Giftedness, Gifted Education

The concept of giftedness was historically linked to the concepts of high achieving and, more specifically, genius. This understanding was formed around the turn of the century with the introduction of tests designed to measure intelligence. Individuals who scored high on the scale were considered geniuses. The use of intelligence tests as the determinant of giftedness has been criticized in recent years because tests are often biased in favor of the white middle class and because they penalize children with differing linguistic styles. Researchers have adapted a broader set of definitions beyond intellectual ability, including creativity, memory, motivation, physical dexterity, social adeptness, and aesthetic sensitivity. When approaching the study of giftedness and gifted education, an examination of the problems related to gifted individuals is also in order.

Education was not organized in a systematic way until 1840–1850. In the early 1900s, the general public became interested in adapting education to individuals with more or less than average abilities. Alfred Binet was commissioned to develop a test to measure an individual's “judgment” or “mental age” to screen out children who would not benefit from a general education. His overall concept revolved around the notion that intelligence is educable—that it can be learned, expanded, and improved. In 1916, Lewis Terman took Binet's test to Stanford University to standardize it. Terman used the Stanford-Binet test to identify gifted children, and during the 1920s identified over 1,500 children with IQs of 140 or higher. In the general public, the average IQ is 100. Terman's subjects averaged an IQ of 150.

Terman was the first to use the term gifted for people who were highly productive, well rounded, well liked, and often chosen as leaders. It is often difficult to determine who is gifted because the definition means different things to different people. In 1972, the Maryland Report contained a definition of giftedness that has been and continues to be one of the most widely adopted definitions by state and local education agencies. The report states that gifted and talented children are those identified by professionally qualified persons who, by virtue of outstanding abilities, are capable of high performance. These children require differential educational programs and/or services beyond those provided by the regular school program in order to realize their contribution to self and society. Other definitions of giftedness are listed below.

• Lewis Terman: The top 1% level in general intelligence ability as measured by the Stanford-Binet Intelligence Scale or a comparable instrument are gifted.
• Paul Witty: There are children whose outstanding potentialities in art, in writing, or in social leadership can be recognized largely by their performance. Hence we have recommended that the definition of giftedness be expanded, and that we consider any child gifted whose performance in a potentially valuable line of human activity is considered remarkable.
• Joseph Renzulli: Giftedness consists of an interaction among three basic clusters of human traits, these clusters being above average general abilities, high levels of task commitment, and high levels of creativity. Gifted and talented are those who possess or are capable of developing this composite of traits and applying them to any potentially valuable area of human performance.
• John C. Gowan: Gifted means having the potential to be verbally creative, while talented means having the potential to be nonverbally creative.
• Howard Gardner: Belief that there are seven human intelligences:
  • Linguistic: often thinks in words, likes to read and write, learns best by verbalizing or hearing and seeing words
  • Musical: likes to sing or hum along to music, appreciates music, may play a musical instrument, remembers song melodies
  • Logical-Mathematical: thinks conceptually, manipulates the environment in a controlled and orderly way, likes brain teasers, logical puzzles, strategy games, enjoys computers
  • Spatial: thinks in images and pictures, spends time drawing, designing things, using construction toys, is fascinated with machines
  • Bodily-Kinesthetic: has athletic abilities or dancing skills, may be good at typing, sewing, or carving
  • Interpersonal: understands people, is a leader, is good at mediating when his or her friends have conflicts
  • Intrapersonal: is deeply aware of his or her own feelings, dreams, and ideas, studies independently, may “march to the beat of a different drummer”

The Maryland Report identified children capable of high performance to include demonstrated achievement and/or potential in any of the following areas singly or in combination: general intellectual ability, specific academic aptitude, creative or productive thinking, leadership ability, visual or performing arts, and psychomotor ability.

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