We present evidence for the reliability and validity of the Talent Identification Instrument (TII), an observation process in music and dance in which multiple judges rate students throughout a multisession audition. The approach was designed to recognize previously overlooked abilities in urban elementary students, including low income, bilingual, and special education students. The TII observation process was designed to evoke artful behaviors that can be readily recognized by arts specialists and classroom teachers. We found strong agreement among raters and adequate stability estimates. Evidence for validity was obtained through factor analysis and a variety of construct validity procedures. The performance-based assessment described here may have implications for discovering hidden potential in academic as well as artistic domains.
The lack of valid, research-based methods to identify potential artistic talent hampers the inclusion of the arts in programs for the gifted and talented. The Talent Assessment Process in Dance, Music, and Theater (D/M/T TAP) was designed to identify potential performing arts talent in diverse populations, including bilingual and special education students and students who have had no prior formal arts instruction. Research results over 13 years in elementary schools in New York and Ohio provide evidence that creative and artistic potential can be assessed validly and equitably and that such assessments can offer a reliable prediction of success in rigorous arts instruction.
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