• What does "gifted" mean?

 

• How are students identified?

 

• Checklist: Bright students vs Gifted students

   

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The definition of Giftedness...

There are many definitions. It depends upon the surrounding circumstances and the goals in question. There is a growing "feeling that general intelligence, as depicted by the IQ, is too narrowly conceived to capture the varieties of talents at school" (Tannenbaum, Gifted Children,1983). Nevertheless, in our academic setting there remains an emphasis on school tasks that require a strong "school ability." Many definitions of giftedness tend to focus on academic potential and achievement. This might include general intellectual ability or a more specific academic aptitude. Other broad areas for identification of accelerated growth might be: creative thinking, social/leadership skills, visual and performing arts, and psychomotor ability.

Seven faculties or "intelligences" have been identified by Howard Gardner of Harvard University: Musical, Bodily-Kinesthetic, Logical-Mathematical, Linguistic, Spatial, Interpersonal, and Intrapersonal (Gardner, Frames of the Mind,1983). An eighth intelligence was coined many years after the seven original intelligences were published in 1983. The eighth intelligence is titled Naturalistic Intelligence and it "allows people to distinguish among, classify, and use features of the environment." Gardner suggested that people possess all intelligences in varying degrees which helps determine how they learn and ultimately how they will fare in the workplace. (Frances Moore,"The Theory of Multiple Intelligences and its Application to Education," http://education.canberra.edu.au/postgrad/ss/students/frances/FRANCES.HTM)

There is currently a discussion regarding a ninth intelligence. Existential Intelligence involves the human proclivity to ask fundamental questions ("Why are we here? Who am I?").

The National Association for Gifted Children states: "A gifted person is someone who shows, or has the potential for showing, an exceptional level of performance in one or more areas of expression. Some of these abilities are very general and can affect a broad spectrum of the person's life, such as leadership skills or the ability to think creatively. Some are very specific talents and are only evident in particular circumstances, such as a special aptitude in mathematics, science, or music. The term giftedness provides a general reference to this spectrum of abilities without being specific or dependent on a single measure or index. It is generally recognized that approximately five percent of the student population, or three million children, in the United States are considered gifted.

A person's giftedness should not be confused with the means by which giftedness is observed or assessed. A parent's, teacher's or student's recommendation, a high mark on an examination, a high IQ score, are not giftedness; they may be a signal that giftedness exists."

For further information:

• National Association for Gifted Children
• Multiple Intelligences
• Multiple Intelligences : Theory and Practice in the K -12 Classroom

Here are two simple definitions:

"What is a gifted child? Children who do things a little bit better, a little bit earlier, a little bit faster, and maybe a little bit differently than most other children."

"Gifted students are those who seem to know a lot more than they are supposed to know and we don't know how they know, you know ?!"

Click here to read about some maddening myths that are commonly associated with gifted people. Are you guilty?

 

 

 

For information on identification contact the Gifted Coordinator and/or see The Illinois State Board of Education - Gifted Education Rules Section 227.40