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There is no doubt that the Cold War, and specifically America's emphasis on defeating the "red menace," had a significant effect on Western gifted education. And, while it's tempting to think of this period as something of a "golden age" for gifted education—when programs were funded and gifted students were valued—it's more appropriate to think of it as "the best of times... the worst of times." On the one hand, during the Sputnik era, gifted students were indeed valued—for "values" of "gifted" that equaled "productive," or in Renzulli's somewhat-deliberately inflammatory term, "schoolhouse gifted." This was a great time to be gifted—if you were a high-performing, high-achieving student, preferably from a family that valued education and possessed enough of it themselves to support your efforts. But was it enough simply to be brilliant? Yes—and no. Even within the intellectually liberating, and seemingly liberated, environment, culturally imposed taboos still existed. Even a suspicion of homosexuality was enough to get a man exiled from this Eden—and women were unlikely to be invited in at all. The range of tolerable deviation from the norm in the gifted stretched only so far, even among the gifted. Indeed, the very individuality of the highly gifted scientists who were lionized at the time supported and validated a larger-scale cultural belief in individualism; at the same time, the individualistic nature even of the scientific wunderkinder was only permitted its scope so long as it validated, or at least did not conflict with, other broad cultural values. Paradoxically, and sadly, it was precisely these cultural conditions that brought about the end of the "golden age of giftedness" and paved the way for the civil rights movement—a political and social shift from excellence to equity in education, which in turn ultimately paved the way for an examination of the gifted, not merely as culturally-conforming high-producers, but as individuals whose unique intellectual and creative capacities affect every aspect of their lives. But the Sputnik era nonetheless left its mark, for better and for worse, on the American approach to giftedness studies. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)

Any attempt to synthesize Dabrowski's theories, much less in 25 pages, is almost inherently doomed to a certain level of failure, given the sheer scope, volume, and complexity of the work done by Dabrowski and others to refine and expand his work over the years. Yet by the same token, no serious text on giftedness would be complete without reference to it. As such, the author has taken the liberty of providing a basic overview, and then (in the hope that the theory can be more readily grasped through a concrete, albeit fictitious example) offering an overview of a work of fiction that can serve as an exemplar both for teachers trying to understand Dabrowski's work themselves and those wishing to introduce it to their students. For the purposes of a simplified, and especially an introductory, explanation, it is often easiest to divide Dabrowski's work into two parts: overexcitability theory, and positive disintegration. The former is more often discussed in gifted-education circles than the latter, possibly because on a practical level, issues of positive disintegration are more likely to be seen as the purview of psychologists, while overexcitabilities not only manifest themselves in the classroom setting (and elsewhere) but also dovetail easily with other multi-modal theories with which teachers are already familiar. However, overexcitabilities should be understood as a component of the broader theory of positive disintegration, in which it serves as a subset of the developmental potential that enables it. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)

This chapter provides a practitioner's focus on why Cal Taylor matters, as contextualized within other multi-modal systems of understanding giftedness. While there are many psychologists who worked on a theory of intellect, the focus here is on the work that served as a base for other researchers and not to account for what Taylor himself might call the many, varied, and sometimes unusual models that have been developed from those initial efforts. Unlike many other researchers, Calvin Taylor interpreted gifted students as those at the very top of any talent area, and talented students as those who are above average. As a result of this interpretation, he has suggested that nearly all students are talented in al least one way and that if a program was developed to cater for a wide range of talent areas, greater numbers of students would benefit. Taylor argued for a complete reformation of the education system to allow for the development of this diversity of talents displayed by students. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)

For more than 100 years, intelligence tests have had a significant role in determining the appropriateness of special programs and classes for certain children. Intelligence is generally accepted to be an important element of giftedness. The research-based models for developing programs and services for gifted and talented students include multiple components for identification, instruction, and curriculum. Several types of assessment are used in each of these components, including intelligence or aptitude tests, observation, interview, portfolio, and check lists for parents, teachers, peers, and the students themselves. This chapter examines the significant characteristics of standardized tests, including intelligence tests, that are used in gifted education, their historical development and contribution to the development of gifted education, and the pros and cons of their continued use in the field today. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)

The character of John Galt in Ayn Rand's book Atlas Shrugged (1957) was faced with his professor who had forgotten, in his thrust for political gain, an important statement made to John as his student. The statement was "The only sacred value in the world, John, is the human mind, the inviolate human mind...". As a brilliant scientist and philosopher, the character Galt thought that the mind needs freedom to think and create. He believed that the mind is the power that moves the world. It was in this role that he led several gifted people to strike against a society that envied instead of saluted their ability to make the world a better place. Is there a message in Galt's activities and philosophy that speak to the present status of minority and other exceptionalities in the field of education of the gifted? Perhaps there is a need to find him because the present processes for addressing the needs of gifted minorities for inclusion in programs for the gifted lack the qualities that are necessary to achieve the goal proposed in Galt's statement regarding the mind and its power. The future where there will be a consensus of philosophies regarding the approach toward identifying and developing programs for students who have historically been left out of organized programs for the gifted is promising. There are many ideas and questions to be resolved, and in coming to a consensus there will be many pros and cons regarding any suggestions that are made. It is important that the process of finding some answers to questions posed in this chapter not be used as a political football by those who seek recognition. Funds are being provided by the government to develop programs for the gifted. There are many children of difference cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds that bring untapped exceptional abilities. Their opportunity to develop these abilities is important in our new technology society. It is probably time for us to consider that one type of educational arrangement will not be able to fit the many abilities that do not fall within the category of the usual "school house" requirements. Perhaps there is a "John Galt" among us trying very hard to get us to understand. We need to seek him and his ideas. Perhaps geniuses such as those that Galt embraced are among us as we pursue ideas for a more enhanced understanding of giftedness. Let's find them! (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)

Interest in gifted women has continued in the three decades since Carolyn Callahan published one of the first articles about this topic in the context of gifted education in 1979. Indeed, during the last three decades, books and multiple articles have been published about gifted girls and women by Karnes, Kerr, Rimm, Reis, and others. This chapter probes the reflections of gifted women in the field of gifted education in an effort to identify their perceptions of their contributions, challenges, and beliefs about giftedness and talents in girls and women. Reis (1998) defined talent development in women as occurring when women with high intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership ability or potential achieve at in an area of choice and make what they define as personally meaningful contributions to society. Reis identified several factors that contribute to this conception of giftedness and talent in women including: abilities (intelligence and special talents), personality traits, environmental factors, and personal perceptions, such as the social importance of the use of one's talents to make a positive difference in the world. Each of these factors contributes to what Gruber called "self-mobilization", characterized in some talented women by the development of belief in self, a desire to develop one's talents, and a sense of destiny enabling one to make conscious decisions to develop talents, often with little support and against many obstacles. Each of the women profiled in this chapter displayed these characteristics, working many hours over years of sheer effort as they successfully used their talents to make a difference in this field. This chapter highlights both their stories and their personal reflections on their journeys. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)

This chapter will attempt to provide an overview of current findings in relation to how giftedness is perceived from the perspective of the neurosciences. A historical account of conceptions of giftedness as being either innate or environmentally-driven will be explored to provide a framework as to how such models have evolved (and may be interpreted now) in light of advances in technology and brain-based research. The implications of brain imaging studies on educational practices are likewise discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: chapter)