Developing Professional Discretion to Differentiate Instruction for Underserved Gifted Learners

Abstract With a laser focus on bringing lower-achieving students up to mere proficiency, low-performing schools, which often serve students of color from disadvantaged backgrounds, are incentivized to deprioritize the development of academic talent in high-ability students. High-ability students at low-performing schools are therefore often bored, underperforming, and not challenged enough to rise to their true potential. Relying on the framework of teacher discretion posited by David Boote (2006), this article argues that in these highly standardized environments, teachers often lack the professional discretion necessary to make decisions and changes to the mandated curriculum and pedagogy that could benefit high-ability students. Through two cycles of action research, including analysis of focus groups, interviews, fieldnotes, and survey responses, this study sought to understand how to increase teachers’ sense of autonomy to benefit their high-ability students. This study demonstrated that collaborative workshops bolstered teachers’ sense of autonomy and knowledge base, enabling them to feel empowered to make decisions involved in implementing differentiated instruction for high ability students. Implications for teacher educators, school administrators, and teachers are discussed.