Webster University: Advanced Graduate Certificate in Gifted Education and Talent Development

Advanced Graduate Certificate: Gifted Education and Talent Development

Program Description

The advanced graduate certificate (AGC) in gifted education and talent development provides training on how to identify, understand, nurture, and develop the talents of young people. As suggested by the American Psychological Association Center for Gifted Education Policy, the Webster University program uses a broad definition of gifted and seeks to “enhance the achievement and performance of children and adolescents with special gifts and talents in all domains.” As suggested by the National Association for Gifted Children-Council for Exceptional Children (NAGC-CEC), educators of gifted need to understand “issues in conceptions, definitions, and identification of individuals with gifts and talents, including those of individuals from diverse backgrounds… [and they need to] promote and advocate for the learning and well-being of individuals with gifts and talents.”

This advanced graduate certificate is for educators who already have a master’s degree and some experience with assessment and/or gifted education. This eighteen credit hour advanced certificate is for those who wish to make an even greater contribution at their workplace. Graduate students are encouraged to assume advocacy roles, to participate in professional organizations concerned with gifted education, and to contribute to professional conferences and publications.

See also:

Requirements

1. Any Webster University graduate courses taken that are not applied toward a graduate or undergraduate degree, may be counted toward the completion of an Advanced Graduate Certificate (AGC) program provided that the courses are appropriate and relevant to that specific Advanced Graduate Certificate.

2. All AGC coursework must have a grade of B- or better.

3. Any graduate coursework completed may not be counted to two different certificate programs.

4. Courses may not be transferred from another university into any Webster University Advanced Graduate Certificate (AGC) program.

Choose at least one course (3 hours) from each of the following three clusters:

Cluster One: Identification and assessment of gifted and talented students

EPSY 5970 The Gifted Learner (3 hours)

EPSY 5930 Screening, Assessing, and Evaluating Gifted Students (3 hours)

EPSY 5990 Identifying Giftedness in Underserved Populations (3 hours)

SPED 5360 Psychoeducational Assessment II (3 hours)
Prerequisites: SPED 5240 Psychoeducational Assessment I and EPSY 5990 Identifying Giftedness in Underserved Populations OR EPSY 5991 Issues in Assessment: Cultural and Linguistic Diversity. Admission to the AGC program in Gifted Education and Talent Development.

Cluster Two: Social, emotional, and motivational development of gifted and talented students

EPSY 5920 Meeting the Affective Needs of Gifted Children (3 hours)

EPSY 5980 Motivation in the 21st century classroom (3 hours)

EPSY 5150 Resilience and Self-Concept Development (3 hours)

EPSY 5100 Theories of Creativity: Implications for Education (3 hours)

Cluster Three: Curriculum, instruction, and professional leadership

EPSY 5910 Curriculum and Instruction for the Gifted (3 hours)

EPSY 5880 Psychology of Memory, Learning, and Problem-solving (3 hours)

EPSY 5750 Special Institute: Gifted Education and Response to Intervention (RtI) (3 hours)

EPSY 5940 Systems Leadership: Gifted Program Planning and Evaluation (3 hours)

Required course: EPSY 6000 Advanced Graduate Certificate Project: Gifted and Talented Students (3 hours)

To complete the 18-hour Advanced Graduate Certificate, choose two electives from EPSY and/or SPED (6 hours).

Admission

Students who are interested in applying to this program should also see the Admission Section found in the front of this catalog for general requirements.

Admission Requirements

Master’s degree in educational psychology or related area
Satisfactory completion of admissions essay
Overall GPA of 3.0
An essay is required as part of the application. Please see the School of Education Essay Requirements page for information regarding this requirement.

Send all required admission materials to

Webster University
Office of Admission
470 East Lockwood Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63119

Course Descriptions

EPSY 5100 Theories of Creativity: Implications for Education (3)

In this course students will examine contemporary theories of creativity and creativity development and their implications for education and educational psychology. They will learn how to model creative behavior and encourage creative expression in others. Students enrolled in this course will test creativity theories by (a) applying them to their own past experiences with creative endeavors, (b) by determining to what extent the theories can adequately explain the emergence of extraordinary inventions, breakthroughs, and works of art and (c) by producing a creative product, project, or presentation.

