There鈥檚 little disagreement that the past year-plus has had its share of challenges and obstacles brought on by the pandemic. While few demographics were spared, student were hit especially hard by the demands of virtual school and the almost complete lack of campus and outside activities and socialization with friends and classmates. Until very recently, this year鈥檚 graduating class of high school seniors were pretty much 鈥渇lying blind鈥� to quote a CDB Scholar when it came to visiting any college and university. And those rare campuses that did allow visitors on site offered no campus tours, in person interviews or informational sessions outside of Zoom webinars, with their student community attending virtual classes.

High school seniors also faced the reality that many of the nation鈥檚 highly selective colleges and universities dealt with a surge in applications, as the previously mandated SAT and ACT tests were optional for the 2021 application year. This resulted in applicants who previously would not have met test standards stipulated at certain universities and colleges took the attitude of 鈥渨hat do I have to lose?鈥� and applied to schools that in another year might have been out of reach by virtue of their test scores.

In spite of this changing college application landscape, the CDB high school seniors鈥攖he class of 2021鈥攑ersevered and figured out alternative ways to conduct their college research. As a class, they applied to over sixty colleges and universities in the United States and abroad. Many of the senior Scholars reached out to CDB alumni who currently attend the colleges and universities they were interested in learning more about from insiders at the various schools. I was delighted to hear back from many CDB seniors that the CDB alumni not only responded to their inquiries by phone, email and Zoom sessions, but also reached out to them to let the seniors know who they were and what particular schools they attend to start a dialogue. As more schools opened up in April and May, some of the seniors were able to visit the colleges where they were admitted and meet with CDB alums in person鈥攎asked and safely socially distanced.

This year鈥檚 CDB seniors will matriculate to colleges and universities throughout the United States and abroad, schools that match their academic interests and offer them the opportunity to pursue ongoing areas of interest as well as many course possibilities to explore. One CDB  Scholar will be taking a gap year and plans to pursue advanced educational and service projects before starting college in 2022. Another CDB Scholar will be attending Oxford University in England.

CDB Scholars from the class of 2021 have been recognized with multiple academic, service and achievement awards and recognition including Presidential Scholars, National Merit Scholar Finalists, Valedictorians and Saluditorians of their class as well as matriculating to honors programs at their upcoming colleges and universities.

CDB welcomed ten new schools and programs to our international list of colleges and universities attended by CDB Scholars since the inaugural class of 2002 Scholars. Here is a list of the schools and programs the CDB class of 2021 will attend this coming fall. Several Scholars are still deciding among their admission options:

• Brown University
• Brown University鈥檚 PLME program (an eight year program for students who are committed to a career in medicine and who also want a broad liberal arts education)
• Bryn Mawr College
• Columbia University
• California University of Technology
• Columbia University
• Georgetown University
• George Washington University
• Harvard College
• Macalister College
• Oxford University
• Stanford University
• University of Florida Stamps Scholar Program
• University of Pennsylvania
• University of Pennsylvania Management and Technology Program
• University of Texas  Agriculture and Mechanical Honors Program
• Washington and Lee University
• Webb Institute
• Wellesley College
• Whitman College

The 优蜜视频 and CDB communities wish our graduating high School seniors a successful and engaging next chapter of their lives and look forward to staying in contact with them as they continue to thrive.

is a very inspirational TEDx Talk by Scott Barry Kaufman, a researcher at the University of Pennsylvania, author and speaker.

The premise of his talk is:

鈥淒o standard tests (like I.Q.) lie about how smart you really are? Do they show what you can really achieve? In this paradigm-shifting talk, Kaufman presents a new theory of human intelligence. Scott Barry Kaufman is deeply interested in using psychological science to help everyone鈥� all kinds of minds鈥� live a creative, fulfilling, and meaningful life. A main takeaway from his work is that everyone is capable of creativity, the key is finding the thing that will let them shine the most.鈥�

Kaufman can easily be called an expert on this topic. He has written, edited and co-authored several books pertaining to intelligence, the creative mind, gifted and twice-exceptional learners. He has also done research on different ways of identifying giftedness, high-ability and creativeness. In this presentation, he discusses a new theory of human intelligence that uses a holistic approach to learning, one that recognizes the capacity within each child.聽 Too often, institutions rely almost exclusively on IQ and standardized tests, which result in teaching practices that are rigid, unyielding and undifferentiated.聽 According to Kaufman, such practices lead to the type of teaching that does not encourage motivation, engagement or finding one鈥檚 passion.

