Chapter 9
Children Who Have
Gifts and Talents
• Recent international comparisons indicate that
U.S. students are weaker in math skills.
• The performance of our best students ranged
from unremarkable to inadequate when matched
with the best from around the world.
• These findings suggest that our present
educational efforts on the behalf of students with
gifts and talents are inadequate to meet the
demands of a complex, information-based world.
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Federal Definition of Gifted
Children and youth with outstanding talent perform, or
show the potential for performing, at remarkably high
levels of accomplishment when compared with others
of their age, experience, or environment.
These children and youth exhibit high performance
capability in intellectual, creative, and/or artistic areas,
possess an unusual leadership capacity, or excel in
specific academic fields. They require services or
activities not ordinarily provided by schools.
Outstanding talents are present in children and youth from
all cultural groups, across all economic strata, and in
all areas of human endeavor.
Ross, P.(Ed.). (1993). National Excellence. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of
Education.
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• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axTEUY7g6A&feature=related
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Historical Overview
• Culture defines giftedness: Exceptionality is
often defined in terms of individual ability and
societal needs. Each culture defines giftedness
in its own image. In our culture and in this text,
giftedness refers to people with advanced
intellectual abilities.
• Stanford Binet IQ test defines giftedness:
• A high score (130 to 140 or more, approximately
1 to 3 percent of the population) was considered
indicative of giftedness. Superior performance
on an intelligence measure indicated early rapid
development.
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• It was not what students with gifts were able to
do but when, developmentally, they were doing
it that set them apart from their age peers. IQ
scores are not fixed over time.
• Over time, the belief developed that IQ scores
are not fixed for an individual but can be
improved with education and experience. The
definition has broadened to include more
considerations and abilities than those directly
related to schoolwork.
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• Other scholars (Gardner, 1985; Getzels, 1978;
Siegler, 1986; Steinberg, 1991) have suggested
that giftedness is best defined within the
framework of problem finding and problem
solving—the ability to take an ill-structured
problem, organize it so that the issue is
clear, and then determine one or more
meaningful solutions.
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Multiple intelligences
• The recent work of Howard Gardner has
challenged our traditional view of giftedness as
one overriding mental ability by suggesting that
intelligence is a series of special abilities.
• He has proposed a list of nine distinct and
separate abilities called multiple intelligences
that need specific educational attention:
linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical,
spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, interpersonal,
intrapersonal, and naturalist. Existential is
another ability that is often included, but it is
unconfirmed.
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Multiple intelligences
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l2QtSbP4FRg
• http://www.edutopia.org/mi-quiz
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Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Linguistic intelligence
Logical-mathematical intelligence
Spatial intelligence
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence
Musical intelligence
Interpersonal intelligence
Intra-personal intelligence
Naturalist intelligence
Existential*
* unconfirmed
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Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Linguistic intelligence
Logical-mathematical intelligence
Spatial intelligence
Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence
Musical intelligence
Interpersonal intelligence
Intra-personal intelligence
Naturalist intelligence
Existential*
* unconfirmed
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Studies of Students with Gifts
• Terman (1984): He showed gifted individuals to be
above average in physical, educational, and mental
health and in psychosocial characteristics. As adults,
they maintained a broad range of interests, successfully
pursued professional careers, and presented stable
home lives.
• Results: here was some evidence that men in the “very
high IQ” group had accomplished more than men in the
“high IQ” group. Still, many of the men in the lower group
were successful, if not eminent.
• Feldman also found a difference between the women in
the two groups. Those with IQ scores—around 180—
tended to have full-time careers; those in the lower group
tended to be homemakers.
• Study
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• Despite the difference he found between the groups,
Feldman concluded that genius is not solely a
function of intelligence but rather reflects a
combination of intelligence, personality, motivation,
and environmental variable
• Speyer School: A follow-up study of Speyer School
graduates echoed Terman’s work, with the exception of
more women combining career and family. A more
recent study of graduates of the special elementary
school at Hunter College in New York showed similar
results (Subotnik, Kassan, Summers, & Wasser, 1993).
On average, children who are identified as having gifts
grow up to become well-adjusted adults, successful in
their chosen careers Hunter School
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Creativity
• Beghetto (2008) defined creativity as the ability to
generate ideas, products, or solutions that are
considered novel and useful for a given problem,
situation, or context. The recognition is growing that
creativity is not so much a personal characteristic as
it is a process that involves both thinking and
personality.
• Treffinger, Young, Shelby, and Sheperdson (2002)
discuss the four different dimensions of the creative
process: generating ideas, digging deeper into ideas,
courage to explore ideas, and listening to one’s
inner voice.
• Creativity can be seen as an interaction among persons,
products, and the environment and must be stimulated.
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Components of Creativity
Personality
Open to experience
Persistent
High motivation
Risk taking
Cognitive
Abilities
Divergent thinking
Interaction
Productivity
Synthesis
Evaluation, etc.
