tried unsuccessfully to convert a convent building into a music conservatory. </p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Animated graphics punctuate the film.</span></figcaption>
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<p>Suburban Melbourne becomes a visual metaphor for Tozer’s ignominy, with images and descriptions of his final dilapidated house intercut with explorations of the Tozer archive – a repository lovingly curated, but nevertheless located in little more than a converted shed. </p>
<p>Video footage of Tozer being interviewed reveals a softly spoken and clearly insular man who struggled with the burden of expectation placed on child prodigies. The film offsets a sense of indignation at the purported neglect Tozer suffered with a compassionate account of his personal struggles and alcoholism. Keating’s claims are not allowed to stand untested and a picture emerges of a talented musical genius with limited life skills. </p>
<p>The film raises important questions about the significance of Tozer in our cultural canon, the duty of care held by Australia’s cultural institutions, and the precarious and vexing nature of talent. </p>
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<span class="caption">Conductor Richard Gill narrates the film and his own discovery of Tozer’s legacy.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Madman</span></span>
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<p>The audience is left in no doubt Tozer was indeed a world-class musician. Gill’s journey comes to a climax when – by candlelight in that Queanbeyan convent building – he listens for the first time to Tozer’s performance of a concerto by the Russian composer Nikolai Medtner. </p>
<p>Tozer’s advocacy for and recordings of this previously almost unknown Russian master are widely praised and stand as one of his greatest achievements. The film’s presentation of this recording highlights Tozer’s extraordinary artistry. By staging the scene at the convent, the filmmakers juxtapose a musical triumph with his personal failure. </p>
<p>In its interrogation of Keating’s accusations against the Australian arts establishment, the film delves into the tragedy of Tozer’s personal life. It argues Tozer’s mother – with a combination of hot-housing, impossible expectations and lifelong codependency – denied him a normal childhood. This meant the pianist, following his mother’s death, could not deal with the adult world and used alcohol to cope. </p>
<p>A compassionate examination of what appears to be Tozer’s only romantic relationship – albeit a short one – gives the audience insight into the extent of his personal dysfunction.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Tozer at the piano a few years before his death.</span></figcaption>
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<p>The neglect Tozer suffered from Australia’s leading orchestras in the last 15 years of his life comes across less as “inverted snobbery” or the Tall Poppy Syndrome, but the stark reality of the <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/00400911111102333/full/html">requirements of working</a> in any creative profession. </p>
<p>Orchestras schedule concerts two years in advance and must necessarily work with musicians they can rely on. Though clearly a genius, Tozer ultimately lacked the personal stability essential to success in the arts.</p>
<p>In searching for an antagonist and settling on Tozer’s mother, the film misses an opportunity to interrogate Western culture’s awkward relationship with notions of talent. </p>
<p>Although educationalists tout ideas of a <a href="https://theconversation.com/schools-are-buying-growth-mindset-interventions-despite-scant-evidence-that-they-work-well-96001">growth mindset</a> and that the notion of talent is not fixed, <a href="https://www.oxfordscholarship.com/view/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199685851.001.0001/acprof-9780199685851">research</a> into musical prodigies affirms genetics, a singular focus and a specialised educational environment are often a prerequisite to a talent like Tozer’s. </p>
<p>We can’t reasonably laud Tozer as a prodigy and musical genius while also casting his mother (who was also <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/music-obituaries/6339276/Geoffrey-Tozer.html">his first piano teacher</a>) as a villain. </p>
<p>The Eulogy is an engaging and ultimately evenhanded evaluation of the life of a great Australian musician and a complex personality. As one of Richard Gill’s many former students myself, the death of the film’s narrator in October last year made the film still more poignant. </p>
<p><em>The Eulogy opens in cinemas today.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/124164/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Timothy McKenry does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A new film examines the life and tragic death of a concert pianist once hailed as our nation’s brightest prodigy - and a former PM’s accusations of neglect by cultural leaders.Timothy McKenry, Professor of Music, Australian Catholic UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/941492018-04-02T10:47:45Z2018-04-02T10:47:45ZFabiano Caruana is poised to do what no American has done since Bobby Fischer. Here’s the path he took to get there<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212732/original/file-20180330-189801-bcb4db.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">U.S. chess grandmaster Fabiano Caruana is set to vie for the world title.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Germany-Chess/70f416787a2543cd88b9a597326ba971/4/0">Soeren Stache/dpa via AP</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Whenever a glimmer of chess talent is spotted in the United States, people often ask: “Is this the next Bobby Fischer?”</p>
<p>In the early 2000s, a diminutive, bespectacled young boy – who by age 9 was already battling seasoned competitors in top-level sections – had his name added to the roster of Fischer aspirants.</p>
<p>His name is Fabiano Caruana.</p>
<p>Fabiano, now 25, has finally earned the right to challenge reigning chess champion Magnus Carlsen for the world championship crown this November in London. On March 27, he <a href="https://www.chess.com/news/view/breaking-caruana-wins-fide-candidates-tournament">won the 2018 Candidates Tournament</a> in thrilling fashion. </p>
