Writing Circle 4

In the last writing circle my group discussed different organizational methods on how to write our papers.  I know that some people are telling their story and history first then connecting it to their research.  Originally I had my paper divided up into sections and would explain my assumptions from that section and then talk about the research that backs it up.  Another way suggested to go about it was to talk about the history and research first and then go back and make connections through personal experiences.  I don't think there is a right or a wrong way to go about it but different organizations may work better for different topics.

Another thing that helped me with my research is mine and Katie's discussion on meritocracy, since it also relates to her topic.  According to Spring, "meritocracy is a concept of society based on the idea that each individual's social and occupational position is determined by individual merit."(Spring 2011 p.270)  Giftedness relates to meritocracy because gifted children are getting ahead of other children based on their intelligence.  In my opinion meritocracy is good in a way because it recognizes that more intelligent people could be more capable but it also disadvantages the less intelligent.  I think all students should have the option to learn and grow with the same methods but just at their own pace.  

Katie also asked me the question is IQ the only way to recognize giftedness? Although I do believe that IQ tests are good indicators of intelligence, it is not the only option.  Testing for Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences could also be used to test for giftedness.  His idea is that everyone has degrees of his multiple intelligences but they vary. (Santrock p.117) This backs up my assumption that it may help students to just be in domain specific gifted classes that only cater to their one or couple gifted areas.

Santrock, John W. (2012). Adolescence. New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc.

Spring, Joel (2011). The American School: A Global Context from the Puritans to the Obama Era. New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc.