Bronwyn MacFarlane, PhD, Professor of Gifted Education at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, has extensive experience evaluating educational programs and providing professional development. Dr. MacFarlane published four books including Specialized Schools for High-Ability Learners (2018) and STEM Education for High-Ability (2016); 25 articles, 25 chapters; and delivered over 150 presentations. Leadership roles included College Associate Dean; Academic Dean of the Summer Institute for Gifted at Princeton; NAGC Chair of both the STEM and the Counseling Networks; guest editor for Roeper Review journal; national columnist of “The Curriculum Corner” for Teaching for High Potential magazine; and research associate to the Executive Director of the William and Mary Center for Gifted Education. She has received many recognitions including the 2021 University-wide and College Faculty Excellence Awards for Public Service; the 2019 and 2014 College Faculty Excellence Awards for Research; the 2018-2019 NAGC Early Leader Award for significant leadership and service to the field; the UALR Distinguished Teaching Fellow Medallion and New Faculty Teaching Commendation, and several more. She holds school leadership qualifications for school district superintendency, the principalship, counseling, and teaching across a range of content areas and age levels. She earned her bachelor’s and first master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from the University of Missouri and her second master’s degree in Counseling from Stephens College. She earned her doctorate from the College of William and Mary in Educational Policy, Planning, and Leadership with dual specializations in both gifted education program administration and K–12 school administration. Follow her on social media, on Twitter: @DrBMacFarlane; on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bronwynmacfarlane/; on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrMacPhD. Email: [email protected]
What led you to the field of gifted education?
As a first year school teacher, I istened to my teenage students reminisce that they “used to be gifted” when they enjoyed participating in an elementary gifted program. Recognizing the limits in teacher training about giftedness, I decided to pursue graduate courses in gifted education to be better prepared to work with students in the years to come. As soon as I earned my gifted certification, I was put in charge of leading the K–12 gifted education program. In that role, I learned about the National Association for Gifted Children (NAGC) which led me to my mentor at the College of William and Mary, and then to my pursuit of doctoral studies in leadership, policy, and gifted education program administration. Upon commencement, I began teaching graduate students as a university professor and have taught courses in gifted education, educational leadership, teacher education, higher education, counseling, and many programs with teachers, counselors, and educational leaders. I have always been focused on making a positive difference for learners.
Can you describe a defining moment in your professional journey?
Defining moments happen along your own journey and sometimes you recognize something at the time while other defining moments you may reflect upon and realize later. Looking back, big moments occurred when big decisions were made: when I decided to pursue graduate school full time in Virginia and leave my classroom in rural Missouri, when my first book was published, and when I decided which job offers to accept. In my fifth year as a full professor with tenure of gifted education at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, I have been promoted early in rank every 4 years, served as college associate dean, and received many special recognitions during my 13 years at the university. I am in a defining moment currently. I have been selected as one of the top three professors at the university for 2021 by the Board of Visitors and by colleagues with both the university-level and the college-level Faculty Excellence Awards for Public Service this year. At the same time, since the university has been in precipitous fiscal and enrollment decline, many faculty positions of full professors with tenure were cut that were held by high performing colleagues including myself, and the notification was received just two weeks after delivering my new baby. As a result, I am in a defining moment on a new path in my professional journey and the future is bright with opportunities.
In 2018, you published Specialized Schools for High Ability Learners. Can you tell us about your book, and some of the insights you learned while writing it?
The Specialized Schools book came as a result of an increase in the number of specialized schools and programs, my experience leading a university task force to explore the opportunity of building an on-campus charter high school, and an observed gap in the professional materials available for educators detailing the critical elements for operating specialized schools. It has been important to me to be sensitive to the needs of school-based practitioners in the field of education and to integrate scholarly productivity with the professional needs of educators. My recent books provide important information for practitioners in the field to use and bring together understanding about each of the elements needed for delivering comprehensive programming to develop high ability talent. I invited leading experts across the nation to contribute chapters that would provide guidance to educators about what works in specialized settings, details about quality resources and teaching materials to consider, and stories about leading case studies of successful schools and programs. As the book came together, chapter insights synthesized best design and teaching practices, effective leadership practices and operations, and healthy organizational cultures. I am especially proud of the high productivity that I have been able to achieve despite limited resources at the university.
