A few years back, Chester E. Finn, JR. wrote an article that was published by The Atlantic in which he made the statement that ‘Gifted students have special needs, too.’ He put forth several arguments in support of his opinion and raised some issues that might explain why these needs are not being met.
Special needs, in this case, means special opportunities for gifted students to learn and grow at their own pace and in their own way, with special resources and support including programs, trained teachers, political push, and more.
Finn pointed out that in an ideal world, every teacher would cater to the needs of every child – gifted, non-gifted, average, under-served and challenged – in some way. But with 3 million-plus-teachers out there, how many are actually able to do that?
Class populations are so diverse with different student backgrounds, motivations, preparedness, cultural and language parameters, and pressures from government agencies for accountability, that giving special attention to gifted students is almost impossible.
In an ideal world, all students should have an equal opportunity to address their individual needs. But traditionally (in this country at least), equity is applied to income and minority status and not to levels of intellectual prowess or lack thereof. Society does not look at giftedness as a special need.
One-Size-Fits-All Education Doesn’t Work
What exactly is the definition of giftedness? Although there is no universal meaning, Hoagies Gifted states that the majority of individuals define “gifted” or “giftedness” as being:
- An intelligence test score above 130, two or more standard deviations above the norm, or the top 2.5%.
- A scholastic-based achievement in which a gifted child works two or more grade levels above his/her age.
- A prodigious accomplishment: adult-level work while chronologically a child.
And the list of definitions goes on. To put it simply, giftedness usually means that these individuals (both children and adults alike) differ from their peers in one or more of the following domains: general intellectual ability, specific academic competence, the visual or performing arts, leadership and creativity.
However, even if gifted students could be grouped and identified through some kind of standardized testing, the general feeling is that these students will do just fine on their own without added attention.
Underprivileged children or culturally different children may have some limitations in language or general communications skills that mask their giftedness. Those with uninterested or unaware parents who are not “pushy” may also be an obstacle to reaching out for a special opportunity.
Today’s educational system is targeted at the average student; thus, all students are measured in relation to the average student. Supervisory agencies who control school funding look for attention to be paid to those “below-average” students for improvements. Schools get recognized for raising the floor – not the ceiling.
Meeting Gifted Students’ Needs
Once identified, how do we go about meeting the needs of gifted children? Children can go through years of testing with little or no change to their educational environment. They may be given a little more attention or subject differentiation. They may be given an extra hour of independent study or access to a resource room for some time during the week. But that’s about it.
There are many state laws that govern the identification of gifted children, however, they do not provide direction on how to help these students, whether to group them in a self-contained program, pull them into a resource room for advanced topics or projects, or provide classroom differentiation. As for special curricula for gifted students, the laws fail to address this need.
And the needs are more than intellectual. In many cases, they also include emotional and social challenges. They are often subject to abuse, bullying and teasing. They feel isolated and rejected by peers and often treated as outcasts. Finding intellectual peers can be difficult and adjusting to age-different and social-different peers can be almost impossible.
Raising Teachers’ Awareness
Many teachers are unaware of the sensitivities and challenges faced by gifted children. Gifted children are overly excitable, learn and develop asynchronously, are highly emotional and sensitive, strive for perfection, have trouble with rejection, need to feel challenged, are very curious, want detailed information to absorb, dislike repetition, challenge current reasoning, get bored easily and are obsessed with areas of interest. In fact, some gifted students don’t always excel in school.
Teachers who are aware can help avoid problems with peer groups as well as better understand the actions and reactions of gifted students throughout the normal school day. Teachers can plan for independent project assignments and collect resources for the more intensive studying of gifted students’ topics of interest.
If a gifted child is very good at playing the piano or is a good actor, perhaps more time should be spent on music or performance to help foster and nurture those talents. It is probably better to develop a great artist than a mediocre mathematician or engineer.
Embracing Multipotentiality
One of the interesting things about gifted students is their interest in multiple subjects and areas of study. They have so many interests and talents that it is difficult to focus on any one at any given time. A teacher who is aware of this span of interest can adjust curriculum directions for those students.
This is really no different than high school or college students – or even post-school adults – who aren’t really sure what they like best or what industry to pursue. Even as adults they still don’t know what they want to be “when they grow up.” Maybe exposure to more subjects at a younger age could have helped make that decision easier.
Higher-Order Questions Fosters Higher-Order Thinking
Gifted students want to fly higher and longer than their peers. They want more than cursory answers to problems. They want to solve real-world problems. They want to connect the dots, to use knowledge in different disciplines to solve one problem in a way that makes sense for the world. They see problems from different perspectives than their peers.
Teachers and parents should give these students a chance to use their multiple skills to take on difficult problems. Asking “what if” questions can stimulate imaginations and fuel creative juices. Asking “what do you think?” will do the same.
If we as a society are concerned about the future of our world, then we should strive for educational structures and processes that support, not only those less privileged but also those with enormous potential to lead, change and improve that world.
