Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 5, Number 7, 1 July 1988 — For Gifted and Talented Students [ARTICLE]

For Gifted and Talented Students

Waiakea High Has Uniaue Hawaiian Studies Program

By Deborah Lee Ward, Assistant Editor Ka Wai Ola O OHA A unique program in Hawaiian studies is opening new horizons for students at Waiakea High School in Hilo, as it recognizes their special talents, and enhances their self-esteem and cultural pride. Headed by Pnneipal Danford Sakai, Waiakea is presently the only secondary school in Hawaii with Hawaiian studies and language classes for gifted and talented students. The classes are taught by Paula De Morales, chairman of the Asian and Pacific language department and the school's gifted and talented program coordinator. While she has worked before with individual gifted students during recess or a regular class, this is the first year she has been able to have these students together in eaeh class. This is due to a legislative appropriation in April 1987, that funds at least one halftime gifted and talented teacher position in every secondary school (grades 7-12) in the State Department of Education (DOE) system. Providing these teachers for the typically small gifted and talented (GT) classes allowed many new classes to be launched in the 1987-1988 school year, whieh otherwise could not meet. In addition to the Hawaiian classes, Waiakea also offers special "GT" classes in music, arts, electronics, language arts, social studies, and advanced courses in Latin and French. The special Hawaiian GT classes were formed to encourage advanced Hawaiian studies. With the help of Jan Jenner, resource specialist, DOE Hawaii District Office, the two educators eame up with a program to meet the federal criteria for a gifted program. Jenner works with the 20 Big Island secondary schools with gifted programs. Gifted and talented students, she says, enjoy learning, demonstrate above average achievement, high creativity and strong desire to be productive in a given academic or artistic field, such as Hawaiian studies or language. Students are also selected on the basis of their cumulative grades in Hawaiian studies or social studies, and their ability to formulate a plan for study and projects to complete during the class. In De Morales' directed Hawaiian studies GT class for juniors and seniors, five haumana researched topics of their ehoiee and at semester end completed a project — research paper, music, drama or artwork — that they shared with the rest of the group. Third and fourth year Hawaiian language GT students worked with Punana Leo of Hawaii preschoolers, with university Hawaiian language tutors, went on excursions, worked on crafts projects, in addition to taking a required Hawaiian studies class. One student even advanced to a second-year Hawaiian language university course with credit through early admission. De Morales adds that GT classes, especially tjie music class, recognize students' special abilities whieh otherwise might not be noticed or developed. Here is a ehanee for them to "feel more comfortable with themselves," she notes, "because they develop a sense of pride and recognize their opportunity to do their best at whatever they want to do."

Her class may be a good model for future GT Hawaiian studies programs in Hawaii high schools, and she hopes to keep improving it. De Morales says she tries to give students the opportunity to do their best, yet apply their talent to sharing with peers so they don't feel uncomfortable "standing out." Next year she hopes to have a student write a play and another one in the GT music class do a project with a University of Hawaii at Hilo faculty member. She and Jenner acknowledged the kokua of UH Hilo staff in advising and assisting their students. Some of the students were recently interviewed for a video, "Education: A Hawaiian Point of View," in whieh they shared how they feel in school, what is important to them, and what stereotypes they face. This video was shown to educators attending a seminar on education needs of Hawaiians held in

May at the University of Hawaii, Hilo campus (see related story this issue). While enumerating various negative stereotypes of the "hardhead, dumb Hawaiian," that they have faced from teachers, administrators and in the community, the students affirmed their feelings that "We are not lazy, not dumb . . . You do what you ean do." They revealed a sense of pride in eul-

tural knowledge and a desire to "go out and do" instead of sitting in the classroom. It was clear they want to leam Hawaiian ways and about the example of Hawaiians in times past who took care of themselves. They added their wish that schools would have more ohana style teaching, more Hawaiian culture classes and more Hawaiian teachers.