The contemporary interest in the pursuit of excellence in education is derived from a long tradition of efforts to provide special schooling defined as excellent. In the current movement, excellence, though ambiguously defined and political in nature, denotes a necessary separation among people and in its subtle trappings of class, contains…

In these opening remarks to a 1984 International Conference on Education for the Gifted at the University of Stellenbosch, Union of South Africa, the Director-General of National Education summarizes the South African Government's approach to programs for gifted education. The diversity and complexity of the South African population calls for a…

Educational policymakers in many countries have been and continue to be faced with the difficulty of reconciling the principle of equal educational opportunity for all students with the provision of differential programming for gifted students, which is often perceived as elitist. This dilemma mirrors the sociopolitical conflict between emphasis…

The Montana state director of gifted education suggests using the term "high ability/high potential" to avoid misconceptions about gifted education; raising awareness of students' need to be challenged; countering charges of elitism; using varied identification procedures; ensuring fairness in the identification process; using a research-based…

Students with special needs are increasingly taught in the least restrictive environment, which often means the general education classroom. Mainstreaming and inclusion provide the most appropriate education for each student in the least restrictive setting, considering the education needs of students rather than their clinical labels. A key…

In Hardin (Montana) schools, where 55% of students are American Indians, the same identification methods are used to identify gifted students among all cultural groups. These methods include nonverbal standardized tests and subjective recommendations based on the Frasier Talent Assessment Profile. Other equitable practices include equal…

A proposed model for the process of placement of exceptional (handicapped and gifted) children is described in terms of historical, ethical, procedural, and legal aspects. It is noted that historically IQ scores served as the main placement criterion. Stressed in the proposed model is the right of all children to an appropriate education and the…

This paper addresses the problem of identifying and developing talent in children from culturally different backgrounds in New Zealand. The paper offers examples of how even applying the recommended "best practice" of multi-dimensional identification approaches can be inadequate for identifying gifted children from Maori, Polynesian, or…

Two concepts have been confused: equality of opportunity and equality of ability, which has led us to link intellectual giftedness with elitism. This linkage undercuts the ability to nurture and benefit from the gifts of the gifted, an important issue in rural places experiencing either withering economies and loss of population or an influx of…

This paper examines coercive egalitarianism as it relates specifically to gifted education. Deliberate underachievement is seen to result from this egalitarianism which has arisen as a result of overriding concerns with creating equity among students. Additionally, envy by other students results in their attempting to compromise those advantages…

This paper examines the issue of disproportion and related controversies of ethnic representation within exceptionalities in special education programs using 1993-94 data on African-American and White students from a southern state. The study defined a significant disproportion as an ethnic representation in a disability category which exceeded 10…

A study compared the attitudes of 91 regular teachers, 124 second year pre-service teachers, and 91 gifted program teachers from Finland and the United States toward gifted children and gifted programs. Results indicated significant differences between cultures and among teacher types. American teachers were more favorable toward special services…

Discusses research on identifying underrepresentation of minority students in gifted education programs; intelligences and talents that are not identified by IQ tests; expanded strategies for finding talent; 10 guidelines for finding and serving gifted African-American students; and the social, cultural, and psychological needs of gifted…

Written from the perspective of a state director of special education, the paper identifies and discusses accomplishments in special education during the 10 years since the Education for All Handicapped Children Act (P.L. 94-142) was enacted, current problems and issues, and future challenges within the following key areas of change: (1) access to…