The Extent, Nature and Effectiveness of Planned Approaches in ...

trace a relationship between this and the tall poppy syndrome thereby placing the blame onMäori for this kiwi disease (p. 9).A final issue relating to placement and provisions is “the question, where choice exists, as to whethergifted Mäori students are better placed in bilingual or streamed, gifted classes” (Keen, 2002a, p. 17).This issue was also raised by Bevan-Brown (1993, 2000a), Doerr (2000) and Galu (1998). Doerrinterviewed a parent whose child was faced with the choice of placement in the bilingual unit or theaccelerate class. The parent commented:The underlying message was that one is either Mäori or intelligent, and cannot be both shesaid. She had to decide from the conflicting positions both as a mother wanting the best forher child and as an advocate of bilingual education … She also mentioned that if abilingual student is intelligent and moves from the bilingual unit to the top stream class,what kind of message is it sending to the students left in the bilingual unit? (p. 375).Reo-related issues. Participants in Bevan-Brown’s (2002) research believed that gifted and talentedchildren had ‘special needs’ and so should be provided for under the auspices of special education inNew Zealand. Giftedness: “was viewed as a special need in that the processes, services, expertise andresources needed to challenge and extend gifted children were considered to be lacking in our presenteducation system – both in English-medium and Mäori-medium facilities” (Bevan-Brown, 2002,p.266).While gifted children in Mäori -medium education had the advantage of being provided with aculturally appropriate education they faced problems unique to their educational circumstances. Thesewere the inability of many bilingual and total immersion teachers to extend students gifted in te reoMäori because of their own limitations in the language, the lack of written resources in Mäori toenable gifted students to do in-depth studies in certain subjects and areas and, as one participantdescribed, the lack of Mäori words to describe certain specialised concepts and phenomena: “I justkept hitting blank walls. The words weren’t there” (Bevan-Brown, 2002, p. 275).RecommendationsThe literature contains a number of recommendations for improving education for gifted minoritystudents. Because many recommendations address problems associated with both identification andprovision they have been presented together.The provision of culturally appropriate programmes in a culturally supportive environment. Bevan-Brown (1993, 1994, 1996, 2000a, 2002, 2003); Cathcart (1994); Cathcart and Pou (1992); Doidge(1990); McKenzie (2001); Milne (1993); Niwa, (1998/99); Jenkins (2002); and Reid (1992) all makethe point that a prerequisite for the successful identification of gifted Mäori and other Polynesianstudents is the provision of a supportive learning environment which reflects and values culturaldiversity. It is in such an environment that student’s gifts and talents will emerge, in fact, Jenkins(2002) reports that a fundamental message from participants in her research is:…the critical liaison between cultural relevance and the manifestation of gifts. Bothwhänau and staff perceived the demonstration, recognition and development ofgifts/abilities to be inextricably linked to the relevance of the environment to Mäoristudents’ cultural, socio-emotional, spiritual, cognitive and physical realities; the strongerthe match the greater the likelihood that Mäori students’ gifts/abilities would surface andbe recognised (p. 51).Similarly, being culturally responsive is advocated in the literature as an effective means of providingfor gifted minority students. For example, programmes that are described as successfully catering forgifted and talented Mäori and other Polynesian students at Kedgley Intermediate (Anderson, 1990),Manurewa Intermediate (Doidge, 1990), Clover Park Intermediate (Milne, 1993) and Clover ParkMiddle School (Jenkins, 2002) have a number of components in common. These are an environmentwhere students’ culture and values are acknowledged and celebrated and a programme where the136