<p>If Fabiano defeats Magnus this fall, he will become the first American to hold the world title since Fischer beat the Soviet Union’s Boris Spassky in their epic match. Fischer’s victory set off a wave of interest known as the “Fischer Boom,” attracting thousands of new chess enthusiasts. His achievement was celebrated as a symbolic victory for the U.S. since the world title had been held exclusively by Soviet players for the previous quarter century during the Cold War era.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=590&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=590&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=590&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=741&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=741&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212733/original/file-20180330-189816-1v24qe3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=741&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Chess star Bobby Fischer, pictured in New York in 1962.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Watchf-Associated-Press-Domestic-News-New-York-/53d90ce3c7b143deb65f2d8d4de1100c/69/0">John Lent/AP</a></span>
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<p>Will a Fabiano victory set off another “boom” the way Fischer’s victory did in the 1970s? That remains to be seen. But what is certain is that Fabiano’s progress as a chess player – which I have observed and <a href="http://www.thechessdrum.net/blog/2012/10/05/the-rise-of-fabiano-caruana/">followed</a> for many years <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=_uHxozkAAAAJ&hl=en&authuser=1&oi=ao">as a journalist</a> for <a href="http://www.thechessdrum.net/">The Chess Drum</a> – is more than just his rise to stardom. His evolution makes a good case study for homeschooling and other ways of learning that enable young people to break free from the static environment of formal education in order to pursue their passions. It also makes for a good case study of what talent looks like in its earliest stages.</p>
<h2>Composed and Confident</h2>
<p>Over the years, I have witnessed talented “juniors” in the chess world and studied their composure at the chess board. From the earliest times when I first saw Fabiano, I noticed something different about how the Miami-born, Brooklyn-bred boy of Italian ancestry approached the game. Attentive and engaged, Fabiano carried unmistakable energy, focus and determination. </p>
<p>After playing in the same tournament section with Fabiano in the early 2000s, I observed how he would set the plastic chess figurines perfectly on the checkered squares and sit in anticipation of his opponent. Despite his size, his sense of confidence was impressive. I continued to follow his progress.</p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/212607/original/file-20180329-189821-1s3a2sd.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=474&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Author’s photo of Fabiano Caruana at the 2003 Foxwoods Open chess tournament.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.thechessdrum.net/tournaments/Foxwoods2003/photos/Fabiano_Caruana.jpg">Daaim Shabazz</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
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<p>Magnus Carlsen’s rise to stardom is well-known in chess circles and chronicled in the biography, <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/365286.Wonderboy">“Wonder Boy.”</a> Fabiano’s story has some similarities. Parents grapple with ideas to help their children realize their unique set of talents. Fabiano’s parents – <a href="https://en.chessbase.com/post/fabulous-fabiano">Lou and Santina Caruana</a>– made a tough decision and <a href="http://www.caruanachess.com/about-fabiano/">decided to move to Spain to foster his chess development</a>.</p>
<p>Maliq Matthew, a sociology professor at the University of Cincinnati, told me about Fabiano from his chess-playing days in New York. He recalled his concern on whether Lou was taking too big a risk in moving Fabiano to Europe to pursue a chess career when his talent trajectory for chess was still uncertain. “I remember when he was leaving, and we were wondering if (Fabiano’s father) Lou was going too far in,” Matthew said.</p>
<p>The elder Caruana <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/29/crosswords/chess/29chess.html">told The New York Times</a> about the decision to move to Europe in a 2007 interview. “It was hard to evaluate. It was more of a risk than what we had realized at the time,” Lou Caruana said. “But it did work out.” Bobby Fischer had also <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Bobby-Fischer">left school at age 16</a> to focus his energy solely on chess.</p>
<h2>The making of a world-class player</h2>
<p>Once inside European chess circles, Fabiano had access to world-class trainers and stronger competition. In retrospect, it appears that his experience abroad helped him to channel the toughness that he developed from the hardscrabble chess scene in New York. During his <a href="https://uschesschamps.com/bio/fabiano-caruana-0">10-year stint in Europe</a>, he took a vaulted leap, won a number of strong tournaments and steadily increased in the world rankings. </p>
<p>In 2014, Fabiano <a href="https://ratings.fide.com/toparc.phtml?cod=325">climbed to the No. 2 spot in the world chess rankings</a> and made history by starting the <a href="http://www.thechessdrum.net/blog/2014/08/27/2014-sinquefield-cup-st-louis-usa/">2014 Sinquefield Cup</a> with <a href="http://theweekinchess.com/chessnews/events/2nd-sinquefield-cup-2014/7-and-0-for-caruana-in-the-sinquefield-cup">seven straight wins</a>. This field included Magnus Carlsen, the reigning world champion, who hails from Norway. At the press conference, <a href="https://livestream.com/accounts/1504418/events/3303977/videos/61355469">I asked Fabiano</a> if he had ever thought he would become one of the world’s top players. This was his response: </p>
<p>“When I was a kid, I didn’t imagine that I would play chess professionally. I mean I always loved chess, but when I was a kid, it was just a hobby. After school I would go and play in the <a href="http://www.marshallchessclub.org/">Marshall Chess Club</a> and I would play game 30s (30 minutes per game). I thought at some point that I would move away from chess, that I would keep going to school. But it worked out this way. I’m very happy about it. But I didn’t really have those thoughts when I was a kid.”</p>
<h2>Winning gold for the US</h2>
<p>One can argue that Fabiano’s experiences abroad were instrumental in the social maturation process and may have provided him with a very balanced perspective on life. In any case, the European stint charted a course for success.</p>
<p>In 2015, Fabiano <a href="http://www.uschess.org/content/view/13060/141/">switched back to the U.S. Chess Federation</a> after deciding that it would provide him with a path to vie for the world championship. Unfortunately, he missed qualification in the <a href="http://www.thechessdrum.net/blog/2016/03/12/2016-world-chess-candidates-moscow-russia/">2016 World Candidates tournament</a> after a heartbreaking loss to Russia’s Sergey Karjakin. Not to be deterred, <a href="http://www.thechessdrum.net/blog/2016/05/01/caruana-pakidze-new-u-s-champions/">Caruana won the U.S. Championship in 2016</a> for the first time and later that year helped the <a href="https://new.uschess.org/news/olympicgold/">U.S. win the gold medal</a> at the Chess Olympiad in Baku, Azerbaijan.</p>
