This research aims to describe the impact of distance education, which is formed by a deceleration of formal education during the Covid-19 process, on gifted children. The research is patterned by the basic qualitative research method. Among the purposeful sampling methods, criteria sampling and snowball sampling methods were used as base while determining the participants. The research participants consist of the parents of the elementary school students who were diagnosed with superior ability and are present in formal education. Research data were collected by structured interview form. The data obtained were analyzed descriptively. Although the findings of the study indicate that the formal education process is more efficient, it has been observed that the curfew affects the students the most negatively. There are also views supporting that the process is beneficial in terms of socialization and self-development. Other findings are included in the research findings.
In this study, it was aimed to examine the relationships between creative imagination and intelligence and to test the threshold hypothesis with younger students. The sample included 492 students aged 5-7 years. The Anadolu Sak Intelligence Scale was used to measure intelligence and Creative Imagination Cards were used to measure creativity. Firstly the relationship between intelligence and creative imagination scores were analyzed, and then the correlation values of the lower and upper groups were compared. To determine the threshold at other IQ levels, different from 120 IQ, segmented regression analysis were performed. A weak relationship was found between intelligence and creative imagination. The results showed that the threshold theory was not supported in younger children. Even, according to the segmented regression analysis, inverse threshold effect was observed between creative imagination scores and general intelligence scores around 120 IQ. This is interpreted as the fact that in contrast to the threshold hypothesis, intelligence level above the 120 IQ, provides an advantage in the creative imagination process for young age groups.
This research has two interrelated aims. The first aim of the research is to present the relationship between the Speed Based Verbal Reasoning (SBVR) subtest, which calculates reasoning speed by adjusting the Anadolu-Sak Intelligence Scale (ASIS) Verbal Reasoning (VR) subtest, and the CAS 2 intelligence scale and RIAS-2 intelligence scale speed subtests. The second aim of the research is to examine the reliability of the SBVR subtest, the item-total correlations and its relationship to the ASIS index scores. The research employed a correlational survey model and the study sample consisted of 211 students aged 6 to 7. The reliability of the SBVR subtest was found to be high (α =.84). However, we found that there is a small level relationship between SBVR and speed variables (rHDSAM-SPS =-.16, rHDSAM-PNM =.18, rHDSAM-ND =.21 and rHDSAM-SNT =.20), a moderate level (r =.35) relationship with the memory capacity index, and a moderate level (r=.31) and significant relationship with the nonverbal potential index. The research demonstrates the discrepancy between the reasoning speed and the perceptual speed.
This study aims to compare the psychometric properties of recognition and recall task measurements and to examine their relationships with other higher-order thinking skills. Memory measurements made with recognition and recall tasks were based on the Visual Span Memory (VSM) subtest of the ASIS intelligence scale. The participants of the study consisted of 228 students attending first and second grade in a primary school in the city center of Eskişehir. The data were collected by administering the recognition and recall task forms to the students individually. The findings reveal a statistically significant difference between the average scores of recall and recognition tasks. The mean scores of the recognition task measurements are significantly higher than the mean scores of the recall task measurements (t(227) = 5.79, p <0.01; Cohen d = 0.435, Cohen dz = 0.38). In addition, there is a significant difference between the reliability coefficients of recognition and recall task score in favor of the recall task score (χ2(1) = 6.181, p <.02). It was also found that the mean item-total correlations of the recall task measurements (r=.41) were higher than the recognition task measurements (r=.27), and the item-total correlations of the 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 11th, and 14th items differed significantly in favor of the recall task measurements. The correlation of the recall task score with the other 5 subtests in the ASIS intelligence scale was higher than that of the recognition task score. The findings show that the psychometric properties of the measurement performed with the recall task are stronger.
