The Evolving Definition of Giftedness
The definition of giftedness has always been controversial. In recent years, authorities have continued to explore the meaning of the word.
There is a growing body of evidence that suggests giftedness is not static. Instead, gifted behaviors can appear at different points in one’s life, and once in evidence may or may not continue. Rather than thinking about whether a student is “gifted” or not, we should focus on subject-specific programming options that meet advanced learning needs. The more options that are available to support gifted development, the greater the chances that child's learning needs will be met.
Some individuals may have pre-dispositions towards high abilities, which can be nurtured through the environment. In addition to nurturing these pre-dispositions, we also need to foster gifted-level development more broadly in more diverse learners. Both agendas are essential, and we shouldn’t choose one or the other.
Giftedness is developed in three stages:
- Helping students to fall in love with the topic or area
- Providing advanced skills and knowledge of the topic or area and sharing the values associated with it
- Coaching to help refine individual voice and contribution
There is much research that should still be done as we try to understand the definition of giftedness. We need to ask:
- How and why do some young children teach themselves to read?
- How does a prodigy's brain develop?
- What happens when a young person has intense instruction or when a strong ability is ignored?
There should be also be more longitudinal studies of talent development in specific domains and intervention studies of effective instruction and programming in each of those domains.
The Development of Giftedness and Talent Across the Life Span discusses important variables that affect functioning, including:
- ethnic minority status and how it can be both an advantage and disadvantage in talent development.
- the role of social skills in successful expression of talent.