In response to the article, "Rethinking Giftedness and Gifted Education: A Proposed Direction Forward Based on Psychological Science," by Subotnik, Olszewski-Kubilius, and Worrell (2011), several questions arise with regard to the psychosocial needs of gifted individuals: What are the most important psychosocial variables we should take into…

In this article, the authors respond to the eight commentaries on "Rethinking Giftedness and Gifted Education: A Proposed Direction Forward Based on Psychological Science" using several themes to organize their response. These themes include ability, developmental trajectories, effort and opportunity, psychosocial factors, eminence, and equity.…

We were thrilled to see an article focusing on giftedness, written by such thoughtful and well-respected researchers as Subotnik, Olszewski-Kubilius, and Worrell (2011). The expansive scope of their synthesis is so impressive that it could serve as a crash course introduction to gifted education. In our commentary, we focus specifically on the…

Empirical and clinical literatures have challenged the myth that gifted students do not have unique social and emotional concerns. When this myth prevails, pertinent concerns are not recognized and addressed formally or informally, proactively or reactively. Educators, parents, coaches, and even counselors may miss indications of distress. Lack of…

The proposal of Subotnik, Olszewski-Kubilius, and Worrell (2011) on rethinking giftedness and gifted education has a number of implications from an occupational/career decision-making perspective. In this examination of their ideas, consideration is given to the literature in vocational psychology/career development, the emerging findings on the…

The evolution of several interrelated myths reflects a combination of misinterpretation of statistics, the commendable intention of ensuring that bias and prejudice do not play roles in the provision of services to underrepresented populations of gifted students, and misapplication of programming options for gifted students. Separately, these…

Curriculum myths rise and fall based on contemporary educational and societal contexts. Twenty-five years after the first discussion about the myth of a single curriculum for the gifted, the myth is still prevalent. Its viability as a myth is a consequence of the current educational climate rather than empirical evidence that is gathered and used…

Just as in 1982, when the myth of waiting for Santa Claus was first addressed in "Gifted Child Quarterly," many districts all over the country are still waiting for Santa Claus to arrive with a sleigh full of presents. Unfortunately, Santa and his presents in the form of mandates to identify and serve, funding, teachers licensed in…

With most gifted students being educated in a mainstream model of education, the prevailing myth that the regular classroom teacher can "go it alone" and the companion myth that the teacher can provide for the education of gifted students through differentiation are alive and well. In reality, the regular classroom teacher is too often concerned…

Examination of the child prodigy phenomenon suggests it is a result of extremely accelerated mental development during sensitive periods that leads to the rapid growth of a child's cognitive resources and their construction into specific exceptional achievements. (Author/DB)

This response to an article regarding the tension between talent development and personal growth in gifted education argues that dissociation of these two aspects is conditional, not a constant state of affairs. Contingencies and processes responsible for the dissociation are identified and ways to integrated these two perspectives are discussed.…

Attitudes of teachers regarding inservice and staff development focused on gifted/talented students range from negative to hostile. Research and programs which encourage the development of effective inservice and staff development and which motivate teachers to be receptive and positive about developing skills to identify and teach gifted students…

In this interview with Dr. A. Harry Passow conducted in April 1991, he addresses the development of the Talented Youth Project, the need for both equity and excellence in education, ability grouping, and the need to train regular education teachers to create quality education programs for all students. (CR)

The Multiple Menu Model is a practical set of planning guides that can assist developers of curriculum for gifted students to combine content with instructional strategies. Planning menus in the areas of knowledge, instructional objectives, student activities, instructional strategies, instructional sequences, and artistic modification and a…

This article presents a general theory for developing creative productivity in young learners by examining interactions among: the learner (abilities, interests, learning styles); the curriculum (content and methodology of a discipline, structure of a discipline, appeal to the imagination); and the teacher (knowledge of the discipline,…