In this study, the criterion validity of the Anadolu-Sak Intelligence Scale (ASIS) was examined within the scope of the identification system of Education Programs for Talented Students (EPTS). The research participant consisted of 153 students. 30 of them were mathematically and scientifically gifted and 123 were non-gifted by the EPTS identification system. Intelligence scores were obtained by ASIS and talent and creativity scores were obtained by Math Ability Test (MAT) and Creative Scientific Ability Test (CSAT). Findings of the study showed that gifted group’s ASIS scores were significantly higher than the non-gifted group’s scores. Participants were divided into three groups (upper 27% middle 46% lower 27%) according EPTS scores and significant differences were found between the average intelligence scores of these three groups [(F(2.128) = 49.361, p< .001; Ƞ2 = 0.435]. To examine the predictive validity of the ASIS, binary logistic regression analysis was conducted and the model correctly classified 84.3% of the participants as gifted and non-gifted. For the ASIS’s concurrent validity significant correlation coefficients were found between the ASIS scores and EPTS, MAT and CSAT scores (rEPTS = .77; rMAT = .72; rCSAT = .55; p <.001). As a result of research findings it can be concluded that ASIS has satisfying criterion validity.
An evaluation of the history of countries' education in helps us better understand the present and develop better future policies. In this study, the decisions taken on the education of special talents in the congresses of the National Education in Turkey held since the establishment of the Republic were critically evaluated. Document analysis, one of the qualitative research methods, was used. In this context, a total of nineteen councils were examined. As a result of the study, it was found that that there were studies for children in need of special education in the multiparty period and it was seen that detailed decisions regarding the education of talented individuals came forward after 2000s as a result of the developments in the world and the reflection of these developments to Turkey and the importance of the issue. Looking at the implementation of the recommendations of the decisions, it was seen that some decisions were applied, some decisions do not continue. Finally, when we look at the agenda items for the education of talented individuals in past councils, it was seen that it is not sustainable, it is more person-focused than system-oriented, and it is shaped according to government policies
This study evaluated the impact of a debate intervention on students’ critical thinking. The design-based research project included a quasi-experimental, one group pre-test, post-test design. Results indicated small effect sizes on critical thinking using the Cornell Critical Thinking Test-Level X (d = 0.40) and an assessment of argument analysis (d = 0.41). High-ability students entered the project with stronger critical thinking than general-education students (d = .82; d = .41), and high-ability students appeared to benefit more from the intervention as the performance gaps increased in the post-test phase (d = 1.08; d = .80) suggesting possible aptitude-treatment interactions or the Matthew effect. Qualitative data indicated that students learned to (a) think on the spot, (b) analyze arguments, (c) see other perspectives, and (d) construct counter-arguments. This study corroborates previous research that indicated a relationship between high ability and critical thinking.
Investigated were differences between teachers’ and students’ perceptions of curriculum differentiation strategies to extend highly able students in mixedability secondary science classes. Gifted underachievement and disengagement is increasing in Australian schools, potentially linked to these perception differences regarding curriculum differentiation. 161, Year 7 students, aged aproximately 11 years (n = 29 highly able; n = 132 non-highly able), and 43 science-trained teachers were surveyed. Examined were students’ and teachers’ perceptions of the importance and achievability of 24 curriculum differentiation strategies, within the curriculum components of content, process, product, and environment. Significant dissimilarities occurred regarding curriculum differentiation strategies having been achieved at least once during every work unit. In particular, some strategies requiring modification of the learning environment were considered by highly able students to be significantly less frequently achieved, compared to teachers’ perceptions. Implications for policy and practice were explored. Further research of curriculum differentiation that includes students’ perspectives is required.
After repeatedly observing the little boy crying on the school bus, Melanie, a fifth grade student, took a seat next to him and struck up a conversation. “You don’t understand,” said Tony, a first grader whose face was practically hidden behind the thickest eyeglasses Melanie had ever seen. “You see these glasses? I’m partially sighted. The kids trip me and make fun of me; I have special books for my subjects, but there are no books in the library that I can read. ”Later that day Melanie approached her enrichment teacher and asked if she could make Tony her “Type III” Project [Type III Enrichment in The Enrichment Triad Model (Renzulli, 1977, p.22) is a self-selected individual or small group investigation of a real problem] for the year. Over the next several days, Melanie and the enrichment teacher drew up a plan that began with some “friendly persuasion” for the boys that were harassing Tony. A few of the school’s bigger, well-respected boys and girls escorted him from the school bus and sat with him in the lunchroom. Melanie then asked Tony a series of questions from an instrument called the Interest-A-Lyzer to determine what some of his reading interests might be. She recruited a number of the school’s best writers to work on large print "big books” that dealt with Tony’s interests in sports and adventure stories. She also recruited the school’s best artists to illustrate the books, and served as the editor and production manager for the series. As the project progressed over the next several months, a remarkable change took place in Tony’s attitude toward school. He became a local celebrity, and other students even signed out books from Tony’s special section of the library. Melanie’s creative idea and her task commitment resulted in the development of profound empathy and sensitivity to human concerns and the application of her talents to an unselfish cause. When questioned about her work, Melanie explained simply, “It didn’t change the world, but it changed the world of one little boy."
