Developing Mathematical Talent: They Don't Have to Be Bored to Tears
By Dr. Ann Lupkowski-Shoplik, Carnegie Mellon Institute for Talented Elementary Students
Delivered on Thursday, May 18, 2006
On Thursday, May 18, 2006, Ann Lupkowski-Shoplik, Ph.D., a researcher in the field of gifted education and current Director of the C-MITES (Carnegie Mellon Institute for Talented Elementary Students) Program at Carnegie Mellon University delivered an online presentation entitled, "Developing Mathematical Talent: They Don't Have to Be Bored to Tears." The session was sponsored by the Pennsylvania Department of Education - Gifted Education in partnership with the Center for Schools and Communities.
Dr. Shoplik's presentation focused on the foundation for building a program for math-talented students and provided information regarding assessing students’ abilities and achievements. Dr. Shoplik shared details on matching curriculum to student needs, conducting evaluation to monitor progress, and utilizing long-term scope and sequence planning that keeps students engaged in learning. The training also offered ideas and tools for designing a challenging curriculum for mathematically talented students.
View the recorded online presentation
(Note: In order to view the recorded presentation, you must have the Elluminate Live! Java application downloaded to your personal computer. There is no cost to download the software.)
Handouts for this session (in PDF format):
Other Resources:
About the Presenter:
Ann Lupkowski-Shoplik is the director of the Carnegie Mellon Institute for Talented Elementary and Secondary Students (C-MITES). She earned a Ph.D. in educational psychology from Texas A&M University and then completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth at Johns Hopkins University with Julian Stanley. She was also an assistant professor and director of the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth at the University of North Texas. In 1992, she founded the Carnegie Mellon Institute for Talented Elementary and Secondary Students (C-MITES) at Carnegie Mellon University, where she continues to conduct research and develop programs on behalf of academically talented youth. She conducts the annual Elementary Student Talent Search throughout Pennsylvania and oversees the C-MITES summer programs and Weekend Workshops for academically talented students in 9th grade and younger. Her research interests include identifying mathematically talented students younger than age 12 and studying their characteristics and academic needs. She has published many articles on gifted education in scholarly journals. Together with Susan Assouline, she wrote Jane and Johnny Love Math: Recognizing and Encouraging Mathematical Talent in Elementary Students as well as Developing Math Talent. She is also a coauthor of the Iowa Acceleration Scale with Susan Assouline, Nicholas Colangelo, Jonathan Lipscomb, and Leslie Forstadt.