GIFTED

Varied Definitions

ACCORDIN G T O W EBST ERS N EW W ORLD CO LLEGE DIC TION ARY (1996 )

Gifted (gift’ id) adj. 1. having a natural ability or

aptitude; talented 2. notably superior in intelligence

ACCORDING TO DICTIONARY.COM

gift·ed

   /ˈgɪftɪd/ Show Spelled[gif-tid] Show IPA

adjective 1. having great special talent or ability: the debut of a gifted artist.

2. having exceptionally high intelligence: gifted children.

Origin:

1635–45; gift + -ed3

Synonyms

1.  accomplished, talented.

ACCORDING TO DICTIONARY.COM

Related forms gift·ed·ly, adverb

gift·ed·ness, noun

o·ver·gift·ed, adjective

un·gift·ed, adjective

well-gift·ed, adjective

Synonyms

1.  accomplished, talented.

CONCLUSION

According to these dictionaries,

giftedness has to do with high levels of

intelligence and ability.

THAT’S NOT VERY SPECIFIC….

How would a person show these abilities and their

level of intelligence?

ACCORDING TO VIRGINIA

Gifted students come from many backgrounds, and their

special abilities cover a wide spectrum of human potential.

The Regulations governing educational services define gifted

students as those students ..

"whose abilities and potential for accomplishment are so

outstanding that they require special educational

programs to meet their educational needs." 2

2 See Regulations Governing Educational Services for Gifted Students, Part I,

1.2

ACCORDING TO VIRGINIA

The Regulations Governing Education Services for Gifted Students says

that :

"Gifted students" means those students in public elementary, middle, and secondary schools

beginning with kindergarten through twelfth grade who demonstrate high levels of

accomplishment or who show the potential for higher levels of accomplishment when

compared

to others of the same age, experience, or environment. Their aptitudes and potential for

accomplishment are so outstanding that they require special programs to meet their

educational

needs.

Source: www.doe.virginia.gov/instruction/gifted_ed/ed.../va_plan_gifted.pdf

ACCORDING TO OUR TEXT

“There is no one definition of ‘gifted,’ ‘talented,’ or ‘giftedness,’”

((Davis, Rimm, and Siegle, 2011, p. 17)

This is based on the facts that terms professionals have used to

define giftedness are often inconsistent ((Davis, Rimm, and Siegle,

2011))

Citation:

Davis, G. A. D. , Rimm, S. B. R. , & Siegle, D. S. (2011). Education of the gifted and

talented. Prentice Hall.

ACCORDING TO OTHERS

Terman (1926): Top 1% of the population in terms of intelligence.

Marland (1972): Those identified by professionally qualified

persons who by virtue of outstanding abilities are capable of high

performance.

Star Model (Tannenbaum): Potential exists for potentially gifted

students to become gifted adults. This depends on these five

elements: superior general intellect, distinctive special aptitudes, a

supportive array of non-intellective traits, a challenging and

facilitative environment, and chance.

ACCORDING TO OTHERS

Renzulli’s Three Ring Model (1978): Giftedness is

based on clusters of human traits: above average

ability, task commitment, and creativity.

ACCORDING TO OTHERS

Multiple Intelligences (Gardner, 1983): No longer

“how smart are you?” but instead, “how are you

smart?

Gardern’s Domains of Intelligence are:

Verbal/Linguistic, Logical/Mathematical,

Visual/Spatial, Musical/Rhythmic, Bodily/Kinesthetic,

Interpersonal, Intrapersonal, and Naturalist

ACCORDING TO OTHERS

Gardner cont’d.

*In 2002 Existential was also added to this list by

some theorists, though Gardner writes that while he is

not invalidating it, he is concerned with the “ultimate”

issues that come into this intelligence, namely the

significance of life (Gardner, 1999).

Source: Gardner, Howard. (1999). Intelligence reframed: Multiple

intelligences for the 21st century. New York, NY. Basic Books.

ACCORDING TO OTHERS

National Excellence: A Case for Developing America’s

Talent (1993):

To counter negatives for students with outstanding talents

and to improve education for all of America's students,

schools must:

• Expand effective education programs and

incorporate more advanced materials into the

regular school program;

• Provide all students with opportunities to solve

problems, analyze materials and situations, and

learn from real-life experiences;

ACCORDING TO OTHERS

• Identify students who need individual or special

opportunities, using test data only as appropriate;

• Serve students identified as having outstanding talent in

many places--the regular classroom, a special class, the

community, at a university or a museum, in front of a

computer, or anywhere the opportunity meets the need; and

• Create flexible schools that enable all students, including

the most able, to be grouped and regrouped according to

their needs and interests.

Source: National Excellence: A Case for Developing America's

Talent - October 1993

SITES TO EXPLORE

National Association for Gifted Children: http://

www.nagc.org/index.aspx?id=574

IMPLICATIONS FOR GIFTED IDENTIFICATION

Federally, there are two “fundamental aims for gifted

programs: to help individual gifted and talented students

develop their high potential and to provide society with

educated professionals who are creative leaders and

problem solvers” (Davis, Rimm, and Siegle, 2011, p. 18)