In 2021, you received both the College and University-level Faculty Excellence Awards for Public Service at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock. Can you tell us about some of your community service activities?
Public service is an important component of my work and my activities focus on ways to develop talent among others in different settings. All of my professorial work is integrated throughout my teaching, research, and service. Specifically, my public service is connected to my teaching and scholarship since education is an applied service field. My service activities at each level, whether local, university, state, national, or international, can be best summarized as contributing my time and expertise to supporting the talent development of others. Whether I am serving as a judge for the central Arkansas science fair and Arkansas 4-H to evaluating federal projects and university programs or speaking to parents and teachers on specific educational topics, I am always focused on doing what I can to support someone’s talent development and growth.
After being appointed to lead the collegewide, inaugural community service nutrition education project, Love your Schools, over 240 college participants were involved in reaching over 2,600 school children in Little Rock Public Schools and teaching nutritional understandings. The large-scale task involved countless hours of planning and communicating the human and curriculum resource needs for the new project. Both the college and school district students reported high satisfaction with their involvement and the program was recognized with a special Community Resource Award by the Little Rock School District. In addition to providing the organizational leadership and oversight for the collegewide service project, I also developed a customized instrument for evaluating the project and we celebrated the project’s success with a big picnic reception for college participants. The project logo was later adapted into the “Love Our Students” campaign at the university.
As an expert in both K–12 and higher education, I integrate best practices for delivering education into my service contributions and carefully consider the needs of the community, the field of education, and collaborative work with colleagues. As a result, my service impacts individuals and the community at large, as well as the university and the professional field of education in substantially distinct and important ways. I am excited to expand my international work as an elected member to the Executive Committee of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children organization.
What are some important things you have learned about talent development, and how it can be nurtured inside the classroom?
Talent development must be nurtured both inside and beyond the classroom. Differentiated instruction inside the classroom is essential. The key to talent development is careful curriculum planning for high impact teaching and learning. Curriculum planning to develop talents should include identified goals and objectives, assessment and evaluation methods, the design and development of differentiated learning activities and questions with engaging instructional methods and teaching strategies, sophisticated resource and material review, field testing and revision, and practical application outcomes. With careful curricular and instructional planning to differentiate learning, instructors are better prepared to teach diverse learners and effectively meet their needs.
Based on your research, how can educators provide a supportive environment for gifted and high ability students?
By planning curriculum with rigorous learning experiences, high ability and advanced students can experience an optimal match between their readiness as learners and exploring challenging learning activities and investigative studies. A supportive environment includes providing both academic and social and emotional learning opportunities. Students should be confident that their teachers and mentors are interested in their success. Educators should be knowledgeable about current and developing trends in education and understand relevant research findings and programmatic delivery updates to be able to support advanced learners’ needs. Finally, educators must be able to effectively communicate, build positive relationships, and advocate for gifted services in order to provide a supportive environment for gifted students.
What individuals both in and outside the field of gifted education have exerted the strongest impact on your thinking?
Of course, my mother and my father have had a strong influence on my thinking and productive habits. I grew up with many educators on both sides of my family who were well known and respected in the community. I have always learned a lot about presentational pacing from my mother who not only was a teacher but also on the radio with her local show. Presentational pacing, in addition to vocal variety, enunciation, and volume are critical communication elements for listeners to understand what you are saying and teaching.
At the start of the pandemic, I began receiving media inquiries to provide expertise in teaching through invited media interviews on television and in print. In the past year alone, I reached a wider audience through the media to teach adults about how to support children and their learning, along with reducing stress and anxiety at home during the pandemic. I was interviewed not only by the university media repeatedly, but also by reporters from Arkansas Savvy Kids, KARK Channel 4, KLRT Channel 16, and THV Channel 11 in Little Rock.