<p>After a challenging 2017 campaign, he managed to qualify for the 2018 Candidates Tournament given his world ranking. Giving himself <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zi61h4F5Zgc">no more than a 15 percent chance</a> to win the tournament, he closed out the tournament with a last-round win, becoming the first American-born player since Bobby Fischer – and the second American since <a href="http://www.uschess.org/content/view/132/203">Gata Kamsky</a>, a Soviet-born American grandmaster – to vie for the title. The storyline of Thor versus Captain America immediately appeared on social media sites.</p>
<h2>Are there better learning models?</h2>
<p>Some parents may seek to replicate the alternative methods of both Magnus and Fabiano, whose parents paved the way for their success. Top 10 player and four-time U.S. champion player Hikaru Nakamura <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2015/08/21/sport/nakamura-chess-grandmaster/index.html">was also home-schooled</a> by his mother and Sri Lankan stepfather, Sunil Weeramantry. In the preeminent experiment of chess, Laszlo Polgar – a Hungarian chess teacher and author of <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/20877035-bring-up-genius">“Bring Up Genius!”</a> – home-schooled daughters Susan, Sofia and Judit into world-class chess players. </p>
<p>Laszlo Polgar argued in his book that “genius equals work and fortunate circumstances” and “geniuses are made, not born.” If Fabiano defeats Magnus for the world title later this year, it will give further testimony in support of this idea of the power of parents to shape their children’s future outside the world of formal education – and chess will be at the center of the discussion.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/94149/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daaim Shabazz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>For Fabiano Caruana, the path to the world chess championship veered away from formal schooling. FAMU professor and chess writer Daaim Shabazz retraces the young grandmaster’s educational journey.Daaim Shabazz, Associate Professor of International Business, Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University Licensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/663592016-10-13T01:27:21Z2016-10-13T01:27:21ZShould I grade-skip my gifted child?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/141500/original/image-20161012-16242-6lwruw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">When should you let your gifted child skip grades?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-141206683/stock-photo-pupils-in-class-using-digital-tablet.html?src=QwXiFSL6QZhsJ1cIS5mL9w-1-13">Children image via www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The American school system puts students in grades based on age. However, for a large number of students, being with same-age peers in the classroom does not work.</p>
<p>A <a href="http://education.jhu.edu/edpolicy/commentary/PerformAboveGradeLevel">recent report</a> from Johns Hopkins University shows that about two out of every seven children are ready for a higher-grade curriculum. These children are not learning something new each day, and are likely bored in class. </p>
<p>This has serious implications: Research has shown that <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/files/attachments/56143/the-concept-educational-dose.pdf">greater intellectual stimulation</a> is important for helping talented kids achieve their full potential.</p>
<p>One effective way to help talented students remain intellectually challenged and engaged in school is to have them skip a grade. <a href="http://www.accelerationinstitute.org/research/grade_acceleration_wells_lohman_marron.pdf">Research shows</a> that about 1 percent of students grade-skip. Students can skip grades at any level, and they can even skip multiple grades. </p>
<p>Grade-skipping has led to many concerns. In particular, <a href="http://sengifted.org/archives/articles/should-gifted-students-be-grade-advanced">concerns have been raised</a> related to students’ social adjustment and emotional health.</p>
<p>We are scholars of gifted education. Our research – <a href="http://www.accelerationinstitute.org/nation_empowered/">A Nation Empowered</a> – shows many advantages to grade-skipping for talented students. However, students skipping grades need to be socially and emotionally ready for it.</p>
<h2>What studies show</h2>
<p>A <a href="http://www.accelerationinstitute.org/nation_empowered/">synthesis of many studies</a> by a professor of gifted education, <a href="https://www.stthomas.edu/celc/aboutthecollege/facultyandstaff/karen-b-rogers-phd.html">Karen B. Rogers</a>, on the impact of grade-skipping showed uniformly positive effects across a range of academic outcomes.</p>
<p>These outcomes included higher grade point average, school satisfaction, honors received, success on exams, number of university credits awarded, education level attained, income as an adult and innovations made.</p>
<p>When gifted students who grade-skipped were compared to similarly gifted students who did not grade-skip, the grade-skipped students came out ahead in all academic categories.</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/141495/original/image-20161012-16248-1qojr05.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/141495/original/image-20161012-16248-1qojr05.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141495/original/image-20161012-16248-1qojr05.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141495/original/image-20161012-16248-1qojr05.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141495/original/image-20161012-16248-1qojr05.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141495/original/image-20161012-16248-1qojr05.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141495/original/image-20161012-16248-1qojr05.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Grade-skippers have been found to do well academically.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/90974638@N05/8767899087/in/photolist-emMLVV-QXY1-dGwmqL-dLxmWe-88euwL-dHyKgx-dGwkNC-endnfQ-endofh-pWsidA-dLxmU8-dGwhhf-dArkVy-dGwjaL-6QbvCt-emMKPn-cNV6vm-ea8sX9-dAkUtR-6V8yDw-u8yLeS-che3bY-4ewqCq-dArnnw-jDeQXa-4z6P5D-oGrfMn-dArhnE-6webF-iKtVqz-dAkPiT-9rGyfZ-64WAea-6h7bUM-dAkPha-najQpW-53nouv-chcBLo-dLxmZB-84aCRm-5a1JcK-dLCU7y-chbe6Y-9GCbxv-51Fkxh-2U1QjU-6viwZc-28KrS-chckbN-aNS43g">MJGDSLibrary</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