This study aimed at analyzing creative problem-solving (CPS) styles of gifted and talented students. The study was conducted as a quantitative study. The study group of the research consisted of 151 students 77 girls (51%); 74 boys (49%) who were enrolled in science and art centers in Ankara in the 2019-2020 academic year. Sixty-five (43%) of students were talented in academics, 44 (29%) talented in music, and 42 (28%) talented in the arts. Data for this study were collected using the "Creative Problem Solving Styles Inventory". Data were analyzed using χ2 (chi-square) test, Cramer's V coefficient and descriptive statistics. Findings of the study showed that gifted and talented students in the process of the CPS preferred conceptualizer style, generator style, optimizer style, and implementer style respectively. No relation was found between students' CPS styles and their gender. Students' CPS styles differed according to their talent areas (general-music-art).
This study employed qualitative research method. A semi-structured interview was conducted with science teachers. Opinions of the science teachers in Science and Art Centers were taken for the evaluation of gifted students. The data obtained as a result of the interviews were analyzed by content analysis method. Teachers expressed a common view that the lessons were productive when they were acted on according to students’ interests. In addition, the teaching methods and assessment tools used by the science teachers in their courses are important for the recognition of gifted students. According to the opinions of the teachers, it was determined that no specific measurement and evaluation were made for gifted students but alternative measurements and evaluation methods were used to measure the development of gifted students.
Gifted education as we know and practice is by and large the product of early 20th century. In this paper, I am arguing for a paradigm shift in gifted education to make it more responsive to the challenges of the 21st century, as well as new opportunities for optimal development of many children and adolescents, rather than exclusively focusing on the identified and selected few (often in a once-and-for-all fashion). This argument is based on the preponderance of evidence that human potential is widely distributed in a population, and highly pluralistic and dynamic, not amenable to a uniform formula that fits everyone into a Procrustean Bed of giftedness with the assumption of its homogeneity and permanence (Dai, 2016a). I elaborate on what it takes to make such a shift in terms of four W questions: What, Why, Who, and How. I argue that by envisioning a broader agenda of gifted education, gifted education can be made more equitable and productive. At the social and organizational level, with appropriate centralized control, more locally initiated education and development efforts can be harnessed to build a distributed network system of support that is more responsive to needs for advanced learning, talent development, and excellence in the 21st century
Many developed countries, especially United States, United Kingdom, South Korea and Germany, attach great importance to the education of gifted students. Numerous studies have been carried out in these countries and different models have been developed. In the Netherlands, in addition to the state-owned “normal” primary schools, there are alternative schools in which different models of education are applied. In these alternative schools where Montessori, Leonardo, Jenaplan or Dalton models are applied, gifted students can find more individual work opportunities than normal schools. In this study, the Leonardo model developed for gifted students in the Netherlands was examined. The information obtained for this study includes books, theses, and articles: 1) Education in Leonardo model, 2) Application procedure to Leonardo schools, 3) Curriculum in Leonardo model, 4) Characteristics of Leonardo instructors, 5) Researches about Leonardo model, 6) Criticism of Leonardo model
The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the training and the behavioral guiding provided to classroom teachers to enable them with the positive behavioral support based preventive classroom management skills to improve problem behaviors of gifted students out of the classroom environment. The study is an action research. It included following processes: determining the problem area; gathering, analyzing and evaluating data; making an action plan; and applying and evaluating the plan. According to the results, behavioral guiding provided to teachers for applying positive behavioral support-based preventive classroom management skills was effective in improving teachers’ classroom management skills. Moreover, improved skills of teachers at the end of the behavioral support guiding was more effective on the positive and problem behaviors of students.
