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Why Do We Need To Define Giftedness?
A definition of giftedness is the foundation
upon which an educational program for gifted children is built.
The specific abilities included in a definition determine the kinds
of identification criteria that are used to select children for
a program and the kinds of educational services that are provided
to those children. The selection of abilities to be included in
a definition is, therefore, very important to educators who must
determine which children are designated as gifted and what kinds
of educational services are provided to them.
For example, a definition that incorporates
creativity as a category suggests that schools provide experiences
aimed at developing the potential of children who have been identified
as being creative; a definition that includes leadership ability
suggests other types of identification criteria and educational
experiences.
Educators who are charged with the reponsibility
of creating or maintaining programs for gifted children and youth
face a different task when they must decide what giftedness is,
how gifted children can be identified, and what services schools
should provide. The following points are a guide for helping them
make those decisions:
- The concept of giftedness is not limited
to high intellectual ability. It also comprises creativity, ability
in specific academic areas, ability in visual or performing arts,
social adeptness, and physical dexterity.
- A program for gifted children should be
based on the way in which the school system operationally defines
giftedness. A definition should be the basis of decision regarding
the selection of identification procedures as well as the provision
of educational services for gifted children.
- Definitions of giftedness are influenced
by social, political, economic, and cultural factors.
- Giftedness is found among all groups, including
females, minorities, handicapped persons, persons with limited
English-speaking proficiency, and migrants.
Who Are The Gifted?
In 1969, Congress mandated a study by the
U.S. Commissioner of Education to determine the extent to which
the needs of gifted and talented children were being met (Sisk 1980).
The ensuing document, known as the Marland Report (1972), contains
a definition of giftedness that has been and continues to be the
one most widely adopted or adapted by state and local education
agencies. The Report states:
Gifted and talented children are those identified
by professionally qualified persons who, by virtue of outstanding
abilities, are capable of high performance. These are children who
require differential educational programs and/or services beyond
those provided by the regular school program in order to realize
their contribution to self and the society.
Children capable of high performance include
those with demonstrated achievement and/or potential ability in
any of the following areas, singly or in combination:
- General intellectual ability
- Specific academic aptitude
- Creative or productive thinking
- Leadership ability
- Visual and performing arts
- Psychomotor ability
Although the definition has been criticized
as being limiting (Reis and Renzulli 1982) and of promoting elitism
(Feldman 1979), more than 80% of the 204 experts polled for their
reactions to the Marland definition agreed with the selection of
the categories of high intellectual ability, creative or productive
thinking, specific academic aptitude, and ability in visual or performing
arts. Approximately half of the experts agreed that social adeptness
and psychomotor ability should be included (Martinson 1975).
The federal government has included five broad
areas in the definition found in the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation
Act of 1981. In this act, block grants for education have been provided
to the states; some of these funds may be used for:
special programs to identify, encourage, and meet the special educational
needs of children who give evidence of high performance capability
in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, leadership capacity,
or specific academic fields, and who require services or activities
not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop
such capabilities.
More recently, the Regulations for the Educational
Security Act of 1984, which provides grants for strengthening the
skills of teachers and instruction in mathematics, science, foreign
languages, and computer learning have defined the term "gifted
student" as a "student, identified by various measures,
who demonstrates actual or potential high performance capability
in the fields of mathematics, science, foreign languages, or computer
learning." Gifted students may come from "historically
underrepresented and underserved groups, including females, minorities,
handicapped persons, persons of limited English-speaking proficiency,
and migrants.
By placing an emphasis on math, science, foreign
languages, and computer learning, this latest federal definition
highlights the fact that the ways in which schools operationally
define giftedness are often based on the needs of society. Definitions
are also influenced by cultural and socioeconomic factors.
As Bernal points out, "what is clever
and creative for a child in the barrio or on the reservation, where
different value systems are in operation, will not be the same as
for the child who grows up in the suburbs" (1974). For economically
disadvantaged populations that place a heavy emphasis on preparing
students for employment rather than college, a definition might
recognize that students can be gifted in areas that are generally
nonacademic in nature, such as carpentry or mechanics (McClellan
1984).