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<p>For example, a <a href="http://gcq.sagepub.com/content/59/1/3.abstract">study</a> by K–12 educational research and policy expert <a href="http://www.questarai.com/about-us/leadership/leadership-katie-mcclarty/">Katie L. McClarty</a> found that grade-skippers were more likely than non-grade-skippers to have more prestigious jobs, higher earnings and job satisfaction. </p>
<p>Another study, by researchers <a href="http://gregorypark.org/">Gregory J. Park</a>, <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/publications/david-lubinski/">David Lubinski</a> and <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/publications/camilla-benbow/">Camilla P. Benbow</a>, that followed highly gifted children 40 years into their adulthood and examined the <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/files/2013/02/Park-Lubinski-Benbow-2013.pdf">long-term impact of grade-skipping</a> related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) came up with similar findings.</p>
<p>Grade-skippers were found to be significantly more likely to achieve Ph.D.’s, publish their first paper at an earlier age and achieve highly cited publications by age 50. Grade-skippers compared to non-grade-skippers were 1.6 times as likely to earn a doctorate of any kind, twice as likely to earn a STEM Ph.D., 1.6 times as likely to earn a STEM publication, and 1.6 times as likely to earn a patent.</p>
<h2>More social skills, better mental health</h2>
<p>However, there have been concerns whether grade-skippers are able to make <a href="http://www.accelerationinstitute.org/nation_empowered/">social and psychological adjustments</a>.</p>
<p>Psychologist <a href="http://www.nie.edu.sg/profile/neihart-maureen-frances">Maureen Neihart</a>, who <a href="http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.404.6692&rep=rep1&type=pdf">reviewed many studies</a> on the social and psychological outcomes of grade-skipping, concluded that there was no major positive or negative impact.</p>
<p>However, the <a href="http://www.accelerationinstitute.org/nation_empowered/">meta-analysis</a> by <a href="https://www.stthomas.edu/celc/aboutthecollege/facultyandstaff/karen-b-rogers-phd.html">Karen B. Rogers</a> described earlier showed, in fact, positive effects on a range of social and psychological adjustment outcomes, including greater social skills, maturity, peer acceptance, motivation and persistence. </p>
<p>Additionally, a <a href="http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ746290.pdf">20-year longitudinal study</a> by gifted education expert <a href="https://www.arts.unsw.edu.au/about-us/people/miraca-gross/">Miraca Gross</a> also found social and psychological benefits to grade-skipping. </p>
<p>Gross found that students who had skipped two or more grades (37 percent of the sample) in early elementary school had higher social self-esteem in childhood and built better social relationships later in life.</p>
<h2>Should I grade-skip my child?</h2>
<p>Overall, we found that grade-skipping is a highly effective method of challenging talented students and helping them stay engaged in school. We did not find any negative social or psychological impact of grade-skipping. </p>
<p>So how should parents and students decide whether or not to skip a grade?</p>
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<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/141498/original/image-20161012-16238-18p1lu4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/141498/original/image-20161012-16238-18p1lu4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141498/original/image-20161012-16238-18p1lu4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141498/original/image-20161012-16238-18p1lu4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141498/original/image-20161012-16238-18p1lu4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141498/original/image-20161012-16238-18p1lu4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/141498/original/image-20161012-16238-18p1lu4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
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<span class="caption">Should you grade-skip your gifted child?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-264079463/stock-photo-smart-toddler-reading-a-book.html?src=BtJPnsucZU8FE54XJRVRFA-3-51">Girl image via www.shutterstock.com</a></span>
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<p>The answer to this question depends largely on the degree to which students are bored in school and whether they are mature enough to be able to interact with older peers. It is not recommended for all gifted students.</p>
<p>Researchers have now developed <a href="https://www.accelerationinstitute.org/Resources/IAS.aspx">a scale</a> that can help a parent make such a decision for their child in kindergarten through eighth grade. The scale helps parents or teachers look at the main factors they need to consider when making such a decision. It also provides guidelines on how to weigh the relative importance of each of these factors. </p>
<p>Generally, decisions on whether to grade-skip center on academic and social readiness. Parents also need to understand that students can grade-skip at any point of their academic trajectory. For example, it could be as early as entrance to kindergarten or much later, such as <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02783193.2014.976324?journalCode=uror20">an early start to college</a>. <a href="http://www.accelerationinstitute.org/nation_empowered/">Research shows</a> the benefits are the same whatever the age.</p>
<h2>Decision carries costs</h2>
<p>Despite the positive evidence on grade-skipping, however, the number of students who are academically ready to grade-skip is much larger than the actual number of students that utilize this opportunity. This has costs for both schools and students. </p>
<p>Teaching millions of students content they already know <a href="https://edexcellence.net/articles/stop-wasting-money-teaching-millions-of-students-content-they-already-know">wastes tens of billions of dollars</a> each year.</p>
<p>For parents concerned about the negative impact on social and psychological adjustment, it may also be important to consider the potential fallout even when a student does not skip a grade.</p>