Watch and listen carefully to how he describes his own educational experience as a young student. You will be amazed, perplexed and even saddened to hear about his journey, but eventually be impressed by his resilience, determination and perseverance. Kaufman is able to approach the topic from the perspective of both a researcher and a former disillusioned student, making the talk resonate from multiple angles.

What do you think of Kaufman鈥檚 theory of human intelligence? Share your thoughts in the comments!

Like this post?聽聽to receive more stories, information, and resources about gifted youth straight to your inbox.

Mark Erlandson, the parent of a gifted student who presently attends a boarding school out East, is a former lawyer and public high school English teacher from Wisconsin starting a new business as a legal writing consultant.

Grit. I鈥檒l admit I didn鈥檛 have it. Twice now I have put this blog down and stopped writing because I felt uninspired and bored. Weeks have gone by, and too many times to count I have ignored that voice telling me the deadline was approaching and I needed to get finished. So how essential is grit to success, and more importantly, how do we teach our children to get it?

鈥淕rit,鈥� otherwise known as persistence or determination, is currently a passion (some would call it a fad) in certain educational circles today. Angela Duckworth, a University of Pennsylvania psychologist, is a leading advocate of the importance of tenacity in life. Watch for a fascinating explanation of the results of her research in the area. Basically, she concludes, based, among other things, on her research of West Point graduates and National Spelling Bee contestants, that what correlates with success most is grit, not intelligence. Similarly, in the area of gifted students, the most famous study, conducted by University of Connecticut psychologist Joseph Renzuli, director of the National Research Center on the Gifted and Talented, concluded that 鈥渢ask commitment,鈥� together with ability and creativity, was, indeed, one of the three essential components of giftedness.

Duckworth believes that grit can be quantified. Her University of Pennsylvania website has a . (My score was a 2.25 on a scale of 1 – 5 ,with 5 being the grittiest, and concluded I am 鈥済rittier than at least 1% of the U.S. population.鈥� Ouch, no wonder I can鈥檛 finish this blog.)

So what can we do to ensure our children will have grit when they need it?

First, stop praising your child for his or her intelligence. A Stanford University study found that children praised for their intelligence learned to care more about their grades than about learning on subsequent tasks, and after failing, they were less persistent than their unpraised peers. Instead, praise your children for their hard work and determination. Also emphasize to your children that intelligence can be improved through hard work. Another Stanford study concluded that students who believed that intelligence is malleable earned better grades during the next two years than those who believed that intelligence was fixed. (Carol Dweck, a Stanford University psychology professor, has a designed to measure to what extent you believe that success comes from effort rather than innate intelligence or talent.)

Next, show kids the effect of grit in the real world. Everyone, for example, has heard the story of how Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team but continued to practice. Other examples might include Steve Jobs, who failed at several Apple projects and ended up losing control of the company for several years, and Andrew Wiles, a mathematician who ultimately proved Fermat鈥檚 Theorem after years of failure. Of course, as always, modeling for your children where you have used grit to be successful may be the best teacher. (Maybe I can get my daughter to read this.)

Watch for when your child becomes frustrated. Use this as an opportunity to discuss the everyday nature of frustration, and explain to him or her that this is an opportunity for growth.

Finally, according to Paul Tough in his book How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power Of Character, the best thing to do to develop the character of our children is to let them experience failure. As he states,

American children, especially those who grow up in relative comfort, are, more than ever, shielded from failure as they grow up. They certainly work hard; they often experience a great deal of pressure and stress; but in reality, their path through the education system is easier and smoother than it was for any previous generation. Many of them are able to graduate from college without facing any significant challenges. But if this new research is right, their schools, their families, and their culture may all be doing them a disservice by not giving them more opportunities to struggle. Overcoming adversity is what produces character. And character, even more than IQ, is what leads to real and lasting success.

So now that this blog is done, maybe it鈥檚 time to get that unfinished novel out again and prove Duckworth鈥檚 test wrong.

Like this post? Sign up for our email newsletter to receive more like it right in your inbox!

Related Post:

References

Duckworth, A. L., Peterson, C., Matthews, M. D., & Kelly, D. R. (2007). Grit: perseverance and passion for long-term goals. Journal of personality and social psychology, 92(6), 1087.

Duckworth, A. L., & Quinn, P. D. (2009). Development and validation of the Short Grit Scale (GRIT鈥揝). Journal of personality assessment, 91(2), 166-174.

Dweck, C. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House LLC.

Dweck, C. S. (2000). Self-theories: Their role in motivation, personality, and development. Psychology Press.

Tough, P. (2013). How children succeed. Random House.