Curriculum Compacting
Gifted students often run the risk of boredom in class. Adding work for them to complete after they finish their regular work may seem even more monotonous. To save our kids from this draining cycle, why don't we start from the core and decide what they DON'T need in addition to what they DO need. The well-known strategy of curriculum compacting is described by Reis, Burns, & Renzulli as, "the process of identifying learning objectives, pretesting students for prior mastery of these objectives, and eliminating needless teaching or practice if mastery can be documented," (Riley, 2009, p. 641).
Curriculum compacting is a method that hones in on student's specific needs in the general education classroom. We decide what specific parts of a standard a teacher should focus on and which parts they should be receiving special services. Teachers can use a worksheet like the template included below to organize these notes.
Curriculum compacting is a method that hones in on student's specific needs in the general education classroom. We decide what specific parts of a standard a teacher should focus on and which parts they should be receiving special services. Teachers can use a worksheet like the template included below to organize these notes.
See below for an easy explanation of how to complete this worksheet!
(Reis, Burns, & Renzulli, 1992)
How do we know this is worth utilizing?
The National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented has shown the effectiveness of curriculum compacting in meeting the needs of gifted students. Here is some of their research data:
- Ninety-five percent of the teachers in their study successfully identified high-ability students and documented their strengths. For those areas not mastered, 80% of the teachers could document those, list appropriate instructional strategies for students to demonstrate mastery, and determine an appropriate mastery standard.
- Approximately 40-50% of traditional classroom material could be eliminated for targeted students in one or more of the following content areas: mathematics, language arts, science, and social studies. Mathematics and language arts were the most frequently compacted.
- When teachers eliminated as much as 50% of the regular curriculum for gifted students, the out-of-level postachievement test results in reading, math computation, social studies, and spelling were positively affected (Riley, 2009, p. 642).
Example of Curriculum Compacting
The two example attachments at the bottom of this page are based on the following realistic scenario. The example curriculum compacting unit contains a learning contract with which the student must agree and sign. This recommended strategy is common with curriculum compacting. It allows the teacher and the student to have a negotiated agreement about what the student will learn and how the process will be set up.
Curriculum Compacting Sample Student Scenario
Eileen
(Adapted from Reis, Burns, & Renzulli, 1992)
Eileen is a fourth grader in a self-contained classroom in a very small school located in an urban school district. Most of her twenty-four classmates are reading one to two years below grade level, while Eileen’s total reading and language arts scores range between three to four years above grade level. No other students in the class share an equivalent reading level with Eileen.
A pre-assessment was given to assess students’ knowledge of the parts of speech for the upcoming Language Arts unit. Eileen scored an 85% on the pre-assessment. Upon analysis of the assessment, Eileen missed questions related to prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.
Eileen completed an interest-alyzer and indicated that reading , writing, and history were the subjects she was most interested in studying. Specific topics she likes include influential women, government, and pets.
Visit this link to fourth grade Reading/ELA Common Core Performance Standards if needed: https://www.georgiastandards.org/Common-Core/Common%20Core%20Frameworks/CCGPS_ELA_Grade4_Standards.pdf
(Brown, 2014).
Curriculum Compacting Sample Student Scenario
Eileen
(Adapted from Reis, Burns, & Renzulli, 1992)
Eileen is a fourth grader in a self-contained classroom in a very small school located in an urban school district. Most of her twenty-four classmates are reading one to two years below grade level, while Eileen’s total reading and language arts scores range between three to four years above grade level. No other students in the class share an equivalent reading level with Eileen.
A pre-assessment was given to assess students’ knowledge of the parts of speech for the upcoming Language Arts unit. Eileen scored an 85% on the pre-assessment. Upon analysis of the assessment, Eileen missed questions related to prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections.
Eileen completed an interest-alyzer and indicated that reading , writing, and history were the subjects she was most interested in studying. Specific topics she likes include influential women, government, and pets.
Visit this link to fourth grade Reading/ELA Common Core Performance Standards if needed: https://www.georgiastandards.org/Common-Core/Common%20Core%20Frameworks/CCGPS_ELA_Grade4_Standards.pdf
(Brown, 2014).
| Example of Compactor Worksheet |
| Example of Curriculum Compacting Unit |
Resources
http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/siegle/curriculumcompacting/section0.html
http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/sem/pdf/curriculum_compacting.pdf
http://www.gifted.uconn.edu/sem/pdf/curriculum_compacting.pdf
References
Brown, K. (2014). Curriculum Compacting Sample Student Scenario [Word Document]. Retrieved from the University of Georgia: EPSY 7230.
Riley, S. (2009). Methods and materials for teaching the gifted (3rd ed.). Karnes, F. & Bean, S. (Eds.). Waco, TX: Prufrock Press.
Reis, S. M., Burns, D.E., & Renzulli, J.S. (1992). Curriculum Compacting: The complete guide to modifying the regular curriculum for high ability students [PowerPoint]. Mansfield Center, CT: Creative Learning Press.