<p>Unchallenged students can become bored and disengaged from school and lose their joy of learning, and this can lead to underachievement. This can be a loss both for the student and for society.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/66359/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Wai is affiliated with the Duke University Talent Identification Program which serves talented students with educational programs.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>The original acceleration research was funded (2004-2010) by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. That funding made possible the production and dissemination of A Nation Deceived and the establishment of the Acceleration Institute.</span></em></p>About two out of seven children are likely bored in their classrooms, as they aren’t learning much that is new. Should these children skip grades? What’s the evidence on grade-skipping?Jonathan Wai, Research Scientist, Duke UniversityAnn Lupkowski Shoplik, Administrator, Acceleration Institute and Research, University of IowaSusan Assouline, Professor of Education, University of IowaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/569692016-04-01T10:20:04Z2016-04-01T10:20:04ZExplainer: What do child prodigies have in common with kids with autism?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/117004/original/image-20160331-28436-2tg64h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">'Benidorm, Spain' drawn in 1979 by Richard Wawro.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.wawro.net">MIke Wawro</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/">CC BY</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As a toddler growing up in the 1950s, Richard Wawro threw violent tantrums. Often, he would tap the same piano key for long stretches of time. </p>
<p>When he was three, his parents took him for testing at a nearby hospital. They were told that he was moderately to severely retarded. His family, however, never believed that his IQ was as low as the experts claimed. </p>
<p>A special education teacher began working with Richard when he was six. She introduced him to drawing with crayons, which he took to quickly. </p>
<p>He began filling sketchbooks (and the wallpaper of his Scotland home) with startlingly accurate depictions of cartoon characters like Yogi Bear. When Richard was 12, his artwork astounded a visiting artist who said that <a href="http://www.wawro.net/Richard_Wawro/Home.html">his drawings were created</a> “with the precision of a mechanic and the vision of a poet.” </p>
<p>Richard could never read or write well. His speech remained limited. But his involvement with the art world spurred his social development. He participated in dozens of exhibitions and became a <a href="http://www.wawro.net/Richard_Wawro/Home.html">well-known artist</a>. His artwork was celebrated by the media and in a documentary, “<a href="http://www.interactingwithautism.com/section/understanding/media/representations/details/23">With Eyes Wide Open</a>.” Both Margaret Thatcher and Pope John Paul II owned Wawro’s originals.</p>
<p>Richard was a savant, an individual with a spike in a particular ability combined with an impairment or disability. In Richard’s case, that underlying condition was autism. Autism is a condition characterized by social and communication challenges, like difficulty making eye contact or making conversation, along with repetitive behaviors or intense interests.</p>
<p>It turns out that many savants have autism. In <a href="https://www.wisconsinmedicalsociety.org/_WMS/publications/wmj/pdf/114/4/158.pdf">a 2015 paper</a>, the <a href="http://www.daroldtreffert.com/">savant expert Darold Treffert</a> reported that among the congenital savants in his registry, 75 percent had an autism spectrum disorder, a term used to describe a group of disorders with variable symptoms and severity. </p>
<h2>Exceptional memory and autism</h2>
<p>Not every autistic individual has extraordinary talents. </p>
<p>In fact, autism can be accompanied by serious challenges that last a lifetime (as was also the case for Wawro, whose family handled his daily living needs until he died at age 53). </p>
<p>But when the astounding abilities are there, they are often rooted in extreme memory, excellent attention to detail and passionate interests – traits also linked to autism. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/116980/original/image-20160331-28459-1rivsyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/116980/original/image-20160331-28459-1rivsyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116980/original/image-20160331-28459-1rivsyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116980/original/image-20160331-28459-1rivsyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=402&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116980/original/image-20160331-28459-1rivsyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116980/original/image-20160331-28459-1rivsyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116980/original/image-20160331-28459-1rivsyi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=505&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Many autistic kids show exceptional abilities.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/nolagrrlnyc/12426527025/in/photolist-jW6Ngz-jW7Ex4-jW6cxX-jW8BNL-jW8LVU-jW7skt-jW7fR6-jW9oH5-jW8SV9-jW8vxE-jW8bRF-jW8e5Z-jW6rFr-jW76Jk-jW7qdc-jW9iXJ-jW7X7r-jW72Lt-jW7hA8-jW83zk-jW94as-jW6mVK-jW9svA-jW7o6D-jW7Rp4-jW6kei-jWa2nY-jW71yR-jW8hSP-jW9H9d-jW7PBX-jW9XxJ-jW9Bwb-jW663c-jW9dbU-jW85hD-jW8mSH-jWa6cb-jW9qNC-jW6JgP-jW5Z1T-jW7ugc-jW9Nh9-jW9FbA-jW9PSy-jW7jwH">Valary</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>My work has been with child prodigies, those astounding individuals who <a href="http://www.cambridge.org/us/academic/subjects/psychology/personality-psychology-and-individual-differences/cambridge-handbook-intelligence?format=PB&isbn=9780521739115">perform at an adult-professional level</a> in a demanding field before adolescence.</p>
<p>In many ways, prodigies look a lot like savants. They have the same preternatural abilities. They have the same prolific output.</p>
<p>But there’s a key difference between the two. While in savants, these extreme abilities are paired with an underlying impairment or disability, prodigies don’t typically have any such disability.</p>
<p>Still, as I recount in my new book, <a href="http://www.prodigyscousin.com"><em>The Prodigy’s Cousin</em></a>, I have found the overlap between prodigy and autism to be striking. Even though prodigies are not typically autistic, they have the same excellent memories, extreme attention to detail, and passionate interests linked to autism and autistic savants. </p>
<p>The prodigies’ excellent memories were almost immediately apparent. When I investigated nine prodigies across <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160289603000503">two</a> <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160289612000761">studies</a>, each one scored in the 99th percentile for this ability. When this group was <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160289614000117">expanded to 18 prodigies</a> in a 2014 study, the prodigies’ average working memory score was 140 – north of the 95th percentile. </p>
<h2>Early work on autism</h2>
<p>Reports linking extreme memory and autism date back to the first published reports of Leo Kanner and Hans Asperger, the two scientists credited with identifying autism as an independent condition in the 1940s. </p>