Environment
Family
Peers,
School,
Society, etc.
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Factors that Contribute
to Giftedness and Talents
• Heredity and Environment: Francis Galton, in a study
of outstanding Englishmen, concluded that extraordinary
ability ran in families and was genetic in origin.
• Research on twins and on adopted children and their
biological parents supports a hereditary component in
giftedness.
• Although genetic predisposition or inherited ability may
be a crucial part of a child’s giftedness, it is by no means
sufficient to ensure the realization of potential. There
appears to be a complex interaction between heredity
and environment. The strong influence of parents and
teachers on talent development is supported by
numerous studies.
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• Gender. Gender differences in achievement for
gifted students appear to center on differential
expectations from society and differences in
self-perception that limit girls’ intellectual
performance.
• Social and Emotional Development.
Conflicting views have been expressed
regarding the social and emotional adjustment of
gifted students. One view suggests that gifted
students are more at risk for adjustment
problems, while the other suggests that gifted
students are better adjusted.
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• Silverman (2002) discusses the special problem
of asynchronization of development of
students with gifts; for example, some may be
14 years old cognitively but only 8 years old
physically and socially. This asynchronization
causes problems both for those students and for
the adults around them who are not aware of
this atypical development. Perfectionism is
another characteristic that may to be a part of
the emotional and social lives of some students
with gifts and talents. This is the combination of
thoughts and behaviors associated with high
standards or high expectations for one’s own
performance.
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• Perfectionist students can have a depressive
reaction if they receive a 95 on a paper instead
of the usual 100. In such instances, it is
important for teachers and others to point out to
the student that great accomplishments usually
are accompanied by failure in some part of the
process.
• Also, Webb et al. (2007) point to intensity,
perfectionism, and stress as issues that that
many students who have gifts and talents are
trying to cope with. Although, suicide is the third
most prevalent cause of death in teenagers
(American Association of Suicidology, 2004),
studies have not shown that the rates are no
higher for students with gifts and talents. ©
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• Despite the positive picture presented by
research, gifted individuals face several
difficulties as a result of their exceptionality.
• Gifted individuals have a heightened level of
sensitivity to intellectual, sensual, imaginative,
psychomotor, and emotional stimuli.
• They often have to struggle with inappropriate or
exaggerated expectations placed on them by
others.
• Boredom is a too frequent occurrence in gifted
children’s educational careers.
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• Studies show that teachers do not always recognize the
students in their classrooms with gifts and talents.
Specific identification (subjective and objective methods
of evaluation )techniques are needed to ensure that these
students are given access to the special educational
services needed to meet their special needs.
• Project U-Stars (Using Science Talents and Abilities
to Recognize Students) capitalizes on the teachers’
knowledge of their students to help identify young children
with outstanding potential (Coleman, 2003). The U-Stars
approach relies on three key elements: (1) teachers who
know what to look for (how to recognize potential), (2)
teachers who know how to structure their classrooms so
that children will be engaged, and (3) teachers who know
how to provide a psychologically safe environment in
which students can show their best abilities.
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• Data from group intelligence tests can serve as
a starting point for identification, but they have
limitations such as not being as reliable as
individual intelligence tests and not measuring
creativity. Tests of creativity are based on
elements of the creative process: fluency,
flexibility, and originality.
• Talent in the visual and performing arts is
typically assessed through an adjudication
process using a single performance or a body of
student’s work over time.
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• Some gifted individuals never perform to the full
extent of their ability. A negative self-concept,
low self-esteem, expectations of failure, and an
external locus of control (Individuals with a high
internal locus of control believe that events
result primarily from their own behavior and
actions. Those with a low internal locus of
control believe that powerful others, fate, or
chance primarily determine events) seem to be
common traits of gifted underachievers.
• These students do not often come to the
attention of special educators because, although
they don’t fail, they also don’t excel.
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• Programs that stress acceptance of the
individual, acceptance on the part of parents and
the child that a change is needed, and the
child’s willingness to take responsibility have
shown student improvement.
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Culturally Diverse
Students with Gifts and Talents
• Individuals with gifts and talents can be identified from all
subcultures. Because these subcultures value and
reward different behaviors, these students display their
gifts in ways that are atypical of the mainstream.
• Several authors suggest methods to encourage and
create more favorable conditions for culturally diverse
students. Kitano (2007) specifically urges “universal
access to high-quality early childhood programs for
those who face extreme poverty in the first four years of
life.”
• Such programs would include a multicultural curriculum,
early literacy development, and support for creative
thinking, as well as health and social services.
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• Van Tassel-Baska (2004) has summarized the
need for special curriculum units for low-income
students with gifts and talents who are shown to
be different from more advantaged students with
gifts because of their lesser interest in reading
and abstract ideas and in long-term academic
performance and their greater interest in social
acceptance.
