Kogan, E. (2001). Gifted Bilingual Students: a Paradox?

New York: Peter Lang Publishing. (154 pp., $24.95 cloth, ISBN-0-8204-5016-2).

This wonderfully engaging book describes and discusses the purported "myth of the gifted bilingual paradox." Through her impassioned spirit and detailed research on the topic of bilingual education, Dr. Esther Kogan gives an empowering presentation on the issue in gifted education of how bilingual students, through varying educational and familial challenges, can truly aspire to achieve educational success without losing sight of who they are as individuals and where they come from. Although the primary emphasis is on Hispanic children, the book states that bilingual students play an integral part of the educational system and require specialized attention in order to appropriately be identified and nurtured so that their talent potential can fully be realized.

Dr. Kogan presents the work in a clearly defined format, utilizing a "qualitative, retrospective" case study approach to illustrate the unique trials and tribulations of three Hispanic students--Oscar, Gaby, and Tina--who live in New York City and are identified as potentially gifted through either Project Synergy or Project Synergy Preschool identification programs. Obviously, as the author notes, these are not meant to be representative of all other students from Hispanic backgrounds possessing high academic ability and achievement. Each case study complements and illustrates the theoretical discussion provided amid the opportunity for each highlighted child and his or her family to voice opinions and insights relevant to educational challenges and societal pressures.

The book begins with a brief, yet insightful overview of the history of bilingual education in the United States, beginning with the enactment of the Bilingual Education Act of 1968 to the current implications still felt by the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on Lau v. Nichols (1974) that, according to the author, "... marked the beginning of a major policy shift that moves the responsibility for adapting to language differences from the home and the child to the school (Gonzalez, 1994)" (p. 6). The chapters that follow tackle the definitions, conceptions, and identification of gifted bilingual children, leading up to the three case studies, and concluding with a thoughtful commentary that not only summarizes the book and its key points, but offers authentic insights for parents in meeting the educational needs of their gifted Hispanic children, including workshops, mentoring opportunities, and advocacy group support.

The author does a nifty job of defining what bilingual education is and how it "needs to be understood more deeply than simply as an issue of learning a second language.... It resides in acquiring, developing, and maintaining the use of two languages" (p. 122). As noted, the goal is to encourage and mold biliterate children. The overarching objective is the preservation and encouragement of cultural pride, identity and heritage.

The book provides three exceptional case studies of bilingual students, their families, and the struggle to retain traditional values while pursuing the development of talent in an American milieu. However, I would liked to have seen three truly distinct cultural voices accentuating the common thread that runs through the lives of bilingual children from different cultural backgrounds. Perhaps a case study accentuating an Hispanic, Asian, and Russian child as well as their families would have provided an even more powerful portrayal of bilingual children who more often than not fall between the ubiquitous educational system cracks.

As a bilingual student myself, having spent my formative years in Greece as a youngster with Modern Greek as my first language, I can attest that to be bilingual and gifted is not a paradox. Instead, it is a symbiotic interconnectivehess that needs continual fostering and nourishment if it is to bring out the best in each bilingual child, given their particular circumstance. Dr. Kogan sums it up best by stating that "teachers need to become aware of how cultural differences may affect student learning and behaving and how to accommodate these differences in the classroom ...." (p.156).

In conclusion, this book serves as a beacon of hope and opportunity for a growing societal and educational issue in light of the burgeoning number of bilingual children in today's society and in the years to come. I applaud the author for her steadfastness and vigilance in keeping the flame of bilingual education lit so brightly as a critical and integral part of each child's educational experience, knowing how we need to empower and enrich each individual to fully realize his or her full cultural and intellectual potential.

REFERENCES

Gonzalez, J.M. (1994). Bilingual education: A review of policy and ideologies. In R. Rodriguez, N. J. Ramos & J.A. Ruiz-Escalante (Eds.), Compendium of readings in bilingual education. Issues and practices (pp. 3-13). San Antonio, TX: Texas Association for Bilingual Education.

James Lynch, Ed.D., the Dean of Enrollment Management at Florida Gulf Coast University, who is bilingual and very passionate about multicultural education.