<p>In his <a href="http://simonsfoundation.s3.amazonaws.com/share/071207-leo-kanner-autistic-affective-contact.pdf">landmark 1943 study</a>, Kanner remarked upon his subjects’ “excellent memory for events of several years before, the phenomenal rote memory for poems and names, and the precise recollection of complex patterns and sequences.” </p>
<figure class="align-right ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/116983/original/image-20160331-15137-2j5w70.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/116983/original/image-20160331-15137-2j5w70.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116983/original/image-20160331-15137-2j5w70.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116983/original/image-20160331-15137-2j5w70.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=500&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116983/original/image-20160331-15137-2j5w70.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116983/original/image-20160331-15137-2j5w70.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116983/original/image-20160331-15137-2j5w70.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=629&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Memory in autistic kids is complex.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/mimitalks/3929058892/in/photolist-eeYuz9-e8WJvG-bAHu2D-9iwGQh-8nxP38-eabCVj-3n3Da-e877Kt-e8eCxt-9uDjyh-7EaTnB-dx2PAt-8nxNMZ-bgvURc-8nDb6U-eabD11-cnjvCE-6fwaFg-72Vido-emJwqQ-6Z7mBD-72RkA2-72VigN-72Rkx8-6ZcsjG-ckVPa5-bBc99K-7EkRes-9XRFMM-2T3u2J-eaFjVg-dGVV2i-e8eCHc-a7dEAP-5YVJJZ-71Rpan-71VpGw-bY9bbq-59nr5L-659Kob-659KZN-Fmyhho-8BHQWj-H3Ejr-a4Bybf-7Qpxb3-a4yGqt-a4yFMp-uXnHLZ-vdGwsA">mimitalks, married, under grace</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>He included a report of a boy, Donald T., with “an unusual memory for faces and names,” who had memorized “an inordinate number of pictures in a set of <em>Compton’s Encyclopedia.</em>” Another, Charles N., could distinguish between 18 symphonies at age one-and-a-half.</p>
<p>Since Kanner’s time, scientists have found that memory in autism is complex. But in <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4544492/pdf/10803_2014_Article_2296.pdf">a 2015 study</a>, a team of researchers found that more than half of their 200 autistic subjects had notable memories. Treffert has described excellent memory as “integral” for savants in particular.</p>
<h2>Prodigies and autism</h2>
<p>As part of my 2012 study, the child prodigies I worked with were given the Autism-Spectrum Quotient, a self-administered test designed to measure autistic traits. On attention to detail, they outscored not only the controls, but also those with an autism spectrum disorder. </p>
<p>Attention to detail is another strength associated with autism. Some have described excellent attention to detail as “<a href="http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/364/1522/1377">a universal feature of the autistic brain</a>.” In 2006, the prominent autism researchers <a href="https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/francesca.happe.html">Francesca Happé</a> and <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/histmed/audio/neuroscience/frith">Uta Frith</a> concluded that there was strong evidence that autism was associated with superiority on “tasks requiring <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16450045">detail-focused processing</a>.” </p>
<p>Child prodigies are also exceptionally passionate about their area of expertise.</p>
<p>Such passionate interests are closely associated with autism. They are even part of autism’s diagnostic criteria.</p>
<p>This trait has been observed since the early days of autism research. Kanner’s 1943 paper includes a description of Alfred L., a child whose mother noted his tendency toward intense interests. As she put it: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>He talks of little else while the interest exists, he frets when he is not able to indulge in it (by seeing it, coming in contact with it, drawing pictures of it), and it is difficult to get his attention because of his preoccupation.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This sort of passion can result in prolific output, as it did for Richard Wawro, who created at least 2,453 pictures in his lifetime.</p>
<h2>Why do prodigies have autistic relatives?</h2>
<p>The link between prodigy and autism could be even deeper than we think. </p>
<figure class="align-left ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/116974/original/image-20160331-28436-a7goj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/116974/original/image-20160331-28436-a7goj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116974/original/image-20160331-28436-a7goj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116974/original/image-20160331-28436-a7goj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=409&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116974/original/image-20160331-28436-a7goj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116974/original/image-20160331-28436-a7goj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/116974/original/image-20160331-28436-a7goj9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=514&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Researchers have found that child prodigies often have an autistic relative.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/57570482@N06/5298664559/in/photolist-95e3nv-nmHVrj-o7mSCH-95e38R-dEzviH-95e3b4-5oJEgd-r2ePL8-riyfVM-qmFpEE-e8hRQ7-95h89u-95h8wA-egGkuQ-ymKb-2b6V4v-egGkmw-egAzxT-nEkiXh-od7hHi-9yuf1t-sjF7yj-e8WJvG-8hZ3vz-7SpLWf-aynp7X-eYLZnG-eYzzLe-eYzyqg-7kr8jQ-eYzxAT-eYM2rd-eYzCdv-gnbnR-eYzC3M-eYLZDh-eYLWRA-eYzxr8-dFUQ8a-eYzAvR-eYzCxe-eYzB2X-eYLZfb-eYzD5T-eYM19f-HhzaX-95h8v9-eYLWiy-95e378-eYzCnX">hepingting</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/">CC BY-SA</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In addition to drawing from a similar well of cognitive abilities, there appears to be a family link between prodigy and autism. In a study I conducted in 2012, more than half of the prodigies investigated had a <a href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160289612000761">close autistic relative</a>. In one instance, a prodigy had five autistic relatives. </p>
<p>Another study I conducted with colleagues at The Ohio State University suggests that prodigies and their autistic relatives may even share a <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25791271">genetic link</a>. We found evidence that the prodigies and their autistic relatives both had a mutation on chromosome one not shared by their non-prodigious, non-autistic relatives. </p>
