Likenesses and Differences of Gifted Special Populations
The purpose of this section is to identify core attributes associated with giftedness in order to provide a better base of understanding in recognizing, identifying, and planning programs for gifted students from minority and economically disadvantaged families and areas.
Several studies have been conducted in an effort to identify the characteristics of giftedness common to gifted students regardless of cultural and economic differences. The themes of these studies and reports are concerned with personality variables, motivation to achieve, cognitive attributes, and other behavioral descriptions.
The ultimate goal of gifted education is to recognize, as early as possible, those students who show potential for exceptional performance as adults, and to provide them with the specialized instruction necessary to develop that potential. A common belief throughout these studies is that students who possess this potential for exceptional performance are present in every segment of our society. Yet, gifted and talented students from minority populations who are English Language Learners (ELL) or who come from economically disadvantaged families and areas are underrepresented in gifted programs.
Why are these students underrepresented in programs? Some researchers have theorized that it’s:
- The inability of educators to recognize their display of “gifted behaviors” (Bermudez & Rakow, 1990; Howley & Howley, 1990).
- An attitude by parents and teachers alike, that giftedness could not exist in this population (Clark, 1992).
- The emphasis placed on remediation rather than development of talent (Callahan & McIntire, 1994).
Race, ethnicity, culture, minority group status, low socioeconomic status (SES), handicapped status, preschool and primary age, and gender have all been used to label students who are underrepresented or underserved in gifted programs. However, because students from low socioeconomic families, African American, Native American, and Hispanic cultures have been, and continue to be, the most prominent subjects when underrepresentation in gifted programs is discussed, these are the students addressed first when looking to compare and contrast their gifted characteristics to those of majority, middle/upper class gifted students. It’s important to note that labels such as minority, culturally different, and economically disadvantaged are frequently used interchangeably in the literature and in practice to refer to students who are the target population of this section.