Poster #27 - Gifted Students, Curricular Networks, and Isolation

• In Event: 81.034 - MTCC Poster Session 20
  In Poster Session: 81.034-5 - Giftedness, Creativity, and Talent Development Poster Session

Abstract

Social network analysis in gifted education has been limited to only a few applications such as research on ability grouping and social isolation. This paper introduces the use of curriculum networks as an additional approach to use in gifted education. We first briefly outline social network analysis as a methodology and then apply this methodology to a school with a magnet program for gifted students. We show that while both gifted and non-gifted students have highly homophilous network positions, they are not necessarily differently connected to the school’s curricular network. Applications for future research on ability grouping and social isolation are then discussed.

Authors

• Geoffrey West, University of South Florida

• Steven Haberlin, University of South Florida - Tampa