<p>The same traits that are celebrated in prodigies – like their excellent attention to detail and the passionate interests – are often recognized as strengths in the context of autism, too, though <a href="http://aut.sagepub.com/content/4/4/406.abstract">sometimes families report</a> that the extreme nature of autistic interests can take a toll on family life. </p>
<p>This is a real challenge, as are other aspects of autism. Figuring out the best way to support those with autism and their families is essential. </p>
<p>But let’s remember the strengths of autism as well as the challenges.</p>
<p><em>Kimberly Stephens, coauthor of _The Prodigy’s Cousin, _contributed to this piece.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/56969/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Joanne Ruthsatz receives funding fromThe Ingram foundation funded my genetic research on autism. </span></em></p>Saturday, April 2, is World Autism Day. Many individuals with extraordinary ability have been found to have autism. Researchers have now found that many child prodigies have an autistic relative.Joanne Ruthsatz, Assistant Professor of Psychology, The Ohio State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/465942015-09-04T10:38:37Z2015-09-04T10:38:37ZHow do academic prodigies spend their time and why does that matter?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/93592/original/image-20150901-13412-1c01jj3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Nature or nurture?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/mkuram/4415231879/in/photolist-7JadBz-4tTyVH-kmuCH-3TqXAW-6pehjM-jKbCZc-re2kfd-o7PLgQ-aHMMA4-4k3RUH-bZ8WQW-6PunmW-4ca85Y-AqGGY-7pUUSd-jsUXM-6X5jZy-agB8YE-5q4j67-5y88QU-7TxRRt-5wdhpp-4k3RBe-nkGPbB-6nG5u2-e17StP-rYcPCT-moWb-oe8eeV-9xQP6c-5DhFfk-5NdUSd-adFV5a-85fhSE-4yHFEt-djaFxZ-bvnZm5-hK9GTe-6G18Mj-arDdbu-arDcwb-arDgqm-arDhoY-arDcPq-9Gmir6-qaNgsD-e4ZawY-av9Z7N-av9Bws-ava159">Madhavi Kuram</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell says that it takes <a href="http://www.newyorker.com/news/sporting-scene/complexity-and-the-ten-thousand-hour-rule">a decade of intense practice</a> – roughly 10,000 hours – to achieve mastery in any field. </p>
<p>So, how does this apply to gifted students? Do gifted students from different countries actually invest their time differently in accruing those 10,000 hours needed to become masters of their field? And, in comparison, how do students in the US fare?</p>
<p>As researchers of how academically gifted students develop talent, we recently surveyed academically advanced seventh grade students in the US and India. We found differences in culture and education practices between these two groups that could have significant economic implications. </p>
<h2>Who is putting in more academic hours?</h2>
<p>There have been numerous articles emphasizing how even the most academically advanced US students, compared to <a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/02/02/u-s-students-improving-slowly-in-math-and-science-but-still-lagging-internationally/">students from other (often Asian) countries</a>, are lagging on math and science subjects, when compared to their international peers. </p>
<p>US students are considered to have less of a focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) areas. A recent <a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/06/18/growth-from-asia-drives-surge-in-u-s-foreign-students/">Pew Research report</a> shows that international students outpace US students in earning STEM degrees. </p>
<p>India is second only to China in <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/news/asian-america/china-india-top-list-international-students-america-n378521">sending over 100,000 students</a> to universities in the United States. Pew found 38% of Indian students in the US are studying engineering and 26% are studying math and computer science.</p>
<p>Along with Duke University Talent Identification Program colleagues <a href="http://psychandneuro.duke.edu/people?subpage=profile&Uil=putallaz">Martha Putallaz</a> and <a href="http://www.psych.sc.edu/faculty/Patrick_Malone">Patrick Malone</a>, we surveyed 668 US and 353 Indian academically advanced seventh grade students one week after they participated in talent search testing. </p>
<p>One of the unique challenges of studying such rare individuals is finding samples large enough so that findings can reasonably generalize. This is what we were able to do in the current study. Our paper was <a href="http://gcq.sagepub.com/content/59/3/177.abstract">recently published</a> in the journal Gifted Child Quarterly.</p>
<h2>Neither exhausted nor sleep-deprived</h2>
<p>We asked these students how they spent their time both inside and outside of school, during the week and on the weekend across a variety of areas, including academics, electronics, sleep/family, and extracurricular activities.</p>
<p>We found these academically advanced US and Indian students spent very similar amounts of time on extracurricular activities and with family. Students from both countries reported sleeping over eight hours each night. </p>
<p>In “<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/29/opinion/frank-bruni-todays-exhausted-superkids.html?_r=0">Today’s Exhausted Superkids</a>,” journalist Frank Bruni argued that “many teenagers today are so hyped up and stressed out that they’re getting only a fraction of the [sleep] they need.” Our findings, based on our survey of over 1,000 academically advanced students, run counter to this idea.</p>
<p>On the weekend, we found that US students in our study spent essentially no time on academics, whereas Indian students did.</p>
<h2>Differences between US and Indian kids</h2>
<p>We were surprised to see that Indian students spent about seven hours more per week than US students on academics generally, with significantly more time spent on STEM subjects.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/93595/original/image-20150901-13419-uabb0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/93595/original/image-20150901-13419-uabb0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/93595/original/image-20150901-13419-uabb0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/93595/original/image-20150901-13419-uabb0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/93595/original/image-20150901-13419-uabb0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/93595/original/image-20150901-13419-uabb0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/93595/original/image-20150901-13419-uabb0p.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">KIds in the US are spending a lot more time on entertainment.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/kiezkicker/3713632593/in/photolist-6EakAa-9bBdFG-oR7oB7-8vEXcj-8vEXkh-8vBVYM-8vBVXt-a6BM2e-8vEXtU-8vBVJ2-8vBVL8-8vBVZr-8vBWgB-8vBWdB-8vEXGf-8vBW4Z-8vBW8g-8kqWBn-8uVTTM-8vBW9D-8vEXJ9-8vEXbY-8vEXvJ-8vEXjo-8vEXd9-8vBWbc-8vBVWt-8vBVPR-8vBVUB-8vBVYn-8vEXiu-8vEXpw-8vBWhi-8vEXuA-8kqUgt-8uYY6S-8uVTqx-8uYXBh-8uYX7w-8vEXmG-8vEXHs-8ku5Rw-8kqT5X-8kqUMp-4wbN6R-8uYX9q-8vEXxW-bjkWpv-8FeYCg-8x7oeJ">Stefan Roßkopf</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span>
