# data[].attributes.headline
1. What is Acceleration for Gifted Students?

# data[].attributes.subject
1. What is Acceleration for Gifted Students?

# data[].attributes.body
Acceleration is something that occurs for students that move through the curriculum or standard coursework at a faster pace than their peers. Acceleration means that these students (usually identified as Gifted and Talented learners) need more challenging coursework to intellectually stimulate their learning to the level that they need or that they need coursework that has elevated complexity. There are many different types of accelerated learning opportunities depending on your school district or state.

# data[].attributes.headline
2. Types of Acceleration and Their Effectiveness

# data[].attributes.subject
2. Types of Acceleration and Their Effectiveness

# data[].attributes.body
There are so many different types of acceleration available for learners. These include: subject acceleration, grade skipping, early entry, telescoping, and radial acceleration. Each type of acceleration has benefits and drawbacks, as acceleration is not "one-size fits all". One important thing to keep in mind when choosing the type of acceleration that is best for your learner is understanding that decisions for choosing a type of acceleration should be evidence-based. Keep in mind the academic evidence you gather as well as the social-emotional implications that will follow each acceleration choice.

# data[].attributes.body
Subject acceleration is a practice that allows students that are gifted in a certain area or subject to access more challenging content. This can be done in a few ways depending on the student's age, ability, and grade-level. For instance, elementary school students may be offered the chance to participate in the next grade level's curriculum. An example of this would be a fourth grader being allowed to participate in a fifth grade math class. They could also be put into a compacted class that has curriculum that moves as a faster pace. In middle and high school, a student might be placed in an Honors, GT, AP, or IB course that challenges their thinking with more complex ideas and concepts in the curriculum. Whatever the case, the student would be engaging with more challenging and enriching curriculum than their peers.

# data[].attributes.body
Grade acceleration allows a student that demonstrates a high-learner's ability to achieve academically to "jump" ahead to the next grade.Typically grade acceleration is offered to learners that are performing above grade-level across the board. This type of acceleration is different than subject acceleration as grade acceleration is for students who demonstrate a need to be challenged in all subjects, not just one. When students are stuck in class where they are consistently performing above grade-level across the board, they can often become bored, disinterested, and unmotivated in pursuing further learning. Although grade acceleration is not a highly utilized practice, it is a low-cost way to challenge and push students that are academically above their peers.

# data[].attributes.body
Many children that are ready to enter school when they are old enough to start kindergarten are already academically performing above their peers. Many state laws require students to wait until they turn a certain age to be able to attend Kindergarten. However, many children ready to enter school are already performing above the skills expected for Kindergarteners to learn by the end of the year. This could include being able to write, read, and complete math problems independently. Proponents of early entry into Kindergarten advocate that these students might already be socially, emotionally, physically, and intellectually mature than their peers. Ultimately parents and caregivers need to consider all facets of this decision to start their child early in Kindergarten. As long as a child is ready to be able to handle starting school early, experts argue that they should! Children can always be re-assessed and re-evaluated to have an ongoing determination of their needs.

# data[].attributes.body
Grade telescoping allows a student to progress through curriculum in a compacted amount of time. For instance, a high school student might complete their required coursework in only three years instead of the traditional four years. Research has shown that this has very little impact on the social or psychological development of the students. This is a relatively more common practice at the high school level for motivated learners to continue on with their careers or college sooner than their peers.

# data[].attributes.body
There are so many wonderful benefits to acceleration in gifted and talented education. Research has proven that limiting student's intellectual abilities on the premise that they need to stay with their peers can be detrimental to their development. Placing students based on their ability helps to encourage growth and pursuit of knowledge because they are given the change to take advantage of opportunities and progress at a pace that is compatible with their own ability. It does not make sense to hold students back because they need to be with similar-aged peers. Often gifted and talented learners can become isolated, disinterested, and unmotivated if they are not given opportunities to continuously challenge themselves.

# data[].attributes.body
Acceleration: What we do verses what we know. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) October 1992. https://www.ashland.k12.wi.us/cms/lib/WI01919643/Centricity/Domain/234/types%20of%20acceleration.pdf.

Acceleration. National Association for Gifted Children. Accessed April 2020. https://www.nagc.org/resources-publications/gifted-education-practices/acceleration

Bailey, S. (2004) Types of acceleration and their effectiveness. In Core Module 6: Developing programs and provisions for gifted students. In Stan Bailey, Miraca Gross, Bronwyn MacLeod, Graham Chaffey, Ruth Targett and Caroline Merrick. Professional Development Package for Teachers in Gifted Education. Canberra, Australia: Department of Education, Science and Training.

Bainbridge, Carol. Early Entry into Kindergarten for Gifted Children. VeryWell Family. June 29, 2019. https://www.verywellfamily.com/early-entry-into-kindergarten-for-gifted-children-1449046

Deardoff, Julie. Gifted Students Benefit from Ability Grouping, Acceleration. Northwestern School of Education and Social Policy. March 3, 2017. https://www.sesp.northwestern.edu/news-center/news/2017/01/gifted-students-benefit-from-ability-grouping,-acceleration.html

Deveraeux, James. Grade Acceleration Benefits Learners and Schools. So Why is it so Rare? Foundation for Economic Education. September 9, 2019. https://fee.org/articles/grade-acceleration-benefits-learners-and-schools-so-why-is-it-so-rare/

Fisher, Tamara. Subject Acceleration. Education Week Teacher. September 30, 2009. http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/unwrapping_the_gifted/2009/09/subject_acceleration.html