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Reviews the book, Critical issues and practices in gifted education: What the research says edited by Jonathan A. Plucker and Carolyn M. Callahan (see record 2008-01728-000). Over the years, gifted education has received substantial criticism in and beyond the research literature (e.g., Grant, 2002; Sapon-Shevin, 1993). Criticisms have fallen into several camps. One group of critics describes gifted education as elitist and suggests that there should not be special programs for high-achieving students. Others criticize how giftedness is defined and more frequently how gifted students are identified, and even suggest that gifted education is responsible for maintaining the achievement gap. Some critics comment on the programming choices available for students who are identified, and others criticize the field of gifted education for making decisions based on fads and myths rather than empirical evidence. This context provides a backdrop for the publication of Critical issues and practices in gifted education: What the research says. In this book, the authors have attempted to bring together research that addresses almost all of the aforementioned issues. Their goal is aptly stated in the book’s introduction: “Despite a century of research on giftedness, the enthusiasm and rhetoric surrounding...services offered to gifted students often exceeds the level of available empirical support—or even contradicts the available evidence” (Plucker & Callahan, 2008b, pp. 1). The editors go on to state that their goal is to be inclusive, but brief. Thus, they included chapters across several domains—conceptual and foundational issues, curriculum, cognition, affect, programming, issues related to teacher and parents, and special populations—that are synopses rather than comprehensive reviews of the empirical literature in the field. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)

In the development of performance excellence, the relative roles played by intellectual ability and motivation remain speculative. This study investigates the role played by general intelligence, school environment, self-efficacy, and aspects of personal identity in the formation of learning motivation in German students attending the Gymnasium schools. Using self-reports of academic achievement and scores on a shortened version of the Berlin intelligence structure test for adolescence to differentiate students as achievers or underachievers, ninth-grade students were administered a battery of self-report instruments, designed to measure learning motivation, school environment, self-efficacy, and personal identity. After the posited factor structure was confirmed, factor scores were computed and then used as data in hierarchical regression analyses using learning motivation as the criterion variable. The results showed that the greatest predictors of learning motivation were variables related to personal identity-style, rather than general intelligence, supporting the hypothesis that learning motivation is a moderator variable of intellectual achievement for students with intellectual giftedness, rather than an inherent component of giftedness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

A case study of the psychometric characteristics of two profoundly gifted girls, one with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and the other without ASD, is used to describe the nuances and subtleties most relevant in understanding the relationship between extreme giftedness and social difficulties. Through the presentation of the results from psychoeducational and psychosocial assessments, we demonstrate how data from a comprehensive evaluation can distinguish between the manifestation of extreme giftedness and concomitant social impairment indicative of ASD. Comparison of the assessment results highlights the relevance of cognitive and achievement information as well as the need for specific measures to diagnosis ASD. The girls demonstrated virtually identically superior cognitive and achievement performances. However, an in-depth analysis of additional measures, especially those specific to ASD, indicates that information about adaptive behavior and executive functioning can reveal important distinctions that are helpful in understanding the need for unique interventions specific to ASD. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes of gifted adolescents toward being labeled as gifted and talented, to evaluate how gifted students perceive that others view their giftedness, and to determine whether these attitudes and perceptions vary depending on the child's level of giftedness. Sixty-six sixth- through eighth-grade public-school students, identified as either gifted or highly gifted, were surveyed on the positive and negative attributes of being labeled gifted and talented. The highly gifted and moderately gifted groups exhibited measurable differences in their perceptions of the positive aspects of the gifted label. Furthermore, the study suggests that negative stereotyping, often associated with the gifted label, can be minimized in a carefully integrated gifted program. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

While conceptualizations of giftedness have been broadened to include many forms of giftedness, a reconceptualization of gifted programs has not followed. The paper argues that the Reggio Emilia approach to early childhood education, combining important features of the fields of early childhood education and gifted education, is a good fit for gifted young children. This approach is proposed for gifted young children because of its view of children as competent and full of potential, its emphasis on the development of symbolic languages early in life, and its conduciveness to higher-level thinking. The paper suggests that the Reggio approach not only enhances intellectual development, but also nurtures multiple forms of knowledge representation in early childhood, thus laying foundations for diverse talent development. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

Questionnaires were given to students prior to testing for giftedness to assess how the gifted identification process changes attitudes to ward gifted programs and parent-child relationships. After those identified as gifted had been participating in a pullout gifted program for one semester, another questionnaire was administered to all original participants. Comparable data were also collected from the students' parents. Results suggest that prior to identification, gifted and nongifted students and their parents shared similar attitudes toward giftedness. After identification, attitudes showed either no change or decreased. Compared to their gifted counterparts, nongifted students and their parents tended to report lower attitudes after identification. The impact of this attenuation and the use of preidentification data are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