• Van Tassel-Baska proposed curricula that place
emphasis on openness to experience and that
allow creativity and fluency in thinking,
opportunity to express ideas through the arts
rather than verbally, preference for hands-on
applications, and preference for oral expression.
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• The problem-based learning (PBL) approach
has been shown to be effective with low-income
populations with gifts and talents.
• Strategies used to identify culturally different
students include the use of student profiles and
case studies, multiple identification procedures,
and student portfolios.
• Peer referral can also be used to identify
minority students with gifts. Close family ties, a
structured home life, and recognition by the
educational system of the student’s cultural
heritage enhance the chances of the student
fulfilling her or his potential.
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Twice Exceptional
• Gifted and Talented with a disability
– Learning Disabilities
– Asperger’s Syndrome
• Students with disabilities may have gifts and
talents. These twice exceptional children are
difficult to identify because their disability masks
their giftedness.
• These students, compared to other students
with learning disabilities, employ more
constructive coping strategies (problem-solving
plans) to deal with the demand of their
educational environment.
• , and gifted education; more effectively
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• Another condition in which giftedness and another
exceptionality may be mixed is Asperger’s syndrome.
High intelligence, which is often evident in these
students, takes on a special flavor because they can be
encyclopedic in their knowledge but very poor in social
relationships.
• Their theory of mind function (the ability to perceive the
intentions and thoughts of others) remains a serious
problem for them.
• They need special help in social adaptation, regardless
of their academic proficiency. To better serve students
with disabilities and with gifts and talents, the
educational system needs to provide for a significant
amount of cooperation and collaboration among regular,
specia, and gifted education; more effectively involve
medical, psychological, and other related community
services; and provide for early identification and
intervention.
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Educational Adaptations
Adapting the Learning Environment
• RTI Model
• Flexible Pacing
–
–
–
–
–
Skipping grades
Telescoping grades
Advance placement
Dual enrollment in high school and college
Early college admission
• Grouping
– Cluster grouping
– Performance grouping
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• The goals of gifted education should be to
ensure that gifted children master important
conceptual systems, develop skills for
independence and for creativity, and develop an
excitement about and pleasure in learning.
• To meet these goals, educators can modify the
school program by adapting the learning
environment, the curriculum content, and the
student’s cognitive strategies. The learning
environment may be modified through the three
tiers of the RTI model, flexible pacing, and
grouping.
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• Stanley (1989) described six ways of
accelerating students: early school admission
allows the intellectually and socially mature child
to enter kindergarten at a younger-than-normal
age; skipping grades allows the child to
accelerate by completely eliminating one
semester or grade in school; telescoping
grades is when the child covers the standard
material but in less time;
• advanced placement allows the student to take
courses for college credit while still in high
school, thus shortening the college program;
dual enrollment in high school and college
occurs when the student is enrolled in college
while finishing high school; and early college
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• admission is when an extraordinarily advanced student
may enter college as young as 13 years of age.
Grouping is another strategy to adapt the learning
environment and brings students with gifts together for
learning so that they can learn at an advanced pace and
be stimulated by others of like ability. This can be done
through cluster grouping (special classes, subgroups
within a class) or performance grouping (magnet,
charter, or residential schools).
• From early admission to school to early admission to
college, research studies invariably report that
children who have been accelerated, as a group,
have adjusted as well as or better than children of
similar ability who have not been accelerated
(Gallagher, 2002). Changing the environment alone is
not adequate. Clear modifications of content and
process must be present.
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Educational Adaptations
Adapting Teaching Strategies
• Educational Adaptations—Curriculum
• Curriculum modifications can be achieved
through acceleration, problem solving,
enrichment, and sophistication
• Curriculum compacting: The basic principle of
compacting is that if students already know
something and have the basic skills to apply the
knowledge, they should be allowed to move on
to other areas of learning
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Educational Adaptations—Teaching
Strategies
• Increasing or enhancing productive thinking is a
goal of gifted education.
• Students with gifts can use the reasoning
process more effectively and in greater
complexity than their age peers. They are also
more advanced in tasks of problem finding,
problem solving, and creativity. Brainstorming
is an effective means of extending intellectual
fluency. Brainstorming sessions follow a set
of rules: no criticism allowed, the more ideas
the better, integration and combination of
ideas are welcome, and evaluation happens
after all ideas have been presented
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• The problem-based learning (PBL) approach presents
students with an ill-structured problem and the teacher
acts as a coach through the problem-solving process.
Please refer to the text for use of the West Nile virus as
an example of PBL. Also refer to the text for an example
of using the RTI model to teach a problem-based
learning unit on the Black Death. Discuss with the class
how you could do a similar project with this procedure.
• Representatives of the Association for the Gifted
(TAG) and the National Association for the Gifted
(NAGC), with the collaboration of the National Council
for Accreditation for Teacher Education (NCATE), have
developed a set of teacher standards for students with
gifts and talents. The new standards emphasize
differentiating programming and an emphasis on student
diversity. The entire list of standards may be obtained on
the text’s website.
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