Accelerated program in elementary‐school mathematics—the fourth year

Accelerated programs in mathematics for gifted children can play an important role in the curriculum. Yet, an extensive review of the literature in the field revealed that few studies of such programs have been undertaken.2 In response to this lack of information, the Institute for Mathematical Studies in the Social Sciences has initiated a longitudinal study of 40 gifted elementary-school children, who will be accelerated through the mathematics curriculum. Several factors make schools reluctant to initiate such programs. First, if an accelerated course for gifted primary-grade children is begun, the school will want to avoid returning students to the conventional curriculum for their grade level. Thus, the school is committed to a longitudinal program. A second problem is the shortage of funds for special teaching staff, space, and the development of special curriculum materials. Also, identifying and selecting gifted students at this early level is difficult, especially since students may display differential aptitudes across curriculum areas. Finally, there may be school-parent problems resulting from such a special program. In attempting to deal with some of these difficulties, the project is providing an opportunity for long-range study of an accelerated program. In this article, we describe the first year of the project, which concerned the mastery of mathematical concepts by bright six-year-olds during their first year of instruction. The results of the 1963-1964 project include parametric data on daily, weekly, and yearly rates of concept acquisition; information about interrelationships between successive mathematical concepts in the curriculum;