EPSY 5150 Resilience and Self-Concept Development (3)

The purpose of this course is to provide theoretical frameworks, specific concepts, and teaching strategies that help enhance student engagement, self-concept development, interpersonal understanding, and psychosocial resilience in the classroom.

EPSY 5750 Special Institute (3)

Webster offers various institutes to provide a wide range of workshop experiences and contemporary topics within the applied educational psychology program. May be repeated for credit if content differs. For more specific and current information, see the current course offerings.

EPSY 5880 Psychology of Memory, Learning and Problem-solving (3)

Students examine current research concerning cognitive psychology, memory, reasoning, problem-solving, and learning systems. Emphasis is placed on studying metacognitive strategies and the development of expertise.

EPSY 5910 Curriculum and Instruction for the Gifted (3)

Students study the basic premises of curriculum design and classroom structure appropriate for gifted and talented students. A variety of curriculum models and strategies for teaching the gifted are discussed.

EPSY 5920 Meeting the Affective Needs of Gifted Children (3)

This course reviews the affective needs of gifted students and ways to provide services to meet those needs. Students study the social and emotional development of the gifted child. They address the issues of self-esteem, underachievement, leadership, and social relationships, and discuss helping the families of gifted children.

EPSY 5930 Screening, Assessing, and Evaluating Gifted Students (3)

This course is for graduate students who are pursuing certification in gifted education. Theory of testing, analysis of standardized tests, development of testing procedures, and analysis of test data for the gifted are covered. Emphasis is on intelligence testing, assessment of creativity, and interpretation and integration of test data. Prerequisite: Permission of instructor.

EPSY 5940 Systems Leadership: Gifted Program Planning and Evaluation (3)

This course offers an understanding of administration and supervision of gifted programs and provides students already familiar with the educational theory and models in gifted education with an overview of the skills needed to plan and supervise a defensible program for gifted and talented students. Topics in identification, curriculum design, in-service preparation, grant writing, and community relations are covered.

EPSY 5970 The Gifted Learner (3)

Participants in this course examine current issues in the field of education for the gifted. Programs, teaching methods, and curriculum for the gifted are presented in the course. Multicultural and international perspectives on giftedness are stressed.

EPSY 5980 Motivation in the 21st Century Classroom (3)

This course examines current thinking, theory, and practice regarding achievement motivation. Students will review theories of motivation, including social cognitive, self-determination, goal orientation, and “flow” theory. Implications of these theories for the classroom will be studied, and practices that derive from these theories and concepts will be developed in a course project.

EPSY 5990 Identifying Giftedness in Underserved Populations (3)

In this course students will gain knowledge and improve personal skill levels in the areas of multicultural assessment in order to serve gifted and talented learners from diverse linguistic, geographic, economic, and cultural backgrounds. Structured as a seminar, discussions include professional issues in psychoeducational examination, reviews of past discriminatory practices that have unfairly influenced the assessment of learning, recommendations for modifying traditional assessment procedures, and ways to stress children’s cultural strengths rather than their cultural deficits.

EPSY 6000 Advanced Graduate Certificate Project (3)

The advanced graduate certificate (AGC) project is the culminating experience in the AGC program. These projects are based on applied field research at the student’s own workplace or practicum placement. Projects may be professional presentations or professional papers. Examples of final projects include a professional presentation or demonstration for other graduates students, a school district, a local board of education, a community group, a professional organization, or a professional conference; or a paper or research project that might be published or distributed within appropriate schools, community groups, professional organizations or professional journals.

SPED 5240 Psychoeducational Assessment I (3)

This course examines assessment of students with learning difficulties. A review of the statistical properties of standardized instruments and the social and legal issues in testing is presented to provide a framework from which students examine instruments of intelligence, language, perception, motor skills, academics, and behavior. The information derived from these instruments is used to determine specific strengths and weaknesses in individual students using a case-study approach.

SPED 5360 Psychoeducational Assessment II (2)

This course is designed to provide students with skills in administering, scoring, and interpreting individual assessment instruments. With the consent of the instructor, each student selects one or more assessment tools to administer and score. Interpretation focuses on the information provided by the instrument(s) administered and how this information fits into a total assessment battery. Prerequisite: SPED 5240.