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Thom Vaes

TTO 4

Maartenscollege Haren

GIFTEDNESS IN EDUCATION

Introduction

What does being gifted mean?

Being gifted is often depicted as having an IQ of over 130 and a few "special" traits. Being gifted often involves different ways of thinking and solving problems.

= Gifted

Giftedness

There is a federal government statutory definition of gifted and talented students in the United States:

"The term "gifted and talented" when used in respect to students, children, or youth means students, children, or youth who give evidence of high performance capability in areas such as intellectual, creative, artistic, or leadership capacity, or in specific academic fields, and who require services or activities not ordinarily provided by the school in order to fully develop such capabilities."

My reasons to choose this topic

Why this topic?

Personal reason

My personal reasons to choose this topic

I see children and adults struggle with it every day and I think that they didn't learn how to cope with being gifted.

I myself am "gifted".

Being gifted caused me a lot of problems later in my life due to not being handled correctly in primary and secondary school.

Problems seen in giftedness

  • We appear to be dreamer: continuously ordening of thoughts, really fast thinking, really fast links.
  • We appear to be NOT interested.
  • Difficulties with asking things, fear of failing?
  • Inferiority and/or depression might occur.
  • Not to be heard.
  • Sense of justice (more than "normal" people).
  • Fixed mindset instead of growth mindset.
  • Type of perfectionism.
  • Automation is difficult.

Educational reason

Problems in education

When a promise is made by teachers, it is really important to hold on to those promises, because when a promise is not held the student will most likely stop putting in any effort and might get bad grades.

Teachers don't understand "giftedness" and thus misinterpret it, they think: "the kids are simply geniuses and understand everything".

Many teachers think gifted students are able to understand everything with only having a small glimpse of what is taught.

Problems in education

The problems and the consequences

seen with "giftedness" in education

What are the consequences?

Overall, gifted kids have a very strong sense of righteousness and it's very hard to adapt to the rules being "bent" by either the teachers or by other students.

Because teachers misinterpret the term "giftedness" they expect way too much from the student, the students isn't able to live up to these newly set "standards" and will flunk out.

Students tend to get lower grades because they never had to learn in earlier stages in school, because it was too easy. In the higher grades they might have to learn for the first time because of bigger amounts schoolwork or more difficult material and will also flunk out.

Differences between gifted and highly intelligent

Differences between students

Now that we know that there are problems for gifted children and adults, are there also problems for highly-intelligent kids and adults?

And which of the differences overlap?

Gifted children

Gifted

  • Not understood
  • Not compatible with the method of teaching
  • Teachers don't understand their students
  • Students don't show interest or get bad grades
  • Not enough challenge in lessons
  • Stop learning and find something they're interested in to instead of schoolwork
  • Top down thinking (Top down thinking starts out from an idea that is a given).

Highly intelligent children

Highly intelligent

  • Not enough challenge in lessons.
  • Get bored and stop learning for school to instead play with friends for example.
  • Bottom up thinking (bottom up thinking is like the way we build a house. Starting from the ground, we work upwards, using what we've done already as support for what we're working on at the moment).

Overlapping problems

  • Not enough challenge in lessons.
  • Students get bored and start doing something else.
  • If a student gets grades that are "higher than average" there's a possibility he might get bullied.

Overlapping problems

Solutions

Solutions for both teachers and students to improve learning in school.

Solution

Educational solutions

Solution 1

  • Teachers should learn to understand what the meaning of giftedness is.
  • When teachers know, they can understand that a 7 years old also needs explanation by doing algebra or more difficult schoolwork. They can't expect the child to know right away.
  • When teachers know, they won't make the mistake to NOT give the gifted student attention. Gifted children flourish by giving them attention and giving them time to ask.

Solution 2

Possible future state:

  • Differentiate up: offer harder material to students who excel in that certain subject.
  • Top down learning.
  • Give students the attention they need (don't think: "he is gifted he can manage himself").

Current state:

  • Differentiating down: children who do not do so well in class get extra attention, probably easier lessons.
  • Students keep on getting the same material, lessons, books like everyone else in class.
  • Often gifted students find "bottom up" learning difficult (like 1+1 =2), they want "top down" learning (we have 2, how did you get 2?).

Solution 2

A teacher should be aware that a gifted student often feels out of place or has no friends at all in primary school/kindergarten, so he can talk to the parents or make a program that a child feels better in the group. Every child is different so there is not just one solution for the problem.

The teacher can help the student to find it's way to cope with that problem, everybody does that in a different way. When a child becomes a student they tend to do more of their own and their social relations are often with the people who think alike (this is often with older students if they are in luck).

3

Solution 3

Solution 4

Solution 4

Teachers should offer harder/more difficult material without forcing the student to do it.

IMPORTANT: teachers should be able to give harder material but don't force it on a student and certainly don't give EXTRA work if he doesn't want to any extra work, instead, replace some of his assignments with other assignments.

Solution 5

Check homework the student did at home, otherwise the student might think it's probably not important because the teacher didn't check the homework.

Solution 5

Solution 6

The student probably has a different way of learning then the one his classmates use. He has to explore the proper way to do so. He might need some help with that, by explaining the lessons in a different way.

Solution 7

Let the gifted student apply what he learned to (new) subjects and make questions more difficult.

Solution 7

Solution 8

Teach students not to be afraid to ask something to a teacher.

Solution 8

Solution 9

Keep telling a student it's not bad to make mistakes.

Solution 9

Personal solutions

  • Get external help (psychologist, coach, etc.)
  • Ask help to people you trust (friends, parents, teachers etc.)
  • Extra-curricular activities.
  • You need to realize you yourself can't change people. You have to adapt to them.

Personal solutions

Parental solutions

Parental solutions

Solution 1

Tell your child's teacher your child is gifted!

Solution 1

Solution 2

Let the school know that your child needs more difficult material, not more but harder.

Solution 2

Solution 3

Make sure your child gets enough challenge in lessons and that your child isn't left out because he is "different".

Solution 3

Solution 4

Make sure your child is comfortable in his/her class.

Solution 4

Solution 5

SPEAK UP TO YOUR CHILD'S TEACHERS! The teachers will probably see something is different with the student, but they don't know what is wrong. If as a parent you know your child is gifted you can help the teacher understand your child.

Conclusion

Epilogue

So to give a gifted kid a better chance in school, you should give the kid more attention, harder work if he wants to, and you should understand what gifted is! Those are the few most important solutions. Don't let a gifted kid climb the same tree over and over again if it's too simple for him, instead allow him to go to the tree in the far back that's a bit harder.

Thank you

Thank you

Thank you for watching this Prezi, I hope you have really learned something and will be able to do something about this problem in the near future!

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