Inside the field of gifted education, my doctoral mentor, Dr. Joyce VanTassel-Baska and her work in curriculum for gifted learners, exerted a strong impact on my thinking and the systematic planning process of designing, implementing, and revising quality curriculum materials. The work of Harry Passow and Leta Hollingworth (curriculum), Robert Sternberg (intelligence), Csikszentmihalyi (flow), Goleman and Fullan (leadership), and Tschannen-Moran (trust) all provided influential inputs to my thinking. Dr. Julia Roberts has also been an influential role model with her advocacy work in building advanced programs, services, and policies for gifted learners. Dr. Barbara Kerr’s work about gender issues among gifted girls and gifted boys remain relevant in our society today, as do her studies about creativity and openness to experience. It is a joy to listen to experts discuss their work during conference proceedings and an intellectual highlight of professional meetings for me to hear Rena Subotnik discuss longitudinal talent development understandings, Camilla Benbow and David Lubinski describe the continuing SMPY studies, and Jonathan Plucker talk about creativity. Also, I am an enthusiastic follower of recent work conducted about social and emotional development and psychosocial skills by Anne Rinn, the assessment of student growth and STEM program interventions by Karen Rambo-Hernandez, and Carla Brigandi’s research on rural gifted programs.
Outside the field of gifted education, I have been intrigued by change agents who are able to positively move professional work forward by disrupting outdated modes of working. I’ve been teaching online for over a decade and have been highly productive in working remotely as illustrated by my record. The pandemic has introduced online learning and remote collaboration to the wider population and demonstrated effective ways of teaching, learning, and working differently from the traditional way education has been delivered in the past. By applying flexibility, choice, and decentralizing the way people collaborate, I hope that the field of education can take these new understandings about what can be achieved virtually and build more differentiated and expanded flexible pathways for the best teaching and learning.
What other concepts have held your interest over the years, and how have they evolved?
In addition to using curriculum for talent development in teaching and learning, I have also studied leadership, policy, organizational dynamics, psychosocial development, and creativity. My dissertation research focused on second language education and teacher perceptions toward gifted students and their use of differentiation instructional practices in advanced courses. In order to lead change in gifted education, creativity must be integrated to improve service delivery. Likewise, to lead healthy organizations (schools, universities, groups, etc.), leadership dynamics, creativity, and trust must be thoughtfully applied. I am interested in helping practitioners explore and solve problems of practice to continually provide better educational services. An important component of my scholarship is translational research and teaching practitioners how to embrace and apply analytical research skills to improve problems of practice. I regularly conduct program evaluations and provide professional learning and consulting for schools and organizations about these concepts.
What are some of the most important lessons you have learned from a mentor?
My mentor, Dr. Joyce VanTassel-Baska, said to “Never underestimate your audience.” Many people can understand and appreciate the message that you are sharing so don’t hold back your message because something you say may be helpful to others. Another important lesson is to “run toward yourself,” that is, to work in areas that are true to you, not what happens to be a momentary trend.
I am most proud of making a difference at the local, state, and national levels. All public service begins where you are, and it is important to reach community members and support the needs nearby by sharing your talents and abilities with others. Whether I am speaking at the Arkansas Statehouse Convention Center to a group of educators from across the state or serving in a leadership ccapacity to an international network of educators, I always consider the group and respect what is needed and how I can make a meaningful and worthwhile contribution.
What research are you currently working on?
Currently, I am working on a project focused on social and emotional learning in early childhood. Over the years, I have studied early childhood programs, teaching, social and emotional learning, and developed curriculum. As a scholar and a mother, I am fascinated with child development and learning acquisition. By teaching others about early social and emotional learning, I hope more children can begin their educational journey strong with healthy emotional wellness.
If you had to give someone advice on things to do or not do in their research, what might your advice be?
Applied research is an important area for improving educational services. To positively contribute to improved educational services, helping practitioners explore and solve problems of practice in different settings can contribute to better teaching and learning in classrooms and better leadership for healthy organizational environments in schools and institutions. For example, I developed the STEM Education book (2016) specifically to provide a guide for practitioners, and it was the first book of its kind on the market to bring together a discussion of the critical elements needed for delivering comprehensive STEM educational programming to develop high-ability talent in the STEM fields. It was positively reviewed in Teachers College Record, National Science Teachers Association—NSTA Recommends, and Roeper Review, and translated into Arabic for worldwide readership. I also served as guest editor for Roeper Review in creating a special issue focused on STEM and gifted curriculum. Research activity should always explore something meaningful and add to professional understanding. When you are energized about something, immediately start writing and channel that energy positively to write about important ideas that you are passionate about and that will help others.
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Suzanna E. Henshon
Suzanna E. Henshon earned a PhD at The College of William & Mary in 2005. She writes full-time and has 370 publications. In 2019, she published Teaching Empathy: Strategies for Building Emotional Intelligence in Today’s Students with Prufrock Press. Email: [email protected]