A New Definition of Giftedness - Defining
Giftedness from Within
A new definition of giftedness that highlights
the complexity of raising gifted children was developed by The Columbus
Group in 1991. The Columbus Group asserts that the contemporary
tendency to define giftedness as behaviours, achievement, products
or school placements, external to the individual, necessarily misses
the essence of giftedness - how it alters the meaning of life experience
for the gifted individual. Consequently, the Group offers the following
preliminary attempt at a phenomenological definition, which at this
point, may apply best to the highly gifted:
"Giftedness is 'asynchronous development'
in which advanced cognitive abilities and heightened intensity
combine to create inner experiences and awareness that are qualitatively
different from the norm. This asynchrony increases with higher
intellectual capacity. The uniqueness of the gifted renders them
particularly vulnerable and requires modifications in parenting,
teaching and counseling in order for them to develop optimally."
(The Columbus Group, 1991, in Morelock, 1992)
"Asynchrony" means being out of
sync, both internally and externally. "Asynchronous development"
means that gifted children develop cognitively at a much faster
rate than they develop physically and emotionally, posing some interesting
problems. For example, ideas forged by 8-year-old minds may be difficult
to produce with 5-year-old hands. Further, advanced cognition often
makes gifted children aware of information that they are not yet
emotionally ready to handle. They tend to experience all of life
with greater intensity, rendering them emotionally complex. These
children usually do not fit the developmental norms for their age;
they have more advanced play interests and often are academically
far ahead of their age peers. The brighter the child, the greater
the asynchrony and potential vulnerability. Therefore, parents who
are aware of the inherent developmental differences of their children
can prepare themselves to act as their advocates. (Silverman)
Who Are The Highly Gifted?
Highly gifted or exceptionally gifted
children include:
- Those who score extremely high on individually
administered IQ tests (generally in the 148+ range, Stanford-Binet
L-M scores; or in the 140+ range on the WISC-R or Stanford-Binet
Fourth Edition
- Child prodigies in areas such as music,
mathematics, or chess
- Children with extremely highly developed
talents in unusual areas
- Profoundly intellectually gifted children
above 170 IQ
Why is it Important to Know Whether
or Not a Child is Highly Gifted?
The child of 160 IQ is as different
from the child of 130 IQ as that child is from the child of average
ability. The kind of educational program developed for the highly
gifted child of 160, 170, or 180 IQ often differs markedly from
appropriate programs for most gifted children, but usually these
programs are designed for the moderately gifted. An exceptionally
gifted child may have difficulty finding appropriate challenges
even in the gifted class, because of the need to move at a much
faster pace, the ability to process material in greater depth, and
the increased sensitivity, awareness, and intensity typical of this
population. (Kearney)
"It may be nearly impossible for highly
gifted children to conform their thinking to the ways in which others
think. Some do not ‘group’ well. Some have difficulty
developing relations with others. Some argue continuously because
that is the way they learn. Some are intensely sensitive. Some have
major discrepancies between their intellectual maturity and motor
coordination and so appear ‘immature.’" (Silverman)
"This definition of giftedness allows
penetration beyond behavioural achievement or non-achievement. Achievement
remains an interesting and significant expression of giftedness,
and it continues to be important to examine whether it occurs and
why or why not. Nevertheless, it is neither the essence of giftedness
nor the most important aspect of it. The Columbus Group definition
calls for a shift of focus from the external products of giftedness
to the true nature of the phenomenon itself. This shift to a view
from within is an important move towards both understanding giftedness
and understanding our gifted." (Morelock)
Some of the Earliest Signs of Giftedness Include:
- Unusual Alertness in Infancy
- Less Need for Sleep in Infancy
- Long Attention Span
- High Activity Level
- Smiling or Recognizing Caretakers
Early
- Intense Reactions to Noise, Pain,
Frustration
- Advanced Progression Through the
Developmental Milestones
- Extraordinary Memory
- Enjoyment and Speed of Learning
- Early and Extensive Language Development
- Fascination with Books
- Curiosity
- Excellent Sense of Humor
- Abstract Reasoning and Problem-Solving
Skills
- Vivid Imagination (e.g., imaginary
companions)
- Sensitivity and Compassion
If a child exhibits a majority of these characteristics,
parents may wish to have the child assessed by an experienced examiner
to find out if the child is gifted. Firstborn children tend to be
recognized more often than their siblings. When one child in the
family is gifted, it is quite possible that others may also be gifted.
Early identification is recommended (ages 3 through 8) because it
permits early intervention, as important for gifted as for any other
children with special needs. (Silverman)
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