Gifted students may experience psychosocial difficulties. One of the therapeutic tools that, can be used by counselors in supporting them by taking their interest and skill in reading book into consideration, is bibliotherapy. It reflects using literature for helping children to overcome their problems. Choosing the appropriate book for bibliotherapy is crucial point to make the process productive. Research on the books that can be used through bibliotherapy with gifted students seems to be limited; led this study. This study examined three books in terms of the content regarding psychosocial difficulties experienced by gifted students and their appropriateness for bibliotherapy applications for gifted children at primary school level. The outstanding contents in the books were relationship problems, labeling and loneliness, difficulties with self / identity development, and perfectionism. According to results, the books included contents regarding the difficulties that gifted students might experience; hence could be used with gifted students by counselors.
Selective Problem Solving (SPS) was a model for teaching creative problem solving. The purpose of the SPS is to develop creative thinking and problem solving ability. The aim of this research was to investigate gifted and non-gifted students’ satisfaction about its use in mathematics. The research was conducted with 74 seventh-grade gifted and average-ability students in Eskisehir. The SPS Satisfaction Scale was administered to students after they participated eight sessions of Math class during which the SPS model was used to differentiate the math curriculum. The results showed that both group had a high level of satisfaction about the use of SPS in their math classes. There was not a significant difference between gifted and average-ability students’ perceptions. Gender did not make a difference. Satisfaction levels of both groups were significantly above the test value
The sense of humor is formed during childhood, but it differs from child to child. This difference stem from variations in linguistic, mental and social development. The aim of this study was to examine the sense of humor of children who were attending a gifted education center and to compare their humor characteristics with normal children. In the study, the “Multidimensional Sense of Humour Scale for Children” was used to collect data. The research findings revealed that age, gender and parents’ educational status did not make a difference in humor in children. Liking humour, coping with humour and understanding humour in gifted children were significantly higher than in normal children
Researchers of current study hypothesized that selfregulated learning is a convenient tool to enhance creativity since both serve to autonomous learning and self-actualization. In this respect, the aim of the study was to investigate the effect of self-regulated learning on enhancing creative thinking skills. An experimental design with a control group was used in this study. A total of 14 participants were assigned to receive the experimental training. The same number of participants was assigned to the control group. A unique program developed by the researchers combined SCAMPER and self-regulated learning technique was used in the experimental group. Only SCAMPER was used in the control group. The findings of the study revealed that self-regulated learning was effective to teach SCAMPER
Parents often experience challenges in their communication with their gifted children because gifted children have extraordinary needs. The purpose of this experimental study was to examine the effect of a psycho-educational program on the communication between parents and their gifted children. The study involved thirty-two parents of gifted students who were enrolled in a private school. The experimental group received a six-week psycho-educational training program. The Parent-Child Communication Scale and Afat Parent Awareness Scale were used to collect data. Findings showed that the training program had an impact on the quality of communication between parents and their gifted children in the experimental group. Parents in the control group did not demonstrate a similar improvement.
The purpose of this study was to investigate Turkish pre-service elementary school teachers’ reasons for including or not including a student to gifted education programs through eleven profiles (hypotethical scenarios) originally created by five American experts in the field of gifted education. The original profiles were translated and adapted to be more relevant to Turkish culture. These profiles were named “Student Profiles Survey” in this study. The profiles were varied based on characteristics embedded in each profile and I was able to create eight versions (piles) of the Student Profiles Survey. The data of this study was derived from a bigger study. Only qualitative part of the bigger data set was reported in this study. Participants of the study were 16 Turkish pre-service elementary school teachers who were attending two colleges of Education at a university located in Southeast of Turkey. After filling the survey, Turkish pre-service teachers were interviewed to explain their reasons to include/ not include the students in the survey to gifted education programs. Turkish pre-service elementary school teachers explained their reasons for including the students in the profiles to gifted education programs mostly based on the personal, academic, and social characteristics of the students embedded in the profiles but they did not often referred students’ characteristics when they were explaining their reasons for exclusion. Rather than explaining their reasons based on characteristics of the students, Turkish pre-service teachers increased their expectations and created excuses to underestimate the potentials of the students in the profiles when they were asked to explain their reasons for exclusion.