The myth that gifted children constitute 3% to 5% of the school population was addressed in the 1982 issue of the Gifted Child Quarterly by Joe Renzulli, a fact that is more than a little intimidating to one charged with addressing the same myth 27(!) years later. In his 1982 article, Renzulli interpreted the 3% to 5% myth as an implicit endorsement of the belief that giftedness equals high IQ, which he rightly took pains to refute. Moreover, consistent with his Three-ring Conception of Giftedness (e.g., 1978), of which “above-average ability” is a major (and salutarily radical) component, Renzulli argued that “high levels of creative productivity can be achieved by students below the top 5% if we use a more flexible identification process.” Because more than a quarter of a century has passed, the belief that 3% to 5% of the school population is gifted and the belief that giftedness can be reduced to a high score on an IQ test must now be mere historical curiosities from the Reagan years, as outdated as Cabbage Patch Dolls, Milli Vanilli, and supply-side economics. Alas, this is not the case. Both myths still flourish, apparently invulnerable to reason and the lessons of experience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

"The gifted and talented constitute one single homogeneous group and giftedness is a way of being that stays in the person over time and experiences." We believe there is no more potentially dangerous and false myth than the one above. Let us, therefore, begin this response with the following resounding statement: There is no single homogeneous group of gifted children and adults, and giftedness is developmental, not fixed at birth. Our current federal definition suggests that gifted and talented students are indeed a diverse group of individuals, students with varying abilities and potentials in one or many domains. This widely accepted federal definition of giftedness (Ross, 1993) highlights students’ intellectual, creative, and/or artistic areas; unusual capacity for leadership; or excellence in specific academic fields. This definition discusses outstanding talents present in children and youth from all cultural groups, across all economic strata, in all areas of human endeavor. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

This issue of High Ability Studies appears to be a further indication that giftedness research and expertise research do not necessarily have to be considered contending fields, and can very well complement one another. Three of the articles in this issue are founded in the area of classical giftedness research. They address theoretical and practical questions associated with the measurement of high abilities, the significance of motivation within the framework of conceptions of giftedness, and issues of social adjustment among gifted children. The fourth contribution creates a link between the two fields in that it examines the academic achievements of talented athletes and describes the structures and qualification profiles of special schools for talented athletes. The three remaining articles pertain to expertise research—two address the concept and significance of early sport specialization, and the third is concerned with excellence and professionalism among environmental experts. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved)

The paper presents the author’s views on inspiring creative thinking among students through a folktale. The mbira metaphor is this author’s interpretation of a unique African (Shona) folktale that has the potential to enrich the pedagogy of giftedness. The mbira metaphor is an informative and thought-provoking folktale originating from previous studies on Shona culture’s views of giftedness. The recognition of the mbira folktale as a metaphor that has the potential to enrich gifted programming follows new thinking in research that values the contribution of sociocultural perspectives to our understanding of giftedness and creativity. The author recommends that the mbira metaphor be used in gifted programming to inspire creative thinking among students. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

This editorial provides an introduction to the special issue focusing on current international research on character education and giftedness. The first two articles are discussion articles by experienced experts in the fields of giftedness and character education. The purpose of these articles is to direct and stimulate the future empirical research in these areas. The four articles that follow are research-based empirical studies. The editor concludes by challenging all the authors, as well as our readers, to further explore new horizons in the fields of character education and giftedness. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Fostering creativity among gifted students has become forefront as an important element in Korea’s future economic prosperity. Since the passage of a gifted education act in 2002, all K-12 schools have been developing gifted programs. The first of two studies examines Koreans’ concept of giftedness based on the implicit theory. Three hundred twenty-eight Koreans including scientists, parents, teachers, and college students described their concept of giftedness, which includes intelligence, task commitment, creativity, interpersonal relationship, moral sense, and artistic talent. The second study explores self-reported characteristics of Korean students identified as gifted and whether identification criteria for giftedness miss creative students by emphasizing IQ and achievement scores. One thousand one hundred fifty-four students (469 gifted in sciences, 285 gifted in humanities, and 400 regular students) answered a questionnaire developed from the first study. The results indicate that students identified as gifted tend to have higher intelligence and task commitment than regular students, but tend not to differ from regular students in creativity when compared to Renzulli’s three rings concept of giftedness—above average ability, task commitment, and creativity. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