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<p>Conversely, US students spent about seven hours more per week than Indian students using electronics (TV, internet, social media, video games, smartphone, music), most likely for entertainment.</p>
<p>Given that the typical Indian school year is about four to eight weeks longer, this means spread across a year, academically advanced Indian students spend about 400 to 600 more hours on academics (including STEM areas) each year than their US counterparts.</p>
<p>Such large academic gaps give Indian students a substantial head start in accumulating their 10,000 hours. This head start initially may not appear impactful, but just like compound interest, a consistent investment of time in STEM or other academic pursuits across a long period of time can develop into large differences in the development of expertise.</p>
<p>We also found US students had significantly less freedom in choosing how they spent their time during the week than their Indian peers and had more of the time determined by family. There were no significant differences on the weekend.</p>
<p>The amount of freedom students had to structure their time runs counter to the stereotype of the Asian “<a href="http://www.cnbc.com/2015/08/20/queen-of-the-tiger-moms-takes-on-singapore.html">Tiger Mom”</a> or dad, who are considered highly controlling and strict when it comes to kids and their academics.</p>
<p>Our findings also suggest that “<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/the-rise-of-the-helicopter-parent-2015-7">helicopter parenting</a>,” or the hovering parent who is especially concerned with educational aspects of their child’s life, may actually be more common in the US, especially when it comes to academically advanced students.</p>
<h2>Why focus on these kids?</h2>
<p>A focus on the development of the most academically advanced students in various countries is of great importance. These students will grow up to influence intellectual and economic outcomes.</p>
<p>Psychology professors <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/publications/david-lubinski/">David Lubinski</a> and <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/publications/camilla-benbow/">Camilla Benbow</a>’s Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/files/2013/02/WaiJEP20051.pdf">has demonstrated</a> that academically talented US students grow up to earn STEM PhDs, publications, patents, university tenure and even income at rates well above the general population. For example, these participants <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/files/2013/02/ParkPsychScience20081.pdf">earned STEM patents</a> at about 8.7 times the rate of the general population. </p>
<p>Researchers <a href="https://www.tu-chemnitz.de/hsw/psychologie/professuren/entwpsy/english/people/rindermann/cv.php?druck">Heiner Rindermann</a> and <a href="http://www.researchgate.net/profile/James_Thompson5/publications">James Thompson</a> too <a href="http://pss.sagepub.com/content/22/6/754.abstract">have shown</a> that the academically talented of each country tend to have a disproportionate impact on even gross domestic product (GDP) or a country’s wealth. </p>
<p>The researchers found that an increase of one IQ point among the academically talented raised the average GDP by US$468, whereas an increase of one IQ point among the average raised the average GDP by $229.</p>
<h2>There is a reason that US students are lagging in STEM</h2>
<p>Our study opens a window into understanding how academic prodigies in the US and India spend their time when they are young. This also helps us understand cultural values and how they might shape future talent. </p>
<p>The <a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2015/06/18/growth-from-asia-drives-surge-in-u-s-foreign-students/">Pew report</a> indicating that India sends huge numbers of their academically talented students to the US as graduate students in STEM fields suggests that many of these students more than adequately developed their talent in India, their home country, which then allowed them to enter prestigious STEM graduate programs in the US and seek greater opportunity.</p>
<p>One of the largest academic gaps we uncovered shows that US students tend to spend more time on electronics, whereas Indian students tend to spend more time on academics and STEM subjects. </p>
<p>If these findings are found to be consistent over the years, they could have important future implications for US students. </p>
<p>Author and journalist <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/why-stem-wont-make-us-successful/2015/03/26/5f4604f2-d2a5-11e4-ab77-9646eea6a4c7_story.html">Fareed Zakaria has noted</a> that too much of a US focus on STEM education may not necessarily be a good thing. At the same time, scholars <a href="http://edexcellence.net/about-us/fordham-staff/chester-e-finn-jr">Chester E Finn Jr</a> and <a href="http://edexcellence.net/about-us/fordham-staff/brandon-wright">Brandon L Wright</a> <a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/the-bright-students-left-behind-1440024541">recently argued</a> that we should be more concerned about other countries producing more scientific innovators. </p>
<p>Our study examined US academic prodigies, the precise population from which the <a href="https://my.vanderbilt.edu/smpy/files/2013/02/DoingPsychScience20061.pdf">nation’s preeminent future STEM workforce</a> is largely drawn from. And the fact is that US students may not be doing as good a job as other countries in accruing those 10,000 hours of practice to acquire mastery in whatever field they choose.</p>
<p>Other nations are fast racing ahead. So perhaps the US focus on increasing STEM education is not misplaced.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/46594/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jonathan Wai is is affiliated with Duke TIP, a non-profit dedicated to serving academically gifted and talented youth. Some of its programs and participants are discussed in this article.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Matthew C Makel is affiliated with Duke TIP, a non-profit dedicated to serving academically gifted and talented youth. Some of its programs and participants are discussed in this article.</span></em></p>Academically advanced students from countries such as India are spending much more time studying STEM subjects. Should US kids work harder to compete?Jonathan Wai, Research Scientist, Duke UniversityMatthew C. Makel, Gifted Education Research Specialist, Duke UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.