NRC/GT Overview
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The National Research Center
on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT)
The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented (NRC/GT) is a research center affiliated with the academic program of gifted education at the University of Virginia’s Curry School of Education.
Overview
The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented conducts research on methods and techniques for identifying and teaching gifted and talented students and for using gifted and talented programs and methods to serve all students. It also conducts program evaluations and surveys. As part of its work, the center collects, analyzes, and develops information about gifted and talented education. Emphasis is given to the identification of and services for students not traditionally included in gifted and talented education, including individuals with limited English proficiency, individuals with disabilities, and individuals living under economically disadvantaged conditions.
NRC/GT Mission
The mission of NRC/GT is to plan and conduct a program of high quality research that is theory-driven, problem-based, practice-relevant, and consumer-oriented. Our mission includes a broad based dissemination function that targets practitioners, parents, and policy makers as well as other researchers. Our mission also includes the formation of a community of scholars that works cooperatively to advance the scientific contributions to our field. There are three major components of the mission of the NRC/GT. First and foremost, our research emphasizes factors related to identifying, nurturing, and developing a broad range of talent potentials in students from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. Second, our research examines the larger contexts of school and community in which studies are conducted, and examines how contextual factors influence research and why certain outcomes were or were not achieved. Third, our mission includes the creation of a nationwide cooperative of researchers, practitioners, policy makers, and other persons and groups that have a stake in maximizing high level performance in all of our young people. In this regard, the Center serves as a vehicle for providing the kinds of intellectual and practical leadership necessary for simultaneously advancing theory, research, and practice; and for raising the consciousness of researchers and practitioners about the need for higher quality research in our field. It also serves as an integrated forum for pooling resources and for gathering and exchanging information among all persons interested in the development of gifted behaviors and high-end learning opportunities.
NRC/GT Research Agenda
The Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Education Program gives highest priority to identifying and serving high potential students who may not be identified through traditional assessment criteria, including individuals of limited English proficiency, individuals with disabilities, and individuals from economically disadvantaged groups. Since 1990, theory-based models of identification, alternative assessment, programming, evaluation, professional development, curriculum, and intelligence have been the hallmarks of our quantitative and qualitative research portfolio.
NRC/GT Consortium
The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented is funded by the Jacob K. Javits Gifted and Talented Students Education Act. We are a nationwide cooperative of researchers, practitioners, policy makers, and other persons and groups that have a stake in developing the performance and potentials of young people from preschool through postsecondary levels. Our consortium consists of:
- 2 Core Research Universities – the University of Connecticut and the University of Virginia
- Over 360 Collaborative School Districts representing every state and two territories (Guam and U.S. Virgin Islands)
- Content Area Consultant Bank that consists of over 165 researchers throughout the United States and Canada
- 20 Senior Scholars at Collaborating Universities
- 52 State and Territorial Departments of Education
NRC/GT Collaboration
Preexisting arrangements with over 360 multiethnic and demographically diverse school districts throughout the nation allows us easy access for research studies in over 8,000 schools and classrooms (5.4 million students) across the nation. The formation of a critical mass also comes into play in our consortium through cooperation with the state and territorial education agencies and the Content Area Consultant Bank. Access to researchers who have already made a commitment to assist the Center greatly expands the repertoire of expertise at our disposal. Membership in the NRC/GT consortium has created an atmosphere of ownership and involvement in a national effort, and this attitude has resulted in proactive steps to disseminate information both within members' own districts and agencies, and to other persons and agencies who can benefit from the work of the Center.