The purpose of this study was to replicate and extend Hartnett, Nelson, and Rinn's (2004) study using a sample of preservice teachers in order to examine the potential for the misdiagnosis of giftedness and ADHD. Participants included 132 preservice teachers enrolled in a comprehensive university in the South. A chi-square analysis indicated the suggestion of giftedness influenced the diagnosis of behaviors that can be typical of both giftedness and ADHD, as found in Hartnett et al. Conclusions and implications are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

Classroom teachers play an important role in the identification of gifted students through teacher recommendations and referrals. This study is an investigation of teachers' theories of giftedness using methods adapted from those used to study theory-based reasoning in categorization research. In general, the teachers in this study focused on traditional characteristics of giftedness and did not tend to include characteristics associated with diverse gifted students in their theories. Comparisons of teachers with greater and fewer hours of training in gifted education showed no significant differences between the groups. However, there was also little consistency among the teachers in their graphic representations of their theories, suggesting that not all elementary classroom teachers define common characteristics of giftedness in the same way. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

This special issue focuses on the reconceptualization of giftedness. Five papers explore how we define, identify, research, and support gifts and talents. As guest editors, this has been a very exciting project. It began as a symposium at the Canadian Society for the Study of Education in 2008. Our passion for challenging the status quo, questioning what is 'inside the lines' of current definitions of and research into giftedness, and doing so in forms that are themselves 'outside the lines' prompted further exploration and writing. The last two decades of the 20 th century were characterized by efforts designed to encourage the reconsideration and expansion of our definitions of giftedness to allow for the multiple ways in which one can be competent. Now, more attention is directed to cultural influences on valued competencies, factors important to extraordinary competence that move "beyond knowledge" and the role of rich, complex environments in the determination and support of competent behaviors. Intelligence is situated in context, demanding multiple views of giftedness consonant with our pluralistic society and global community, recognition and support of "nontraditional" talents, and multiple representations of what it means to realize and understand competence. One of the issue in this issue paper presents a powerful metaphor for research in gifted education. The experience of swimming 'past buoy lines' provides a poetic basis for understanding how we position ourselves as researchers and how we conceptualize and relate to the constructs which we purport to investigate. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Is it possible to identify the specific characteristics as well as the scope of the phenomenon of demands concerning giftedness? The author presents and comments a set of data reflecting the activity of a Parisian consultation center over two separate years: 2004 (12% of the demands concern giftedness) and 2006 (11% of the demands concern giftedness). The psychometrical investigations are based on the Wechsler Scales (WISC-III; WISC-IV). The percentage of demands related to giftedness is quite high as compared to other motives. It mainly concerns children who do not show what are called “very superior” intellectual abilities. The development of certain social stereotypes could be an explanation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)

Reviews the book, Gifted children: A guide for parents and professionals edited by Distin K. Jessica (2006). This book is an informative exploration of the gifted mind and the social and emotional needs of gifted children and their families. The subject matter is inevitably biased towards the problems that gifted children may experience. The authors acknowledge this as a limitation and do well to contextualize it. This is not an academic text that discusses the breadth of giftedness, it is clear from the outset that the knowledge presented is limited to specific types of giftedness, according to the experiences of the contributors. As an edited text, this book has a number of contributions from highly experienced individuals with specific areas of expertise. Part 1 explores some of the characteristics and emotions that gifted children often share, exploring what it means to be typically gifted and the impact that giftedness can have on a family. Part 2 provides an opportunity for individuals to speak on their particular areas of giftedness and to consider the needs and challenges specific to various forms of giftedness. Finally, Part 3, written collaboratively, concludes by reinforcing the key topics of self-acceptance and communication. The text certainly provides a useful introduction for parents and offers them a platform from which to communicate their gifted child's needs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Experts have developed varying, and sometimes conflicting, conceptions of academic talent and giftedness. Classroom and school composition often are tied to these conceptions of academic talent and giftedness, and magnet and charter schools select certain students who best "fit" their particular conception of giftedness. Educators' perceptions and attitudes regarding academic talent and giftedness thus impact what services are delivered to which students. Little is known about educators' beliefs regarding conceptions of academic talent and giftedness. The current national study surveyed 900 public school educators, including regular classroom teachers, administrators, and gifted education specialists, regarding their definitions of academic talent and giftedness. The educators believed that all traditional and popular conceptions of academic talent and giftedness were valid, but they were less likely to support definitions involving talents in less-traditional areas. Educators accepted some of the more recently conceived, and more inclusive, conceptions of academic talent or giftedness. Such results are potentially valuable to school administrators, gifted education specialists, and regular classroom teachers who work with academically talented and gifted students, as well as to those who are concerned with the factors influencing school or classroom composition. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved) (Source: journal abstract)