Gifted Children's Advocate

Immediate Past President, Queensland Association for Gifted and Talented Children

President, Australian Association for the Education of the Gifted and Talented

Societies see their future in terms of the contributions of their talented members. A nations prosperity is dependent upon its utilisation of the full range of available human abilities. All socio-cultural groups tend to foster development of a range of valued talents and abilities according to their needs and belief systems. A large body of research and a resulting literature developed late last century around one key concept usually labelled giftedness along with all of the related concepts and topics such as intelligence, talent, potential, thinking, creativity, identification, underachievement, educational programs and support services.

The 20^th century saw the greatest development in this field. Early studies demonstrated that the gifted were not socially or emotionally bereft and are often successful throughout their lives (eg: Terman and Hollingworth).

Designation of giftedness relied initially on testing for high IQ levels. The broad field that giftedness has become had at its roots a narrow definition and middle to upper class aspirations.

In 1978 Renzulli proposed a definition which received worldwide recognition and was used substantially throughout the eighties.

VanTassel-Baska (1998) provides a succinct summary of the general movement towards a more liberal view of the field in her expanding lens for viewing conceptions of giftedness. She explains how the notion of genius has been extended to embrace creativity (Guilford, 1950; Torrance, 1967), talent development (Feldhusen, 1995; Renzulli, 1994; VanTassel-Baska, 1998), componential intelligence (Sternberg, 1986, 1991) and multiple intelligences (Gardner, 1983, 1993).

Another expansion of the concept of giftedness is seen in Gagne's (1985, 1995, 2000) theory of giftedness and talent where he proposes a set of aptitudes or gifts which the child develops into talents through interaction with a range of internal and external catalysts.

Gross refined Silverman's categories of giftedness (2000) to describe IQ levels that form part of the picture of an individuals giftedness:

In Queensland the first state policy relied on the Renzulli definition above. The 1993 Queensland departmental policy definition was:

The field of gifted education relates predominately to two major questions. These are:

• Which students are gifted? (ie, The Education of Gifted Students)
• What are their needs in terms of school organisation, curriculum content and pedagogy (ie, Gifted Education)

Clark (1997) sees the field as contentious and frustrating. Her concern about the enduring body of misinformation that continues to contribute to negative attitudes particularly among educational decision makers underlines the need for more effective solutions to the issue of raising awareness and disseminating accurate information.

In Australia only one state, New South Wales, has committed consistently comparable annual funding of multi-million dollar magnitude to gifted children through its continuation of Selective Schools and Opportunity Classes.

Attitudes towards the gifted are coloured by enduring persistence of stereotypes and myths. In Australian democratic society developed from a belief in egalitarianism which, along with its successor, equity, has resulted in confused thinking that brands gifted education as elitist and precipitates exodus of numbers of interested from the field or at least persuades them to hide behind a proliferation of alternative terms (Braggett, 1994; Gross, 1993).

The most recent nation-wide activity in Australia was the Employment, Workplace Relations, Small Business and Education References Committee Inquiry into the Education of Gifted and Talented Children in 2001. All groups providing submissions to the enquiry agreed that there is a problem with the education of gifted children. These children have special needs in the education system and many do not have their needs met. Many suffer underachievement, boredom, frustration and psychological distress as a result. (p.xiii). Currently Australian Government Quality Teacher Program funding provides federal government support as a result of associations lobbying for implementation of the inquirys recommendations. State funding is diminishing.

As good practice the pedagogy and curriculum designed for gifted children has much to offer the general school population up to a point. As Clark points out gifted education has two equally critical tasks:

1. to support and enhance the appropriate education of gifted learners, those functioning or who have the ability to function at high levels of intelligence, and
2. to support and enhance the talent in all learners so that all children may realize their fullest potential to the highest levels of their ability. (p.6)

Rogers has been a major champion of gifted education as Linda Silverman points out in the foreword to Rogers latest publication taking on the powerful Zeitgeist of anti-ability grouping and anti-gifted sentiment with solid documentation from a large body of research of the positive effects of ability grouping and special programs for the gifted (in Rogers, 2002, pp. xxii, xxiii).

The notions of giftedness, intelligence and talent are confused because of over-reliance in the literature on school-related performance and school-based achieving behaviours. This study seeks to resist the watering down of gifted that can be seen in the oft-heard extremist cry of "all children are gifted" (Braggett, 1998; Clark, 1997). This will be accomplished by refocusing on the core issue the gifted child. Understanding the experiences of the child may help to resolve some of the issues and inform both theory and practice.

The role of parents as teachers and the importance of families in the development of the childs potential are underestimated. From birth children are in learning mode and development is rapid.

Usually around the age of five years parents are faced with the prospect of relinquishing charge of the child for several hours each school day. During the early years they have built up a vast store of information about the child which could provide invaluable assistance to formal institutions taking on the role of educating the child through the compulsory years of schooling. It seems that parents do not take a portfolio of childrens products or a profile of the early years to the receiving teacher, neither do teachers ask parents what they know about the childs achievements to date. Children who enter school with high performance in any area (eg reading) may not be recognised and may learn to stop their advanced behaviours because none of the other children can read.

For the benefit of gifted children real partnerships between schools and families need to be developed in an open atmosphere of mutual care and respect.

Diezmann and Watters (1997) note that the mismatch between the curriculum and the need of the gifted child for a challenging education can adversely affect the childs self-concept.

Examination of the literature has revealed major deficiencies, or unexplored areas, within the fields of giftedness and gifted education. These relate to:

• Studies of gifted children in Australia, and
• Studies where the voices of gifted children are heard.

A number of reports suggest that gifted children are not developing to their potential. There is a great need to examine why this is so and provide some direction towards optimising their educational experiences in different learning environments.