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Gifted and Talented Program: Bill de Blasio to phase out 'racist' education plan

Gifted and talented programs are elitist and ableist (& often racist), and should be done away with, claimed the Internet in support of the NYC Mayor

Bill de Blasio's term in office is almost in its final stages and he sent shockwaves across New York City with a massive announcement on October 8. He announced the halting of the Gifted and Talented program in schools that have been known to be in effect since the early '70s but has it's own set of critics who have time and again campaigned for putting an end to this "racist" model. The program is now being replaced by Brilliant NYC, a program that offers students 8 and above a chance to experience accelerated learning while continuing to stay in their regular classrooms with other students. 

The announcement of this controversial program's elimination from public schools has rubbed many the wrong way who in turn are placing the blame for it on Critical Race Theory (CRT).  "The removal of the gifted and talented policy tells Americans that merit is dead, we don’t need qualified individuals in the most critical industries and is the fruit of CRT," tweeted by an Internet user is an example of how a section has construed the mayor's decision. Congresswoman Elise Stefanik tweeted, "The Left and today’s Democrat Party continue to hurt our students and destroy education. A travesty our country will deeply regret for generations to come". The model roughly admitted 2,500 students annually, according to New York Post. The current students who have already enrolled with the program will continue with accelerated learning in separate classrooms and schools. Fast forward to fall 2022, this method which required students as young as 4, to be tested for admission, will cease to exist. 

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What is the Gifted and Talented Program?

According to Education Corner, "Gifted education, also referred to as Gifted and Talented Education (GATE), is a term that encompasses the methodologies, procedures, practices, and theories employed in the education of gifted or talented children. The National Association of Gifted Children has defined the term 'gifted' is associated to, "Students, children, or youth who give evidence of high achievement capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who need services and activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop those capabilities." For added information on gifted education, click here. 

Coming to the mayor's announcement which came in on October 8, his statement said, “The era of judging 4-year-olds based on a single test is over. Brilliant NYC will deliver accelerated instruction for tens of thousands of children, as opposed to a select few. Every New York City child deserves to reach their full potential, and this new, equitable model gives them that chance.” Blasio has managed to impress the critics of this program who also took to social media to celebrate its scrapping. "I taught in a public school in Manhattan that had a gifted and talented group. It was totally racist! Gifted AND talented? Might as well add and white and rich!" read a tweet. "Gifted and talented programs are elitist and ableist (& often racist), and should be done away with," another user opined. "There is an entire industry built around test prep in NYC for the gifted and talented program. It has racist outcomes & I'm glad it's being eliminated," wrote another user.